:-:- In the shoes of a Podiatry student -:-:: Air Asia Flying in To Brunei.

Air Asia is a no frills airline that is aggressively making name in the world of Airline industry within the ASEAN and Asian region. It had also made its name known to the UK as it was the national carrier for Manchester United Football team.

Since the introduction of new Air Asia no frills system by Datuk Fernandez ( he has very thick Brits Accent btw), it has attracted millions of people to travel by air from point A to point B especially within Malaysia. With ticket prices ranging from RM0.99 to RM499 (excluding taxes), and captivating adverts around, undoubtedly it's a choice by many. With the slogan "Everyone Now Can Fly", many indeed who never had the opportunity to fly on aeroplane had the opportunity to do so. Holiday makers on the other hand smile widely due to the money they could save for a short flight.

As consequences of the establishment, its close rival Malaysia Airlines had suspended many flights especially those regional flights covered by Air Asia. Now, since July 11th, 2006, Air Asia made it first debut landing in Brunei International Airport. As a result, many brilliant ideas spurs online with comments such as "RBA is going to make loses" and many others. However, just bare in mind that Brunei International Airport is managed by RBA itself. Any landing fees etc will mean paying RBA.

BruStu is no exception when it comes discussing the above idea. Hence I came up with the possibile pros and cons of flying either RBA (or maybe any other major airlines) between Air Asia (any non frills will apply). This came up when one of the thread posters were saying "RBA sampit and kapal terabangnya damit." ( He was flying on RBA probably to KL and complaining the Airbus being small etc, so I was asking him, how does that make Air Asia any better which would probably even worse!)

Below is what I had to say about it:
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I think the new retrofitted 767's are alright... and very good compared to SQ even...

Even the average Mat Salleh's who are commonly big built were able to fit in and sleep. If I were to compare SQ and BI, BI is more generous when it comes to seating pitch. More on the IFE System, BI ones are much better as it has this stop play pause rewind etc features compared to SQ which is on the tube. Altho I admit that BI still faces some glitches on its system inflight. But that is experienced by many other airlines as well.

Maybe I sounded biased comparing BI with SQ only.. cos I only travelled long haul with these two airlines. MH, BA, SI, and the rest are just for short hauls. BA sucks in a way for that matter... ahahha... for a short 1 hour hop in flight, you get "Trolly Granny" to serve you on board! ahahahhaa... That is totally out of the question anyways.

I dont know if I can compare between BI and AK as I have never travelled AK before (in few days time insyallah). But I can anticipate the inferiority in AK compared to BI due to the "No-Frills" idea. We will see how it goes.

Crew attentiveness wise, I dont really know yet what to say. But most of the cabin crew in AK are experienced crews. Some have worked for big airlines like MH, SQ, and even Middle Eastern Airlines. But still they have to suit their service according to AK's guidelines. But hey, as individuals, I dont think the crew would be that stingy to give that warm smile welcoming you on board, would they?

But as far as BI and AK in Brunei is concerned, we just hope for a healthy competition in the name of airline industry. We as consumers, we are now being given choices on which airline that suit your needs to transfer you between Brunei to KL and other cities. So utilise that open choices and opportunity.

If one is so loyal to an airline eg RBA, carry on flying BI and dont even bother with the existence of other carriers.

Advantages I can point out:

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RBA:

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1. Our national carrier

2. Safety standards and Aircraft handlers are up to 1st class standards

3. Meals served on board

4. Inflight entertainment

5. Seating allocation and reservations / Guaranteed seating

6. Rescheduling for missed flights

7. Assistance for the needy ones : disabilities, unaccompanied minors, elderly etc (I have read and AK does not provide extra services for these groups of people)

8. Delayed flight services : eg Hotel, refreshment, transfers

9. Lost Baggage insurance refund. (more here compared to AK)

10. Baggage Allowance 20kg compare 15kg for AK

11. Aiport services including usage of lounges

12. and of course the brand

13. Mileage accrual for frequent flyers members (can redeem free tickets and upgrades)

14. Choice of classes

15. Code sharing services between airlines

16. Flexible flight times (depending on your destination)

17. Land at major international airports

Air Asia:

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1. Cheap, altho not the case as always

2. Meals available, so one wont be starving

3. Qualified and trained cabin crews

4. Ticketless, so it's easy to arrange

5. Serves many Asian cities (dont know if this is an advantage)

6. Famous? *lame review indeed*

7. On time (it says they're 80% on time)

Disadvantages:

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RBA:

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1. Highly priced

2. Allocated seating are not freely exchangeable unless the intended seat is unoccupied

3. Cabin crew may be sometimes grumpy (low chances)

Air Asia:

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1. Price is not always as advertised

2. Need to book via Internet (think for those computer illiterate) altho now there are limited agents but with extra charges

3. Low Cost Terminal Aiports, usually far from city

4. Non guaranteed seating

5. No changes allowed for missed flights

6. NO extra services for delays

7. Refreshment onboard will cost you some money

8. No special assistance for needy ones (unaccompanied minors, handicapped, disabled)

9. Aircraft maintenance may not be as good as BIG airlines, although standards set by aviation authorities are fully met (IATA, etc).

10. Crew training (for novice crew) are not as intensive as major airlines, hence customer service "might" be compromised.

11. Ground services will be limited

12. No class allocation

13. Limited baggage allowance for free

14. Quick turnover flights means less time to clean and check the aircraft prior to next take off. Hence, substandard cleanliness etc.

15. No inflight entertainment

16. No blankets and pillows... jan prasan.. ahhaha so that comes under comfort then