May 2009 Archives

 

 

Singapore Airlines (SIA) cabin crew that have worked in the same section of an aircraft later found to have carried people infected with swine flu are now required - by the airline - to be taken off the roster for seven days, SIA's spokesman tells me today.

The airline has also implemented a requirement that the aircraft is to be disinfected with "industrial strength" disinfectant and that all the seat covers of the infected persons and those seats in the adjoining three rows front and back are to be removed, he says.

The measures were implemented a few days ago - at the behest of Singapore's ministry of health - because an SIA flight from the USA carried a passenger who later tested positive to the swine flu virus.

I wonder in the this post-swine flu and post-SARS infected world whether airlines will have to take stronger measures to protect their cabin crew and other staff. Maybe face masks and plastic gloves will become the norm. But it is not all bad, maybe SIA can have a competition looking at fashionable ways to incorporate plastic gloves into the cabin crew's attire. The designer above has come up with a novel way to make plastic gloves look chic and sexy.

Last night I received some pics from Deccan 360, India's newest cargo carrier and the brainchild of Capt GR Gopinath.

He's the one wearing the jeans in the pics. Gopinath first came to fame a few years go as the founder of Air Deccan, India's first low-cost carrier.

Yesterday he formally launched Deccan 360 with a flight at 12:00 from Delhi to Hong Kong using the first of three Airbus A310 freighters it is getting. The other two are coming before the end of June, Deccan 360's spokeswoman tells me.

In the coming weeks it plans to also launch services to Dubai, Mumbai and Chennai, she says.

Gopinath launched the cargo carrier because he could see there was a gap in the market. India has very few dedicated cargo airlines.

 

Today I met with Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines to discuss the impact the global economic downturn has had on the region's airlines. Must have spent about 30 minutes interviewing him. But interestingly - and this often happens with media interviews - the best bits of the interview came at the very end. Literally the last few sentences.

As I am getting up to leave Andrew says that airlines in Asia Pacific have been the most adversely affected by the global economic downturn when compared to airlines in America and Europe. He points out that the segments of the airline industry most adversely affected are premium travel, long-haul services and cargo. And goes on to add that these are the very same bits of the business that Asian carriers rely on for most of their profits. So no guessing what the lead to my article will be. The last few sentences of my interview will be the first few sentences of my story.

Earlier this week I interviewed Lion Air's president director Rusdi Kirana and I must say I was impressed with how Lion Air has been growing its business.

Lion Air is the largest privately-owned carrier in Indonesia and is arguably the airline that all the Indonesian carriers - including Garuda - are trying to beat.

The carrier is also unique - because unlike a lot of airlines in other parts of the world - it is not fixated with launching new international services. Instead, it is focused on Indonesia's huge domestic market.

Rusdi told me that Lion Air's most profitable routes are its domestic routes such as Jakarta-Surabaya. He says Lion Air has 11 flights a day on that route and the passenger load factor is around 90%. Lion charges low fares but with that volume of traffic it can make a lot of money, he says.

He also says life is going to become increasingly difficult for Indonesia's smaller commercial airlines. A few years ago, the Boeing 737-200 and the Boeing MD-82 were the mainstay of many Indonesia carriers' fleets. But now with airlines such as Lion Air operating new 737-900ERs and other large competitors such as Garuda operating 737-800s, Rusdi says it is hard for smaller airlines to compete with such old equipment.

  Australian charter airlines OzJet has gone into voluntary administration.

I spoke today to the airline's CEO, Willie O'Neill, who told me that the carrier's chairman put the carrier into administration on Wednesday 20 May. The chairman is Nicholas Leach who is also CEO of HeayLift Cargo Airlines which bought OzJet last May from Paul Stoddart, the guy behind UK-based charter firm European Aviation. Stoddart must be so happy he sold out of OzJet when he did.

OzJet has a fleet of four Boeing 737-200s. These are quite old aircraft so the carrier really needs to get newer equipment.

It has been struggling for some time in what is, undoubtedly, a shrinking charter market in Australia.

Airlines downunder have been dropping like flies, so to speak, with SkyAirWorld and MacAir going into administration earlier this year.

I understand that OzJet had been trying for some months to find a new owner. But with old equipment and the way the market is at the moment, it is going to be hard to find someone with the guts to invest in an Aussie airline right now.

