The Asian Airlines Blog (and airplanes and airports too!)

Airline Equality - the best website for airline reviews!

2011-08-20T04:42:00.000-07:00

When I book any flight nowadays there are always two things I do:

First is to email my travel agent with my dates and destinations and ask for a range of flight options.

Second is to check www.airlineequality.com to see how each airline on my flight route has been reviewed by other passengers who have flown to the same destination using the same planes and airlines as I will be taking.

Now everybody has got a different opinion but it is a very good way to get people's positive and negative feedback so that you can figure out the pros and cons of each airline compared to the price that my travel agent can offer.

Sometimes there might only be 1 or 2 airlines I can choose from if I am flying regionally in Asia due to the strong national airline monopolies in countries like China, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam etc. so this website is really useful.

Getting a review from a person who just flew the same route a few days, weeks or months ago can quickly let you know if the airline offers:

Good value for money
Friendly cabin attendants
On-time arrivals
In-flight entertainment on each seat (or just a tiny movie screen at the end of each cabin)
Reasonable Food and Beverage service (or just a glass of water and half a stale sandwich)
Noticeable differences between Economy, Premium, Business or First Class

I have just booked a flight from Asia to Europe and because I am flying via Bangkok I had a choice of Thai Airways, Air France, British Airways, Emirates, Singapore Air, Malaysia Airlines, Jet India, Eva Air and Cathay Pacific.

In the end I choose Eva Air because the reviews on www.airlinequality.com showed me that I could get upgrade my seat and get better service, IFE, food & drink service and a newer plane than any of the other airlines that my travel agent offered me.

So I now have a good seat booked with peace of mind that I know what quality of service I will get and also that I did not have to spend too much (or not enough) to get the ticket that I needed.

One-Two-Go Report Delays

2009-02-20T08:08:00.000-08:00

A year and a half after the tragic (and allegedly avoidable) One-Two-Go crash at Phuket airport the Thai DCA still has not released its official report:

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/phuket-air-crash-report-yet-another-delay/

A group of relatives of those killed has managed to find out a lot of information though:

http://www.investigateudom.com/

It really makes you think - do your due diligence before you get on a plane and don't have blind faith in the authorities!

Siem Reap Airways on EU Blacklist

2009-01-23T18:21:00.000-08:00

The EU has banned all personnel from flying with Siem Reap Airways and forbidden the airline from entering into EU airspace.

Interestingly enough the airline has no European routes and only flies to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Bangkok and Phuket. It is also owned by Bangkok Airways which has always had a fairly good reputation (for a Thai airline).

The official blacklist can be found here:

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/pdf/list_fr.pdf

5 steps to secure the maximum amount sleep on Asian flights

2008-09-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

Remember to pre-pack a legal amount of sleeping pills, painkillers and tranquilisers in your carry on baggage
Upon check-in request a seat as far away from screaming children and Koreans as possible
Proceed immediately to the nearest airport bar and lubricate yourself with spirits until your final gate call is issued.
After boarding the plane assess the people sitting nearest to you and suggest a series of cunning seat swaps to avoid proximity to screaming children and Koreans
Once in the air unpack sleeping pills, painkillers and tranquilisers and administer liberally to yourself and/or the screaming children and Koreans in your vicinity

Singapore versus the rest of the Asia and the world

2008-09-05T21:46:00.000-07:00

Singapore is an aviation anomaly.

This small island state manages boasts one of the best airlines in the world in terms of quality and value for money as well as an internationally renowned airport.

In-flight passengers benefit from attentive and polite trolley dollies and the reassurance that comes from flying in aircraft which are less than a decade old.

At Changi the officials are welcoming, the airport is well laid out and the government even provides free mini-island tours for passengers who are in-transit and have a few hours to kill.

In the fight for the title of regional aviation hub Singapore beats Kuala Lumpur and Suvarnabhumi hands down.

The Subvarnabhumi Bangkok Massage

2008-02-03T21:51:00.000-08:00

While the airport might not be entirely structurally safe and possibly in danger of imploding at any moment Subvarnabhumi does offer much more in terms of creature comforts than Don Muang ever did.

