OASIS rivela di saver ricevuto l'ok per i voli LGW-HK

[SQpps]

Oasis Hong Kong Airlines said it received its AOC from the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Dept. Friday and is on schedule to operate its inaugural flight to London Gatwick Wednesday. It said it has sold more than 18,000 tickets on its four-times-weekly 747-400 service since early September.

fonte: ATW

[skyrobbie]

altre rotte arriveranno nel corso del 2007: Ord, San Francisco/Oakland, Colonia/Bonn, Berlino, Milano..

[landingFCO]

Hong Kong Oasis Air Maiden Flight Canceled; No Russian Clearance

HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- The inaugural flight of budget carrier Oasis Hong Kong Airlines Ltd. to London was canceled late Wednesday after a six-hour delay, because the airline wasn't cleared to fly over Russian airspace.

The startup carrier had been touting the launch of discount longhaul travel in the last few months.

Oasis, which is operating one Boeing 747-400 plane, is selling economy tickets to London for as low as HK$1,000 each way, half the price charged by other carriers on the route.

Wednesday's cancellation was due to the airline's failure to secure clearance to fly over Russian airspace. Oasis' maiden flight, with over 300 passengers and crew on board, was originally scheduled to depart Hong Kong at 0500 GMT. The aircraft remained at the gate for over five hours before passengers were asked to deplane.

"We have learnt that despite all paperwork being in order and having received all necessary approvals, the Russian authorities, for unexplained reasons, have chosen to now hold up the over-flight rights," the airline said in a statement.

Oasis' Chairman Raymond Lee said the launch flight has now been rescheduled for Thursday.

"I'm very disappointed by this unexpected event," he told Hong Kong Cable Television.

"We are confident the flight will take off tomorrow, as we have brought the issue to high-level (government) attention in Russia."

Lee said the airline is arranging accommodations for passengers who aren't based in Hong Kong. "For those that must get to London today, we will buy them a ticket on another carrier tonight."

He said each affected passenger will be offered a free ticket on future Oasis flights, but he didn't elaborate.

Oasis' Chief Executive Stephen Miller told Dow Jones Newswires each passenger will be offered HK$500 as compensation for the delay.

"We are working as we speak to file a new flight plan tomorrow. We're confident we can fly tomorrow," said Miller.

Despite the airline's offer of compensation, Lee insisted the mishap wasn't the airline's fault, adding it had obtained all necessary regulatory approvals for the 12-hour flight to London.

"The problem is that (the Russian authorities) originally had approved the flight, but a lower-level official later denied us the rights," Lee told Cable TV.

For Oasis, this latest hiccup follows a string of obstacles that has marred the airline's launch, forcing it to push back its maiden flight several times.

The carrier originally signed an agreement last year to lease two former United Airlines Boeing 747-400s and begin flights by the end of 2005.

The deal collapsed when its application for route licensing was delayed after several local airlines filed objections to the city's airline licensing authority.

Hong Kong's Air Transport Licensing Authority made a ruling in favor of Oasis in December, granting it rights to operate services to London, Oakland, Milan, Berlin, Cologne and Chicago.

After some difficulty securing used 747-400 aircraft, it was able to buy two used 747-400s in March to fly to its first destination, London's Gatwick airport. A second 747 will be delivered next month.

The airline plans to increase its fleet to five 747s in 2007, and launch flights to Oakland, California, early next year.

-By Jeffrey Ng, Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2802-7002; jeffrey.ng@dowjones.com

-Edited by Sharon Buan

[landingFCO]

Prima dell'imprevisto (o forse no?), le dichiarazioni della compagnia che già sta pensando a una seconda fase di espansione.....


Oasis Hong Kong Starts First Low-Cost London Flights

By Vicki Kwong

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Oasis Hong Kong Airlines Ltd. starts the first low-cost service from Hong Kong to London today, challenging Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. and other carriers on one of the city's busiest routes.

The first flight is scheduled to leave Hong Kong at 1 p.m. local time, carrying 300 passengers on the 12-hour trip to London's Gatwick airport. The airline is starting with four flights a week, which it will increase to seven next month.

Oasis adds to competition on the Hong Kong-London route, where four other carriers operate at least nine direct flights a day. The airline is offering one-way tickets on the route from HK$1,000 ($128), compared with Cathay's price of HK$3,530 for a flight on Dec. 1 booked via its Web site.

``There's going to be plenty of capacity on this route,'' Derek Sadubin, general manager of the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, said in a telephone interview from Sydney. ``That will be very price-competitive and will create pressure'' on yields, or revenue per passenger-kilometer flown, he added.