Hainan Airlines (HNA) Group has suddenly, and quite by surprise to some, decided to turn Tianjin-based regional carrier Grand China Express into Tianjin Airlines.

But the real interesting thing about this change is that the Tianjin Government and the Tianjin Free Trade Zone will be investing money into the business. It sounds like all is not well at Grand China Express.

This announcement also comes just a few weeks after it was announced that Grand China Express had finally reached an agreement with Embraer to halve its order for Embraer ERJ-145s to 25 from 50. The ERJ-145s are assembled by joint-venture firm Harbin Embraer in northeast China's Harbin city.

Tianjin too has aspirations to be a centre for aircraft manufacturing and development. Earlier this week there was the first flight of the first Chinese-assembled Airbus A320. The Airbus assembly plant is in the Tianjin Free Trade Zone.

I wonder if Tianjin might use its leverage to get Embraer to shift its Chinese assembly work to Tianjin from Harbin. That's not such a far-fetched idea. Tianjin has already persuaded Chinese aerospace conglomerate AVIC to shift its A320 wing assembly plant to Tianjin from Xian.

But in the end, I don't know that investing in HNA Group's Grand China Express is such a smart idea. It is very hard for regional airlines to make money in China. And why rebrand the business Tianjin Airlines?

It makes sense if the airline is to only operate out of Tianjin but surely HNA Group wants the airline to become big and have bases in other cities. If that's the case, it doesn't make sense to call it Tianjin Airlines. If, for example, I'm wanting to fly from Chengdu in Sichuan province to Beijing then Air China or Sichuan Airlines is more likely to be top of mind.    

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Today I received a press release announcing a new ad campaign from Virgin Blue. I was hoping I could write something positive in light of the fact that I still think Virgin Blue's ad agency Cummins & Partners is a great ad agency and one of the best in Australia. But I really can't think of something positive to say about this campaign (other than it has good production values). But in terms of campaign strategy, it falls into the trap that a lot of clients make. Some clients make the mistake of doing ads that talk to them rather than talk to the consumer.

This latest campaign talks about how Virgin Blue has changed the domestic aviation market and how 10 years ago some people would drive from Melbourne to Sydney but now people fly because air fares now so much cheaper than 10 years ago.

But we are talking about something that happened nearly 10 years ago. Who cares?

I know Virgin Blue wants to talk up its achievements over the years but does the consumer really care? The answer is no.

They want to know what Virgin Blue has new to offer today.

All I can think is that Virgin Blue must have given the ad agency this misguided brief. As ad agency people often say - clients get the advertising they deserve. 

 An historic day in China today with the first flight of the first Chinese assembled A320.

The aircraft took off at 10:42 and landed back at Tianjin airport at 14:56, Airbus says in a statement. The A320 assembly plant is next to the airport.

I called Airbus Tianjin's general manager Jean-Luc Charles about 5 mins before the aircraft touched down and he sounded like a very busy but happy man.

I then got onto Airbus in France and their PR people there Françoise Maenhaut and Stephanie Henrion were good enough to email me through these really great pics a few minutes later.

 

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V Australia's TV commercial looks a lot like a Robert Palmer video from the 1980s which is not surprising because the creative team that came up with it are probably circa 1980s.

The 1980s were also a very important time for Richard Branson but I think there is a very real danger that V Australia's TVC will be perceived to be dated.

I'm also not convinced that the strategy behind the campaign will entice people to fly V Australia.

This ad appeals to a very narrow segment of the market - men.

Women are still the key decision-makers when it comes to leisure travel. So airline advertising has to appeal to both a male and female audience. I don't think watching some stick-thin blonde women synchronizing to music on a plane will do the trick.

Virgin is suppose to be a sexy and youthful brand but there must be a better way to meld these brand values. The ads need to appeal to women too and give people a real and believable reason to fly V Australia.

India's Dr Vijay Mallya is often described as the Richard Branon of India. His flamboyant lifestyle and penchant for pretty women leads some to draw the comparison. The other reason for the comparison is because Dr Mallya, like Branson, is so high profile in the aviation industry. But really the two men's upbringing and approach to business are so different.

Branson is a self-made millionaire who over the years has invested relatively small amounts of money, by Mallya standards, but he has invested shrewdly and then turned that into a fortune.

Mallya on the otherhand inherited a fortune and is used to growing his wealth by basically out-spending the competition. He made India's Kingfisher beer a top-selling beer by spending millions on advertising and marketing. In other words, he effectively bought market share.  