My last transfer through the place left me with nearly five hours to kill and my general dislike of Thai beer convinced me to try out the massage parlours that are dotted around the airport instead of getting hammered at the bar and kicking off my twelve hour international flight with a changover.

A decent range of massage services are on offer in increments of 15 minutes with Thai, Oil, Foot, Neck and Hand all available (no mention of Bangkok’s famous rub and tug though…)

I paid 600 Baht for an hour long Thai massage in small cordoned off private bedroom.

This is about double to triple the normal cost but everything at Subvarnabhumi is expensive so in context the price was not extortionate (anyway most Bangkok hotels charge upwards of 1,000 Baht for the same service).

The masseuse was quite good and after an hour of her bending me every which way I was blissfully relaxed and in a fine mood.

I managed to hang onto that chilled out state of mind all the way up to boarding the plane where I discovered that cattle class was jam packed with hygienically suspect backpackers, aging sexpats and screaming children.

I wisely took my cue and began quaffing my emergency stash of booze and valium.

Queuing at Heathrow

2008-01-20T21:50:00.000-08:00

Heathrow, bloody Heathrow.

If you don’t arrive early for your flight then you face an agonising queue and a closed check in.

If you do arrive early for your flight then you face an agonising queue and a closed check in.

It is the airport that damns you if you do and screws you if you don’t.

Liquids on flights – Plastic bag mystery

2007-12-25T22:36:00.000-08:00

One of the most pointless airport security measures of the last year must be the bizarrely implemented liquids on flights crackdown.

Understandably after terror plots to smuggle liquids onto plans to blow them up there was a clampdown on what passengers could bring in their hand luggage.

Apart from Duty Free purchases it is not possible to bring any containers with more 100ml of liquid inside.

Now before you board an international flight you have to take out all your liquids and place them into a transparent plastic bag given to you.

On my last flight I had around ten 100ml containers in my hand luggage which the airport security told me I had to place in a plastic bag they gave to me.

I was informed it was of the utmost importance that I keep all these liquids in the plastic bag at all times and that I had to keep it separate from my carry on luggage.

The security personnel seemed convinced that this plastic bag was strong enough to prevent anything from going wrong should I be a terrorist carrying liquid explosives.

Myself and every other person passing through the checkpoint promptly ignored the daft order and stashed their useless jiffy bag full of toiletries and duty free back into their bags as soon as we were out of sight of security

Heathrow sucks!

2007-10-26T01:58:00.000-07:00

Heathrow is probably the busiest and least pleasant airport I have ever visited in a developed nation.

Despite having a functional capacity of around 45 million passengers per year it currently struggles to cope with around 70 million and it really shows.

Departures, Arrivals, Duty Free, every restaurant and shop, the toilets, the runways and every other area in the place are always busy, all of the time.

If you fly into the airport then you should expect delays.

If you fly from the airport then you should expect delays and check in at least 4 hours in advance.

If you drive to or from the airport then you should expect traffic jams.

If you try to park at the airport then you should expect delays and congestion.

Heathrow sucks and it looks like it will stay that way for some time to come.

Thai Air – Regional and International Pros and Cons

2007-09-25T23:21:00.000-07:00

Thai Air have been running a lot of price promotions over the last few months which have been quite reasonable and led to me booking one regional and one international flight with them.

I found the regional flight to be pretty excellent value when compared with other premium airlines I have taken in the past.

Apart from a slightly shaky take off I had no complaints and spent most of the flight eating smoked salmon and reading the numerous magazines and newspapers I was given by Thai Air’s extremely attractive trolley dollies.

The international flight was from Bangkok to London and also proved to be good value with seemingly unlimited food and drink on offer thanks a special promotion period to celebrate Thai cuisine and honour the birthday of Her Majesty the Queen of Thailand.

No attention was paid to my overweight luggage I checked and carried on and the amount of leg room was the most I have ever had on any Economy class seat when compared to every other airline I have traveled with, ever!

The food and drink was as plentiful as my previous regional flight and I was plied with more food than I could eat and I was provided with a continuous stream of very good wine, Gin (Bombay Sapphire) and Cognac.

