View August #1 2016 Airline Partner Update Here

August 23, 2016
www.airlinepros.com
AIRLINE PARTNER NEWS UPDATE
OUR AIRLINE &
TRAVEL PARTNERS
Gamjorn Bhalayasuta, AirlinePros VP of Pricing and Revenue Protection Services,
Attends MIAT Mongolian Airlines’ 60th Anniversary festivities
AIRLINES
Aerolineas Argentinas
Myanmar Airways Intl
Aeromar
Meridiana
Aigle Azur
Oman Air
Air Astana
Onur Air
Air Botswana
Pacific Coastal Airlines
Air Burkina
Peruvian Airlines
Air Namibia
Precision Air
Air Niugini
Proflight Zambia
Air Seychelles
Royal Brunei Airlines
Aircalin
RwandAir
Andes Lineas Aereas
Safi Airways
Arkia Israeli Airlines
Shandong Airlines
Asky Airlines
Solomon Airlines
Atlasglobal
Somon Air
Avianca Brazil
Southern Airways Express
Azul Brazilian Airlines
TAAG Angola Airlines
Cityjet
Tunisair
Flybe
UTAir
Hong Kong Airlines
Vietjet Air
Hunnu Air
Wamos Air
interCaribbean Airways
Xiamen Airlines
Jetairfly
XL Airways France
KAM Air
LAM Mozambique
NON-AIRLINE
Lao Airlines
RentMax
MIAT Mongolian Airlines Trenitalia
Maya Island Air
FEATURED AIRLINE
The Yurt, a traditional Mongolian house
Mongolian Airlines Boeing 767-300(ER)
Mr. Tamir, President & CEO of MIAT with Gamjorn
Bhalayasuta, AirlinePros VP of Pricing and Revenue
Protection Services
Orchestra performing during the
MIAT video presentation
First MIAT aircraft that they started with
60 years ago displayed at head office
MIAT Mongolian Airlines plans direct flights to Singapore
MIAT Mongolian Airlines recently celebrated its 60th Anniversary of flight operations linking
Ulaanbaatar, the gateway to Mongolia, with the world. The airline announced its plans to
to restore flights to Singapore by flying direct from Ulaanbaatar by 2018 using one of its B767
- 300 long-haul jets after suspending its services last March 2015. The airline will also
introduce destinations in Australia via Singapore either in code-sharing basis with Singapore
Airlines and via Hong Kong in code-sharing arrangement with Cathay Pacific.
The new flights will be possible as soon as the new Khushigiin Khundi International Airport,
also known as New Ulaanbaatar International Airport, is opened to replace the current airport in Ulaanbaatar, Chinggis Khaan International Airport. MIAT Mongolian Airlines will be
the primary customer of the new airport that is located in Sergelen Sum, Tov Province, 52 km
south of the city center of Ulaanbaatar.
MIAT plans to promote economic ties between Russia and China by introducing new flights
linking Ulaanbaatar with Russia Far East and northern China. Therefore, flights to Irkutsk and
Ulan-Ude could be resumed while new destinations in China could be introduced. (Read
more)
ASIA & PACIFIC
Venere
Air Astana to increase flights to Hanover
Air Astana will increase their summer 2017 flights between Hanover and Almaty. From 20th,
May to 10 September 2017, the route will be served on Saturdays and beginning June 17th,
a second weekly service (Sundays) will be added. The flights will be operated with an Airbus
A320 in a two-class configuration and are now available to book . (Source)
Kazakhstan's Asian hub foundation
Kazakhstan is the world’s ninth largest country and yet it remains unpopular to tourists. However, a renewed focus on its aviation sector and investment in tourism means the country
will soon be appearing on more airline network maps. As a part of this plan, Astana International Airport is preparing itself for the growth
and an expanded terminal structure is under construction to grow capacity to handle the expected rise in domestic and international traffic.
