Centenary offer - Cathay Pacific

news
features
who, what, where
travel
Airport staff
get focused
New product
takes flight
Getting in
tune
Island
getaway
Busy year for teams
around the network
Staff and passengers
try new Business Class
ISMs get ready for a
special performance
Paradise found
on Fijian break
Page 11
Page 9
Page 14
Page 16
A magazine for staff and friends of Cathay Pacific Airways
March 2011, Issue 180
PRINTED ON 100% RECYCLED PAPER
SKY HIGH!
Record result and another big aircraft order, but rising fuel prices
beginning to cast a shadow on prospects for coming year
“It’s been a record year for Cathay
Pacific in more ways than one,” said
Chairman Chris Pratt, speaking at
the 2010 annual results.
And he wasn’t kidding. A record
profit, a new high for turnover – up
an astonishing 33.7% year on year
– and new records set for passenger
numbers, cargo tonnage and passenger and cargo load factors.
“This represents a truly remarkable recovery from our low point
of 2008 and the first three quarters
of 2009 but is by no means the end
of the good news for Cathay Pacific
today,” Chris said, referring to yet
another big aircraft order by the airline.
CX has placed firm orders for two
further A350-900 aircraft, 15 A330s
and 10 more Boeing 777-300ERs to
be delivered between now and the
end of 2015, meaning it now has 91
orders on its books with a catalogue
value of some HK$185 billion.
“I can think of no other commercial enterprise with such long-term
investments in and commitment to
Hong Kong,” said Chris. “And investment means jobs.”
In 2011, some 1,300 additional
cabin crew, 250 pilots and 500
ground staff at HKIA will be recruited by CX and Dragonair, as well as
250-350 office staff to fill new and
replacement positions. In 2010 the
airlines recruited more than 1,600
staff.
Chris placed the results in context,
explaining that around HK$3 billion
of the 2010 profit came from nonoperations sources, including the
2010 results summary
Turnover
Attributable profit
Earnings per share
Dividend per share
Passenger load factor
Passenger yield
Cargo & mail load factor
Cargo & mail yield
Cost per ATK
Cost per ATK (w/o-Fuel)
Total hedging (loss) /Gain
HK$m
HK$m
HK¢
HK¢
%
HK¢
%
HK$
HK$
HK$
HK$m
sale of the airline’s stakes in HAECO
and Hactl, profits from Air China and
the deemed disposal of part of the
Air China shareholding.
“Nonetheless, our operating profit
2010
89,524
14,048
357.1
111.0
83.4
61.2
75.7
2.33
3.16
2.02
(41)
2009
66,978
4,694
119.3
10.0
80.5
51.1
70.8
1.86
2.76
2.00
2,758
Change
+33.7%
+199.3%
+199.3%
+1,010.0%
+2.9%pt
+19.8%
+4.9%pt
+25.3%
+14.5%
+1.0%
-101.5%
before these one-off items, tax and
hedging is just shy of HK$9.5 billion
– a formidable performance,” he said,
“and a tribute to the tremendous effort put in by the highly professional
Cathay Pacific team.”
A note of caution was sounded at
the briefing, with Chris saying the
recent spike in fuel prices was “a real
concern”.
Fuel costs are already higher than
forecast at the beginning of the year
and Chris said the airline could expect a “significant adverse effect
on our profitability” if the increased
costs are not recovered through
higher fares or fuel surcharges, or if
it leads to a fall in demand.
•
Public flock to take part in special
ticket promotion as part of CX
celebrations marking 100 years of
powered flight in Hong Kong.
• See page 4
Sevens bigger
than ever
The Sevens is back with hard-tackling cabin crew and the world’s biggest rugby ball.
•
See page 5
More results – page 3
Profit share for staff
CX confirmed that eligible staff
would receive five weeks’ share
of profit for 2010, along with half
of the individual monthly salary
or HK$6,000 in local currency
equivalent, whichever is lower.
RECORD YEAR: Tony Tyler, Chris Pratt and John Slosar answer questions at the annual results press briefing.
Centenary
offer
Farewell Tony
Chief Executive Tony Tyler gets set to
leave the airline after an eventful 33
years.
• See pages 2 and 8
Business
threatened
by rising
fuel prices
Just as airlines managed to
get their businesses back
into shape following the
global economic downturn of 2008-9, the industry is already facing up
to its next big challenge:
soaring fuel prices.
Since the beginning of
September 2010 the price
of jet fuel has risen by more
than 50%, with a 10% climb in
the week ending 5 March alone.
On the day of the annual
results announcement, the spot
price for SingJet aviation fuel
was US$129 per barrel compared to US$87 on the same
day last year.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) was
quick to highlight the threat
the fuel hike poses to airlines,
downgrading its outlook for
2011 to US$8.6 billion from the
US$9.1 billion it estimated in
December 2010.
This represents a 46% fall
in net profits compared to the
US$16 billion earned by the
industry in 2010.
IATA said that compared to
levels in 2010, oil prices are now
expected to be 20% higher in
2011 with fuel accounting for a
bigger slice of airlines’ operating costs.
From a CX perspective,
Finance Director James HughesHallett says that the portion of
the oil price rise not covered
by the airline’s fuel hedging
programme will mean either
absorbing the cost increases or
passing them on to customers
in the form of higher fares.
“All airlines are facing the
same problem and so we are
seeing ticket prices rise,” says
James. “But a balance needs to
be struck as there comes a point
at which customer demand will
fall off if prices continue to rise.”
James says that fuel surcharges combined with the
fuel hedging programme will
cushion the airline from the immediate impact of sharp rises in
the price of oil.
“However, these programmes
cannot solve the long-term
challenge of continued high
prices.
“They help buy us some time
while we and the rest of the
aviation industry adapts to a
higher fuel price environment if
it persists,” says James, adding
that CX aims to have hedging
contracts covering between
20% and 30% for the next 12 to
24 months.
2
Message from the Chief Executive
This is my last message to you through
the columns of CX World, and I write it
with very mixed feelings. Of course I am
excited about my new job in IATA, and
about living in a new and very pleasant place, Geneva. But Cathay Pacific has been my life and my home
since 1978 – before many of you
who are reading this were born!
Leaving this wonderful company
after such a long and happy career
is not easy. Looking back at the
airline I joined, it’s hard to believe
how it’s grown and transformed itself. We thought we were pretty
good in those days – and we were.
We thought we were pretty significant in terms of Asian aviation, and
that was probably true too. But today we are a huge airline, spanning
the globe, operating more than 10
times as many aircraft and offering
a quality of service that back then I
never dreamed would be possible.
I’m indulging in nostalgia, but the
point is that the growth and improvement I’ve seen in my career is going to
continue for many years to come. We
have great plans for our fleet, our network
and our product. I’ve only seen the first
few chapters of the Asian aviation growth
story: what’s coming next will continue to
drive the progress of our Group. Our financial position is strong, so we can afford to
do what’s necessary to stay ahead of
our competition. We also have a very
strong team – and of course I mean
you! I genuinely believe that our people, and the way we work together, give the
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
do their very best – and their very best is
very good indeed – to protect and improve
your jobs.
Of course, you can never please everyone, and I’ve had quite some experience at
the front line arguing the company’s case
where groups of our staff were not happy
for one reason or another. I’ve always believed that if you think your managers are
not doing the right thing, or could be doing
things better, tell them so, using the many
channels of communication we have. Actions that damage the company do none
of us any good – the company, you or the
20,000 other family breadwinners who rely
on Cathay Pacific for your livelihood and
your lifestyle.
I am very happy to be handing over the
reins to John Slosar. I could not possibly
have had more support than I received
from John over the last few years. He will be
an exceptionally good Chief Executive, and
I urge you to give him the same unstinting
support that you have always given me.
I want to say thank you to everyone in
the Cathay Pacific Group for that support.
Very few people have the opportunity to
become Chief Executive of this great airline, and it has been a real privilege and
honour for me. Without your confidence
and backing in both bad times and good,
the job would have been impossible. As it
is, I leave blessed with many happy memories and many great friendships.
I wish all of you every success and happiness in your personal and working lives.
Do please continue to work together for
the success of this wonderful airline. I look
forward to watching Cathay Pacific thrive.
Cathay Pacific Group airlines a real advantage over our competitors.
I don’t want to turn this final message
into “management propaganda”, but let
me speak from the heart. Just because
we’ve been successful so far doesn’t mean
it’s guaranteed. There are plenty of bodies
in the corporate graveyard that were once
healthy and strong. The airline industry is
very volatile – in my four years of reporting
annual results as Chief Executive we’ve broken three records: one record loss and two
record profits!
Management’s difficult job is to navigate a safe course through the perils that
lie around us. In a free and open society
like Hong Kong, there will always be voices
from within and outside the company telling you that you are being underpaid or
overworked. When you hear this, I’d like you
to look at the our track record and decide
for yourself. Are we the sort of company
that cares about people, and shares the
fruits of the good times? Have we lived up
to our promise to try to protect jobs and
livelihoods, even in dark days?
I think our track record shows that we
have done so. The way in which we preserved jobs during the global financial
crisis, when some airlines went under and
others shed thousands of jobs, testifies to
that.