Admittedly the plane was an older generation Boeing but I have flown on much older planes and in Asia I am normally content as long as the aircraft is not Russian and doesn’t have propellers.

The only real negative aspect was the lack of the back of seat personal entertainment centre that I have become accustomed to on long international flights.

Instead there was only an old style eighties and nineties shared movie screen for each cabin. Although the programming was quite good I had to deal with people constantly walking back and forth and blocking the view.

Personally I dealt with situation in the much tried and tested fashion of getting hammered and falling asleep on both the original and return journey.

All in all Thai Air was a pretty good deal, although I would have upgraded to Premium Economy had I known in advance that my company was going to reimburse me for my flight.

One Two GO Jet crashes at Phuket airport

2007-09-16T19:58:00.000-07:00

I have just heard about the terrible plane crash in Phuket.

One Two GO is an airline that I have flown with before, in fact I took this very same route nearly one year ago. It is very bad news indeed with over 80 people believed to have been killed.

Up to date news on the crash can be found on the local news websites:

http://phuketgazette.net/
http://phuket-post.com/
http://phuket-post.com/article/phuket-local-news/death-toll-expected-to-rise-further/
http://phuketgazette.net/news/index.asp?id=5963

Phnom Penh International Airport – Surprisingly modern and efficient!

2007-07-29T23:43:00.000-07:00

Phnom Penh was once known as the "Pearl of Asia" but regional and domestic conflicts meant that the city and the country, of which it is the capital, remained untouched by tourism and air travel for decades.

A massive influx of tourists to the city, often enroute to Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, has led to a vast modernization of Phnom Penh’s airport albeit courtesy of a private French company.

The destruction to the airport that took place during the country’s 1997 coup has been replaced with air travel facilities that put neighbouring countries to shame.

Formally known as Pochentong International Airport and located six miles outside of Phnom Penh the airport is fully equipped with restaurants, bars, duty free, a post office and even wireless internet.

Immigration is easy going even if its does suffer from jams during high traffic hours.

The international terminal has a capacity of two million that it is quickly reaching due to the rising interest in the increasingly stable and foreigner friendly nation.

Virtually every month another airline is added to the airport’s roster that at present includes AirAsia, Angkor Airlines, Asiana Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Cathay Pacific, China Airlines, China Southern Airlines, EVA Air, Far Eastern Air Transport, Jetstar Asia, Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, President Airlines, PMT Air, Royal Khmer Airlines, Royal Phnom Penh Airways, Shanghai Airlines, Siem Reap Airways, Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Thai Airways, Transmile Airlines and Vietnam Airlines.

Thailand, China, Vietnam, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and Laos are the most popular destinations for onward bound travelers.

The few times that I have passed through this airport I have always been pleasantly surprised by the staff’s courteous and helpful nature, even at Immigration where it is common to see actual smiles.

It is by far one of the best smaller airports in the regions.

PMT air disaster in Cambodia

2007-07-14T22:06:00.000-07:00

Some while ago I made a semi-mocking post about PMT Air commenting about the suitability of their company name and slogan.

My reservations about the company seem to have been proved correct with the recent crash of their Siem Reap to Sihanoukville flight on 25 June 2007 in the Kom Chhay mountain range in the province of Kampot.

Bad weather was initially listed as the reason for the crash but information since reported indicates that severe pilot error was the main cause with the pilot ignoring warnings from traffic control about the low altitude at which the plane was flying over the mountain range because “he knew the area and knew what he was doing.”

The plane was an Antov AN-24, a model that has been out of production for three decades and does not hold a great reputation.

Search teams took two days to find the crash site in the mountainous jungle and eventually confirmed the death of all on board. In total 13 South Koreans, 3 Czechs, 5 Cambodians and 1 Uzbekistani were among the fatalities.

Two of them were children.

This is the first commercial airline disaster in Cambodia since the 1990’s and has caused a major stir in a country whose middle and upper classes have only recently become affluent enough to enjoy the pleasures of air travel.

To date no sanctions, penalties or fines have been made against PMT Air and while they have suspended flights inside Cambodia they continue to operate international flights to a number of destinations.

Welcome to Phuket International Airport…no long haired hippy troublemakers (or foreigners) please!

