Northstar

AVIATION www.travelweeklyweb.com Etihad Airways partners Red Crescent to support Emirati traditions SINGAPORE – Lending aid and preserving traditions – that is what Etihad Airways and the Red Crescent Society are doing in their latest project, the Al Ghadeer which aims to train the women in the United Arab Emirates to empower them using the age-old practice of indigenous arts and crafts. The Al Ghadeer project will see the participants learn the craft of creating Emirati products such as coffee sets, chocolate and date baskets using local and recycled materials. Thereafter, these products will be made available via the Etihad guest loyalty programme reward shop and the airline's duty-free shopping brochure. Profi ts from the sales will be channelled to the participating women as a source of their income. From Red Crescent UAE; Dr Rashed Mubark Almansoori, Dr Saleh Mussa Altaee and Dr Mohammed Ataaq Alfalahi with Etihad Airways' CEO Peter Baumgartner, and Al Ghadeer's project manager Na'uma Almansoori Mongolian Airlines implements Amadeus' leading technology BANGKOK – In the aim to elevate its competitive advantage, newly launched full service domestic and regional carrier, Mongolian Airlines Group has signed an agreement with Amadeus, which will see the latter provide its advanced solutions to fuel the carrier's passenger operations. This includes the Amadeus Altéa Customer Management Solution and Amadeus e-Retail online booking engine. These encompass the ticketing, airport check-in and departure control at the same time improving the overall customer experience and enabling travellers worldwide to ease through booking the airlines' flights. The Group was incorporated in September last year and offers scheduled and charter flights to both domestic and international destinations. Next month, Mongolian Airlines Group will be scheduling services to Haneda, Tokyo with its two Airbus A319 airliners. John Chapman, vice-president of Airline Group, Amadeus Asia Pacific, commented; "We are pleased to be Mongolian Airlines Group's technology partner as they enter the highly competitive airline industry, helping them to grow on both a local and global level. As a start-up carrier, Mongolian Airlines will benefi t from the industry's most comprehensive range of functionality that already supports over 100 airlines around the world, as well as the ongoing investment John Chapman made by Amadeus to ensure the Altéa suite remains at the cutting edge. Today, we are pleased to celebrate the implementation of Altéa and to welcome Mongolian Airlines to the Amadeus family." Later this year, the airlines plan to add more destinations in Mainland China and South Korea including Shanghai, Tianjin, Jeju and Cheongju. Double digit growth of the Mongolian economy promises booming air transportation within the country as well as in and out of country. The start-up airline's fares will be accessible by travel agencies globally through the Amadeus Global Distribution System. CAAS rolls out new initiatives to raise productivity SINGAPORE – The Singapore aviation industry gets a boost as the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) expands the S$100 million Aviation Development Fund (ADF) to enhance the local aviation industry's competitiveness. The enhancement includes that of the Aviation Innovation Programme and the addition of the Aviation Promotion Programme (AProP). The programmes were announced by minister for transport and second minister of foreign affairs Lui Tuck Yew, at the Aviation Community Reception. The AProP is the fourth initiative under the ADF, with a budget of S$5 million spanning 6 | ■ TRAVELWEEKLY ASIA | 05 JUNE 2012 the period from April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2015. It will assist Singapore companies to showcase their products and services at major international trade shows. Singapore companies will be encouraged to exhibit under a Singapore Pavilion, contributing to enhancing their position as a comprehensive aviation hub. AProP will also encourage the adoption of international best practices at the cluster level by supporting business missions, study trips and consultancy studies by Singapore companies, organisations and industry trade associations. Open to Singapore-registered companies, organisations and industry trade associations, AProP aims to strengthen the Singapore aviation brand and help Singapore companies to expand their reach in international markets and their access to business opportunities. www.travelweeklyweb.com Photo by: CAAS

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