In life nothing or no one is perfect – including our managers. Managers are human – we make mistakes. Not everything
we try will work perfectly. But I know what
an outstanding management team we
have got: and of course I believe you can
trust them. I know too that our managers
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
New Business Class product makes a splash at Asian Aerospace
Cathay Pacific’s new Business Class product got the
thumbs up at the CX-sponsored Asian Aerospace
2011, held in Hong Kong from 8-10 March.
The new Business Class seat was the main attraction for visitors at the Cathay Pacific and Dragonair
booth which also highlighted the airline’s range of
interactive applications for mobiles and iPads.
Meanwhile, in his speech to open the Asian Aerospace Congress, Chief Executive Tony Tyler painted
a bright future for the aviation industry and said the
aviation centre of gravity is shifting towards China.
Tony highlighted the exciting and enormous potential of the fastest-growing market, with the number of passengers in China expected to soar from
267 million last year to 500 million by 2015 and up
to 1.5 billion by 2030.
“This the beginning of a new era for aviation in the
region,” he said.
This was the third time Hong Kong has hosted the
biennial exhibition which attracted 270 exhibitors
and 11,000 trade visitors this year.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
FLAT-OUT COMFORT: Director Sales & Marketing Rupert Hogg demonstrates the many features of
the new Business Class product to Hong Kong SAR Financial Secretary John Tsang, who dropped by
the CX and KA booth after officially opening the Asian Aerospace exhibition.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Performance Index
On-time performance
Within 15 mins
Industry standard
on-the-dot CX standard
Traffic/capacity (CX + KA)*
84.8%
57.9%
Passengers carried
2,036,437
-1.2%
Passenger load factor
77.3%
-6.8pt
ASKs (000)
9,520,651
8.9%
Freight carried
116,998
-2.3%
Cargo load factor
67.6%
-9.5pt
ATKs (000)
1,883,924
13.3%
* Figures for Feb 11
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Produced by CX’s Corporate
Communication Department
7/F North Tower, Cathay Pacific City,
Lantau, HK
Publisher: C K Yeung
Managing Editor: Mark Tindall
Editor: Joyce Wong
Enquiries: 2747-5293
GalaCXy ID: CCD#SCT
Email: ccd#[email protected]
■
■
■
■
■
Staff thanked for
sustained effort
Note of caution on high prices and market volatility going forward
By any stretch of the imagination, 2010 was a spectacular year
for Cathay Pacific, and both Chief
Executive Tony Tyler and Chief Operating Officer John Slosar were
quick to praise staff for a great effort in helping the airline to a record profit.
“A lot of hard work went into all
of this eventful and memorable
year, and it all happened because
of the sustained effort from the
whole team – in the air, on the
ground and around the world,”
Tony said in a message to staff.
The CE and COO ran through
the numbers with staff in a series
of post-results briefings, with a
key message being that while the
airline had just enjoyed its bestever result, with a slew of records
shattered, nothing can be taken
for granted.
“Something always comes along
to rain on our parade!” said Tony,
pointing to the recent spike in fuel
prices.
“It’s a worrying situation because our business is very sensi-
GREAT EFFORT: John Slosar.
tive to price increases – and I think
we’re in for a time of high prices
and high volatility in the market.”
John said that it’s hard to predict which way things will go and
warned that the economy could
be affected if prices continue to
rise.
Hedging will help, “and we
continue to hedge, though we’ve
changed our tactics now,” John
told staff. “We pay more for hedging, but it’s more effective.”
But even the oil price spike
couldn’t detract from the overall sense of satisfaction resulting
from last year’s achievements.
Turnover was up by almost a
third to close to HK$90 billion
while the operating profit – “the
money we make from flying aeroplanes around” – was almost
HK$9.5 billion, a huge leap on the
2009 figure of HK$285 million.
Tony and John thanked teams
for their great work in pushing up
both load factor and yield in 2010
as business bounced back from
the downturn.
On the cost side, the big story
was cost per ATK, including fuel,
which rose by 14% as the fuel bill
soared by 63%.
John warned that cost per ATK
has been climbing since 2005 – “a
dangerous trend because aviation
is very unforgiving of high costs”
– but said that expansion will help
to keep the figure down.
On the subject of expansion,
Tony said the latest aircraft order
– 27 more aircraft on top of the
record order of 36 aircraft announced at the 2010 interims –
would enable the airline to replace
aircraft that are being retired and
at the same time grow capacity at
a compounded rate of around 5%
a year to the end of the decade.
The newer, highly efficient aircraft would help the airline grow
the fleet as it seeks out new opportunities, said Tony, adding that
the airline is in discussions that
could result in the acquisition of
another 14 aircraft.
“Yes, we are making money
– but we are spending money to
ensure that we stay ahead of some
very strong and hungry competition from the region and beyond,”
he said.
“We need to grow so that we
can offer our customers the best
possible experience and continue
to offer rewarding and satisfying
careers to our staff.”
Profit beats analyst forecast but oil price warnings persist
While Cathay Pacific’s record 2010 profit impressively beat analyst’s forecasts, the consensus is that
rising oil prices will impact on future profitability.
“These are very good results. But now oil prices
are high. Going forward, this is a big concern,” said
Imperial Dragon Asset Management’s Dale Tsang.
“Demand is still very strong, but mostly people
are concerned about the fuel prices,” Nomura Holdings’ Jim Wong said. “Still, it’s different from what
happened in 2008. This time, demand is out there.”
Analysts also commented that the cargo volumes, which jumped 18% last year on the back of
China’s growing exports and rising demand for luxury goods, are sure to slow down alongside reduced
freight and passenger demand this year.
“It’s impossible to maintain such a strong growth
rate,” said Daiwa Securities analyst Kevin Lau. “Cargo is sure to slow this year on China exports. Traffic
demand outpaced supply last year, so both cargo
and passenger yields grew significantly.”
However the announcement of additional aircraft purchases was well received with Kevin saying
it underscored CX’s confidence in business prospects.
“The management sees the growth potential and
we have confidence in the team. There should be no
over-capacity concerns,” he said.
“Cathay needs to renew its fleet and further expand,” adds Jim. “Passengers prefer taking new
planes.”
ADDING UP: Analysts were briefed on the results.
27 new aircraft orders is set to swell the fleet
For the second results announcement in a row, Cathay Pacific threw
in an extra surprise by revealing a
sizeable aircraft order.
At the interim results last August,
the airline announced its biggestever order – for 30 Airbus A350900s and six Boeing 777-300ERs.
And for the annual results on 9
March, CX declared it had inked
deals for a further 27 aircraft, taking the total number of orders on
hand to 91.
Agreements have been reached
with Airbus for 15 more A330300s and Boeing for another 10
777-300ERs, while a deal with ILFC
means that two leased A350-900s
will be delivered in 2015 – a year
before the 30 ordered from Airbus
are scheduled to arrive and helping the airline address capacity and
growth opportunities.
The new orders have a book value of HK$51 billion, but will be acquired at a considerable discount.
The list price of all the aircraft on
order amounts to HK$185 billion.
Chief Executive Tony Tyler says
the latest order underscores the
airline’s commitment to Hong
Kong and will provide CX with the
right balance in its fleet portfolio
through to the end of the decade.
With plans in place to retire the
fleet’s 21 Boeing 747-400s and 11
Airbus A340-300s the airline is taking delivery of new-generation aircraft that will provide much greater
fuel and operating cost efficiencies.
“This is important for both envi-
ronmental reasons and from a financial perspective, as fuel remains
our greatest single cost,” says Tony.
The 15 new A330-300s from Airbus will be delivered between 2013
and 2015 and will be powered by
Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines.
The 10 additional Boeing 777300ERs will be delivered by the end
of 2015 and will be powered by
GE90 engines. In four years’ time
Cathay Pacific will operate 46 of
this aircraft type, with the 19th being delivered at the end of March.
What do you
think about
the results and
the prospects
for 2011?
I’m happy
with the results. They’re
just what I expected. I think
2011 will be
as good as the economy is
doing well at the moment.
Joyce Yu,
IMT
I am unexpectedly amazed
that we did so
well. I think
there will be
lots of challenges like the increase in oil
prices, but with everybody’s
help we can make it work as
a team.
Teresa Daroza,
ISD
It’s great that
we’re doing
well and it’s
good to see
our expansion
with the new
aircraft orders. Our prospects
for 2011 are probably not as
good with oil prices going up,
but I believe we will still be
very strong.
Robert Peper,
FOP
It’s amazing that we
made so much
money in
2010, which is
very promising
for Cathay Pacific. It shows
that the company will have a
great future.
John Ching,
ISD
The results are
better than
expected. But
I feel pessimistic about 2011.
I don’t think
cargo revenue will be as good
this year compared to 2010.
Faye Fung,
CGO
I’m very happy
with the annual results.
They’re good
– a record
profit! 2011
is looking good but we have
to be more cautious with the
price of fuel shooting up.
Connie Cheng,
FIN
3
PSS project rescheduled
In a move to ensure a seamless system
migration, and to more closely coordinate
with a major project set to launch early
next year, Phase 1 of the Passenger Services
Systems (PSS) project has been rescheduled
to cut over in the first quarter of 2012.
Phase 1 involves the replacement of
CUPID by the Altéa Reservations and Altéa
Inventory systems, and General Manager
PSS Richard Reed says that functional testing
of the systems has gone well.
“However, the introduction of PSS will
impact 30 interlinked CX/KA systems and
1. Will the Phase 2 cutover be rescheduled
as well?
Yes, the reschedule of Phase 1 means the
timeline for the Phase 2 cutover will also
be revised.