2007-06-16T22:10:00.000-07:00

I have passed through Phuket International Airport a number of times in my travels and for Thailand’s second most busiest airport it has always seemed a little on the small side and extremely overloaded.

An estimated 2.9 million passengers pass through Phuket International every year as well as nearly 30,000 flights and 12,000 tons of cargo and freight.

At first sight the place seems to be pretty security conscious with security guards and scanners at the entrance of arrivals. However there are no such security measures taken at departures where anybody can enter and simply take the elevator up to arrivals if they so wish.

Departures is full with tourist shops, Duty Free King Power Stores and Burger Kings while Arrivals has all manner of hotel, taxi, tourist and limousine kiosks as well as bags and bags full of tourist information (read advertising freebies).

During my first few times arriving at the airport I noticed signs at the queue for Immigration setting out the airport’s policies with regards to passengers. The usual pleas for patience and politeness also included a rule that basically said, “No long haired hippy troublemakers please.”

I wish I had taken a photo but the immigration official was beckoning me towards his desk with a hurried glare before I had time and the next time I passed through the sign had been updated to exclude the hilarious statement.

Immigration at the airport seems to be made up of unfriendly, unhelpful and understaffed officials who try their best to keep you out of the country even if you do have all the correct visas, paperwork and pots of cash to spend.

Air Asia, One Two Go, Bangkok Airways, Thai Airways, Dragon, Jetstar and a number of other airlines now fly from Phuket with the island’s bustling tourism industry having recovered well from the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami.

Tourist figures are now above what they were before the disaster but local news reports seem to indicate that airport staffing at every level has yet to be increased accordingly.

Blockages are common when flights are full and nobody at the airport or on the island is willing to take responsibility for the situation with the Governor passing the buck to the Head of Immigration who in turns blames lack of funding from the central government/Military Junta who in turn blames either ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, foreigners or neighbouring countries as they do with most problems.

The airport is straining under the island’s continued success as a tourism destination and from what I understand future expansion will be difficult with all manner of land issues, incompetence and bungling killing any such plans before they are even decided upon.

Jetstar Asia – My Company made me fly with them

2007-05-01T23:11:00.000-07:00

I have nothing against low budget airlines; in fact I use them all the time, but after a recent flight I have to say that Jetstar Asia does not rank highly.

The low cost airline is based in Singapore and has a fleet of four Airbus 320s. The airline’s initial funding came from Qantas (49%), the Singapore government's Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited (19%) and two Singaporean businessmen, Tony Chew (22%) and FF Wong (10%).

It flies a number of routes including Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Phuket, Pattaya, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei, Pattaya, Jakarta, Surabaya and Manila.

While the baggage limit is reasonable at 20kg and there is assigned seating you have to pay through the nose if you want to eat or drink anything on the plane (I smuggled both snacks and booze onto my return flight having been caught out by a number of Gin and Tonics upon departure).

My main complaint about the airline was its understaffing. A long time flyer I try my best to be as patient and polite to the staff as possible but I still get angry at their lack of training and complete undersupply.

During my departure from Singapore’s Changi Airport the Jetstar check in counters had the misfortune of complete computer failure. This meant that all check in was done manually and extremely slowly.

This would have not been so bad if the fact that half of the plane’s passengers decided to be very Asian and ignore the commonly accepted practice of waiting in line instead of pushing to the front of the queue and sticking their passports and tickets into the face of anybody official looking.

It took nearly 40 minutes before the check-in staff rectified the situation by telling them all to get back in line or piss off.

After an hour of queuing I managed to keep my place with a near constant stream of utterings varying from, “Oh no you’re not” to “Get back in line behind me you muppet”.

I also used my baggage trolley to maximum effect causing some serious damage to a number of people’s heels, toes, feet and legs.

Living in Asia for some time now I am used to this type of queuing practice so was not that badly put out but what really irked me is that all the passengers were told that the flight would leave on time as scheduled despite the fact that we were still checking when the flight should have finished boarding.

A mad dash through immigration and customs led to me getting on the plane just in time for the doors to shut behind me.