Now compare this approach to business to Branson's. The perception is that Branson too is a big spender but the fact is he isn't.

Take his flagship business Virgin Atlantic as an example. The perception is that Branson's Virgin Atlantic is a large airline. But if If you look at its fleet size you will see that currently it has around 38 aircraft. That's not very big when compared to the likes of SIA and BA. Branson of course would argue that his fleet may not be big in number but each aircraft is big in size. But there is no getting away from the fact it only has around 38 aircraft.

If you look at the amount of money Branson invested to set-up his Australian low-cost carrier Virgin Blue you will also see it was quite modest. Ten million dollars to be exact.

Now Dr Mallya's approach to business is very different. Dr Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines has only been operating for a few years and its already got a fleet of over 100 aircraft.

He has tried to beat the airline competition by outspending his competitors but aviation is a different business to beer and not even Dr Mallya's pockets are deep enough to spend his way to the top.

While other airlines are cutting back on frills in an effort to cut costs, All Nippon Airways (ANA) is taking the full service mantra to the next level.

Why have one inflight cabin crew attending to your needs when you can have two. Twice the fun.

Starting 18 May ANA is introducing "new inflight service assistants" on the Japan-Taiwan sector, says ANA, adding that the new assistants will "wear a different uniform to stand out from the cabin crew".

These cabin assistants are based in Taiwan and speak Mandarin, English, Taiwanese dialects such as Hokkien and some speak Japanese as well.

ANA says it is considering introducing local inflight service assistants on other routes such as flights to Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.

That should make the flight a lot more interesting.

I just received some pictures from ANA showing the second 787 test aircraft painted in ANA livery and decided to post them on the blog ASAP.

Having a 787 in ANA livery is a real marketing coup for ANA because these pictures are sure to grab a lot of attention and raise its awareness.

It also means ANA will get TV footage of an ANA 787 months before it takes delivery. This will be really helpful if ANA want to do a TV commercial promoting the fact they will be the first to fly the 787 in February 2010.

The pictures ANA sent me were taken yesterday, possibly late in the afternoon, and show the 787 leaving the paint hangar at Boeing's Everett factory.

Boeing is due to have the first flight of the 787 before the end of June.

This particular aircraft is 787 number two so it will only be used for test purposes. ANA's first aircraft to be delivered will in fact be 787 number seven, ANA's spokesman told me today.

This is unbelievable! A Japan Airlines (JAL) Boeing 747-400 passenger aircraft was grounded at Los Angeles International Airport yesterday after a large object, believed to be a cargo container, was sucked into one of its engines.

The incident happened as JAL flight 62 was leaving one of the airport's gates. All 245 passengers on board were taken off the plane and escorted to the terminal. No injuries were reported.

Hmmm, I wonder who pays for the damage! Just more bad news for JAL on a day that it reported a net loss for the last financial year.

Boeing a few days ago delivered its 50th Boeing 767 to Japan Airlines, which is the fifth-largest 767 operator in the world.

The PR people at Boeing were good enough to send through this photo of the 767 taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington  on the 7 May for its ferry flight to Tokyo Narita.

It is amazing that Boeing's 767 production line is still going. But ironically the delays to the Boeing 787 have helped to keep the 767 production line going.

Airlines that need new medium-haul aircraft quickly are turning to 767s and Airbus A330s to meet their immediate needs rather than waiting on 787s and Airbus A350s.

I would like to thank David Lloyd for responding to my last posting on Philippine carrier Seair. As he quite rightly pointed out, Seair no longer plans to add A320s.

I spoke with Seair's director Nick Gitsis who told me that Seair has put its plans on hold. He cited the global economic downturn and was unable to give a new time-frame for getting A320s.

This latest development doesn't augur well for Singapore's Tiger Airways and its ambitions. Seair was planning to lease its first two A320s from Tiger, sell its tickets through the Tiger website and make use of the Tiger brand.

It was all part of Tiger's ambition to be a pan-Asian carrier with off-shoots across Asia.

But now that the Philippine push is on hold indefinitely and Tiger's plans to establish an airline in Korea are also in tatters.

Tiger does have an off-shoot in Australia but that's a tough market to grow in when one is up against Jetstar and Virgin Blue.

