Page 10 - AAA MARCH - APRIL 2013 Online Magazine

NEWS

Boeing and SilkAir ink
pilot training agreement

Boeing and Singapore-based carrier
SilkAir have announced the signing
of a five-year exclusive pilot training
agreement aimed at supporting SilkAir’s
Air KBZ takes first ATR -600 fleet transition to Boeing aircraft.
Myanmar’s domestic carrier Air KBZ has received its first ATR 72-600, a transaction Under the agreement, Boeing Flight
financed by Danish finance and leasing company Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC). Services will provide pilot training for
A second ATR 72-600 is expected in June this year. “We are pleased to welcome the airline’s new 737 fleet at Boeing’s
the new ATR 72-600 to our already existing young fleet in line with our continued Singapore training campus. SilkAir
mission to develop and provide superior air transport services that will exceed CEO Leslie Thng said, “The experience
customer expectations,” said Air KBZ Deputy MD Khin Maung Myint. He added, and expertise at Boeing will ensure a
“The acquisition of these two new aircraft via Nordic Aviation Capital is integral to smooth transition when we take delivery
our network expansion from our regional hubs.” of our first new 737 next year.”

Etihad and Garuda
broaden network
Etihad Airways and Garuda Indonesia
have announced several new codeshare
destinations in Indonesia, Europe, the
Middle East, Singapore and Australia, and
more changes are reportedly planned for
mid-2013. James Hogan, President and
CEO of Etihad Airways noted the benefits ERJ 145 debuts in Bangladesh
of the codeshare, saying, “Connection Aviation services and solutions provider in Bangladesh NovoAir has officially
times to many popular destinations have inaugurated two Embraer ERJ 145 jets. The two pre-owned ERJ 145 jets will be
been reduced to under three hours. We operated on domestic routes, including Dhaka and Chittagong, during their first
also offer the fastest route from Jakarta year of operations. NovoAir MD Mofizur Rahman said, “With the introduction of our
to popular destinations like Manchester, ERJ 145s, we are pleased to offer an all-jet domestic service which will appeal to
Geneva and Brussels.” the business traveller in Bangladesh.”

SAID WHAT?!
“As the plane suddenly started zooming back into the air, I was
among others who started screaming fearing that it would

crash,” said Satwant Singh Sandhu, Punjab police official
Nearly 200 passengers on an IndiGo flight had quite a scare, when the aircraft aborted landing to avoid
a helicopter “in close proximity” despite clearance from ATC at Chandigarh Airport. But they were
overreacting, according to Chandigarh Airport director Captain H. S. Toor. “It was [...] ignorance on the
part of passengers, as going around is a normal procedure,” he explained.

10 ASIAN AIRLINES & AIRPORTS MARCH / APRIL 2013 WWW.ASIANAIRLINES-AIRPORTS.COM