Oasis Hong Kong Airlines
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| Oasis Hong Kong Airlines 甘泉香港航空 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Image:Oasis Hong Kong Airlines logo.jpg | ||
| IATA O8 | ICAO OHK | Callsign OASIS |
| Founded | February 2005 | |
| Hubs | Hong Kong International Airport | |
| Fleet size | 4 (1 Awaiting Delivery) | |
| Destinations | Hong Kong International Airport, London Gatwick Airport, Vancouver International Airport | |
| Parent company | Oasis Hong Kong Airlines | |
| Headquarters | Hong Kong | |
| Key people | Stephen H. Miller, (CEO) Rev. Raymond C. Lee & Priscilla H. Lee, (Chairman and Executive Director) | |
| Website: http://www.oasishongkong.com/ | ||
Oasis Hong Kong Airlines Limited (traditional Chinese: 甘泉香港航空有限公司) began as a long-haul low-cost airline based in Hong Kong, It operates scheduled services to London Gatwick Airport and Vancouver, and plans to serve other destinations in Australia, Europe and the USA. Its main base is Hong Kong International Airport.[1]
Oasis is one of a growing number of long-haul passenger airlines, such as Zoom Airlines, to adopt a budget airline model pioneered by the now defunct Laker Airways Skytrain service in the 1970s. Oasis offers non-stop service from Hong Kong to London, and began a service to Vancouver on June 28, 2007.[4] The airline was voted "World’s Leading New Airline" at Annual World Travel Award 2007[2].
Contents |
[edit] History
Oasis Hong Kong Airlines was founded by Rev. Raymond C. Lee, and his wife, Priscilla H. Lee in February 2005. The chief executive, Steve Miller, was founder and first chief executive of another Hong Kong-based airline, Dragonair. Its inaugural route to London commenced service on October 26, 2006, [3]The first flight, flight O8 700, took off from Hong Kong International Airport after a 24-hour delay.[3] The airline had been scheduled to begin operations on October 25, but Russia revoked the London-bound flight's fly-over rights at 12:09 PM, one hour before the flight's scheduled departure.[4]
Though Oasis is a low-fare airline, it has already broken-even after the first six months of operations. The airline says that this is achieved through flying long-haul so as to decrease maintenance and fuel costs. [5]It also has a lower cost per passenger-kilometer compared to other airlines in Hong Kong.[5] Business passengers[5], and those who used to have to transfer en-route to get to London [6], would be Oasis' main sources of revenue. Like many other airlines, Oasis plans to hedge a proportion of its fuel purchases to guard against future fuel price increases[6].
[edit] Services
[citation needed]Tickets are sold through the company website and travel agents. One-way fares between Hong Kong and London was launched from £75 or HK$1,000 (excluding taxes and charges), but there are in fact four fare classes[7] and supply vary from time to time as suggested from the airline's booking page. For the Hong Kong-Vancouver route, tickets can be purchased in travel agencies and online. One-way economy fares for Vancouver start at HK$1,990 (excluding taxes and charges) for at least 10% of the seats available. Round trip business class fares start at HKD$18,000 /CAD789 [8](excluding taxes and charges).
Seat pitch of economyOasis is 32" (same as Cathay Pacific and Air Canada; one inch more than British Airways and Virgin Atlantic[9]), and a businessOasis section offers at least 50" seat pitch. The 747-400 cabins are configured for 81 business and 278 economy passengers (for B-LFA, B-LFB) or 71 business and 268 economy passengers (for B-LFC), in which a section of former ANA First Class are sold as Business Class on Oasis flights[10].
Two hot meals and soft drinks are currently served free on both long haul routes in all classes. Snacks and alcoholic drinks are also free for business class passengers and available to be ordered in economy. Free headphones, blankets and pillows are also distributed free in all classes, while passengers can purchase noise-canceling headphones and amenity kits onboard.[11] Each passenger has their own seat-back TV which has at least 16 channels available, in addition of up to 12 channels of audio [12], although they are not on demand.
By far, responses from passengers are generally positive. By mid December, 23 out of 27 comments posted on Skytrax website rated the experience with Oasis for 4 or 5 stars[13]. Mainstream opinions include good value fares, attentive service, average food and technical failures of the seat-back TV systems.
On 28 February, 2007, Oasis Hong Kong moved all its passenger check-in operation into the newly commissioned Terminal 2 of the Hong Kong International Airport, being the first airline in Hong Kong to do so.[14]
On 16 August 2007, Oasis Hong Kong has announced that the numbers of flights between Hong Kong to London Gatwick will be increased from 7 flights to 10 flights per week starting from 16 December 2007.[15] The additional 3x weekly flights will likely be operated with one of the additional Boeing 747-400 aircraft recently obtained from the Japanese airline ANA. Oasis has timed this new departure from Hong Kong during the day, in response to passenger demand for a day sector on the route.