2. Will training schedules be affected?
Yes, because we want to ensure
training is provided close to the
time of cutover. The RES eLearning
training will remain unchanged,
while the RES classroom training
will be rescheduled to AugustDecember this year. For
details, staff should refer to
the PSS website on IntraCX.
3. What about those countdown timers?
We will reset them once the new
cutover date is determined.
our latest round of inter-system testing
confirmed that more time is needed until
we are ready for our end-to-end business
process testing,” says Richard.
“The reschedule will now allow us
to coordinate all training and business
readiness to reduce complexity and ensure
a smooth change experience for colleagues
and customers alike.”
The new project schedule will be
announced once confirmed. Meanwhile, the
team has provided answers to some of the
questions that staff may have in mind:
Centenary
celebration
takes off
Ticket giveaway and promotion highlight
impact of aviation in Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific has added spice to Hong
Kong’s 100th anniversary celebration of
powered flight with a community engagement activity alongside one of the largest
fare promotions the city has ever seen.
Chief Executive Tony Tyler was
joined by Under Secretary for
Home Affairs Florence Hui and Director-General Civil Aviation Norman Lo to kick off the “Connecting
Your World” campaign on 4 March.
CX is giving away 1,800 free tickets to the Hong Kong public with 100
tickets being distributed to each of the
city’s 18 districts.
“We are inviting the public to submit their
thoughts on how air transport connects them
and Hong Kong to the world,” says Director
Corporate Affairs Quince Chong.
“We want people to be creative and think
of the ways aviation touches their lives, from
job creation, to the food they eat, to watching
world-class entertainment and meeting tour-
ists from all over the world,” she adds.
CX also joined with sister airline Dragonair
to launch one of the biggest fare promotions in town, covering more than 20 favourite regional and long-haul destinations.
The promotion, which ran from 5-11 March,
had the added incentive of every 100th booking receiving cash vouchers equivalent in
value to the airfare purchased to redeem for
their next flight.
In the first five days, just under 40,000
bookings had been made.
The next generation has also not been forgotten with the launch of the Cathay Pacific
Aviation Knowledge Contest being jointly
organised with the Hong Kong Civil Aviation
Department and the Hong Kong Air Cadet
Corps.
“A special Facebook page featuring quizzes
and games has been set up for local secondary school students to learn more about aviation in a fun and interactive manner, which I
hope will really entice them to want to know
more,” says Quince.
In addition, a 100th
anniversary commemorative logo has been
placed on a CX Boeing
747-400 aircraft which
will also be part of a record Aircraft Pull on 17
March.
IN MOTION: (From left)
Norman Lo, Florence
Hui and Tony Tyler unveil a model of the CX
plane with the 100th
anniversary logo.
Service stars guided by industry leaders
An Executive Leaders Forum organised by
the Hong Kong Association for Customer
Service Excellence was held on 1 March at the
Langham Place Hotel with Director Service
Delivery Ivan Chu and Director Corporate
Affairs Quince Chong speaking.
Quince, who is also HKACE Chairman,
opened the event by discussing the current
economic environment, keen competition,
rising customer demand and the changing
nature of the workforce. Ivan shared CX’s
winning formula with the audience including
building a strong culture and engaging
customers.
Pictured from left are Quince and Ivan
with two other forum speakers – Fuji Xerox’s
Katherine Lau and CLP’s Philip Tong.
4
Briefs
Alliance travel gets cheaper for staff
en this one step further,” Bob says.
“For various internal reasons, a
few member carriers have not yet
been able to lower their fares, but
for the majority of users the changes represent real benefits in terms
of lower fares,” he adds.
Airline employees will also continue to enjoy a higher boarding
priority on leisure travel.
opportunity to make this happen.“
Employee Services Manager Bob
Nipperess says that as one of the
founding members of oneworld,
CX has worked closely with other
member carriers to develop the
best staff travel programmes of any
of the alliances.
“The broad agreement to lower
the fares for sub-load travel has tak-
ZED fares with savings of up to
27% when travelling with BA, IB
and most of the other oneworld
partners.
General Manager Joint Business
Otto Grunow said: “Travel privileges are extremely important to most
airline employees, and is one of the
areas we wanted to improve. The
joint business gave us the perfect
Cathay
Pacific
staff can now enjoy
drastically reduced staff
leisure fares on most oneworld
member airlines following the
launch of the transatlantic joint
business between American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia.
Since 1 March, employees can
take advantage of new discounted
■ Entries flood in for 80
Days contest
Something big is
happening at the 7s
Nearly 4,000 entries were received
for Cathay Pacific’s “Travel the World
in 80 Days” competition with more
than 1,000 from Hong Kong.
Of the 3,980 entries received,
496 were videos, 1,998 photos and
1,486 participants submitted a
story. The contest proved a boon
for the CX and KA Facebook pages
worldwide with 79,694 fans being
added.
Eight finalists will be shortlisted
to visit Hong Kong in mid-April.
■ Christchurch appeal
World record rugby ball attempt and striking ads catch the public eye
While passengers are used to seeing CX cabin crew deal in a variety of
situations with style, they might be
surprised to see them battling it out
with real rugby players drawn from
various teams in Hong Kong.
To promote the Cathay Pacific/
Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens, CX
launched a television and print campaign on 7 March with the theme
Game On and carrying the tagline
“nothing will be bigger than this”.
“The television ad shows crew
playing rugby against a real team
and showcases the energy of the
game as well as the fun element
which is what Hong Kong Sevens
is about,” says Marketing Manager
Erica Peng.
“The television commercial started creating a buzz as soon as it appeared on YouTube,” she adds
Tying in with the tagline is the creation of a giant rugby ball which will
be the largest ever made.
Members of the public will be
able to see the ball when it is on
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
to the ball will receive a CX Sevens
souvenir.
“Alternatively people can take a
photo of themselves with the ball,
upload it to the CX Facebook page
for a chance to win the same souvenir,” Erica says.
On 23 March, the giant ball will be
signed by teams participating in the
Hong Kong Sevens before being put
on auction to raise money for the
Hong Kong Rugby Football Union
Charitable Trust Fund.
The public can try guessing
how much the winning bid is for
a chance to win two tickets to the
2012 event.
“As the co-title sponsor, CX is
very involved with the Hong Kong
Sevens and we think this recordbreaking campaign will really raise
the event’s profile and engage the
Hong Kong public and overseas visitors,” Erica says.
“And it highlights the fact we are
always bringing big world-class
events to Hong Kong,” she adds.
BIGGER IS BETTER: Crew, including Flight Attendant Grace Hui (above), get
into the spirit of the Rugby Sevens with an energetic television campaign.
people to ‘check in’ and tell their
friends they are standing next the
CX giant rugby ball,” Erica says.
“CX is one of the first companies
to take advantage of this new function to use it in a marketing campaign,” she adds.
On each day of the promotion,
selected people who “check in” next
display at the Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel from 15-23 March and
the Hong Kong Stadium from 25-27
March. Meanwhile, a replica ball of
the same size will be at the Hong
Kong Station from 16-25 March.
“It’s quite eye catching and we
will be taking advantage of a new
function on Facebook which allows
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Frontline staff get ready to make a proactive difference
Frontline teams are gearing up for
the official launch of the Proactive
Service Recovery project which
starts on 1 April.
The project has been underway
since 2009 when the 35 projects derived from the Cathay Pacific strategy review were launched.
“The desired results are that we
want Cathay Pacific customers to re-
member more about how we recovered than the actual service failure,”
says Head of Customer Relations
Jessica Chan.
The concept involves empowering frontline teams to own and
resolve customer issues at each of
the customer touch points, treating
customers as individuals with individual concerns.
“Empowering our staff to be
equipped with service recovery
tools will make for a better experience for both our customers and
our frontline teams,” Jessica says.
“We want all frontline staff to proactively resolve the matter on the
spot as customers thes days want to
know immediately what we are going to do to help them when a ser-
vice failure occurs.
“After all, our frontline teams are
the experts in their particular area
and they have a better understanding of the problem,” she adds.
Jessica says service failures will
inevitably occur but “what makes
us stand out is how quickly we take
steps to recover and how it is delivered.”
Staff have been giving generously after an in-house appeal was
launched to raise funds to help
those affected by the terrible earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand
on 22 February.
The appeal closes at midnight on
14 March. All money raised will be
given to the New Zealand Red Cross.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
There were
23
VIP tours organised
around CX City in 2010
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■ CX singing stars get ready
to shine
Don’t miss out on
the chance to cheer
on your favourite
CX performer during the finals of
the 17th CX Singing Contest.
Twenty staff
won a place in
the finals after
a hard-fought
audition held at Cathay City on
19 February.
The finals will be held on 2 April
and staff can purchase tickets
priced at HK$20 at the CXcitement
shop.
■ Smart savings to
Australia
CX launched its latest Smart Saver
fares in Hong Kong at the end of
February with special deals to
destinations in Australia.
Round trip Economy Class fares
to Perth start at HK$4,680 with
other destinations from HK$4,990.
Tickets – good for travel until 30
June – are on sale until 31 March.
5
■
Letters to the Editor
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Service with
heart
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Star letter
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Discrimination for
Jumbo liveries?
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
I’m not sure if this question has been asked before, but I was wondering why we no
longer have any special paint
schemes on the
747-400s?
