Not mentioned by the airline, but possibly another factor, is an ongoing boycott by Indian travel agents furious at having had their 5% commission on ticket sales cancelled. The boycott has been going on since the end of last year, and means that anyone in India wishing to travel by SIA can now book only at the SIA offices there, or online. Lufthansa and British Airways, too, are being boycotted for the same reason.

SIA recorded an operating loss of S$271 million for the second quarter, compared with a profit of S$265 million in the the same quarter of 2008. To offset the loss, the airline has instituted a freeze on hiring, stopped paying salary for those on leave, cut wages and postponed “non-essential” projects.

It estimates that the cuts in manpower costs will result in savings of S$60 million in the current financial year.

Part of the pressure on SIA comes from budget airlines, such as AirAsia, which – in contrast – has seen passenger numbers climb 24% to 3.5 million in the past year. Profits, too, have risen, to RM657 million, an increase of 8%, despite fares being cut by 19% overall.

AirAsia has also seen a hefty rise in ancillary income, to the point where inflight sales of drinks, meals and merchandise now represent 14.5% of passengers’ spending.

Even AirAsia is not without its troubles, however – it could face sanctions for an incident on August 9, when the airline rescheduled a flight from Polonia Airport in Medan, Indonesia, from 7:10pm to 11am the next day. Furious passengers rioted, vandalising airport facilities.

It was not the first time an AirAsia flight had been postponed. Polonia Airport manager Rajali
Abubakar was quoted in the Jakarta Post as saying that the airline regularly postponed flights, leaving
passengers stranded at the airport for hours.

The EC3 assessment team noted the hotel’s positive commitment to maintain and improve performance in all indicators, particularly energy consumption, potable water consumption and waste sent to landfill.

The benchmarking exercise was conducted from May 2008-April 2009.

Only four other hotels in Singapore have received Green Globe certification – InterContinental Singapore, Holiday Inn Park View and Holiday Inn Atrium, and the Novotel Clarke Quay.

“Crowne Plaza Changi Airport has evolved very much along environmental lines. The hotel design makes the most of natural sunlight, recycled materials were used in its construction and we make every effort to reduce our impact with the use of non-hazardous cleaning materials,” said the hotel’s General Manager, Mark Winterton.

“To receive the EC3 benchmark is something of an achievement for a new hotel and provides a great incentive for us to keep on improving, reducing our impact on the environment under EC3’s highly credible benchmarking procedures,” he added.

EC3 Global is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre (STCRC), which is owned by 16 of Australia’s leading universities.

It was established under the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Programme in l987 to underpin the development of a dynamic, internationally competitive, and sustainable tourism industry and draws on research from over 250 tourism and environmental sustainability leaders.

Worldwide, only 400 hotels have received the EC3 seal of approval.

Crowne Plaza Changi Airport has also been recognized by BCA Green Mark.

Launched in 2005, the BCA Green Mark Scheme is a strategic program aimed at raising the awareness of sustainable and environmentally friendly buildings. It evaluates buildings for their environmental impact and performance. The benefits of Green Mark buildings include cost savings from efficient use of key resources such as energy and water, leading to lower operation and maintenance costs. Other less tangible benefits include enhanced occupant productivity and health due to good indoor environmental quality.

“The company has said on previous occasions that it is targeting an early 2010 opening for its Marina Bay Sands integrated resort in Singapore. That plan remains the same, and although we do not have an exact date, we are making every effort to open the property by February 15, 2010.

The company is working closely with the Singapore government to confirm the opening date and to finalize an opening plan for each of the development’s various attractions.

While we wish construction scheduling would have allowed us to open by the end of 2009, we strongly believe that if things remain according to plan, Phase I of the property, which will include approximately 1,000 hotel rooms, the casino, the bulk of the MICE facilities, a variety of restaurants, and 50 percent of the retail space, will open some time between the last week of January and the last week of February.

Phase II which includes the remainder of the hotel rooms and retail space, and the Sands Skypark(TM), would open by the end of April 2010. Phase III, which features the remainder of the attractions, including the theatres and museum, will open throughout the rest of the year.

