Monday, October 19, 2009

howwwzattt... big boyz toyz...


Lotus F1 Racing wind-tunnel model

Exactly how much do we need to spend in term of running an F1 team per year?

By next year Malaysians will see the 1Malaysian – Lotus F1 team entering as the 13th team for the Formula One Championship and if we consider the time frame, it is not that far from where we are standing now.

SUNDAY CHAT (New Sunday Times 18 Oct 2009)

“With groundbreaking announcements and decisions all made in a matter of weeks, Timesport’s Arnaz M. Khairul isn’t too convinced about the feasibility of the project and believes it was a rush job and that Malaysia isn’t ready for this.

However, Fernandes (Dato’ Tony Fernandes) explains why it isn’t exactly a bad idea.”

So, what does it mean by “it isn’t exactly a bad idea”?

Remember the first time around when we somehow involved with the F1 in the form of Alex Yoong?

Well, 8 years down the road or shall I say down the drain, we still got nothing to be proud of except for one driver and even he was not the product of all those promises. Come to think of it, by the year 2010 he will be considered too old to start his first grid race.

So Tony, which is which?

You don’t compare how you set up AirAsia with setting up an F1 team. Of course we all know you’ve got the full backing from the government and I’m pretty sure there was money to be made along the ways. But it is not from the team, it is from the sideshows. And in Malaysia, there were tons of money to be made just from the sideshows only and it was proven in many ways before.

With setting up an aviation company, all the things were there. Say if you buy a brand new Airbus, I’m sure you’ll get fewer headaches in term of maintenance and all for a few thousands flight hours. You just need to focus on marketing and business strategies. Soon profit will pours in.

In Formula One, you have to start from scratches. You have to develop your team right from designing your own chassis to the drivers itself.

Will you not feel frustrated just for a few laps, your car stalled? It happens to many of the world known teams before.

We are venturing into a new kind of turf where Toyota and Honda failed. Both are world class player, they have the money, facilities, technical knowhow and have proven themselves in the global car making industries. Still, why they failed?

Are we going to learn from this? We still haven’t learnt the significant first time around 8 years ago.

It is not about how much money we have and how much money we are willing to part with. It is about passion in the industry, passion just like the Brazilian with their football and the Indian with their cricket.

Have you ever wonder why all government backing sporting projects ended prematurely and miserably?

Let the one who knows about the industries govern the industries, not politicians or their proxies. Or is it just our culture to have ties with politicians so that whatever means we need are easily granted?

By doing so, you are going to insult the intelligence of the Malaysians.

I still haven’t state my stands on this, but honestly it is just not my priority just yet and this piece is truly from a Malaysian ordinary Joe.

Friday, October 9, 2009

howwwzattt... a new breed of air transport has arrive...


Leman, this is the answer to your question and to the rest of us Malaysians:

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia Airlines said Friday it will stick to its order of six Airbus A380s as it expects global travel to pick up by late next year.

Newly appointed Managing Director Tengku Azmil Zahruddin said the superjumbos, due to be delivered from 2011, will be used for long-haul routes such as London, Sydney and Armsterdam.

The airline is also taking delivery of 35 Boeing B737-800 aircraft from the fourth quarter of 2010 to replace its existing single-aisle planes. Its fleet renewal plan aims to lower costs for fuel, engineering and maintenance, Azmil said.

"Our core network is in Asia, Middle East and Australia ... but we do have a lot of traffic coming in from Europe. The A380s will allow us to do a lot more than what we are able to do today," he told a news conference.

Some airlines are reviewing their A380 orders as the slump in global travel undermines the profitability of flying the superjumbo.

The International Air Transport Association has predicted global airline losses will swell to $11 billion this year. It predicted a 2010 loss of $3.8 billion, and doesn't expect the industry to turn a profit until 2011 at the earliest.

Azmil said 2011 will be good timing for Malaysia Airlines to take delivery of the A380 given the expected industry upturn.

The carrier is also studying plans to buy a new fleet of wide-bodied aircraft to cater to future growth but has not yet made any decision, he said.

Azmil, who joined the airline in 2005, took over the helm from Idris Jala following Jala's appointment as a Cabinet minister in late August.