I know we have the “silver bullet” on the freighters but why don’t we have any special livery on
the passenger aircraft? We used to have the “Asia’s
world city” livery on the -400 but that has now
been painted back. Are there any plans to add the
oneworld livery onto any of the -400s soon?
The -400s fly to a majority of the European ports,
and therefore it would be nice to see some special
liveries on them.
Adrian Ng,
FOP
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
James Ginns, General Manager Marketing & Product, replies: Many considerations are factored into a
plan for a special paint scheme, such as aircraft and
hangar availability.
In fact, both the 747-400 and 777-300ER fly to a
majority of our long-haul destinations and we are
happy to see special schemes on either of the aircraft types. In the case of “Asia’s world city”, it’s
simply that the 777-300ER was available for
painting prior to delivery.
We have three aircraft painted in a special oneworld scheme which cover both
short- and long-haul destinations. We don’t have
any plans to increase the number of CX aircraft with
oneworld livery at the moment.
■
■
■
■
■
Send us your feedback
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
We welcome feedback from anyone in the CX network on any issue affecting the airline
or the industry. Please email your letters to CCD#SCT. Not all letters will be published but
those that are will be edited for length and to comply with the CX World style.
The sender of the star letter each month will win 3,000 Asia Miles. The Feedback page
is sponsored by Asia’s leading travel reward programme.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Payload
problem?
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
My wife and I went on standby
for CX829 on 17 November as the
flight was wide open. They asked
us to wait and 40 minutes before
departure we were advised that
we could not make it because of
payload problem.
We then went on standby again
for CX827 on the same day and
were asked to wait because of a
possible payload problem.
However, I noticed a colleague
was accepted because he was
holding a priority 11Y ticket. Is
it CX policy to accept 11Y ticket
holders immediately?
And is it possible to do a rough
estimate with regards to actual
bookings and expected payload
so as not to let staff wait and hope
to be boarded on the flight?
■
■
■
■
■
Ryan Uy,
MNL
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
6
Charlotte Lim, Standards &
Product Development Manager, replies: In the event of an anticipated payload restriction, staff
holding
unconfirmed/subload
tickets may be asked to standby
until all variable weights, including but not limited to, cargo, passenger count, fuel etc, are confirmed. This helps ascertain if any
passengers with unconfirmed/
subload tickets may be accepted
later.
Depending on the situation on
the day, if the payload restriction
is marginal, staff holding confirmed priority 11Y tickets may be
accepted as per their confirmed
status/priority.
Neil Phillips, Manager Line Operations, adds: It is important
that staff understand just because
an aircraft has a maximum take-off
weight it is not always possible to
take off at that particular weight
because of environmental conditions which affect the runway and
aircraft take-off performance.
Every aircraft has a maximum
taxi weight and a maximum
take-off weight and neither can
be exceeded. Therefore, the load
control system takes that into account.
Bob Nipperess, Employee Services Manager, replies: The revised charges for separate bulky
sporting equipment, which were
introduced in December 2010,
are intended to reflect the additional costs to the airline from
carriage of such items.
To better understand the background of the fuel surcharge discounts on staff tickets and excess
baggage charges we need to go
back to 2007.
We used to apply full fuel surcharges on staff tickets but, following requests from employees,
we lowered the charges to reflect
the percentage discount of the
ID ticket. For example, FOC tickets have no fuel surcharge.
However, in reducing the fuel
surcharges, the company decided the excess baggage scheme
should be dropped and staff travellers would pay the appropriate
excess baggage charges applicable to full-fare passengers.
However, the 40kg free baggage allowance for staff travellers
is double that of our revenue passengers in Economy Class.
Married staff
advantages
I refer to the letter “Nominee
change?” which appeared in February 2011 CX World about the
perceived preferential treatment
for single employees with regard
to travel nominees.
I’d like to point out that if anything the married employees enjoy significant advantages over
non-married staff.
To start with, travel partners for
single staff are on a lower priority
than the married staff ’s spouse.
Furthermore, we’re limited to
our own parents, whereas married staff can (apparently) include
their wife’s parents too.
And then there are kids – they
are on a higher priority than my
companion and tickets are unlimited in number.
So a married staff member with
two kids can easily bring along a
spouse, any two people from parents/in-laws, siblings or children
over 24 (a total of six nominees),
or more if they have more kids.
Meanwhile an unmarried employee is allowed a maximum of
three, and all of them at a lower
priority than his/her married colleague.
I agree that we all have different situations but please don’t
think married staff are getting a
raw deal.
Name withheld
Heavy
charges
The company has recently applied
a new charge for odd-sized baggage. For instance, a snowboard
costs normal passengers (and
staff ) US$75.
Can this charge can be waived
or discounted for staff similar to
the fuel surcharge?
Chin Pang-wu,
IMT
EXCESS CHARGE?: Staff now pay charges for odd-sized baggage.
Taipei Airport Services Officer
Charles Chen’s efforts to
track down a lost BlackBerry
made a passenger’s day.
“Airport Services Officer Charles Chen
was checking my wife
and I in for the flight
on 18 November to
Hong Kong when I
realised that I
had left my
BlackBerry
in the taxi.
Charles
helped us
call the
hotel and
left his
mobile
phone
number for the hotel to call him back.
After three phone calls with the hotel
to help track the taxi driver, we finally
had to leave for the departure gate.
Even then Charles said he would
continue to follow up with the hotel
and taxi company and let us know the
progress.
As I boarded the flight, I was already
half resigned to losing the BlackBerry,
so you can imagine how happy I was
when we landed in Hong Kong and
was passed a message that it had been
found.
I would like to thank Charles for
his quick action and excellent service
– you have an amazing staff member
in him.”
Hong Kong International Airport Service Leader Amy Lo
helped two passengers make
alternative arrangements
when they missed the CX693
flight in November.
“I would like to record my thanks and
appreciation to your staff member Amy
Lo from the HKIA for her assistance
and understanding.
My sister and I missed the boarding call for our flight from Hong Kong
to Penang and Ms Lo arranged for us
to travel on the Hong Kong to Kuala
Lumpur flight the following day.
“We would like to thank her for her
efforts in getting us home to Kuala
Lumpur.
I would like to
express our sincere
thanks and appreciation for her
good work.
Over the past
20 years I have
always enjoyed my
flights on
Cathay
Pacific.”
Taiwan boost for summer
The growth in the number of Hong
Kong and Mainland China visitors will
see Dragonair increasing the number
of flights to Kaohsiung by 10 to 42
flights per week from 27 March.
“We’ve seen strong demand from
both the Hong Kong and Taiwan markets, as well as strong growth in the
developing segment of PRC tourists
visiting Taiwan,” says Adrian Harley
General Manager Taiwan & Korea.
“We’re pleased to see that our
business has survived and flourished
despite the increasing number of
cross-strait direct flights,” he adds.
On the same day, one more daily
flight will be added to Xiamen, taking
it to four flights daily, while three
more flights a week will be added to
Ningbo making a total of 10 flights
weekly.
The summer schedule will also
see increases in services to Nanjing,
Chengdu and Chongqing to meet
seasonal demand.
The number of flights to Chongqing will rise to daily, while services to
both Nanjing and Chengdu will rise
to twice daily.
In addition, upgrades to an A330300 aircraft will add more capacity
on other flights, including one of the
three daily flights to Hangzhou and
one of the two daily flights to Fuzhou
starting from 27 March and 1 May
respectively
The latest figures from the Hong
Kong Tourism Board show the number of visitors arriving in Hong Kong
from the Mainland went up 31%,
from 1.9 million in January 2010 to
2.5 million in January 2011.
Heartwarming moment for fresh faces
There were tears and there was laughter, and, at the end, there were 42 fresh
and eager faces ready to join Dragonair’s cabin crew community.
The newest batch of cabin crew
marked their graduation ceremony at
Dragonair House at the Hong Kong International Airport on 22 February.
Families and friends joined senior
management to celebrate the special
occasion.
Chief Executive Officer James Tong
and General Manager Inflight Services
Cecilia Leung were both present to welcome the graduates and help pin on
their new wing badges.
Assistant General Manager Inflight
Services Suzanne Wong presented the
best performer awards to Gary Man of
class A110 and Kinic Tang of class A111.
Gary says his class members became
close friends during
their
seven-week
training.
“They are like my
family,” he says.
The new cabin
crew concluded the
ceremony by singing pop songs with
altered lyrics to reflect their gratitude
and
excitement
about their new job.
Dragonair will hire
300 cabin crew candidates this year.
KA PEOPLE
Dream
come true
Flying helicopters was a childhood dream for Air Safety Specialist Marc Holm and one that he
saved 11 years to achieve.
“I worked in retail management to save up for my commercial helicopter pilot’s licence,” he
says. Marc completed the licence
in 1993 and spent six years on
the Gold Coast running his own
helicopter business, conducting
charters and day trips around the
Southeast Queensland area.
Marc came to Hong Kong in
2004 to work for a commodities
firm, but continued to fly on a casual basis in Australia.
In 2009, during the thick of the
devastating Victorian bushfires,
he was working for a contract
helicopter operator based in Bendigo.
“I remember flying over Marysville which was one of the worstaffected towns. Then the firestorm came through and when we
flew back over the area, the entire
town was gone,” Marc says.
“That day I was involved in ‘air
attack’, which is supervising the
process of attacking the bushfire
from the air using fixed wing aircraft, helicopters and other aviation resources. On other days I
would be dropping incendiaries
to do controlled burning as well
as water bombing.”