Despite reassurances from every member of the check-in and flight crew that the flight would not be delayed we ended up sitting on the runway for nearly an hour and a half while they loaded the bags, then unloaded them for exceeding the weight limit.

Despite the queuing mayhem, the fact that a delay was blatantly going to happen and that the time wasted sitting on the plane could have been better spent shopping or drinking what really annoys me most is that my company has booked me to fly with Jetstar again next month.

Argh!!!!

Suvarnabhumi Feedback

2007-02-25T02:02:00.000-08:00

Having passed through this continuously beleaguered airport I would like to offer some comments of positivity to counter the negative media reports. On my international arrival and departure last month (January 2007) I found there to be no delays, no baggage disappearance, plenty of toilets and tremendous amounts of shops.

I saw no cracks in the runways, no planes crashed or collided and the place looked as new and shiny as it did six months before when I first passed through.

My complaints about the place are fairly minimal. The shops are pretty expensive – the people I was traveling with managed to spend one hundred US dollars on a couple of boxes of chocolate! Also the terminals are too damn big and it can take a lot of walking to make it to your gate on time.

No doubt there are some problems with the runways and some other areas (I suspect shoddy contract work will no doubt to be the reason) but from what I understand the political situation in the country means that there is significant capital to be gained by the current administration blaming Thaksin Shinawatra for this and many other things.

Air Travel Annoyances

2007-02-19T21:54:00.000-08:00

Following on from a recent spate of travel around Asia I have been moved to compile a list of grievances, annoyances and irritations. In no particular order they are:

1) People that do not fill out their immigration and customs forms and cause queues because of their forgetfulness/neglect.
2) Loud children.
3) Loud adults.
4) Queue jumpers.
5) Loud, queue jumping Koreans.
6) Airlines that do nothing about loud children, adults and queue jumping Koreans.

Suvarnabhumi - A travellers opinion

2007-01-08T22:47:00.000-08:00

The airport that took four decades to build remains one of Thailand's most talked about aviation achievments of recent years, if for all the wrong reasons.

Costing an estimated 155 billion baht (US 4.2 billion) it is quite fitting that the name His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej chose for the airport literraly translated into English means, "Golden Land".

Suvarnabumi International Airport finally opened for business as Thailand's main international aviation arrival and departure hub at the end of September 2006.

At the same time Don Muang International Airport was closed for all passenger traffic, much to the derision of Subvarnabhumi's critics who claimed the new airport was not ready to handle the burden of such a large amount of visitors (nearly 38 million in 2006).

Both before and after it's much feted debut Subvarnabhumi suffered a great deal in the media with controversies over everything from cracks in the runways to the lack of toilets in departure and arrival lounges.

The airport finally opened after a number of delays in construction but was overshadowed by the country's recent military coup (which was probably beneficial for the airport by shifting the focus of the international media).

My own experience with the airport was quite positive with a pleasant few hours spent walking aorund the massive amount of shops in the Duty Free area (Armani, Cartier, Chanel, Gucci and Prada, Dunhill, Bally and Mont Blanc) as well as the extensve selection of international eatries and restaurants (Burger King, Sushi bars, Dim Sum joints, a New York Deli, Starbucks and even a few places that served Thai food).

In November I neither saw nor experienced any of the teething problems or construction faults that had been so talked about.

I managed to find a toilet to relieve myself in both in arrivals and departures and I could not see any cracks in the runway. I thought that the airport would do just fine with a little attention and good management.

However, just four weeks later the authorities decided that major work needed to be done and a partial closure was necessary.

While some have labelled this as a politically motivated action aimed at embrassing former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra many others have disagreed citing ongoing construction failures and improper contractual procedures.

Fly with PMT!

2006-12-16T23:39:00.000-08:00

Registered at the Registry of Ministry of Commerce in the Kingdom of Cambodia as Progress Multitrade this airline has recently changed its brand name in order to increase recognition of the company and also to align itself better with its three-letter designator to the International Civil Aviation Organization.

Because of this it is now known as PMT Air and operates routes in Cambodia and also internationally flying passengers, presumably in hysterics, to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Pusan, Bangkok, Pattaya and Hanoi.

