Your view on budget airlines

[JediForce4ever]

yups....an air crash in Singapore would be collosal...imagin a plane crashing into a block of HDB flats.....so safety must be of very very high standards.....

 

[afbug]

Most mishap were caused by human errors. Budget or not, its the quality of maintenance and standard of pilots that are important, as long as the A/C need to enter or leave Singapore, need approval from CAAS, if not up to par, sorry wait long long.

If we are talking about safety issues on budget air not really any problem, comfort...it depends on perception.

Yeah, thats why i tot they watch too much TV programmes. :bsmilie:

BUT.....comfort is not depended on perception. Esp the level of service. But thats another issue.

 

[philliptan]

Back to topic... from what I've heard, Valuair has the best service although I've only been on Tiger Air and I must say the stewardesses are a bit kalang kabo... They were doing their announcement with a fair bit of "er...ah... uhm..." And their makeup are so thick that they look like SIA rejects.

But service level quite alright for the money you pay. Still feels like you're on a plane, not a long distance Singapore-KL bus service. The only difference is the seat pitch and you have to buy your own snacks/food. Aiya, but ok lah... $2 snacks... Anyway, I took a Singapore-Bangkok flight. By the time we finished our snacks, the plane was descending already.

 

[slippers]

took Tiger Airways recently to and fro Phuket.

at first i was a bit worried for travelling in such small aircraft (A320) due to its size (scared that it will 'toss' up and down in the sky...hahahaha :bsmilie: ). but after sitting in it, i felt totally in love with this a/c and the airline !!! the takeoff and landing are smooth (owing to the superb pilot skill) as compared to some of the bigger aircrafts i took, the stewardness are friendly, the cabin is clean and we can even be 30 min earlier before the schedule !!!

i will give 4* out of 5* for the Tiger !!!

the only bad things are :

1.) seats not allocated. cos' i wan to get a window seat so can take photos, i have to be really kiasu by standing near the gate so that i will be one of the firsts to board the plane!

2.) experience a traffic jam at the check-in counter, dunno what happen at first but found out that they don't computer to do the check-in. instead they rely on a printed namelist to check the passenger's name. so i think that really hold up the quene.

:angel:

 

[espn]

Like a new car, each aircraft has a specific check package based on hours (which is the airline equivalent of mileage). All the checks are scheduled BEFORE a particular critical item's life span is due.

When the time arrives for a check (A, B, C or M check, etc), the aircraft will be taken off active duty and come to an MRO company (like the one I'm working at) for weeks or months depending of the checks. The newer the aircraft, the less intensive is the check. For example, Valuair's been sending their A320s in for a few days' check this past month.

They do not change any parts outside of the scheduled checks unless the pilot reports a failure. If the aircraft is operating smoothly, there is no reason to change anything on the apron. Hence, it's just fuel, water and food (consumables) and off you go.

Yep, that's what I'm referring to, the hours of mileage checking, I understand that airlines have their own system (having developed one myself) so the MRO came to enlighten me on life span issues & the importance of highlighting the parts out for MRO. Perhaps I've taken too much stress point on MRO that it's a daily affair

 

[philliptan]

1.) seats not allocated. cos' i wan to get a window seat so can take photos, i have to be really kiasu by standing near the gate so that i will be one of the firsts to board the plane!

I actually thought this was the best part... I just walked and sat behind the wing... So many seats to choose from. No problems there!

2.) experience a traffic jam at the check-in counter, dunno what happen at first but found out that they don't computer to do the check-in. instead they rely on a printed namelist to check the passenger's name. so i think that really hold up the quene.

:angel:

Ya, that's why they are budget. This is what they save on. (And possibly washing of the aircraft)

 

[espn]

if they do that.....the airport would be jammed with flights waiting for a gate....most plane parts are made to last for long periods of time without replacement.... you've gotta listen to Philip mann....he services planes for a living....most regional flights just need 1hr to refuel,resupply and they're off.....

I'm not doubting Philip or anybody for that matter.

 

[slippers]

I actually thought this was the best part... I just walked and seat behind the wing... So many seats to choose from. No problems there!

haahaha...you got a point too but like that easy to get high blood pressure leh :devil: heheheeheeee

 

[philliptan]

Yep, that's what I'm referring to, the hours of mileage checking, I understand that airlines have their own system (having developed one myself) so the MRO came to enlighten me on life span issues & the importance of highlighting the parts out for MRO. Perhaps I've taken too much stress point on MRO that it's a daily affair

You developed maintenance schedules for an airline? Strange, cos you'll probably know what I'm talking abt...