So where is Tiger going to place all those A320s it has on order? The latest I've heard is Tiger plans to keep adding aircraft to its Singapore base rather than in Australia.

Air New Zealand has a great new television ad (above) featuring eight staff members who appear in nothing but body paint instead of their regular uniform. The airline's CEO Rob Fyfe also makes a cameo appearance.

The carrier says that the aim is to differentiate Air New Zealand from competitors "who levy additional charges if a passenger wants to simply check a bag or have a drink".

"Air New Zealand airfares have nothing to hide, with airfares including baggage allowances and refreshments," says the airline.

The behind the scenes video (below) is just as good, although a tad bit nippy. It must be cold down there!

Singapore has deployed the first four of 24 Boeing F-15SG fighters that it has on order at the Mountain Home Air Force Base (MHAFB) in Idaho, USA.

This marks the start of training for the Republic of Singapore Air Force's F-15 pilots at the base. They had previously been training with their United States Air Force (USAF) counterparts at the Seymour Johnson Air Force base in North Carolina.

Boeing rolled out Singapore's first F-15 last November and the RSAF is scheduled to receive all 24 aircraft by 2012. They will replace the service's fleet of McDonnell Douglas A-4SU Skyhawks, which were officially retired from service in 2005.

Philippine carrier Seair appears to be taking for ever to launch its Airbus A320 operations.

It first announced its plans in September 2006 and was planning to lease the aircraft from Singapore low-cost carrier Tiger Airways.

Two years and eight months later still no A320s in operation.

The reason for the delay is because of regulatory red-tap, which in the end has only worked to benefit the incumbents Cenu Pacific and Philippine Airlines because they have less local competition.

The reason I bring this issue up is because Singapore and the Philippines this week signed a new air services agreement that gives each side an additional 16 Airbus A320 flights per week.

Extra capacity was needed because the Philippine side was already using up its allocation and extra capacity is needed if new entrants such as Seair are to move in.   

Canberra has confirmed that it will join in the development of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, with the country likely to receive its first of eight aircraft before 2018 when its Lockheed Martin AP-3Cs are due to retire. You can see the US Navy's really cool promotional video about the aircraft above.

The question now for Australia is what kind of high-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) it will buy to operate alongside the P-8As. Canberra opted against joining in the US Navy's Northrop Grumman RQ-4N Global Hawk-based Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) programme, but Northrop remains hopeful that it the country will eventually buy the type.

More information on the unmanned requirements are likely to be released in the coming months and one thing is for sure. After the release of the defence white paper last week, the  Australian military procurement plans are coming alive once again!

Has India grounded its Sukhoi Su-30MKI (above) fleet after last week's fatal crash? Yes, but not officially, appears to be the answer.

The Indian Air Force has denied media reports that it grounded the fighters after the incident, in which one of the two pilots died. Experts from Sukhoi are coming to India to help investigate the crash, the first involving the type in the 12 years it has been in service in the country.

However, sources say that the IAF has not flown the type since the 30 April incident and they will remain in the hangars until after precautionary checks on the remaining 55 Su-30s. An aircraft type is grounded only if a fault has been detected by the manufacturers - in this case Sukhoi and Hindustan Aeronautics, which license-produces the fighter in India, they add. That is not the case here - yet.

It is no surprise that the IAF is rather reticent. The Su-30s are India's most advanced front-line combat aircraft, and their grounding is bound to have an impact on the country's security planning. So the word is that while the Su-30s may be in the hangars, they can still be scrambled to fly sorties if needed. You have been warned.

For those who want to see the Indian Su-30MKIs in action, here is a cool video of them in action at Red Flag 2008.

Japan's Nippon Cargo Airlines plans to use paint from German firm Mankiewicz Gebr. that promises to help it save money on fuel.

The aircraft's fuselage will be "painted with thin layers of paint, effectively reducing the weight of the aircraft by around 45kg" resulting in a cut in fuel consumption by about 42 barrels a year.

Its amazing the lengths airlines go these days to find ways to reduce weight and as a consequence fuel consumption.

I remember Singapore carrier Tiger Airways disclosed that its in-flight magazines would be printed using a lighter paper stock, also an effort to reduce the weight on board the aircraft.  

Last night I spoke to Capt GR Gopinath who has just finished campaigning in India's parliamentary elections where he is competing as an independent in the Bangalore south constituency.