In April 2010, he joined Dragonair’s Corporate Safety & Quality Department and has been
involved in investigating a wide
range of incidents, reviewing Air
Safety Reports, conducting observation flights and continuing
to encourage an open reporting
culture across all divisions within
Dragonair.
“There is always something
new and challenging to deal with,”
he says.
Marc has also learned to love
the Hong Kong lifestyle.
“I love hiking and mountain
biking around the New Territories
and enjoy learning more about
the local culture,” he says.
READY TO SHINE: New graduates get ready to work as Dragonair cabin crew
while (left) James Tong helps a new recruit with his wing badge.
7
So long, farewell…
Chief Executive Tony Tyler gets ready to move from one hot seat to another
Tony Tyler will be looking back fondly on a colourful
and always eventful career as he gets set to leave Cathay Pacific on 31 March.
Everyone is itching to get a piece of the Chief Executive before he ends his 33-year stint with the airline,
and a succession of leaving events and parties will remind him of some of the golden – and not-so-golden
– moments he’s been through.
Over the past three decades he’s seen the airline scale
new heights, but there have been plenty of bumps
along the way.
Even during his three years and nine months as Chief
Executive he’s had two major crises – the fuel spike of
early 2008 and the global economic downturn that followed – to steer the airline through.
As he gets set to vacate his ninth-floor office, another
fuel crisis seems to be brewing – but that can’t detract
from the fact that Tony is going out on a high.
CX announced a record profit in its annual results
on 9 March and “I can think of no better way to sign off
from a team that is the match of any airline in the world,”
Tony said.
In one of his last public engagements for CX, speaking at the launch of Asian Aerospace 2001, Tony said he
was excited about moving from one hot seat to another
– the top job at IATA, which he’ll take up in July – “but I’ll
be very sad about leaving Hong Kong and all the great
people I’ve worked with in this region over the past
three decades.
“It’s been an honour and a privilege – and a great pleasure – to have been a part of the growth of this amazing
industry in this amazing part of the world,” he said.
DOWN MEMORY LANE: Chief
Executive Tony Tyler has
been on a rollercoaster ride
during his three decades
with CX, experiencing the
best and worst of what the
airline industry has to offer.
An exhilarating journey
Tony Tyler joined Cathay Pacific
in 1978 and has enjoyed a
long, fruitful and always eventful career with the airline.
It’s been a rollercoaster ride
(“more thrilling than any theme
park”) and the many highs
have been balanced by various
lows, ranging from diseases
outbreaks to global downturns.
CX World asked the departing Chief Executive to recall
his most memorable moments
from the past 33 years…
8
1980
On 15 July I watched from my balcony
in Stanley as CX201 flew past
on our first flight to London. As Assistant Manager
Airline Planning I’d worked
on the overflights/slots
and other route coordination matters.
1983
Our first flight to Vancouver on 1 May
– I was acting Station Manager in my
capacity as Executive Assistant to the
VP Americas.
1986
The launch of flights to Rome and Paris
when I was Manager Italy & France.
1993
The cabin crew strike! I was GM Europe
– lots of operational issues keeping the
aircraft turned around and passengers
looked after.
1998
5 July – on board the last aircraft
(A340) to depart Kai Tak on a positioning flight to the new HKIA. Flown by
DFO Captain Ken Barley, with Chairman Peter Sutch on board. Then the
chaotic opening, although the move
(which I was responsible for) went well!
1999 and 2001
Being the company’s media front
man during very disruptive industrial
disputes with aircrew.
1999
31 December – spending the millennium New Year’s Eve in Cathay City
with my nine-year-old daughter Florence, the culmination of much time
and money wasted on Y2K!
2001
11 September –”9/11”. When the Twin
Towers came down I was in a band
practice at Cathay City. We came
out to watch the replays on CNN and
realised the world had changed.
2003
SARS – a very scary time when the
future of a strong company suddenly
seemed very precarious.
2007
1 July – my appointment as Cathay
Pacific’s Chief Executive.
2008
Autumn, and the beginning of our
“annus horribilis” when fuel hedging
losses and a collapse in cargo and
premium revenues led to losses of over
US$1 billion.
2010
• The CX780 emergency landing on 13
April. The most serious incident for
many years, which could have been
much worse but for brilliant work by
the Cathay Pacific crew.
• Record financial results.
Photo coutesy of Li Shun Yan
Delivery marks leap into new era
Big thumbs up from
passengers and crew
Chief Operating Officer John Slosar and Director Corporate Affairs Quince
Chong joined a group of VIPs and Hong Kong media to take delivery of B-LAK
from Toulouse on 27 February.
John met with French and Hong Kong press to take them through the
features and special touches
in the new Business Class
cabin (below), while Quince
joined the crew for a happy
jump (above).
As a special touch, Airbus
Vice President Sales Pacific
Isabelle Floret donned the
new CX uniform to distribute Airbus souvenirs and
serve champagne to the
VIPS on board (right).
Positive feedback as new Business Class launches
Passengers on board CX101 to Sydney on 1 March were the centre of
attention as they became the first
customers worldwide to try out the
new Business Class.
As passengers settled into their
seats, the crew also had their first
chance to review all service-related
aspects of the new product.
Over the past six months the New
Business Class Seat Project Team has
been busy studying and reviewing
the product and putting out tips and
guidelines for the more than 5,000
crew who underwent e-learning before working in the new cabin.
Manager Inflight Services Development & Standards Pom Warakorn
Komutanont says: “Members of the
project team were part of the operating crew on the first few flights to
get firsthand knowledge of the new
cabin. The project team will continue to operate this flight for the next
few months to help consolidate the
feedback.
“Some ISD managers are also travelling on CX101/100 for the first two
weeks of the launch,” she adds.
Crew can provide feedback via a
dedicated common email account
which in particular is asking for
comments on the new seat, its functionality and stowage, the service
flow, and galley design.
Initial feedback would indicate
crew are enjoying having more
space to work in.
Senior Purser Michelle Chan says
the area is “less confining and more
spacious to work in. And passengers
can look out the window and enjoy
the view.”
Senior Purser Margaret Wong says
the crew have modified their service
procedures to serve passengers in
the two centre seats.
“In order for the couples to enjoy
a meal together we use a two-trolley system to ensure everyone gets
served at the same time,” Margaret
says.
From the first flight onwards, passengers have been asked to fill out
questionnaires asking about comfort and design. “We also want their
views on the balance of privacy versus openness in terms of personal
space and environment,” says the
Product Department’s Performance
Analyst Laurel Lee.
The comments received have
been very positive so far, with feedback from passengers on the first
flight to Sydney showing the extra
space was appreciated.
A passenger from Chicago, who
deliberately changed his itinerary
in order to try out the new product,
said he liked the casual elegance of
the cabin.
“I also liked the extra pockets to
put things in and the moving side
table,” he said, adding it was better
than some other carrier’s First Class
product.
A passenger from France said the
seat was “almost perfect. Having all
the controls in one place makes it
easy to find and operate – it’s been
well thought out.”
The first Boeing 777-300ER with
the new Business Class is due to enter service in early April with passengers on the New York, Los Angeles,
Chicago and San Francisco routes
being the first to enjoy the product.
FLASHBACK
November 1996….
There were a few Hong Kong VIPs on board the delivery flight for the latest
A330-300 on 26 February, but no one quite as well known as the man in
the centre of this picture.
On 7 November 1996, British Prime Minister John Major visited the
Airbus factory in Toulouse and he just happened to board a CX A330 that
was being prepared for delivery at the time.
He didn’t get back to fly to Hong Kong (and the seats certainly wouldn’t
have been as comfy as the 2011 model!) but he and Airbus’ Bernard Pons
did get the chance to sample the famous CX service courtesy of cabin crew
Cherylann Nazareth and Iris Hui.
ROOM TO MOVE: (Clockwise from top) Valuable passenger feedback is being collected via questionnaires; crew are
appreciating the extra space; Sydney airport staff take the chance to try out the new seats for themselves.
9
WHAT I DO
High-potential staff
put in the spotlight
New teams create sharper focus on people development
Jackie Yu, Duty Airport
Services Manager HKIA
What is a typical day for
you?
I hold several briefing sessions
throughout the day with Managers on Duty regarding operations.
These sessions help us disseminate information and share ideas.
I also walk around the counters
watching the operations, observing frontline staff and later sharing my observations with them.
What is your background?
I have been in an operational role
of some sort for the past 30 years.
I started at CX in 1980 working
with ramp services at the old Kai
Tak airport, a function which has
now been taken over by HAS.
I was Assistant Manager Hub
Operations before moving to this
job several months ago.
What is the biggest challenge you face?
During a disruption we have
to achieve a balance between
operations and meeting passenger
needs.
With the major disruptions last
year, the airport teams worked
round the clock with only short
breaks to ensure passengers were
updated on the situation.
Even if we can’t fly the aircraft we
have to keep passengers updated
and give them the right information
about what was happening.
During a major disruption there
are several major things to try and
prioritise – taking care of passengers and sourcing hotel accommodation; positioning staff at hotels
for updates; and deciding on the
resources to allocate.
Once flights resume many quick
decisions have to be made on the
spot but I try to remember each
passenger is an individual.
Given these challenges, what
inspires you?
