Rex And Sigapore
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: sydney
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
REX AND SINGAPORE
THE STAR ONLINE
Singaporeans own 30% of new Australian airline
SINGAPORE (AP) - Eight Singaporean investors have purchased a 30 percent stake in the new regional Australian airline Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said Tuesday.
Lee Thian Soo said by telephone from Australia that he and seven others had pooled their resources and invested in the new airline together.
Regional Express, known as REX, is owned and operated by Australiawide Airlines, a consortium resulting from the merger of Australian regional carriers Kendall and Hazelton Airlines.
The new airline took to the skies Tuesday.
With its stake, the group claims the largest single block of shares in the consortium and is allowed two seats on the Australiawide board, said Lee, an independent Singapore-based financial consultant.
The investors are an ad hoc group of Singaporean businessmen, Lee said, declining to name the other investors except for his fellow Australiawide board member, Lim Kim Hai.
The new airline plans to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon, Lee said.
Singapore Airlines declined to comment on the potential alliance proposal.
"We do not comment on speculative reports on our investments,'' Singapore Airlines spokesman Innes Willox said Tuesday. - AP
THERE YA GO BILL, I'LL GIVE YOU SIX MONTHS TO EAT YOUR WORDS!!!!
Singaporeans own 30% of new Australian airline
SINGAPORE (AP) - Eight Singaporean investors have purchased a 30 percent stake in the new regional Australian airline Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said Tuesday.
Lee Thian Soo said by telephone from Australia that he and seven others had pooled their resources and invested in the new airline together.
Regional Express, known as REX, is owned and operated by Australiawide Airlines, a consortium resulting from the merger of Australian regional carriers Kendall and Hazelton Airlines.
The new airline took to the skies Tuesday.
With its stake, the group claims the largest single block of shares in the consortium and is allowed two seats on the Australiawide board, said Lee, an independent Singapore-based financial consultant.
The investors are an ad hoc group of Singaporean businessmen, Lee said, declining to name the other investors except for his fellow Australiawide board member, Lim Kim Hai.
The new airline plans to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon, Lee said.
Singapore Airlines declined to comment on the potential alliance proposal.
"We do not comment on speculative reports on our investments,'' Singapore Airlines spokesman Innes Willox said Tuesday. - AP
THERE YA GO BILL, I'LL GIVE YOU SIX MONTHS TO EAT YOUR WORDS!!!!
Last edited by Aladdin; 6th Aug 2002 at 12:34.
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Brisbane QLD Oz
Posts: 43
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
REX rumoured to be operating all Sydney flights (including ZL)from ex Ansett terminal within coming weeks. I believe the Express Terminal was getting a bit cramped at peak hours. Good luck to all staff of the new entity. Show em what your made of boys and girls.
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: sydney
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Singaporean investor group swoops on REX
August 7 2002 SMH
Eight Singaporean investors had purchased a 30 per cent stake in the new regional Australian airline Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said yesterday.
Regional Express, known as REX, is owned and operated by Australiawide Airlines, a consortium resulting from the merger of Australian regional carriers Kendell and Hazelton Airlines. The new airline took to the skies yesterday.
With its stake, the group claimed the largest single block of shares in the consortium and was allowed two seats on the Australiawide board, said Mr Lee Thian Soo, one of the airline investors.
The investors were an ad hoc group of Singaporean businessmen, Mr Lee said, declining to name the others except for his fellow Australiawide board member, Lim Kim Hai.
The new airline planned to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon, Mr Lee said. Singapore Airlines declined to comment on the potential alliance proposal.
August 7 2002 SMH
Eight Singaporean investors had purchased a 30 per cent stake in the new regional Australian airline Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said yesterday.
Regional Express, known as REX, is owned and operated by Australiawide Airlines, a consortium resulting from the merger of Australian regional carriers Kendell and Hazelton Airlines. The new airline took to the skies yesterday.
With its stake, the group claimed the largest single block of shares in the consortium and was allowed two seats on the Australiawide board, said Mr Lee Thian Soo, one of the airline investors.
The investors were an ad hoc group of Singaporean businessmen, Mr Lee said, declining to name the others except for his fellow Australiawide board member, Lim Kim Hai.
The new airline planned to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon, Mr Lee said. Singapore Airlines declined to comment on the potential alliance proposal.
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: sydney
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Regional airline out to prove knockers wrong
By SCOTT HANNAFORD
Australia's youngest airline, Regional Express, took off in a storm of controversy yesterday amid warnings the operation would fold by the end of the year.
The airline, badged "rex", was launched at Canberra Airport by Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson in a ceremony to welcome the player to the turbulent industry.
The Canberra-Sydney express shuttle will be its busiest route, but the carrier will expand its network over coming months into areas of NSW, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania.
But vice-president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Bill Hamilton said rex would find it tremendously difficult to survive and would be unlikely to make it past Christmas.