The Las Vegas, Nevada-based Las Vegas Sands Corp. owns and operates The Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino, The Palazzo Resort-Hotel-Casino, and the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas and the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem(TM) in Eastern Pennsylvania. The company also owns and operates The Venetian Macao Resort-Hotel and the Sands Macao in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Special Administrative Region of Macao.

The Radisson Royal Hotel, Moscow is located right in the city centre – on a bow of the Moskva River at the conjunction of Kutuzovsky Prospect and Novy Arbat, two of the city’s most prestigious commercial thoroughfares. Within close walking distance from the property there are many notable locations such as the House of Government of the Russian Federation (Russian White House) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Red Square, flanked by the walls of the Kremlin, is within comfortable reach of the Hotel, and Moscow’s international airports are easily accessible with the main railway terminal to Vnukovo Airport just a few hundred metres away.

The property forms part of the legendary “Seven Sisters” – the Soviet skyscrapers based on an idea of Stalin and built in Soviet neo-classicism architectural style between 1949 and 1957. Designed by the leading Soviet architects Arkady Mordvinov and Vyacheslav Oltarzhevsky the monumental 34-storey-building is 206 meters high (including a spire which measures 73 metres) – the largest European hotel of its day. To make such an impressive accomplishment possible Soviet architects studied the engineering techniques used to erect Manhattan’s skyscrapers. All in all approximately 2,000 architects, engineers and artisans were co-opted to lay out the details of this grandiose project. Starting from the late 50’s only the most renowned citizens and guests of the Soviet Union were rewarded with stays at the hotel while visiting Moscow.

The classical and elegant interiors are now being refurbished and equipped with state-of-the-art technologies; each of the 507 rooms and suites as well as 38 furnished serviced apartments with kitchenettes designated for extended rentals, with guestrooms averaging 32 sqm and suites ranging in size from 50 up to 260 square metres will offer Radisson signature services such as free high speed internet access. A further highlight is the hotel’s art collection of about 1,000 original paintings by the most prominent artists of the socialist realism period. Complimenting the unique art collection are several monumental murals and ceiling frescoes located in the public areas of the hotel.

The Radisson Royal Hotel, Moscow will offer four restaurants: a breakfast restaurant, a Russian restaurant, a fine dining restaurant with summer terrace operated by the renowned Russian restaurateur Arkady Novikov presenting French haute cuisine and Asian menus, and a further specialty venue on the 30th and 31st floors comprising an Italian gourmet restaurant and sophisticated Japanese restaurant. A bar on the 31st floor with breathtaking views over Moscow is bound to become a favourite place for the city’s “in” crowd.

For meetings and events the hotel will offer a top modern conference centre for up to 1,000 guests; comprising nine meeting rooms, a ballroom of almost 450 square metres, a business centre, and a library. The Wellness Centre & SPA will feature a total surface of 4,000 square metres and include a 50 metre 6 lane swimming pool, Jacuzzis, a Turkish bath, a Finnish sauna, extensive fitness facilities, a spa, and a dedicated kid’s club. A luxury boutique gallery will host outlets for world class fashion and jewellery brands, and five high-end river cruise liners with restaurants which have been exclusively designed for the hotel will provide a unique opportunity to take a culinary boat trip in the heart of Moscow.

Mercure Samui Buri Resort marks Accor’s first mid-scale hotel on the island. The hotel is situated on the secluded northern Maenam Beach, a beach that remains a secret paradise. The waters are calm and shallow for most of the year, the sandy beach is long, and has stunning vistas of Pha Ngan Island. The location is perfect for couples on a honeymoon or those in need of a relaxing break.

The resort comprises of 56 deluxe rooms and 29 private villas. Each deluxe room has either an ocean view, swimming pool view, or an outdoor terrace with sun lounge and direct access to the pool. The villas are very private and surrounded by tropical gardens with a sundeck leading to a private pool. The design of each villa is influenced by the traditional housing styles of Thailand.

Extensive leisure facilities at the hotel include a fitness centre, a large outdoor pool with a Jacuzzi, tour desk, an Internet lounge, and the hotel provides Thai cooking classes. Business meetings and private functions are conveniently accommodated for up to of 100 people. The hotel also boasts wedding facilities in the function rooms or on the private beach.