Unlike Ryanair Holdings Plc and other low-cost carriers that fly short-haul routes, Oasis offers passengers free meals and in- flight entertainment. It charges extra for soft drinks and amenity kits, and has business-class seats.

The airline expects to fly 190,000 passengers to London in its first year of operations, Chairman Raymond Lee said at a press conference in Hong Kong today. It aims to break even within 12 to 18 months, he added.

$128 to London

The carrier is selling all economy-class tickets for $128, excluding taxes and surcharges, in its first month. It will guarantee the same fare for 10 percent of seats until Oct. 2007. It charges from $6,600 for one-way business class tickets, excluding taxes and surcharges.

Oasis is aiming to sell at least 55,000 tickets in its first quarter of operations, Lee said today. The airline has sold more than 18,000 tickets, exceeding expectations, Chief Executive Officer Steve Miller said Oct. 19.

Oasis expects its passengers to connect onto and from flights operated by EasyJet Plc and other low-cost carriers out of Gatwick, Ken Chad, the carrier's commercial director, said today. The airline aims to form relationships with such carriers and may announce something soon, he added, without elaboration.

More than 1.3 million passengers traveled between Hong Kong and London Heathrow in the year ended March 2005, making it Hong Kong's seventh-busiest air route, the city's Civil Aviation Department said on its Web site.

Cathay operates four daily flights from Hong Kong to London Heathrow, while British Airways Plc. has at least three flights a day. Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd., controlled by U.K. billionaire Richard Branson, and Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd. operate daily services. Air New Zealand Ltd., the nation's biggest carrier, will also offer daily flights from Oct. 28.

Oakland, California

Oasis plans to start flights to Oakland, California next year and has rights for Berlin, Chicago, Cologne and Milan. It is also applying for routes including Vancouver, Toronto, Zurich, Paris, New York and Los Angeles, Lee said today.

The airline has two used Boeing Co. 747-400s and plans to expand its fleet to 25 planes within five years, Miller said on Oct. 19. Oasis plans to utilize its planes for 16 or 17 hours a day, Lee said today.

The airline plans to hedge all of its fuel needs, Lee added. Hedging allows airlines to lock in fuel prices to protect against future increases.

Oasis will also carry freight to boost its revenue. Last month, it appointed Luxembourg's Cargolux Airlines International SA as its cargo sales agent.

Cathay, the world's fourth-largest international cargo carrier, derived 23 percent of first-half sales from carrying freight.

To contact the reporter on this story: Vicki Kwong in Hong Kong at vkwong@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 25, 2006 00:46 EDT

- bloomberg -

[SQpps]

Passengers in Hong Kong on what was billed as the world's first long-haul budget flight refused to get too upset Thursday, despite flying a day late and spending six hours sitting on the runway.

fonte:FP

[Airspeed]

Davvero incredibili tutti questi dinieghi dei russi al sorvolo!

[SQpps]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asi...ic/6086674.stm

===============================================
The flight to London Gatwick was meant to leave on Wednesday afternoon, but was delayed after Moscow held back its right to fly over Russian territory.

After hours of delay, passengers on the fully-booked flight disembarked and spent the night at home or in hotels.

Oasis has made headlines by promising low-cost long-haul flights while still offering in-flight services.

Chairman Raymond Lee said the firm had been "shocked and stunned" by Russia's withdrawal of its overfly permission, after a year of negotiations.

"We already paid all the money, had the receipts and the confirmation number, and this sudden cancellation... was there a misunderstanding?" he told reporters at the airport.

Compensation

He said news of the decision came an hour before the Boeing 747's maiden flight was due to take off, but the airline did not immediately inform passengers as it thought the situation would be resolved.

Oasis was given clearance late on Wednesday evening, he added.

"We've been approved from a very responsible and reliable source that we can definitely fly through the Moscow airspace today," he said, before the plane left.

Passengers disembarking from the Oasis flight after it remains grounded at Hong Kong international airport
Passengers received compensation for the delayed flight

The plane left for London's Gatwick airport at 1320 local time (0520GMT) carrying 300 passengers.

The passengers had spent some six hours on board the grounded plane on Wednesday before being told the flight was being rescheduled for the following day.

They were offered cash coupons and a free air ticket as compensation, Oasis said.

Oasis has promised to shake up the airline industry in Hong Kong and beyond as the first budget carrier to focus only on the long haul.

Seats in economy class cost from US$200 (£112) including tax.

The airline also offers a business class, which it says is cheaper than economy on established airlines.

However, environmental groups have expressed concern about the trend of budget long-haul flights, and say that low-price fares do not reflect the true cost of the environmental damage they cause.