While the independently managed Almaty International Airport is already suffering capacity issues at peak times, the capital’s airport is set
to more than double from its present capacity of 3.6 mppa to almost 8.2 mppa ahead of the opening of Expo 2017. (Read more)
Air Niugini commences services to Federated States of Micronesia
Air Niugini will be commencing operations to the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in September this year, coinciding with a meeting of
Pacific Leaders, organized by South Pacific Forum. The airline will start initially with three special flights to Chuuk and Pohnpei (two of the
four states in FSM ), which scheduled to operate on September 1st, 7th and 10th. Air Niugini will also commence test tourism flights and
plans to start twice weekly service between Port Moresby to Chuuk and Pohnpei .These flights will also enable passengers between the
Pacific , Australia, Indonesia, Philippines and FSM to connect through Port Moresby, saving them considerable time and opening the possibility of stop over tourism within PNG. (Read more)
Air Niugini To Increase Australia Flights
Air Niugini will increase its flights to and from the Australian cities of Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney from Port Moresby beginning 30th October this year. This is made possible by the airline’s recent code share agreement with Qantas, which are subject to regulatory approval. Air
Niugini will offer twice daily flights to Brisbane, increase its convenient direct services to Sydney from two to three flights per week and
twice daily flights to Cairns. (Read more)
Hong Kong Airlines receives IATA Fast Travel Green Certificate
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has recognized the work of Hong Kong Airlines in the field of airport self-service by
awarding it the Green Certificate in the Fast Travel program, a key part of IATA’s efforts to bring more choice to passengers and to help lower costs for the aviation industry through self-service. It covers six areas: check-in, bags ready-to-go, document check, flight re-booking, self
-boarding and bag recovery. The first four areas are offered by Hong Kong Airlines, earning itself a Green ranking. (Read more)
Hong Kong Airlines to launch flights to Yonago
Hong Kong Airlines is to launch direct twice-weekly flights between Hong Kong and Yonago, Tottori Prefecture on Sept 14. The new service
will be operated by an all-economy class Airbus A320 aircraft.(Read more)
Lao Airlines joins IATA
Lao Airlines celebrated its entry into full membership of the International Air Transport Association at an official admission ceremony held
at its head office last week. With its membership, the organization will assist the airline with training programs and safety and technical
audits to enhance the airline’s systems. It will also allow IATA travel agents to trade with the airlines and pay for tickets directly through the
IATA recognized bank settlement plan, which acts as a clearing house between travel agents and airlines. (Read more)
Royal Brunei celebrates Skytrax ranking
Royal Brunei Airlines has been ranked in the Top 10 of Skytrax’s Most Loved Airlines 2016. The air travel review website unveiled their Top
80 list of Most Loved Airlines 2016, based on customer reviews and rating 420 airlines in total. (Read more)
Solomon Islands visitor arrivals increase again
Solomon Islands' international visitor arrivals for May have jumped again with official government figures showing a close on a 13% increase over the same period in 2015. A total of 1,897 international visitors arrived across the month compared to the 1,750 recorded in
May 2015 – an increase of 12.8%. (Read more)
MIDDLE EAST
Oman Air to enter Iraqi market
Oman Air will enter the Iraqi market beginning September 15 with the launch of 4 weekly direct flights to Najaf from its Muscat hub. The
route will be operated with the narrow body Boeing 737-800 aircraft. (Read more)
AFRICA
Air Seychelles and Air Madagascar boost partnership through expanded codeshare agreement
Air Seychelles and Air Madagascar have strengthened their codeshare cooperation with the aim of bringing more travelers to both Seychelles and Madagascar, while increasing travel choice in the Indian Ocean. As part of the deal, Air Madagascar will expand its current
codeshare agreement with Air Seychelles by placing its "MD" flight code on four weekly Air Seychelles flights between the Malagasy capital
of Antananarivo and Seychelles, as well as on four weekly Air Seychelles’ services between Seychelles and Abu Dhabi operated on Tuesdays,
Wednesday, Fridays and Sundays. The expanded agreement will increase guests’ travel choice with convenient one-stop connections between Madagascar and Abu Dhabi via Seychelles. (Read more)
RwandAir set for Abidjan launch
Effective October 2, RwandAir will operate three times weekly service via Accra to Abidjan, every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, using a B737800NG. The airline will boost their flights to Accra from 6 per week to daily, and three of these flights will be be nonstop. The present
Accra flights via Lagos will be reduced from present 6 per week to 4 per week, operating on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, while
Lagos will then be served daily too, also using a Boeing B737-800NG.