On the East of the island is Lamai Beach, the location of Mercure Samui Fenix. Lamai beach is the second largest tourist area of the island and just 25 minutes from the Samui Airport. Whilst the area is quieter, there are many dining and shopping options in the surrounding areas. The hotel borders lush jungle and has access to isolated bays, small local villages, temples, and Hinta Hinyai (the famous rock formations). Local lifestyle can be seen through a number of traditional wooden houses, local stores, and people selling fresh produce from their own farms.

Boasting an idyllic beachfront location the Mercure Samui Fenix has 52 contemporary rooms and 8 villas. All rooms have modern styling and are equipped with large balconies with day beds. Villas are designed to allow a flood of natural light into the room.

The highlight of the hotel’s leisure facilities is the large 600 sqm swimming pool. Other leisure facilities include NEST restaurant, lobby lounge, NEST pool bar, pool deck, and a fitness centre. A small meeting room is also available.

“Samui Island is an ever emerging destination with constant development of infrastructure and facilities appealing to international and domestic tourists. These two Mercure hotels, which portray the quality guaranteed by the Mercure brand, will fulfil demand for quality, internationally managed mid-scale hotels on the Island. We have successfully operated Mercure hotels in other major tourist destinations in Thailand such as Pattaya and Phuket, and we will bring the best of these hotels to the Samui hotel operations.” commented Mr. Oswald Pichler, Accor Vice President – Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.

Istanbul-Toronto flight will depart at 11:30 and arrive at 15:40. Toronto-Istanbul flight will depart at 23:50 and arrive at 17:30.

With this new route Turkish Airlines will operate 117 flight points which currently stands at 151 domestic and international destinations.

‘No Admin Fee’ as it is aptly called, will come into effect for bookings made for all AirAsia and AirAsia X flights from 24th June 2009. From this date, AirAsia.com will display All-In Fares (fare + airport tax) throughout the booking process. This ensures transparency from the advertised price to selecting your flight and paying for it on AirAsia.com

In conjunction with the ‘No Admin Fee’ announcement, AirAsia is launching a regional promo-fare campaign. Many of the promo fares are even cheaper than the airport tax! The promo-fare seats are open for booking from 24 June until 28 June 2009 for travel between 1 October 2009 and 30 April 2010. The promotion is offered exclusively online via AirAsia.com

Promo-fare seats are limited and available on first-come, first-serve basis.

Tony Fernandes, AiAsia Group CEO, said: “At AirAsia, we are continuously ramping up our efforts to give the best to our guests. This will distinguish us from our competitors as we are going the extra mile to live-up to our brand promise to have the lowest fares in the market. Our recent Q1 result showed that there was a surge of over 21% in our passenger growth compared to last year, which goes to prove that people appreciate the true value we offer especially in these difficult times. We will continue our commitment to provide more affordable and transparent air fares for business and leisure travelers. We were the first airline to abolish our fuel surcharge and we are proud to lead again in removing our admin fee.”

“With ‘No Admin Fee’ more people will travel with AirAsia, especially in view of the current economic uncertainties and travel worries. AirAsia as the pioneer of low fares in Asia is always committed to delivering low fares to the people and at the same time ensuring that they enjoy only the best quality service from us. The World’s Best Low Cost Airline award from Skytrax speaks volume of our quality and efficiency,” added Fernandes.

Kathleen Tan, Regional Head of Commercial, AirAsia Berhad commented “The airline which brought you original low fares is taking yet another bold step to excite the demand to travel. The economies of scale are accomplished through our ever increasing route network, fleet and ancillary income and it is further supported by our operational efficiencies. The aviation industry is highly competitive and to remain as a leader in this industry, we have to be constantly creative, bold and dare to take risks. As the low-cost concept matures, we will continue innovating our products and services to travel. With the abolition of the admin fee, our booking engine on AirAsia.com will be simplified for the benefit and convenience of our guests.”

British Airways will support S7 through its 18-month alliance implementation programme, as its oneworld sponsor.

Its addition to oneworld will link one of the most extensive networks covering Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States, with oneworld’s unrivalled global network, as the only alliance including airlines based on every continent.

S7 serves 72 destinations worldwide – 38 of them in Russia. It will add 54 cities to the oneworld map – 35 of them in Russia. It will bring eight countries onto the alliance’s network – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

This will expand oneworld’s network to nearly 750 destinations in almost 150 countries, served by a combined fleet of 2,300 aircraft operating almost 8,500 flights a day, carrying more than 330 million passengers a year.