"I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but my personal opinion is that they will be unlikely to succeed because there have been 11 airlines big and small go under in the last two years and [rex] will face all the same fixed costs as those other airlines," he said.
"It is all largely factors beyond their control, like the situation in the bush and fuel and airport costs."
But rex chief executive Michael Jones came out swinging at the comments, calling them uninformed and inaccurate.
"Those comments are a load of crap," he said. "The nay-sayers don't know our business plan, don't know how much money we have, so it's an irrelevant comment."
He said that before the sale of Hazelton and Kendell Airlines to the Australiawide consortium they had been losing a combined $3.5 million a month. With the economies Australiawide had made, the consortium would be able to sustain those sorts of losses for up to two years.
Staffing on the planes had been cut in half, the planes had been leased at a 50 per cent discount, and because the two airlines had been merged, they still had bulk purchasing power.
"It is going to be tough for Regional Express for the next few months. The airlines have been very fragile and starved of capital for quite some time," he said.
"We have plenty of money and we have the dedication of staff and a good business plan to make sure we are successful.
"The Government has done its bit, the staff have done their bit, now it's up to the passengers to show their support."
Mr Anderson said it was a great moment after a long battle to see Kendell and Hazelton reborn, but there would be no more Federal Government financial assistance to keep the company afloat.
"They had a customer base before the Ansett collapse. I'm confident they can get that base back, provided they get the support of the travelling public." One of the major consortium partners and Canberra businessman Pawl Cubbin said it was a great day for Canberra, especially as around a third of the investment in rex had come from Canberra's business community.
A dramatic improvement in the number of flights to Canberra, and great customer service would have an impact.
Eight Singaporean investors had bought a 30 per cent stake in Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said yesterday.
Lee Thian Soo said he and seven others had pooled their resources and invested in the new airline together. The new airline planned to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon.
More from The Canberra Times today:
By SCOTT HANNAFORD
Australia's youngest airline, Regional Express, took off in a storm of controversy yesterday amid warnings the operation would fold by the end of the year.
The airline, badged "rex", was launched at Canberra Airport by Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson in a ceremony to welcome the player to the turbulent industry.
The Canberra-Sydney express shuttle will be its busiest route, but the carrier will expand its network over coming months into areas of NSW, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania.
But vice-president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Bill Hamilton said rex would find it tremendously difficult to survive and would be unlikely to make it past Christmas.
"I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but my personal opinion is that they will be unlikely to succeed because there have been 11 airlines big and small go under in the last two years and [rex] will face all the same fixed costs as those other airlines," he said.
"It is all largely factors beyond their control, like the situation in the bush and fuel and airport costs."
But rex chief executive Michael Jones came out swinging at the comments, calling them uninformed and inaccurate.
"Those comments are a load of crap," he said. "The nay-sayers don't know our business plan, don't know how much money we have, so it's an irrelevant comment."
He said that before the sale of Hazelton and Kendell Airlines to the Australiawide consortium they had been losing a combined $3.5 million a month. With the economies Australiawide had made, the consortium would be able to sustain those sorts of losses for up to two years.
Staffing on the planes had been cut in half, the planes had been leased at a 50 per cent discount, and because the two airlines had been merged, they still had bulk purchasing power.
"It is going to be tough for Regional Express for the next few months. The airlines have been very fragile and starved of capital for quite some time," he said.
"We have plenty of money and we have the dedication of staff and a good business plan to make sure we are successful.
"The Government has done its bit, the staff have done their bit, now it's up to the passengers to show their support."
Mr Anderson said it was a great moment after a long battle to see Kendell and Hazelton reborn, but there would be no more Federal Government financial assistance to keep the company afloat.
"They had a customer base before the Ansett collapse. I'm confident they can get that base back, provided they get the support of the travelling public." One of the major consortium partners and Canberra businessman Pawl Cubbin said it was a great day for Canberra, especially as around a third of the investment in rex had come from Canberra's business community.
A dramatic improvement in the number of flights to Canberra, and great customer service would have an impact.
Eight Singaporean investors had bought a 30 per cent stake in Regional Express for an undisclosed sum, one of the investors said yesterday.
Lee Thian Soo said he and seven others had pooled their resources and invested in the new airline together. The new airline planned to approach Singapore Airlines to propose an inter-airline alliance soon.
More from The Canberra Times today:
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: sydney
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
SIA to cover domestic routes
By Geoffrey Thomas
August 8 2002
Singapore Airlines will be operating on Australian domestic routes within nine months, according to one of Australia's leading analysts.
Peter Harbison, founder and managing director of the Sydney-based Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, said the Australian market was critical for the Singaporean-based airline.
"There are considerable advantages for the airline and, more importantly, there are major disadvantages in not getting to the domestic market," he said. "There is so much compelling financial value in flying domestic routes that I just cannot see how anybody would not see just how obvious it is that they need to be here.