[edit] Destinations
The airline currently only operates on two routes, from Hong Kong International Airport to London Gatwick and from Hong Kong International Airport to Vancouver International Airport. As of 28 Jun 2007, Oasis announced it expected to introduce a six-weekly service to Vancouver International Airport, the focus city of another low cost carrier Westjet, from 28 June 2007. The airline's press release which stated that "it’s a market where there is substantially less reliance on feeder traffic" suggested nothing about the Westjet connectivity. It is also believed that the long-awaited Oakland service (near San Francisco) will soon come on line once the Vancouver service is established. Other routes are also planned.[16] Oasis is believed to want to commence service to Chicago and New York before reaching Washington DC.[17] Sources also report Oasis Hong Kong's entry into the 'kangaroo route' market after receiving sufficient aircraft, providing service to Melbourne with a stop at Sydney. It has a plan of 11 destinations.
[edit] East Asia
[edit] Europe
[edit] North America
[edit] Planned destinations
According to Oasis' website and Hong Kong government's website, the airlines are planning to start the following destinations:
[edit] Asia
- Azerbaijan
- China, People's Republic of
- India
- Indonesia
- Israel
- Japan
- Malaysia
- Philippines
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Thailand
- United Arab Emirates
- Vietnam
[edit] Europe
[edit] Oceania
[edit] North America
- Canada
- United States
- Boston (Logan International Airport)[20]
- Chicago (O'Hare International Airport)
- Honolulu (Honolulu International Airport)[20]
- Las Vegas (McCarran International Airport)[20]
- Los Angeles (Los Angeles International Airport)[20]
- New York (John F. Kennedy International Airport)[20]
- San Francisco(Oakland International Airport)
[edit] Fleet
The Oasis Hong Kong Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft:[citation needed]
- 2 x Boeing 747-412 (previously owned by Singapore Airlines. Fleet Registrations: B-LFA, B-LFB)
- 2 x Boeing 747-481 (previously owned by All Nippon Airways. Fleet Registration: B-LFC, B-LFD)
The first aircraft, B-LFA (cn 24063/ln 736), was delivered to Singapore Airlines on July 11, 1989, with registration 9V-SMC. It was leased to China Airlines as 3B-SMC in the mid-1990s to cover for the loss of another Boeing 747-400 which overshot the runway at Hong Kong Kai Tak Airport in 1993. Later on, it was leased to Iberia Airlines with registration TF-AMA. The aircraft was owned by SIA Engineering Co. Ltd. prior to being sold to Oasis. It was delivered to Oasis on September 19, 2006. [21][citation needed]
The second aircraft, B-LFB (cn 24065/ln 761), was delivered to Singapore Airlines on December 13, 1989, with registration 9V-SME. It was leased to Air Atlanta Icelandic and Iberia Airlines with registration TF-AMB from 2004 to 2006. It was delivered to Oasis on November 18, 2006. With the two aircraft, Oasis began to offer daily non-stop flights between Hong Kong and London on November 24, 2006.[citation needed]
All Nippon Airways announced on 6 March 2007 that it has successfully sold three Boeing 747-400s to Oasis Growth Income and Investments Limited, for operation by Oasis Hong Kong Airlines. These three 747s are amongst the newest 747s in the entire ANA fleet, which were delivered to ANA by Boeing between February 25,1999 (JA403A) and June 28, 2000 (JA405A), and were scheduled to retire from ANA between 2007 and 2008 in exchange for the newer Boeing 777s and 787s. [22]
As the ex-ANA and ex-SIA's 747-400s are powered by different engines, the former using CF6-80s from General Electric and the latter PW4000s from Pratt and Whitney, the arrival of the ANA planes is likely to compromise parts commonality thus complicating maintenance operation.
Oasis aims to have a fleet of 15 aircraft by 2009 when the initial public offering starts and 20-25 aircraft by 2010-2011. The initial public offering of the company was originally planned in mid-2007[23], but the IPO was postponed until 2009[24].
Oasis targets the Boeing 747 for their main fleet. In the longer term they may also consider other types of aircraft such as the Boeing 777.