There’s a piece of Chinese calligraphy in my office which roughly
translated means you need to work
hard before there is any reward.
The objective is to remind
everyone who comes in my office,
including me, that before there is
any reward is the “work hard” part!
10
A reorganisation within Personnel
has seen two new specialist teams
set up to replace the Learning & Development Group (LDG) team.
The aim is to provide better support to those departments that want
to implement changes in their work
culture and effectiveness, and to
identify and develop staff who demonstrate high potential.
Leading the Organisation Development Team is Graham Barkus,
Head of Organisation Development
& Change, whose focus is helping
departments formulate and carry
out change and progress plans.
“This role demands intensive en-
gagement with departments and
an in-depth understanding of how
things work and how people with
the company relate,” says Director
Personnel William Chau.
Running the annual Organisational Alignment Survey is also one of the
responsibilities of Graham’s team.
The second team – made up of
many of the former LDG members
– will focus on people development,
identifying and developing staff
with high potential, and building the
capacity of CX people in general.
This team will also look after development of the performance management system, tools related to
and support the process for “People
Week” – the critical starting point for
identifying potential talents within
the organisation and how to develop them.
“This will involve a dialogue
among our GMs and directors followed by a year-long continuous
effort and commitment from departments, the organisation and individuals,” says William.
As well as finding and nurturing talent, the “People Week” programme will also cover individuals’
performance issues, succession
planning and specific organisational
issues that require attention.
the assessment of individual talents,
and the execution of a range of programmes related to people development.
Leading this team is Nick Deal, a
senior partner in Ethos – a market
leader in people development and
already used extensively by the
Swire group.
“The arrangement with Ethos will
help us to grow our expertise and
experience in this area, and to access
and leverage the expertise Ethos has
gained through working with other
Swire companies,” says William.
One of the first major tasks for
the Ethos-led team will be to design
Indulging the senses with
Japan Unlimited
Showing the diversity of Japan
was the motivation behind the creative images by local artist Benny
Luk which were used in the print
ads.
Using the themes Enjoy, Sight,
Dining, Shopping and Activity, the
ads began rolling out in major Hong
Kong newspapers on 15 February.
A dedicated mini-site (www.cathaypacific.com/japanunlimited)
offers
a chance to win tickets and hotel accommodation in weekly lucky draws
held throughout March.
More tickets and tours will be up
for grabs during the Japan Unlimited
Roadshow, which will be held on 9-10
April at Festival Walk shopping mall.
A Japan Unlimited guidebook will
also be launched during the roadshow.
Growing the leisure travel segment to Japan is the objective of Cathay Pacific’s colourful “Japan Unlimited” campaign which
also highlights both CX’s and KA ‘s extensive network to Japan.
The four-month campaign began in
February and includes an online game, a
roadshow and a series of lucky draws.
“Leisure traffic is the key segment we
would like to grow,” says James Ginns,
General Manager Marketing & Product.
“We want to reinforce Japan as the preferred leisure destination, especially at a
time when people are reluctant to travel
to the country because of the strong yen,”
he adds.
Dragonair’s new flights to Haneda, Osaka, Okinawa and Fukuoka are a focus with
great deals on air tickets, air and hotel
packages and group tours.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Progress made as more users switch to Outlook
The NWoW team has been making
steady progress deploying the Outlook email system to users in the
airline.
This month will see the programme closing off the Hong Kong
pilot deployment stage with more
than 700 accounts from seven
departments – Information Management, Business Improvement,
Environmental Affairs, Property &
Services, Contingency Planning,
KA Personnel and KA Operations
(training section) – having made
the transition to Outlook.
With the pilot deployment stage
coming to an end, the NWoW team
is now in the process of contacting
those involved to get their feedback.
This will help them to fine-tune
the deployment process before the
next stage of Hong Kong production deployment commences.
As the company pushes ahead
with Outlook deployment, there
are various challenges – such as
usage changes and transition handling – that new users will face.
To assist staff through the NWoW
journey, the following channels
have been opened to respond
to enquiries and feedback at any
time.
• Technical problems – contact
the Service Centre at 2747-3883
for technical questions and requests.
• Usage and transition questions – check out the training
materials and transition-handling details on the NWoW
homepage.
• General enquiries/feedback
– email to NWoW Group at
IMT#NWoW.
Check out the NWoW homepage
on IntraCX to find out everything
you need to know about this major
transition.
■
ON TOUR: A delegation of Hong Kong District Council Chairpersons visited Cathay City on
22 February. The group was met by Corporate Affairs Director Quince Chong (far right),
who conducted a briefing on CX before a tour of the headquarters complex.
Airport teams
up to the test
Conference highlights challenges ahead
including introduction of PSS
After enduring a year of “volcanoes and
snow”, more than 200 airport managers from
around the network gathered at Cathay City
for the two-day annual Airports Conference
from 15-16 February.
General Manager Airports Peter Langslow congratulated the teams on coming
through a disruptive year and producing a
strong performance despite the day-to-day
issues they had to handle.
“Last year at this time I asked for more and
shared the nagging concern that the improved performance in 2009 would be difficult to maintain and grow from. I am pleased
and proud to note that the 2010 results saw
a sustained improvement,” he said.
Director Service Delivery Ivan Chu updated the delegates on “The New Cathay”, highlighting the outcome of the service strategy
projects in 2010, before Head of Product
Alex McGowan introduced the new Business Class product which was also on display outside the Auditorium for delegates
to try out.
“I wanted the teams to know that lots of
good things are in prospect for the airline
– fleet growth, the new Business Class cabin
product and lounges – as well as talking
about the job being done in our airports,”
Peter says.
“The 2010 performance demonstrates
the simple fact that by staying focused on
the right things and organising ourselves to
achieve improvements, we really can make
a difference to the level of performance we
achieve, in all aspects of our airport operations,” he adds.
The conference was also a chance for delegates to find out more about the PSS project with a presentation by General Manager
PSS Richard Reed.
“It’s vital airport managers understand
PSS because of what is going to be required
of the teams to ensure a successful cutover
to the Altéa departure control system,” Peter
says.
“The importance of PSS was emphasised
by myself, Ivan, Richard and Chief Executive
Tony Tyler, so I am confident the message
got through to the delegates!” he adds.
WINNING MOMENT: The conference included the annual airports awards with the top
places going to Bengaluru for Dragonair and San Francisco for CX. BLR Airport Services
Manager Siddhart Iyer (second left) and Airport Services Manager SFO Hernan Papagno
(second right) are congratulated by (from left) General Manager Middle East, India, Africa
& Pakistan Tom Wright, Chief Operating Officer John Slosar and Senior Vice President
Americas Scott Mowrer.
11
NEWS FOCUS
NOW AND THEN: The CX Pakistan team celebrate the
port’s 10th anniversary with MPOs (top) and current
Chief Executive Tony Tyler (above, right) was present
when Karachi was launched as a destination.
12
Engineering staff
show their worth
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CANADA
Despite the damp, chilly conditions, over 65,000 spectators
watched the annual Chinese New Year parade as it wound
its way along the streets of Vancouver’s Chinatown.
The CX group was led by a contingent of 10 uniformed
cabin crew, a God of Fortune and Year of the Rabbit
mascots. More than 150 staff, family and friends followed
closely behind handing out CX aircraft toys to the crowd.
The airport team
also celebrated
Chinese New Year
with a traditional lion
dance at the check-in
counters.
Two Engineering staff in Dubai used their skill and ability
to show what going the extra mile means to them.
In his spare time, Aircraft Engineer Mohsin Mohamed
(second from left) went out of his way to obtain vehicle
spares which resulted in a considerable financial saving
for the team.
Aircraft Engineer Supavut Putthanasrakoo (far right)
overhauled a dead generator and got it running again,
which saved the team 5,000 dirhams (US$1,300).
Both staff received cinema gift certificates from
Engineering Manager – Dubai Tim O’Grady (left) and
Country Manager UAE & Oman Nelson Chin.
Looking forward to ‘The New Cathay’
TAIWAN
The CX Karachi team brought together a group of top
Marco Polo Club members at the end of 2010 to celebrate
a significant landmark – 10 years online for the port.
The new destination actually got off to a fairly rocky
start, with a number of issues to contend with in the first
two years – including flights being suspended for three
months after the 9/11 attacks and the US involvement in
Afghanistan.
But over the past eight years the port has seen business
go from strength to strength. The number of flights has
moved from three to four a week and there are now
more than 1,000 MPOs in KHI, including 29 Gold and 14
Diamond.
The main driver of business into Pakistan is mainly
business travellers and the VFR (visiting friends and
relatives) segment.
Traffic out of the country is primarily business travel
and incentive groups to the Far East, “and the MPOs play
an important role here, accounting for some 17% of our
passenger revenue,” says Feroze Jamall, Country Manager
Pakistan.
Around 40% of the traffic is between Karachi and
Bangkok, while 20% is to Hong Kong. The balance feeds
the network, “primarily to Australia, Japan and North
America – places where travellers from Pakistan can
transit with a visa,” says Feroze.
The visa issue is a constant thorn in the KHI team’s side.
“We estimate Pakistan could increase its revenue by up to
30% if we were not faced with the transit visa problem,”
says Feroze. “It means we can’t capitalise on the Hong
Kong hub – and we’re missing out completely on China.”