"I believe the airline is very serious and, taking into account the approval process, they will be flying by the end of the first quarter of 2003."
Mr Harbison expects Singapore Airlines will take on an Australian partner, which would then enable the airline to fly international services from Australia to other destinations aside from Singapore.
advertisement
advertisement
Singapore Airlines spokesman Stephen Forshaw confirmed yesterday that a team had recently been looking at terminal gate accessibility at airports around the country.
Mr Forshaw said the airline was keeping its option open and considering various scenarios but had not committed to become Australia's third airline and cautioned on the timing.
However, various authorities around Australia believe that the airline is close to giving a go-ahead.
"I know of several people who have been interviewed for positions," said one airport official.
The airline and its Star Alliance partners have been losing feed traffic from Australia since the demise of Ansett and are also having to book European and United States travellers on to Qantas for domestic flights.
Singapore Airlines alone has 77 flights a week into Australia, all using high-capacity Boeing 777 and Boeing 747 equipment.
It has not escaped the attention of Singapore Airlines executives that while the rest of the world has experienced a downturn in travel after September 11, the Australian domestic market has remained robust and almost immune.
This week SIA shares have taken a battering, falling to an eight-month low, on fears that passenger and cargo demand could be hit if the US economy suffered another downturn. Since last Friday the market has wiped $S2.1 billion ($A2.2 billion) from SIA's market value, with its shares tumbling to $S11.10. Mr Harbison said Singapore Airlines had up to $4 billion in cash reserves to fund the launch of a new airline.
Airline analysts suggest Singapore Airlines will not use the Ansett name, although the airline would probably initially use 144-seat A320s, similar to the aircraft used by Ansett.
Mr Harbison suggests the airline would target all the prime trunk routes and progressively move into regional areas. The biggest Australian regional market, the regional east coast now has a Singaporean connection.
A group of Singaporean investors has a 30 per cent stake in the new Regional Express, which has risen from the ashes of former Ansett subsidiaries Kendell Airlines and Hazelton Airlines.
The Singaporeans are part of a consortium called Australiawide Airlines, which bought the airlines last week in a deal worth $40 million.
- West Australian
By Geoffrey Thomas
August 8 2002
Singapore Airlines will be operating on Australian domestic routes within nine months, according to one of Australia's leading analysts.
Peter Harbison, founder and managing director of the Sydney-based Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, said the Australian market was critical for the Singaporean-based airline.
"There are considerable advantages for the airline and, more importantly, there are major disadvantages in not getting to the domestic market," he said. "There is so much compelling financial value in flying domestic routes that I just cannot see how anybody would not see just how obvious it is that they need to be here.
"I believe the airline is very serious and, taking into account the approval process, they will be flying by the end of the first quarter of 2003."
Mr Harbison expects Singapore Airlines will take on an Australian partner, which would then enable the airline to fly international services from Australia to other destinations aside from Singapore.
advertisement
advertisement
Singapore Airlines spokesman Stephen Forshaw confirmed yesterday that a team had recently been looking at terminal gate accessibility at airports around the country.
Mr Forshaw said the airline was keeping its option open and considering various scenarios but had not committed to become Australia's third airline and cautioned on the timing.
However, various authorities around Australia believe that the airline is close to giving a go-ahead.
"I know of several people who have been interviewed for positions," said one airport official.
The airline and its Star Alliance partners have been losing feed traffic from Australia since the demise of Ansett and are also having to book European and United States travellers on to Qantas for domestic flights.
Singapore Airlines alone has 77 flights a week into Australia, all using high-capacity Boeing 777 and Boeing 747 equipment.
It has not escaped the attention of Singapore Airlines executives that while the rest of the world has experienced a downturn in travel after September 11, the Australian domestic market has remained robust and almost immune.
This week SIA shares have taken a battering, falling to an eight-month low, on fears that passenger and cargo demand could be hit if the US economy suffered another downturn. Since last Friday the market has wiped $S2.1 billion ($A2.2 billion) from SIA's market value, with its shares tumbling to $S11.10. Mr Harbison said Singapore Airlines had up to $4 billion in cash reserves to fund the launch of a new airline.
Airline analysts suggest Singapore Airlines will not use the Ansett name, although the airline would probably initially use 144-seat A320s, similar to the aircraft used by Ansett.
Mr Harbison suggests the airline would target all the prime trunk routes and progressively move into regional areas. The biggest Australian regional market, the regional east coast now has a Singaporean connection.
A group of Singaporean investors has a 30 per cent stake in the new Regional Express, which has risen from the ashes of former Ansett subsidiaries Kendell Airlines and Hazelton Airlines.
The Singaporeans are part of a consortium called Australiawide Airlines, which bought the airlines last week in a deal worth $40 million.
- West Australian