Oasis Hong Kong's aircraft are maintained by HAECO and Lufthansa Technik.
| Registration | CN | Aircraft | Engine | Previous ID | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-LFA | 24063/LN736 | Boeing 747-412 | PW 4062 | 9V-SMC, 3B-SMC, TF-AMA. | Original Livery (delivered in Sep 2006) |
| B-LFB | 24065/LN761 | Boeing 747-412 | PW 4062 | 9V-SME, TF-AMB. | Original Livery (delivered in Nov 2006) |
| B-LFC | 29263/LN1204 | Boeing 747-481 | GE CF6-80C2B5F | JA404A | Original Livery (delivered in May 2007) |
| B-LFD | 30322/LN1250 | Boeing 747-481 | GE CF6-80C2B5F | JA405A | Original Livery (delivered in Nov 2007) |
| B-LFE | 29262/LN1199 | Boeing 747-481 | GE CF6-80C2B5F | JA403A | to be delivered by Mar 2008 |
[edit] Awards
In 2007, Oasis Hong Kong is voted "World’s Leading New Airline" and "Asia's Leading Budget/No Frills Airline" at Annual World Travel Awards 2007; named "New Airline of the Year" by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation of Singapore[25]; voted "Best New Service" and "Best Business Class Carrier" at the 2007 World Low Cost Airline Congress Awards held in London[26].
[edit] External links
- Oasis Hong Kong Airlines
- Oasis Hong Kong Airlines > United Kingdom Website Homepage
- Oasis Hong Kong Airlines > Canada Website Homepage
- Oasis Hong Kong Airlines > Hong Kong Website Homepage
- 甘泉香港航空 > 香港網站首頁
[edit] References
- ^ "Directory: World Airlines", Flight International, 2007-04-10, p. 58.
- ^ http://www.worldtravelawards.com/winners
- ^ a b Travelers find date with Oasis no longer a mirage. The Standard (2006-10-27). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ 甘泉正午才獲悉取消航權 (Oasis notified of revoke only at noon) (Chinese). Yahoo! Hong Kong News. Ming Pao (2006-10-25). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ a b c Budget airline Oasis seeks more destinations before maiden flight. The Standard (2006-08-28). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ a b 甘泉明春推千元飛三藩市 (Oasis flies to SFO for $1000 next Spring) (Chinese). Yahoo! Hong Kong News. Ming Pao (2006-08-07). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ http://www.oasishongkong.com/hk/zh_hant/flights/faredetails.aspx
- ^ http://www.oasishongkong.com/ca/en/home.aspx
- ^ http://www.airlinequality.com/Product/seat_intro.htm
- ^ http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=711636
- ^ http://www.oasishongkong.com/hk/en/flights/classes.aspx
- ^ http://www.oasishongkong.com/gb/en/services/ife/index.aspx
- ^ http://www.airlinequality.com/Forum/oasis.htm
- ^ Oasis Hong Kong Airlines Takes Off With Terminal 2 to Mark Another First http://corp.oasishongkong.com/hk/en/pr.php?pr_id=OHKAGenHKPREN070301
- ^ 甘泉1週年 送3000機票 (Oasis celebrates its first anniversary, giving out 3000 free air tickets) (Chinese). Yahoo! Hong Kong News. Ming Pao (2007-08-17). Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
- ^ http://corp.oasishongkong.com/hk/en/pr.php?pr_id=OHKAGenHKPREN070306
- ^ http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2007/07/25/215714/oasis-looks-to-grow-fleet-with-747s-777s-readies-for-us-service.html
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa On 7 December, 2007, the intention of Oasis to fly to these destinations have been gazetted on HKSAR government's website.[1]
- ^ a b c d On 17 August, 2007, the intention of Oasis to fly to these four Asian destinations have been gazetted on HKSAR government's website.[2]
- ^ a b c d e f On 7 September, 2007, the intention of Oasis to fly to these six North American destinations have been gazetted on HKSAR government's website.[3]
- ^ http://www.airfleets.net/ficheapp/plane-b747-24063.htm
- ^ ANA Orders 4 Boeing 777-300ER Aircraft. ANA (2003-03-06). Retrieved on 2003-03-06.
- ^ $1,000 London flights to start next month: Oasis. The Standard (2006-09-05). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ Oasis Airlines takes up 2009 listing plan with investors. Yahoo! Hong Kong News. South China Morning Post (2007-01-11). Retrieved on 2007-01-11.
- ^ http://www.centreforaviation.com/aviation/images/stories/conferences/2007/Outlook/Gallery/9.html
- ^ http://www.terrapinn.com/2007/budgies/index.stm
Airlines of Hong Kong | |
|---|---|
Air Hong Kong •
Cathay Pacific •
Dragonair •
Hong Kong Airlines •
Hong Kong Express Airways •
Oasis Hong Kong Airlines | Image:Flag of Hong Kong.svg |
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fr:Oasis Hong Kong Airlines id:Oasis Hong Kong Airlines nl:Oasis Hong Kong Airlines ja:オアシス香港航空 zh-yue:甘泉香港航空 zh:甘泉香港航空