Despite the visa problem and the challenge from
aggressive competition, the team still recorded modest
overall growth in 2010, with front-end business up 23%
– “and we could have done even better if we’d had the
long-haul Business Class product,” says Feroze.
The projection for 2011 is positive and in the first two
months the team showed growth of 4%.
Cargo is a key element of business out of KHI and in
the slack months can contribute almost one-third of
revenue.
“However, we share space with Bangkok, otherwise
this figure could be even higher,” Feroze states. “Pakistan’s
trade with the Far East is growing – a trend we expect to
continue in the foreseeable future – and having all the
space allocated to us would be a big help.”
The annual Taiwan Conference took place in Taipei on 10 February, with more than
150 staff gathering to learn about new developments for 2011.
General Manager Taiwan & Korea Adrian Harley (below right) kicked off the conference with a review of the challenges ahead in a post direct-links environment.
The keynote speaker, Director Sales & Marketing Rupert Hogg (below left), updated
the team with key developments from a Head Office perspective, with important insights on “The New Cathay”.
General Manager PSS Richard Reed and IM Head, Passenger Angela Anthony outlined the critical features of the
PSS cutover and IM development respectively.
The team held a staff party (right) on 13 January with
a Japanese-style staff performance while Adrian also
took |to the stage with his son to present a Chinese
song.
Milan celebrates daily flights and awards presentation
ITALY
Pakistan aims
for growth
CX team on parade
The CX Italy team had an exciting time on
15 February with the announcement of the start
of daily Milan flights on 1 July and the annual
China Trader Awards ceremony.
Director Corporate Development James Barrington made a special visit to Milan to make
the daily flight announcement and was joined
at the press conference by Country Manager
Italy Chris Daniells.
That evening, James joined the Italy team to
host the China Trader Awards gala ceremony.
More than 500 guests from the corporate
and political sphere attended the event at the
Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro museum which
honours Italian enterprises for their business
achievements in China.
Awards were presented in the categories of
creativity, dynamism, innovation and knowhow, with special awards for Best Hong Kong
Entrepreneur and Best Female Entrepreneur.
CHINA TRADER WINNERS: (Clockwise from above) Staff toast the China
Trader Awards and the Milan flight enhancements; President and CEO of
Saporiti Italia Spa, Raffaele Saporiti (right) receives the Creativity Award
from James Barrington (left) and Chris Daniells; Female Entrepreneur
award winner Alessia Fabi from the Fabi Group (left) with PRC Consulate
General in Italy Hui Liang (right) and CX’s Silvia Tagliaferri.
PORT PEOPLE
Manila team thanked for special service
Chief Operating Officer John Slosar hosted a dinner on 9 February
to thank the Manila operations teams who were involved in organising the special flight for the Hong Kong Government in August
last year following the hostage crisis.
The team showed great care and compassion, displaying true Service Straight from
the Heart in spite of the extremely stressful
situation brought about by the tragedy.
John also took the opportunity to
visit the Town Office to brief staff on
what’s in store for Cathay Pacific in
the coming year.
PHILIPPINES
Diving buddies
The Johannesburg team held a Chinese New Year event at
the Helderfontein Estate on 28 January, thanking travel
agent partners for their support over the past year.
The highlight of the evening
was a wine blending experience
where each table was asked to
blend their own bottle of red
wine made up of merlot, cabernet
franc or shiraz.
Once the blending was completed, guests were able to bottle
and label the wine with a personalised Cathay Pacific label.
SOUTH AFRICA
Wine event for agents
Ushering in the
Year of the Rabbit
UNDER THE SEA: Kimberly
(centre) and Jennifer (left)
have a close encounter
with marine life.
MALAYSIA
Cathay Pacific partnered with the Hong
Kong Tourism Board, the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office and the Macau Government Tourist Office to host Chinese
New Year events in Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh
and Penang to show their appreciation
to the travel trade for their continuous
support.
General Manager Southeast Asia Anna
Thompson took the opportunity to share
news about CX’s developments and
enhanced network for 2011.
A passion for airlines
Department heads joined Country Manager Korea Clarence Chung for an offsite
meeting from 21-22 January.
During the meeting, the top initiatives
for 2011 and the business operating environment were discussed before the day
ended with a delicious dinner.
SOUTH KOREA
Meeting of minds
INDIA
Active outing for freight forwarders
The Delhi Cargo Team organised a picnic for their freight
forwarders at the Dream
Island Adventure Resort on
Damdama Lake.
After reaching the resort by
motor boat, the group enjoyed a
delicious meal before taking part in
a series of adventure activities
including rock climbing, zipping along a cable and walking, or ar least trying to walk,
along a rope bridge.
Malaysia is blessed with many lovely areas for divers to
enjoy the underwater world and Online Fare Coordinator
Kimberly Koh and Corporate Sales Supervisor Jennifer Lau
decided to double the fun by learning to dive together.
Kimberly has been with CX for seven years and previously worked on the Reservations & Ticketing and Sales &
Marketing teams, while Jennifer joined CX in 2007 and was
previously a Passenger Sales Executive.
“I’ve always had a fascination for marine life as well as a
love for beach vacations so it is the perfect combination of
both passions,” Kimberly says.
Jennifer says being part of the diving community has led
to her meeting people from all over the world.
“People from varied walks of life come together to enjoy
a common interest,” she says. “This creates a carefree and
friendly environment and being part of something special
– we even have our own special hand signals.”
“We can never get enough – the air supply always ends
too soon and we have to finish!” adds Kimberly.
The two say they were drawn together by their love of the
sea.
“We can share our experiences and also learn to depend
and look out for each other. We
get to be buddies both on land
and underwater,” Jennifer
says.
Andy Li doesn’t just work for Cathay Pacific – he collects
anything and everything airline related.
His collection, which he has been building on since 1975,
includes aircraft models, inflight magazines, timetables,
baggage labels, name tags, menus and playing cards.
His interest started when flew on his very first flight on
a Boeing 747 from Hong Kong to Canada via the US. “I had
to make so many stops before arriving in Toronto, but I
enjoyed every single part of the trip!” says Andy, who works
for CX YTO as a Customer Services Agent.
Andy was born and raised in Hong Kong before moving
to Toronto with his family in 1993 and he remembers how
fascinated he was with the Hong Kong
airport that was located in Kai Tak at the
time.
“I would go to the Kai Tak airport to
take photos and watch the planes,”
he recalls.
Today, Andy and his friends in
Toronto and Hong Kong often
visit aircraft models stores to get
updated.
“Whenever we get a chance
to ride on a plane, we collect and
swap stuff with each other as gifts,” he
smiles.
PLANE CRAZY:
Andy Li has a
vast collection
of model
planes.
13
One
minute with...
Taste of Miss Saigon
Musical fans will see a different side of
Cathay Pacific when they hear two of the
airline’s staff sing a romantic duet from
the Broadway musical, Miss Saigon.
Inflight Services Managers Jigs Abiera
and Philip Lee will sing The Last Night of
the World at a fundraising concert organised by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HKPO) on 23 March.
With Swire being one of the orchestra’s
principal patrons, performers were being recruited at CX when Jigs and Philip’s
talents were spotted by Manager Cabin
Crew Shirley Au-Yeung during an ISM
dinner.
Jigs and Philip felt honoured to be
asked to take part in the event with Jigs
saying it was a chance of a lifetime.
“We’ll sing to support HKPO and make
a difference in our own way!” she says.
Philip was equally enthusiastic. “It will
be a very special and rewarding experience for us to have this opportunity to
perform with the HKPO, as well as do
Kevin Quinn, Flight Crew
Communications Editor
1. You’ve spent most of your life
in Hong Kong – do you consider
yourself as more Hong Kong or
American?
I consider myself a “unique” American
– one that is living outside the country. But I think of Hong Kong as home,
although I haven’t quite lost my accent.
something for a very worthy cause – promoting classical music in Hong Kong,” he
says.
Though not professionally trained,
both Jigs and Philip love to sing and
were members of their respective choirs
during their school days.
Today, music still plays a big part in
their lives. Philip sings at various company events such as CX Carnivals and ISD
dinner functions while Jigs sings praise
and worship music in her church.
Besides their ISM duties, Jigs and
Philip also work as Performance &
Development Executives, taking
care of the performance and development of cabin crew, helping
with probation, contracts, annual
appraisals and other ad hoc operations support.
The concert will be held at the Hong
Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui at
7.30pm and the HKPO welcomes
donations of any amount.
Go to www.hkpo.com for
more information.
2. Memorable childhood moment of
growing up here?
SONGBIRDS: Jigs and Philip
are looking forward to
taking part in the HKPO’s
fundraising event.
Going to the snake market and watching a snake being skinned alive and the
blood squirting all over my brother.
3. You introduced sudoku to Crews
News – can you complete those
puzzles yourself?
The HKPO will be performing
a mini-concert at Cathay City
on 25 March at the Dakotas
Sports Hall.
More information is available on IntraCX.
I’m fairly good at them. Though a recent
printing error made one impossible to
do.
4. What is your favourite online
forum?
A loaded question! You want me to say
Pprune, don’t you?
5. If you could fly, which airport
would you like to land in?
Kai Tak. I remember flying into there as a
kid and would have love to have been in
the flight deck on final descent.
6. Explain American football in one
sentence.
A sport we over-commercialise and overcomplicate, but I still love watching it.
7. You are a bit of a Harry Potter
fan – who is your favourite character?
I guess I would have to say Dumbledore
– he had it all going on.
