INBOX FULL AND REALLY CAN’T BE BOTHERED TO OPEN ALL TO THOSE AIRLINE UPDATES?

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Virgin resumes flights from Australia to Vanuatu

Virgin Australia is back in the air this week, resuming flights from Australia to Vanuatu with the first plane landing at Port Vila’s Bauerfield International Airport following the completion of the runway’s first phase of rehabilitation.

Vanuatu Tourism Office (VTO) general manager, Linda Kalpoi said the tourism industry is thrilled to welcome Virgin Australia back and acknowledged the importance of the airline’s return for the country’s tourism industry.

“We warmly welcome Virgin Australia back to Vanuatu and with even more flight options now available, we encourage Australian travellers to consider Vanuatu as their next holiday destination.”

AUSTRALIANS INVITED TO SEE THE COOLER SIDE OF EUROPE

Winter fares are getting even cheaper with Emirates offering Australian travellers the chance to experience a select number of European destinations for just $100 extra when they book flights to Dubai.

Emirates’ Divisional Vice President of Australasia, Barry Brown said “travelling to Europe in the colder months presents an opportunity experience some of world’s most famous cities at a time when it’s often less crowded with tourists and more affordable, with autumn and winter fares offering the best value for money when booking flights.”

Fares are available for travel periods between 27 September to 23 November 2016 and 16 January 2016 to 28 March 2017, allowing travellers to visit European cities, including Vienna, Milan, Madrid and Amsterdam in autumn and winter.

Cebu Pacific Celebrates the world’s largest low-cost carrier (LCC) alliance

The Philippines’ leading airline, Cebu Pacific, is celebrating the formation of the world’s largest low-cost carrier (LCC) alliance – the Value Alliance – by offering Australian travellers one-way fares between Sydney and Manila from AUD$199.

Travellers can take advantage of this sale until 26 May 2016, or while seats last. These fares are inclusive of country taxes and fees, but are exclusive of travel products such as meals or baggage allowance. The travel period for these fares is from 1 August to 15 November, 2016.

Emirates launches four-day sale for flights across the Tasman

It’s time to discover New Zealand in Style because Emirates is having a four0day sale on its daily flights across the Tasman, including three daily flights to Auckland on the airline’s flagship A380 aircraft, and its daily flight between Sydney and Christchurch.

From 24-28 May, Australians will be able to book return Economy Class airfares from Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane to Auckland starting from $229* one way, or from Sydney to Christchurch from $229* one way. For those who are looking for an even more indulgent experience, Business Class airfares start from $599 one way.

Malaysia Airlines to add two additional Airbus A350s

Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) has added two new Airbus A350-900s to its fleet under a 12-year lease agreement with Air Lease Corporation (ALC).

Powered by two Rolls Royce Trent XWB-84 engines, the A350 aircraft are from ALC’s order book with Airbus and will be delivered in 2018.

Malaysia Airlines Berhad’s Chief Executive Officer Christoph Mueller said, “the additional two Airbus A350-900s will complement the existing four that is on order to reach a critical fleet size, allowing standby aircraft for any scheduled maintenance and enabling future network expansion. Technological and innovative advancements make flying this aircraft a real pleasure and it will bring a whole new experience to our offerings, with the aircraft able to operate non-stop from Kuala Lumpur to London and throughout Asia.”

Hawaiian Airlines Welcomes Premium Cabin, Fully Lie-Flat Seating

Bringing the serenity of Hawaii’s shores to the air, Hawaiian Airlines has welcomed its first Airbus A330 aircraft featuring fully lie-flat seating in a spacious Premium Cabin that surrounds guests with modern, luxurious island-inspired designs and even a twinkling constellation paying homage to the history of Polynesian navigation.

“Our custom-built fully lie-flat seats and our new Premium Cabin redefine the leisure travel experience to Hawaii,” said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian’s president and CEO.

The 18 lie-flat seats, whose curved shell evoke gentle ocean waves, fold into 180-degree beds that are 20.5 inches wide by 76 inches long, maximising living space and providing options for both privacy and a shared flight experience.

Aligned in a 2-2- 2 configuration, the seats are ideally tailored to leisure guests (couples, families, honeymooners), while offering superior functionality to the business traveler. Guests will enjoy intuitive seat controls and access to multiple power ports, including two USB connections and one A/C outlet.

FARES STARTING FROM $29* WITH TIGERAIR AUSTRALIA’S MASSIVE SALE

A lack of balloons and birthday cake hasn’t stopped Tigerair Australia from releasing a number of cut-price fares today, covering the majority of the airline’s domestic and international network.

The ‘It’s Not Our Birthday, But The Party Is This Way’ sale, which begins at 1.30pm (AEDT) today and runs until midnight (AEDT) Wednesday 25 May, features bargain one way fares starting from $29 on 15 Tigerair domestic routes, as well as the airline’s three Bali routes.

Head of Communications Vanessa Regan says, “Today’s sale is proof that we don’t need to wait for our birthday celebrations to roll around to gift consumers access to a whole range of great value airfares.”

“These incredible fares aren’t expected to hang around for long, so customers are encouraged to book early to avoid any potential disappointment.”

Scoot takes off to India

Award-winning value airline Scoot has launched services from Singapore to Amritsar and Chennai, bringing exceptional value and “Scootitude” to guests as it spreads its wings to India.

Scoot’s service to Amritsar will initially operated three times weekly and frequency will increase with an additional Monday service from July, restarting the Singapore-Amritsar route for the SIA Group.

Scoot takes over the Singapore-Chennai daily service from Tigerair, expanding capacity to Chennai for the SIA Group with its new and spacious Boeing 787 Dreamliner as the world’s first all-787 operator.

AIRASIA X POSTS RM179 MILLION NET PROFIT IN 1Q16

AirAsia X’s earnings momentum has continued this quarter continued with strong revenue growth of 25% year-on-year (YoY) to RM971 million, on the back of a 15% YoY increase in passenger traffic and 31% YoY growth in average base fare.

Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, Group CEO of AirAsia X said, “In the past one year, we have embarked on various turnaround initiatives to strengthen the company’s foundations by addressing our cash liquidity, instituting a more disciplined cost structure and using our consolidated network to earnings growth. We are pleased to announce that these initiatives have resulted in improvements to our core operations.