Passengers taking the shuttle train from the main terminal building to the satellite building at the KLIA in Sepang will get to see an array of liveries on the tails of aircraft parked at the apron of the airport.
One of these liveries, a bright orange one, on the tail of two Boeing 737s parked side by side at the apron is not easy to be missed. These two airliners are a reminder of the jet services that Firefly once operated before.
These planes, however, are not left idle. They are being used for scheduled charters to China. The community airline has worked out an arrangement with a tour company for these charters, the first to Nanning and the other to Haikou.
Firefly did not dismiss totally jet services in Firefly operations, only that it is in a different business segment. The airline is looking at growing the business segment further as it sees the scheduled charter flights as an important revenue contributor. Firefly stopped its scheduled jet operations at the end of 2011 and leave the scheduled jet operations to MAS.
The full-service airline, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, is now a fully scheduled turboprop aircraft operator, with its current fleet of 12 ATR72-500s and one ATR72-600, which it took delivery some two weeks ago.
ATR 72-500
The ATR72-600, which was put into service on July 12, is one of 20 aircraft that Firefly had purchased from European turboprop airframe maker, Avions de Transport Regional G.I.E, early this year. The deal, including the options, is valued at over USD840 million.
The second ATR72-600 will be delivered later this year, with three planned for next year. The confirmed orders will be delivered in phases by 2016. Once this is done, Firefly will exercise the option for the 16 additional ATR72-600s.
ATR 72-600
This would see Firefly phasing out the older ATR72-500s from 2015 onwards as Firefly plans to own and operate a fleet of aircraft with an average age of three years. The purchase of the new aircraft is part of the company’s growth and expansion plan as well as its continuous effort to serve customers better. ATR aircraft are unrivalled in terms of passenger comfort and environmental friendliness hence the company will be deploying the current and new fleet on existing and new routes.
The ATR 72 fleet has allowed Firefly to develop a unique high frequency network out of Subang, Penang and Johor Baru, which greatly benefits the company. It currently operates 25 routes, 10 of which are in Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore.
Last year, it carried 1.7 million passengers. Reports said it plans to carry 1.8 million passengers by year-end and about two million by June 2014. It is set to make Kota Baru and Johor Baru as its hubs and expand its network to Indochina, such as Vietnam and Cambodia, as early as next year.
Kota Baru will serve points in southern Thailand while Johor Baru will service Sumatra. Firefly will commence the Johor Baru-Pekan Baru service in August.
In fact, Firefly sees huge development potential in Johor Baru. Making the Senai International Airport in Johor as a hub could give Firefly an alternative to Changi International Airport in Singapore. It is not able to increase services to the republic because of slot constraints.
Such a constraint could be overcome with bigger capacity turboprop aircraft such at ATR’s proposed next-generation turboprop (NGTP) 90-seater aircraft.
The company’s top management has hinted the possibility of Firefly being the launch customer of the NGTP aircraft. “If it is available now, I would grab it. In fact, a 90-seater aircraft would fit nicely into Firefly’s route expansion plan.”, said Ignatius Ong, Firefly’s CEO.
The NGTP, however, is still on the drawing board, with ATR seeking inputs from its customers in Southeast Asia, Latin America and Europe. Malaysia is its biggest customer in the region, counting Firefly, MASWings, Malindo Air and Berjaya Air as its clients. ATR would need at least 50 confirmed orders and 50 options in order to launch the NGTP programme, expected to be in 2019 or 2020.
ATR New Generation Turboprop (NGTP)
“We are aware of the NGTP. We are considering it as we would be operating into congested airports and with slots being limited, we can put into operation aircraft with higher capacity to help meet the demand,” Ong said.
Ong also addressed the popular perception of Firefly being a low-cost carrier. On the contrary, it is a premium airline, catering to mainly the business travellers, who by nature are less price-conscious than the leisure travellers.
“Yes, our fares are not exactly cheap (even if you compare it with Malaysia Airlines) but if you plan your travel and book a month ahead, you can get low fares,” he said.
Convenience and accessibility of the city airport are also two factors that passengers look for when considering airlines of choice.
Firefly passengers enjoy 20kg of checked-baggage allowance, complimentary in-flight refreshment, assigned seating and the convenience of city airports. It is also participating in Malaysia Airlines Enrich loyalty and frequent flyer programmes, where passengers can earn or redeem Enrich Miles when they fly with Firefly.
Reports said the airline is on track to achieve its targeted revenue of RM350 million this year, judging from the response received to its ongoing sales campaign and the 15-20 % increase in passenger seat load achieved since the campaign began on May 12.
Ong also sees airlines as a catalyst to continue driving the gross domestic product (GDP) growth of countries, especially with the increase in travel globally. “I see the airlines driving the GDP instead of the GDP growth driving the industry,” he said.
In fact, the International Air Transport Association said air transport can play a key role in economic development and in supporting long-term economic growth.
It facilitates a country’s integration into the global economy, providing direct benefits for users and wider economic benefits through its positive impact on productivity and economic performance.
No comments:
Post a Comment