8. If you could design a ride for
the Harry Potter theme park, what
would it be?
The maze from the Tri-Wizard tournament.
9. Favourite iPhone game and why?
At the moment it is Flight Control but
that will change. I don’t have a great
attention span when it comes to iPhone
games.
10. What is the highest score
you’ve achieved?
171 aircraft landed!
14
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
New Joiners
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Billy is looking forward to working with the
team at Cathay Pacific Loyalty Programmes.
“I’m a contract staff and I worked with the
IMT Department for a few years before joining CPLP. I am looking forward to working
with another professional team in CX,” he
says.
In his spare time, Billy enjoys photography
and drawing.
Andrea came to Hong Kong from the UK
with her husband in 2007.
The family then moved to Adelaide so
her husband Oscar Nichols could join the
Cathay Pacific Cadet Pilot Programme.
“In Australia I gained a Teaching English
to Speakers of other Languages (TESOL)
qualification and joined CX as a Language
Trainer when we returned to Hong Kong,”
Andrea says.
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
CX World welcomes all new staff. Here is a selection of the
newcomers who recently came on board...
Billy Lau Interactive Marketing
Coordinator, CPL
Andrea Nichols, Language Training Specialist – English, TDC
■
Sue Lin Tin, Portfolio Lead, IMT
Before joining CX, Sue Lin worked in a
broadcast media company in Sydney
after finishing her Masters degree.
“I am excited about joining Cathay
Pacific and learning all about the airline
industry,” she says.
She has also just registered to play Ultimate Frisbee in Hong Kong. “I played for
a few years in Sydney and really enjoyed
it,” she says.
Lauro Azambuja, SSM – PAX
Contract Manager, IMT
Lauro was born in Brazil and is the son of a
German/Brazilian and a Middle Eastern/Brazilian and he married an Italian/Australian.
“I am an engineer and have worked in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Australia, the US and
the Netherlands,” he says.
“It’s a great time to join CX as we undergo
the Transform programme because I can
learn new things and also contribute my own
experience and knowledge,” Lauro adds.
■
■
■
break during
dy golfers take a
CX SWINGERS: La
ek O.
wl golf event at Sh
the Swire Rose Bo
Scott Cup goes to Sydney
The 2011 Scott Cup and Rose Bowl event saw Swire golfers of both
sexes and all abilities descend on the compact Shek O Golf Club
links on 11 February.
A big contingent from Hong Kong, and a fair number from Swire
companies overseas, took part in the event, and it was a CX staff
member based in Sydney who took the top prize on the day.
Nigel Chynoweth, Cargo Services Manager Australia, scored 42
points to take the Scott Cup (pictured above, right, with HAECO’s
Augustus Tang) while Chris Williams (FOP) won the Taikoo Cup with
39 points.
In the Rose Bowl ladies’ event, Alka Hughes-Hallett, wife of Finance Director James, scooped the top prize.
Other CX winners on the day including Iain Houstoun (FOP) for
the longest drive, Vera Yuen (ISD) for ladies’ nearest the pin on the
17th hole, and Rick Symington (REV) and Hisaki Hatanaka (TYO) for
men’s nearest the pin on the fourth and 17th holes respectively.
RUSSIAN DOLLS: The new
CX team in Russia is hit
by
the Chinese New Year spi
rit.
HOP TO IT: The Rome team got the
Year of the Rabbit off to a delicious
start with a special cake.
The Quiz
Our first prize this month is
a treat for those who love
luxury hotels and the city of
Bangkok – which is pretty
much everyone in the CX
workforce!
Up for grabs is a threenight stay at the fabulous
Banyan Tree Bangkok, arranged with the help of Cathay Holidays Ltd, and we’re throwing
in a pair of priority 16YB tickets between Hong Kong and Bangkok to
make it a really special prize. The stay also includes breakfasts for two.
The Banyan Tree, located in the city’s central business district, is one
of the legendary hotels in Bangkok, and features a number of top-notch
dining outlets, including the famous Vertigo Grill and Moon Bar on the
61st floor rooftop. There’s also the Banyan Tree Spa, offering a wide range
of services in totally relaxing surroundings.
Find out more at www.banyantree.com
The second prize winner will receive dinner for two at Loong Toh Yuen in
Hullett House in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Hullett House is situated in the colonial white-stucco building
that was formerly the Marine Police Headquarters and is comprised
of a heritage hotel, five restaurants and bars, a souvenir store and a
performance area.
Chinese restaurant Loong Toh Yuen showcases the best of Hong
Kong cuisine with a selection of traditional local dishes.
At the heart of the restaurant
is the “50 Pigeons” Courtyard,
which is surrounded by bespoke
wrought-iron Chinoiserie
tasseled lanterns and elegant
colonnades, making it a
wonderful setting for alfresco
dining.
More information at www.
hulletthouse.com
To enter, visit the online quiz entry form on the CX World site.
The deadline is noon on Friday, 1 April.
GOLDEN MEMORIES: Engineering Manager Toru Hazama received a gold coin
from Tom Wright to mark his 35 years
with CX.
BIRTHDAY BOY: Peter Langslow
receives a birthday surprise
during the annual Airpor ts
conference.
re Cargo team enjoy the tradiFEASTING AND FUN: The Singapo
eng dish.
tional Chinese New Year yush
DOWN THE HATC
H: Staff showca
se their drinking
during the Comm
skills
ercial Teams sp
ring dinner
ALL EARS: Q
uince Chong
came
appropriate
ly dressed fo
r the
CCD Chinese
New Year pa
rty.
HAPPY MOMEN
T: The Denpas
ar team were
presented with
lucky lai see
packets.
ected
DROPPING IN: Chairman Chris Pratt paid an unexp
ce.
Offi
Town
uver
visit to the Vanco
Travel
bites
■ Fun in the sun
Cathay Pacific Holidays is offering a range of
three-day/two-night packages to popular
beach destinations around Asia until 30
April.
The destinations include Pattaya, Cebu
and Bali and the price includes round-trip
Economy Class tickets and hotel accommodation.
More information on Travel Desk.
■ Cutting-edge Singapore
Heaven-sent break
London Corporate Sales Executive
Melinda Hill explores the islands of Fiji
With Cathay Pacific now code-sharing on Air
Pacific flights from Hong Kong to Nadi in Fiji, I
decided it was a great time to visit these paradise islands that I had only dreamt of visiting.
And I was not disappointed – the islands
and the waters around them were amazing
and the smiling friendly people really made
me feel welcome.
Rather than stay at one of the main
resort areas, I chose to stay at the
First Landing Resort which offers typical Fijian-style accommodation. It’s quite small so
the staff know all the visitors
by name, which is a lovely
touch.
After four days of relaxing
around the resort, I set out
on a five-day/four-night Captain Cook cruise around the Yasawa Islands.
Every day I woke up to stunning
views, new villages to visit and whole islands
to explore. The waters around the islands are
amazing and filled with beautiful coral.
Another day was spent travelling by catamaran to an atoll within the Mamaucas, which is
another row of islands just off the main island.
Several of these islands can be visited on day
trips and accommodation at various
resorts can also be found.
Wishing to see more of
what Fiji has to offer I
ventured inland on a
four-wheel drive trip
into the mountains.
There were stunning
views of the tropical
rainforests and we
visited a village which
was perched high in
the crater of a dormant
volcano. Upon arrival I took
part in a traditional ceremony
■ Brew fest in San Francisco
LAID BACK: The white beaches of Fiji (main);
touring the islands on a Captain Cook cruise
(left); and the Fiji-style accommodation at the
First Landing Resort (above).
where we were served kava. It’s definitely an acquired taste!
All too soon it was time to leave this paradise
but I will always have lovely memories of this
special place.
Snap happy
More than 200 beers will be on offer during
San Francisco’s International Beer Festival on
16 April.
The admission ticket to the Fort Mason
Festival Pavilion includes unlimited beer
and a wide selection of food from local
restaurants. More information from www.
sfbeerfest.com
SHOW US YOUR TIPS!
CX World welcomes staff travel tips from
across the network – email us at CCD#SCT
HK$500 for a travel tale!
This month’s contribution comes from
Second Officer Kelly Todd and shows the
beautiful Cinque Terre area in Italy.
“I took a three-hour train ride from Milan
to Cinque Terre – the five lands,” Kelly says.
The five lands are five villages –
Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola
and Riomaggiore – which are all along the
west coast of Italy.
There is a trail between the villages
which takes from four to five hours to hike.
“I took the local train from Monterosso to
Riomaggiore then hiked back,” Kelly says.
“The photo here looks down on the
village of Vernazza and was taken from the
trail between Corniglia and Vernazza.”
16
Exhibitions from more than 50 artists
will be on display in landmark Singapore
buildings including the City Hall, South
Beach Development and outdoor sites such
as Marina Bay and Esplanade Bridge from
13 March to 15 May.
The theme of the third Singapore Biennale is “Open House”, with local and Southeast Asian artists featuring prominently in
the line-up.
For more information go to www.singaporebiennale.org/
Every month, CX World invites all CX staff to
tell unusual, interesting or just downright
quirky tales of travel moments around the
world.
Sponsored by Inflight Sales, the lucky
sender of the main
story receives HK$500
worth of inflight
sales products of
their choice from
the ever-changing
collection of over
260 items on offer
(excluding liquor
and cigarettes).
Go shopping
at www.