Beginning September 2, Rwandair will also operate flights to serve Douala, Libreville and Cotonou. Furthermore, flights from Kigali to Dar es
Salaam will be combined with a stopover in Kilimanjaro/Arusha using a Bombardier Q400NG with a four times a week frequency. (Read
more)
RwandAir's first Airbus A330 takes to the skies
RwandAir's first Airbus A330-200, which is due for delivery in September this year, has taken to the skies for its maiden flights after successful ground tests at the Airbus assembly facility in Toulouse. Following the first flight, additional aerial testing be carried out to ensure
that all systems are go for its journey to the airline's hub in Kigali. The first Airbus A330-200 will initially be deployed four times a week from
Kigali to Dubai, then launching long haul flights to India and China, most likely Mumbai combined with Guangzhou. (Read more)
Tunisair reports 15.65% increase in transport revenue in Q2
Tunisair reports an increase in transport revenue the second quarter of 2016. The airline’s transportation revenues of the national company
went up 15.65% from 195.05 million Tunisian dinars (MTD) in Q2 2015 to 225.58 MTD in Q2 2016. The number of passengers (all activities)
also made a leap of 1.85% in the 2nd quarter between 2015 and 2016, from 680,407 passengers to 693,025 passengers. (Read more)
EUROPE
Atlasglobal connects to Cluj-Napoca
Atlasglobal added its first Romanian destination to its Istanbul Atatürk (IST) network with the start of thrice-weekly services to ClujNapoca (CLJ) on 1 August. Operated by the airline’s A320 fleet, Cluj-Napoca becomes the 35th destination from its main base. (Read more)
Meridiana continues to expands network in Africa
Meridiana recently inaugurated two new destinations in Africa– Accra and Lagos, linking Milan to the continent. The airline will further
strengthen its presence in Africa in the fall-winter season with up to three flights per week will be offered to Dakar (Tuesday, Thursday and
Saturday) and while two flights per week to Cairo. Meridiana will also operate twice weekly flights to Sharm-el-Sheikh , Egypt, and
to Zanzibar in Tanzania, and once a week to the island Mauritius , Mombasa in Kenya and the islands of Cape Verde . (Source)
Flybe begins intranational European flights
Flybe begun international European flights following the launch of daily services from Hanover to each of Lyon St. Exupéry and Milan Malpensa on Tuesday, August 2. (Read more)
Flybe boosts Manchester Airport's French connections
Flybe is offering a year-round service to Lyon and winter ski flights to Chambery from Manchester airport. Chambery will be served between
December 20 and March 19, 2017 with flights on either Tuesdays or Sundays. (Read more)
Flybe announces New Codeshare Partner–
Air Berlin
Flybe expands connections through new
codeshare agreement with Air Berlin! Flybe
has announced the signing of a brand new
codeshare agreement with Air Berlin enabling passengers to use a single ticket with a
seamless connection onto both short-haul
and long-haul destinations operated by Air
Berlin. Routes included within the agreement are:
Source
NORTH & SOUTH AMERICA
Aeromar will resume flights to Nuevo Laredo
Aeromar will resume flights to Nuevo Laredo towards the end of the year. The airline stopped operations between Mexico City and Nuevo
Loredo in 2012 and will commence again between October and November. (Source)
Aerolineas Argentinas resumes flights to resumes flights between Cordoba and Rio Cuarto
Aerolineas Argentinas resumed commercial passenger flights on August 2 with daily flights from Rio Cuarto to Buenos Aires and Cordoba.
The flights are operated by Austral using EMB-190 equipment. (Read more)
Azul rebounds during Olympics
With the recent Zika Virus scare and the economy struggling, David Neeleman, CEO of Azul Airlines, announces that the airline is doing well
with the 2016 Olympics being held in Rio de Janeiro. (Read more)
Avianca Brazil Now Accepts Visa and MasterCard
Effective with sales issued Monday, August 01, 2016 (PED 08-07-16), Avianca Brazil (247/O6) will begin accepting Visa and MasterCard as
forms of payment through ARC.
Pacific Coastal Airlines Now Accepts Visa, MasterCard, and American Express
Effective with sales issued Monday, August 01, 2016 (PED 08-07-16), Pacific Coastal Airlines (905/8P) will begin accepting Visa, MasterCard,
and American Express as forms of payment through ARC.
Southern Airways announces Harrisburg to Pittsburgh service
Southern Airways Express announced at its new service connecting Harrisburg International Airport (MDT) to Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) for the first time since 2008. Beginning October, the airline will offer three non-stop flights each weekday and one flight each day
on Saturdays and Sundays, between Pennsylvania’s Capital City and the Steel City. (Read more)