The reason I called him was to ask about his new cargo and logistics company but before we got onto that topic he mentioned that he has a book deal with HarperCollins, which is publishing his autobiography.

He says it will tell the story of him growing up in India and going on to found Air Deccan, India's first low-cost carrier. Air Deccan was really the one that paved that way for the liberalisation of India's civil aviation market.

He later sold Air Deccan to the owners of Kingfisher Airlines who then promptly rebranded the business Kingfisher Red.

But the Deccan brand is set to return again. Gopinath is currently in the final stages of launching his new cargo airline and integrated logistics firm Deccan 360.

It is now waiting to receive its AOC but already has one Airbus A310 in India and ready to go for the launch of operations on 19 May.

Gopinath and the firm's business analyst Tejdeep Khokhar were good enough to send me these exclusive pictures of the aircraft's livery. I must say I like the BIG 360.

   

 

Singapore Airlines (SIA) has too many pilots so it is currently trying to get its pilots to take four days off per month as compulsory leave but the pilots are only willing to take one day off a month.

Here's a novel approach to deal with those pesky union pilots. Implement the Singapore Ministry of Health's new guidelines for dealing with swine flu.

On the ministry's site it states that members of the public who are returning from Mexico or other affected areas such as the states of  New York, California, Kansas and Texas in the USA are "advised to stay at home for seven days upon return".

I'm sure SIA can find a away to make sure that its Airbus A340 and Boeing 777 pilots are rostered on once a month to either: Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York or Houston.

In China they like to think BIG. Its part of their whole approach to life. Take for, for example, Beijing city. When you walk the streets of Beijing, the first thing you notice is how big all the buildings are. When they build a new building, it can literally take up an entire city block.

It is no surprise then that the Civil Aviation Administration of China has decided that China needs to re-look at its numbering system for aircraft.

The current system has the letter 'B' followed by a four-digit number. But the CAAC says in a statement on its website that its current numbering system can only accommodate 10,000 aircraft and that it needs to come up with a new numbering system that can accommodate at least 100,000 aircraft.

And these guys appear to be serious. Based on the statement I saw on the CAAC website, they have launched a full-blown study into coming up with a new numbering system for registering aircraft. In China they really do think BIG. 

Malaysia Airlines has appointed former Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi (above) as an advisor, giving him a non-executive position on the carrier's board.

It remains to be seen what kind of "contacts and experience" he will bring to the carrier, as MAS has said, and if he would help the airline to make the changes that it needs to become more viable.

Badawi's political connections, however, remain tenuous as he was basically pushed out of the premiership following the ruling Barisan Nasional's poor results at last year's general elections. Some in Malaysia view this as part of the routine appointments that are made after senior politicians leave office.

Air India has appointed a new head, but for how long?

Arvind Jadhav, a career civil servant, began work as the Indian flag carrier's chairman and managing director today. He was appointed by the civil aviation ministry after his predecessor, Raghu Menon, quit following differences with the minister Praful Patel.

Given that the Indian general elections are ongoing and due to end only in mid-May, the country could well have a new government in the next few weeks. And then, depending on who takes over the civil aviation ministry and the direction that he or she may want, sources say that Air India could well have a new head.

The uncertainty is likely to continue for Air India in the coming weeks.

Air Fiji appears to have finally come to an end.

The financially-troubled carrier's sudden closure late on 30 April does not augur well.

Its main telephone lines have been disconnected, its website has a simple message saying it cannot take any bookings and its staff have been told to stay home.

The exact details on why the airline has closed remains a mystery but the carrier's CEO, Sialeni Vuetaki, has publicly stated on several occasions over the years the carrier is under financial strain.

The most recent time he suggested this was sometime around August when he was trying to get the workforce to accept a wage cut and the out-sourcing of some jobs.

This week the airline's chairman, Wu Shengyue, is quoted in the Fijian press as saying the airline needs F$3 million ($1.4 million) in new capital to restart.

The reports say the carrier's major owner, the Government of Tuvalu, is looking at restarting the airline.

But one has to wonder whether it will work. Air Fiji faces stiff competition from Fiji's national carrier Air Pacific which has the support of the Fijian Government.

Air Fiji has already been kicked off international routes and Fiji's domestic routes appear to be a shrinking market due to all the national uncertainty.

Fiji's government has just been removed from power and the country's president is now in charge. The political uncertainty means tourists are likely to stay away from the Pacific island nation.