It is the first carrier in Russia to convert to an all Western-built Airbus and Boeing fleet and the first to adopt full electronic ticketing and on-line reservations and sales. It holds the internationally recognised IOSA (International Air Transport Association Operational Safety Audit) certification, renewed in October 2008.

It offers two-class in-flight product to international standards on all departures – Business Class and Economy.

Its fleet, decorated in a distinctive bright green livery, includes 26 Airbus A320 family types, seven Airbus A310 and two Boeing 767s, with an average age of nine years.

S7 carried 6 million passengers in 2008, with a bigger share of the domestic Russian air travel market than any other airline. Including its international network, it is Russia’s second biggest carrier.

S7’s main hub Moscow Domodedovo – the capital’s most modern airport – is served also by oneworld members American Airlines, British Airways, Iberia, Japan Airlines and Royal Jordanian. Its secondary hubs are Novosibirsk and Irkutsk. Its international destinations include oneworld hubs Madrid and Bangkok.

Besides Moscow Domodedovo, oneworld’s existing members currently serve three other destinations in Russia – Moscow Sheremetyevo, St Petersburg and Yekaterinburg.

In the months ahead, S7 will adapt key internal processes into line with oneworld requirements, link its IT systems to those of its oneworld partners and carry out an extensive employee training and communications programmes to ensure that S7 employees worldwide are ready to provide oneworld’s customer services and benefits from day one.

An exact date will be confirmed for it to join during 2010, once all its pre-joining requirements are sufficiently progressed.

Willie Walsh, Chief Executive of British Airways, S7’s oneworld sponsor, said: “S7 is a perfect fit for oneworld. It has a strong focus on customer service and safety and its network will be able to integrate effectively with the existing oneworld network. oneworld’s priority is the quality rather than quantity of member airlines, which is why British Airways is delighted to be developing our relationship with S7 further by acting as its sponsor into the alliance.”

S7 Chief Executive Vladimir Obyedkov said: “S7 Airlines is delighted to be joining the world’s leading quality global airline alliance. Becoming part of oneworld is one of the most significant steps in S7’s history. It will enable us to offer our customers a truly global network served by partners who include some of the best known and most admired airlines in the world, while our frequent flyers will have more opportunities to earn and redeem mileage rewards and enjoy all their other benefits. It will also strengthen us financially, through revenues from passengers transferring to our network from our oneworld partners and the cost reduction opportunities the alliance offers.”

Guests can now literally “check in” as they “check out”: check into Singapore Airlines or SilkAir flights from a dedicated counter in the lobby of the hotel, at the same time as they check out of their rooms.

The unique new service is operated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) personnel, who take care of check–in baggage and issue boarding passes.

And it complements another of Crowne Plaza Changi Airport’s unique services in which hotel staff meet and greet guests airside as they leave the airbridge, as they arrive in Singapore and assist them through immigration, luggage collection and the short walk to reception and check-in.

“While our meet-and-greet service means that our guests are checked in and relaxing in their rooms while other airline passengers are still in the taxi queue or en route to downtown accommodation, our new airline check-in facility gives guests yet another unique advantage: no heavy luggage and no airport check-in queues. Just a stroll to the departure gate,” said Crowne Plaza Changi Airport’s General Manager, Mark Winterton.

“The CAAS was instrumental in helping us with this initiative, an integral part of an ongoing programme to keep on providing our guests with breakthrough services,” he added.

Flight 9W 572 departed Mumbai at 1900 hrs, and will arrive in Kuwait at 2030 hrs. Flight 9W 571 will then depart Kuwait at 2130 hrs and arrive in Mumbai at 0400 hrs, the following day.

Speaking at a ceremony to launch the inaugural service, Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, CEO, Jet Airways said, “Jet Airways has already established itself as a formidable brand in the intensely competitive India-Gulf sector in a relatively short period of time, on account of the warmth of its service and quality of its in-flight product. We are confident that the new Mumbai-Kuwait service will prove similarly popular with passengers.”

In addition to Kuwait, Jet Airways also flies daily from India to Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the Middle East.

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 87 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 51 classic and next generation Boeing 737-400/700/800/900 aircraft and 14 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.48 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.