I think the misunderstanding here is the usage of the term "MRO". Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul refers to major checks done in which we totally strip the aircraft apart. Like I said, you're actually talking abt turnaround... which is basically topping up of the consumables for the next flight unless there's some problems with the aircraft. Any problems are handled by Line Maintenance. As you can expect, if there's a problem, then the flight could be delayed.

Since the aircraft left an hour after landing, it means there's no problems and all the CIAS guys have to do is to load up the consumables. So, a quick turnaround means there's no problems. Quite the contrary of what you believed.

 

[tomshen]

Thank all for your contribution of your views Now I feel more confident in budget airlines!

 

[anthony.phua]

Anyway just to add this for fun. I understand that aircrafts have 3 systems on board and the each system has 2 backups. So the probability of all 3 systems failing is quite low.

And the cost of the fuel surcharge, insurance surcharge, etc negates the low cost of airfares

 

[skinnylatte]

For those of you who are interested
http://www.asianewsdesk.com/

covers southeast asian budget airlines.

 

[espn]

You developed maintenance schedules for an airline? Strange, cos you'll probably know what I'm talking abt...

I think the misunderstanding here is the usage of the term "MRO". Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul refers to major checks done in which we totally strip the aircraft apart. Like I said, you're actually talking abt turnaround... which is basically topping up of the consumables for the next flight unless there's some problems with the aircraft. Any problems are handled by Line Maintenance. As you can expect, if there's a problem, then the flight could be delayed.

Since the aircraft left an hour after landing, it means there's no problems and all the CIAS guys have to do is to load up the consumables. So, a quick turnaround means there's no problems. Quite the contrary of what you believed.

Didn't really do much on the design, basically was porting the data from a legacy system over to ours. I guess I confused up the terms

 

[sky888]

unlike all the budget airlines in US and europe, all the budget airlines in singapore rent NEW airbus planes.. thhat is why we will have not problem with their interior and the cleanness

I took valuair to china for more than 4 times.. each time they are on time, the stewardess are friendly, and the food is very much OK.. and the space between the seats are much bigger that SIA's! and best of all the price is only 1/2 of what silkair or SIA will charge me

(but of course valuair is more of a mid range, than a budget airline)

given a choice, I will take valuair anytime

 

[jsbn]

My view? Well in short... They are better den SIA in every sense.

 

[ricohflex]

safety is the ONLY thing in any flight.

the $100 or so you save is not much if the plane crashes
personally would prefer normal airline like TG or SIA or even Finnair.

forget the crap about inflight service, good food, etc...
just hope the darn plane takes off , flies and lands safely. nothing else matters.
all it takes is a disastrous crash of 1 budget airline plane and all will get frightened

 

[LENS]

hello guys, i am checking with you that, will a passenger of a budget airline have a insurance cover as normal airline?

 

[jsbn]

safety is the ONLY thing in any flight.

the $100 or so you save is not much if the plane crashes
personally would prefer normal airline like TG or SIA or even Finnair.

forget the crap about inflight service, good food, etc...
just hope the darn plane takes off , flies and lands safely. nothing else matters.
all it takes is a disastrous crash of 1 budget airline plane and all will get frightened

Lets put it on record. 1 sea landing for Silkair, 1 failed takeoff for SIA.

Both scored casualties.

So, u're saying abt... safety? Nothing is much more safer den sitting at home on the safe comforts of ur bed. U want zero accidents? Don't travel!

 

[smallaperture]

safety is the ONLY thing in any flight.

the $100 or so you save is not much if the plane crashes
personally would prefer normal airline like TG or SIA or even Finnair.

forget the crap about inflight service, good food, etc...
just hope the darn plane takes off , flies and lands safely. nothing else matters.
all it takes is a disastrous crash of 1 budget airline plane and all will get frightened

Totally agree. Being budget, and the budget is tight, it means that they may not cut corners, but does everything to the limit and no margin. I heard that they top up just inuf jet fuel with hardly any spare - every kg extra means more fuel consumption. Also, check if you get the 20kg baggage allowance. SQ gives you 30kg is I remember correctly, but I guess hardly anybody get near to that limit.

 

[LENS]

hello guys, i am checking with you that, will a passenger of a budget airline have a insurance cover as normal airline?

so guys, u got an answer for my question? thank you!