Singapore and Hong Kong have pushed back the start of air travel bubble arrangements, a day before it was due to commence, and following a spike in coronavirus cases in Hong Kong. In a Facebook post on 21 November, Singapore’s transport minister Ong Ye Kung says he and his Hong Kong counterpart have agreed to defer the launch date by two weeks, “given the evolving situation in Hong Kong”. “We will review within two weeks on the new launch date and update again,” Ong adds. The Singapore-Hong Kong travel bubble — the first such arrangement for both cities, and in Asia — was due to commence on 22 November. Ong’s comments come as Hong Kong faces a sudden surge in cases Media reports in Hong Kong state that on 20 November, the city saw more than 60 new confirmed and preliminary cases, of which 21 were locally transmitted cases. It was previously reported that travel bubble arrangements will be suspended for two weeks if the seven-day moving average number of unlinked coronavirus cases is more than five. Hours before both sides postponed the travel bubble arrangement, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore announced that the travel bubble would still go ahead as planned, albeit with additional precautions in place — in the form of post-arrival Covid-19 polymerase chain reaction tests for Hong Kong travellers.Says Ong of the postponement: “I can fully understand the disappointment and frustration of travellers who have planned their trips. But we think it is better to defer from a public health standpoint.” The travel bubble allows for leisure travel to take place, without the need for a 14-day quarantine. Instead, travellers will be required to undergo pre- and post-arrival testing. Under the travel bubble arrangement, there will be daily flights — operated by Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific — from 22 November between both cities, and a cap of 200 passengers per flight.

Southwest Airlines expects a “minority” of passengers will opt not to travel on the newly recertificated Boeing 737 Max due to ongoing fears about the aircraft’s safety. Executives at the Dallas-based airline say on 19 November that while it understands these apprehensions, they are “proud” of the aircraft and looking forward to bringing it back to revenue service. The carrier plans to return stored aircraft to schedule flights from April, after each has gone through a rigorous process to make it airworthy. In addition, all the airline’s pilots will be sent through a comprehensive re-training that will include computer-based and simulator sessions. Yesterday’s Max announcements were very welcome and we have a clear path ahead to put the Max back in the air,” says chief executive Gary Kelly. “We are proud of this airplane.” On 18 November, the FAA lifted the aircraft’s 20-month grounding, which imposed in March 2019 following two crashes that killed 346 people. Despite the FAA’s stamp of approval, Southwest’s executives are aware the general public may be reluctant to fly on the aircraft. The carrier has set up a dedicated customer website with information for potential customers, and promises to be flexible if passengers choose not to ride on the Max.

NO REBRANDING
Some voices in the industry have suggested dropping “Max” from the aircraft’s type name, to eliminate negative stigmas.
“We bought the 737 Max 8 and we are proud of the 737 Max 8,” says Southwest president Tom Nealon. “It’s been through more evaluation and oversight than you can imagine. You can try to change the branding but we are proud of what we are flying. Over time that could certainly evolve, but our intent is not to change the name.” Southwest, with its all-737 fleet, is one of the top Max operators. It has 34 of the aircraft stored in Victorville, California, and another 233 on order with Boeing. Southwest says a maintenance team is already working on the stored aircraft, preparing them for service. The airline anticipates it can return eight aircraft weekly to service. It will take about 135 days for the aircraft to go from storage to revenue service-ready, says Landon Nitschke, the airline’s senior vice-president of technical operations. Whether the airline will bring all Max back at once, or do so sequentially, remains undecided, executives say. Kelly adds that the airline is negotiating with Boeing about the company’s orders and delivery schedules. After the coronavirus pandemic decimated the industry earlier this year, he says, Southwest is not looking to expand its fleet but rather to replace older aircraft with newer, more-efficient Max. “We have 734 airplanes in the fleet, we don’t need to increase our fleet size,” Kelly says. “We had an order and a plan. The grounding had some impact on our plan, not directly on the order, and then you had the pandemic, which has thrown everything way off. It puts the whole order into play.”

PILOT PREPARATION
Southwest’s Alan Kasher, senior vice-president of air operations, says all the carrier’s 8,000 pilots will be sent through Max training, including computer-based and simulator training. They will also repeat an introduction course that they had attended when the aircraft was first brought into the fleet. In total, training pilots should take two to three months. Prior to its first scheduled flight with passengers, the airline will conduct numerous “readiness flights” without passengers, in addition to the enhanced training, to prepare for the jet’s return to the schedule. “Our focus is on making sure that our pilots are very comfortable bringing the aircraft back to service,” he says, adding that there is currently “no feedback or any concerns”. “I have met not one pilot who is not confident in the Max,” chief executive Kelly says. However, on 18 November Southwest’s pilots’ union said it was ”very disappointed” and “dismayed” that some safety concerns it and other pilot unions raised were not incorporated into the FAA’s new airworthiness directive (AD) for the type. Kasher responds that the airline is “very comfortable” with the AD. ”The aircraft has had such an extensive review, and that review has gone far beyond the initial [software] issue,” Kasher says. “It has had an end-to-end review and not just with the FAA. There have been multiple agencies involved from across the globe. There has never been an aircraft that has been reviewed to the extent that this aircraft has.”

Troubled long-haul, low-cost carrier AirAsia X widened its quarterly loss, as it remained grounded amid the coronavirus pandemic. For the quarter ended 30 September, the carrier, which recently unveiled a restructuring plan, reported an operating loss MYR498 million ($122 million), a staggering seven-fold increase year-on-year. It was also higher than the previous quarter’s MYR323 million operating loss. Revenue for the period plunged 94% year-on-year to about MYR60 million, as the carrier reported zero revenue from scheduled passenger operations. AirAsia X remains grounded amid international travel restrictions aimed at curbing the pandemic’s spread. Revenue from cargo operations and charter flights — amounting to some MYR8.5 million — was not enough to stave off any further revenue loss. Meanwhile, expenses for the period fell 53% to MYR487 million, due mainly to its ongoing grounding, which has reduced flying activity. AirAsia X widened its net loss to MYR308 million, compared to MYR230 million the same period last year. The carrier gave no operational statistics for the quarter, stating: “The company has suffered the full impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and, with the suspension of scheduled flight operations in April, and the parking of the majority of the aircraft fleet, the performance indicators for the business are not meaningful.” In early October, the embattled carrier rolled out plans to restructure its debts — of around MYR63.5 billion — and trim its network and fleet. It said then that the restructuring — subject to approvals — was essential to its future. Under its revised business plan, AirAsia X aims to emerge as a low-cost medium-haul operator. The airline adds that it hopes to restart operations with two aircraft in the first quarter of 2021. Cirium fleets data shows that Air Asia X has a fleet of 23 A330-300s, 21 of which are in storage. The carrier owns five A330s and leases the rest from various lessors. It also has orders with Airbus for 10 A350s, 76 A330neos and 30 A321XLRs. Among plans outlined to return to profitability, AirAsia X says in its latest financial results that it plans to “focus on core markets to improve yield”. These include “focusing on mature routes in core markets with historically proven demand”, as well as axing unprofitable routes. It also plans to operate a “leaner fleet size” in the future, which will necessitate the return of excess aircraft to lessors.