They currently operate one Boeing 737 and three An-24s. They plan to expand and replace their fleet using ATR-72s in order to provide the highest comfort to passengers who fly with PMT.

From what I understand the people behind this venture are not Cambodian but rather Russians with a somewhat limited knowledge of English. Foreign residents and educated Cambodians are currently pissing themselves with laughter all over the country as the company has begun to promote their routes using a number of slogans including "Fly with PMT!"

I have yet to fly with PMT and am not entirely sure if I might just book a flight for the jokes it would be worth.

Phuket Air - the troubled child of Thai aviation

2006-12-10T22:41:00.000-08:00

Phuket Air is one of the most interesting and controversial airlines that has existed in Thailand. The airline was established in 1999 but began operations in December 2001 and was the brainchild of Angkana Apiwattanaporn and Vikrom Aisiri, a Thai politician who also owns an equally interesting casino on the border with Myanmar - The Andaman Club Hotel.

Within the year a rapid expansion of investment gained momentum and the airline undertook a significant number of domestic and international routes including flights to London, Paris, Amsterdam and Seoul. They might have been able to maintain this growth profitably but the 2004 tsunami combined with rising oil prices and a decreasing safety and maintenence record placed the company on a very slippery slope.

In 2005 Phuket Air was hit by a series of incidents and accidents including a group of passengers who refused to let the airplane take off after seeing fuel leaking from a wing. Impoundments of planes at airports soon followed after the airline were accused of not paying their bills, much to the interest of the national, regional and international press. After all this was Phuket Air, it was named after an island that many people around the world dreamed of visiting and because of this was an item of interest to people in countries thousands of miles away.

Soon after this string of events Phuket Air was banned by the UK, France, the Netherlands and eventually the entire EU and by February 2006 Phuket Air was only flying two routes, one from Bangkok to Ranong and one to Yangon, Myanmar. The 2006 summer flight schedule was later scrapped with Angkana and Vikram deciding to relaunch and rebrand the airline as Holiday Air offering a few routes domestically and also internationally to Saudi Arabia, Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo

Luckily I have never had the rollercoaster ride of flying with Phuket Air but I have followed it's demise closely. It is an airline that gave not only the entire Thai aviation industry a very bad name but also that of the holiday island it was named after (but rarely visited). The company was based in Ranong and Bangkok and only used Phuket as a brand, nobody on the island had any actual investment or real involvement with the airline.

Safety and reliability are of the utmost importance in aviation and Phuket Air was a visible failure. Anybody thinking about flying with Holiday Air shoulds should consider this heavily.

Bangkok Airways - The Boutique Airline

2006-12-10T22:40:00.000-08:00

Bangkok Airways began life in 1968 as Sakahol Air, the first private aviation company in Thailand. As tourism and business developed in Thailand so did the success of the airline and in 1986 it was transformed from a small charter airline into a domestic passenger airline and was renamed Bangkok Airways.

Starting with only a few scheduled flights from Bangkok to Krabi, Korat, and Surin the airline steadily increased its activities both domestically and internationally while maintaining a high level of service and customer care. Presently it has permits to fly to over twenty routes domestically as well as international routes to Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, China, and Japan.

Not content with simply flying planes the company was quick to build its own privately operated airports at Samui, Sukhothai, and Trat. It also managed to secure a lucrative, and somewhat monopolistic, deal to fly exclusively to Siem Reap in exchange for investing heavily in the airport there.

Although the airline started with prop-driven aircraft they seized upon the Thai economic revival at the turn of the millenium and invested heavily in jet aircraft and now maintains a fleet consisting of 3 Airbus A320-200, 4 Boeing 717-200 and 8 ATR 72-500 (plus 1 on order). They have also negotiated an order for six Airbus A350-800 aircraft in a 258-seat configuration that are set to be delivered in 2012 (or whenever Airbus manages to actually make the planes).

I have only flown with Bangkok Airways once but I have to say that I was impressed with the high level of pre and in flight service. The staff were polite and I was given an inflight meal despite the fact the flight was only an hour long. The cost was around double that of Air Asia for an international flight but the weight limit on baggage was 5 kilograms more which effectively saved me money. That combined with the good customer service and general professionalism made the flight an enjoyable experience.