Cathay Pacific Airways appears to have made a PR blunder over its handling of the swine flu issue.

The Oneworld carrier, like many other airlines, has been implementing measures on board flights to help mitigate the spread of swine flu.

But when its cabin crew declared that they wanted to wear face masks to protect their own health, the airline refused.

The matter quickly made it into the Hong Kong press which took delight in exposing Cathay's contradictory behaviour.

This then led Cathay to do the PR equivalent of a back-flip by announcing that cabin crew will be allowed to wear face-masks if they want to.

Its good to see Cathay does care about the health of its employees. That's a much better image for the airline to have.

Australia's defence white paper, which was released on Saturday, has a wide-ranging wish list that aims to revamp the country's military in the next 20 years. This envisages a big growth in the defence budget, which is bound to face opposition from various groups.

Here are some highlights relating to military aviation, with hyperlinks to the key sections in the white paper itself.

The Royal Australian Air Force's "potent and flexible air combat capability is a cornerstone of Australia's defence posture," says defence minister Joel Fitzgibbon. "Control of the air over our territory and maritime approaches is critical to all other operations in the defence of Australia." This includes:

• Acquiring around 100 fifth-generation Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft (above) and associated weapons systems;
• Half of Australia's Boeing F/A-18F Block II Super Hornet fleet will be configured on the production line to enable them to be converted to the EA-18G 'Growler' electronic attack variant should later strategic circumstances dictate;
• Delivery of five EADS KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport for air-to-air refuelling will begin soon, increasing the range and endurance of combat and surveillance aircraft;
• Reaffirming the commitment to six new Boeing 737-based Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft to provide surveillance, command and control functions to other networked Australian Defence Force platforms;
• Buying eight new maritime patrol aircraft, which will provide advanced antisubmarine and anti-surface warfare capabilities as well as sophisticated maritime search capabilities;
• Buying approximately seven new high-altitude, long-endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to compliment the new maritime patrol aircraft and replace the Lockheed Martin AP-3C Orion fleet with a more comprehensive and advanced maritime surveillance capability;
• Enhanced air transport capability options through the acquisition of a two additional Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules to bring the total fleet number to 14 aircraft;
• Up to 10 new tactical battlefield airlifters with a significantly greater range, speed, payload and protection measures that the retiring de Havilland DHC-4 Caribous;

The Royal Australia Navy should "operate closely with air combat and maritime surveillance and response aircraft to establish sea control, and project force across our vast maritime environment," says Fitzgibbon. This will include:

• A new fleet of at least 24 new naval combat helicopters, equipped with dipping sonars to detect submarines at greater ranges;
• Six new NH Industries NH-90 multi-role helicopters that will replace the general utility service previously provided by the Westland Sea King fleet;

The Royal Australian Army must be "capable of conducting joint land combat in a complex operational environment and be able to defeat incursions onto the Australian mainland, territories and offshore installations," says Fitzgibbon. This entails:

• Improved mobility through the acquisition of seven new Boeing CH-47F Chinook medium lift helicopters;
• Acquisition of a range of UAVs to support the ground forces.

Singapore Airlines has reached a temporary agreement with its pilots on no-pay leave while continuing with negotiations with the Airline Pilots Association-Singapore (Alpa-S).

SIA wants its pilots to take up to three days no-pay leave a month as it cuts capacity and parks aircraft, while the union says that its members should not take more than the one day that the airline has asked its other staff to take.

Singapore's Ministry for Manpower brokered the temporary agreement. This allows SIA to begin implementing the agreements it had sealed with its other staff unions earlier from 1 May, given that these deals were contingent on its talks with Alpa-S.

Given that both SIA and the Alpa-S have had a long history of disagreements, and it remains to be seen if this temporary agreement will lead to a permanent one. There might yet be another sting in the tail. Watch this space.

                                                                                        Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter

Okay, after the false alarm from last time, this time it appears to be real. Australia will release its defence white paper tomorrow, spelling out the country's military strategy and priorities for the next 20 years.

There is speculation that the paper envisages a build-up of Australia's air and naval capabilities in response to China's growing power in the region, leading to Beijing's diplomats bristling at the connection ahead of the release of the report.

Canberra is also likely to reaffirm its commitment to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, and provide clarification on the future of the country's naval helicopter and airborne early warning and control programmes.