Airlines reroute flights, suspend services<\/p>\n
Zakki Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Garuda Airlines said on Thursday it had rerouted flights to
\nEurope to avoid the war in Iraq, and was considering imposing a
\nsurcharge on passengers.<\/p>\n
Other airlines in Asia have also taken similar action, while
\nSingapore Airlines has suspended and cut back services to many
\nbig cities across the world.<\/p>\n
Garuda spokesperson Pujobroto told The Jakarta Post that a
\nGaruda flight from Jakarta to Amsterdam transited in Singapore
\nand Bangkok Wednesday night, and took a route south of the crisis
\narea in the Middle East. Normally, the airline only makes one
\nstopover in Singapore.<\/p>\n
\"For the time being, our contingency plan involves taking a
\nsafer but longer route. Therefore, the plane needs to land in
\nBangkok to refuel,\" he explained.<\/p>\n
He said the next flight to Amsterdam would be on Saturday and
\nthe flight route had yet to be decided on.<\/p>\n
He said that Garuda was still maintaining its services to
\nJeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the continuation of these
\nservices would depend on developments in the war, he said.<\/p>\n
Should the war be prolonged, Garuda would probably suspend
\nsome routes temporarily due to possible increases in fuel prices,
\nadditional risks and a drop in the number of passengers.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines (SIA) said it would suspend 65
\nweekly services to key U.S. and European routes and to Mauritius
\nas part of a cutback in flights due to the Middle East conflict,
\nAFP reported.<\/p>\n
The changes to the flight services will take effect from late
\nMarch, it said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The frequency of flights to key Asian cities will also be
\nreduced, SIA said.<\/p>\n
\"Singapore Airlines wishes to advise that it will implement a
\nseries of reductions from late March in response to softening
\ndemand in the past few weeks attributed to concern about the
\nsituation in the Middle East,\" SIA said.<\/p>\n
\"A total of 65 services per week will be suspended,\" it
\nannounced.<\/p>\n
On its U.S. routes, the carrier will suspend all flights to
\nLas Vegas and Chicago from April 7 to May 31.<\/p>\n
It will cut services to San Francisco from 14 to 10 weekly
\nfrom April 9 to May 31, Los Angeles from 14 to 12 from April 7 to
\nMay 31, and New York from 11 to nine from April 6 to May 31.<\/p>\n
SIA flights to the European cities of Brussels and Madrid will
\nbe suspended from March 30 to May 31, while Frankfurt flights
\nwill be reduced by two to 12 weekly services from April 6 to May
\n31 and weekly services to Manchester will be trimmed by one to
\nsix from April 7 to May 31.<\/p>\n
SIA's flight suspension to Mauritius will last from April 15
\nto May 31, the carrier said.<\/p>\n
Flight frequencies to key Asian routes will also be slashed,
\nincluding major destinations Seoul, Hong Kong, Taipei and the
\nJapanese cities of Fukuoka, Hiroshima and Nagoya, the carrier
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Earlier, the carrier said it had begun re-routing flights to
\nthe Middle East and Europe to avoid the war in Iraq and imposed a
\nwar surcharge on cargo.<\/p>\n
SIA subsidiary SIA Cargo said in a separate statement it would
\nlevy a war surcharge of 25 U.S. cents a kilogram for shipments to
\naffected areas and was also implementing \"a range of heightened
\nsecurity procedures.\"<\/p>\n
It cited the \"increasing cost of security, insurance and
\nrelated issues\" for the new charge, which is in addition to a 20-
\ncent a kilogram levy imposed earlier this month due to a rise in
\nfuel prices.<\/p>\n
In Hong Kong, flag carrier Cathay Pacific said that all of its
\nflights between Hong Kong and Europe were now flying routes over
\nChina and Russia due to the Iraq war.<\/p>\n
Cathay Pacific Airways has also recently temporarily adjusted
\nits twice-weekly Riyadh flight to stop over in Dubai instead of
\nBahrain due to the expected downturn in business.<\/p>\n
\"Cathay Pacific is closely monitoring developments, and
\nflights bound for the Middle East will be adjusted, depending on
\nthe situation,\" as it continues to maintain its 20 flights a week
\nto the Gulf to Bahrain, Riyadh and Dubai, it said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/airlines-reroute-flights-suspend-services-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}