One Two GO - No frills but nice little touches

2006-12-02T02:14:00.000-08:00

One Two GO Airlines is a subsidiary of Orient Thai Airlines and was created to take advantage of Thailand's increasing market for budget domestic flights. Unlike it's rival Thai Air Asia One Two GO offers inflight services at no extra charge.

Passengers are allocated seats so as to avoid the cattlesque Air Asia boarding scrums and once on board are treated very well considering the low cost of the tickets. The first time I flew with One Two GO I was quite shocked to see I had actually been assigned a seat then I was even more shocked to be given a free glass of Coke and a bag of peanuts, there was even a high quality glossy inflight magazine to read - these are all quite small touches but helped contribute to a much nicer flying atmosphere.

One Two GO first started operations in December 2003 with a Bangkok to Chiang Mai service and has since gone on to create domestic routes to Chaing Rai, Phuket, Surat Thani, Krabi and Hat Yai as well as international flights from Bangkok and Phuket to Incheon and Hong Kong. The fleet currently stands at twelve aircraft with seven Boeing B747s, one Boeing B757 and four McDonnell Douglas MD-82s but is expected to grow in the near future.

All in all the service offered is good value for the price and they compare favourably to competitors in their price range.

Air Asia - Now everybody can fly (within weight restrictions)

2006-12-01T01:16:00.000-08:00

Based in at the new Low Cost Carrier Terminal at Kuala Lumpur International Airport AirAsia is a low-cost airline thats operates many budget domestic and international flights and is said to be Asia's leading low fare, no frills airline. It relaunched as an airline in 2001/2002 after being purchased for a token sum of one ringgit following a number of years of unprofitability and the airline was quickly turned around and started to establish international routes at extremely competitive prices.

The first airline in the region to implement fully ticketless travel and unassigned seats, it managed to expand rapidly across South East Asia often becoming the main aviation provider to countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Macau, China, the Phillipines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei and Myanmar. They now have a fleet of around 35 aircraft (with thirteen Airbus A320-200 and nineteen Boeing 737-300) and another hundred Airbus 320s on order and are said to carry around ten million passengers per year.

Aside from low costs and low prices a clever sponsorship deal with Manchester United has helped in raising the profile and standing of Air Asia enormously in the region and worldwide with the company becoming the official airline for the football team in Asia.

The success of the Air Asia business model has clear benefits for the company and for passengers. But there can be downsides to the no frills way of air travel though with unhelpful or unwilling staff and uncompromising flight policies for refunds and weight limitations for baggage all adding to the mix.

While unassigned seating keeps costs low for everybody it can also lead to a crowded rush to board the plane and the occasional fight over aisle and window seats. The staff will often stand back and giggle as the passengers take on a cattle mentality by massing at the boarding gate then all swarming towards the aircraft at the first chance.

This is never too much of a problem for me as I wait until two thirds of the cattle shove their way in by which time all that remains are the elderly and less abled travellers who are much easier to push out of the way to get a good seat.

My last trip with Air Asia was booked because the fare was ridicuously low but I had not realised that my suitcase was over the miniscule weight limit of 15 kilograms. The demeanour of the staff was pretty awful and they were pretty unhelpful at first saying that my bag was too heavy and could not go on the flight. I ended up paying several thousand baht extra (almost double the cost of the ticket) and was made to sign a waiver in Thai that basically said if anything goes wrong with the bag then it was my financial responsibility.

Air Asia should certainly be credited with taking South East Asia to the skies but they need to be taken at face value. No frills means no compromise and there is normally nobody around to complain to if you do have a problem and even if you do find someone then the fine print on your ticket normally covers the company for any mishap or financial loss.

They are not my Asian airline of choice but their low prices and excellent number of routes means that I always check their website when I am looking for a flight.

Welcome to the Asian Airlines Blog (and airplanes and airports too!)

2006-11-30T02:11:00.000-08:00

In the interests of freedom of information the Asian Airlines blog is dedicated to covering the good, the bad and the sometimes downright ugly aviation providers in the continent with a combination of personal experiences, news and reviews.