He said the carrier plans to further cut costs by 700 million ringgit ($202 million) this year. Bookings have been promising but yields — a measure of revenue per seat — remained soft, he said. The carrier has cut capacity by 12% in the first half this year and recently withdrew from New York and Stockholm routes.

Malaysia Airlines returned to profitability in the second quarter, thanks to a large gain on derivatives contracts, but still suffered an operationg loss due to a decline in sales.

It posted a net profit of 876 million ringgit ($250 million) for April-June, rebounding from a loss of 695 million ringgit ($199 million) in the previous quarter and up from 34 million ringgit ($10 million) in the same quarter a year earlier.

www.usatoday.com

Thursday, October 8, 2009

howwwzattt... how clean is clean???


REUTERS - October 6, 2009

US airlines will be required to regularly disinfect and monitor on-board drinking water systems under a new rule unveiled Tuesday.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has for the first time tailored existing public water monitoring regulations to commercial aircraft.

The change, five years in the making and affecting 63 airlines and 7,300 planes, will replace interim systems for monitoring bacteria and other pathogens that could sicken passengers.

The EPA expects the annual cost to the industry to be about USD$7 million. Airlines have 18 months to develop maintenance plans that comply with the standards.

Regulators found in 2004 that some US airlines were not in compliance with general clean water standards, mainly because existing EPA rules did not specifically cover on-board water systems.

The EPA ordered dozens of carriers to take steps to ensure that drinking water aboard their planes was clean.

This is from my earlier posting in 2007:
"In outer space the ISS or the International Space Station carry its own miniature water treatment plant onboard.
However, unlike most water treatment plant on Earth, the ISS system recycles the urine of both the crew and the laboratory animals and returns it to the drinking water supply and the fact is that the water runs from the ISS taps is more cleaner and pure than what we’re having from our kitchen taps.
Now isn’t that interesting?"

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

howwwzattt... let us pray...


TAUFAN PARMA bergerak ke arah tenggara dan dijangka melanda Filipina malam ini. -Sumber: JMM

PETALING JAYA: Jabatan Meteorologi Malaysia (JMM) hari ini mengesahkan ribut tropika Parma tidak akan melanda perairan Malaysia.

Bagaimanapun Pengarah Pusat Ramalan Cuaca Nasional JMM, Saw Bun Liong berkata, tempias ribut tropika itu akan dirasai di beberapa kawasan perairan Sabah dengan angin kencang selaju 30 hingga 50 kilometer sejam.

"JMM telah mengeluarkan amaran laut bergelora serta angin kencang sehingga Jumaat ini (9 Oktober)," katanya kepada mStar Online.

Bun Liong berkata, ombak setinggi 3.5 meter turut dijangka berlaku di sekitar perairan Phuket, Samui, Kelantan, Terengganu, Condore, North Reef, Layang-Layang, Wilayah Persekutuan Labuan, bahagian barat Sabah dan Palawan.

Menurutnya, JMM akan memantau perkembangan ribu tropika Parma dan akan mengemaskinikan amaran dari semasa ke semasa menerusi media dan laman web JMM.
Dalam pada itu, Bun Liong berkata, JMM meramalkan Taufan PARMA akan melanda Filipina malam ini.

BERITA TERDAHULU

PETALING JAYA: Sejak beberapa jam yang lalu, terdapat beberapa pihak yang mengedarkan SMS memaklumkan bahawa ribut taufan yang kuat dinamakan PARMA dengan kelajuan 222 kilometer sejam akan melanda negara jiran Filipina menjelang tengah malam ini.

SMS tersebut memberi amaran kepada penerimanya bahawa tempias ribut ini dijangka sampai ke Malaysia beberapa jam selepas itu.

“Elakkan daripada berada di tempat awam dan terbuka juga beri amaran kepada mereka yang tinggal di pantai Timur Semenanjung Malaysia,” kata pesanan ringkas tersebut.

Usaha sedang dijalankan untuk mendapatkan pengesahan daripada pihak Jabatan Kaji Cuaca Malaysia.


Sehingga berita ini disahkan oleh pihak berkuasa anggaplah pesanan ini sebagai satu berita yang belum tepat kesahihannya.