. 1.UPS transports balloons for Clark's aviation sports
February 13, 2011, 2:20pm
CLARK, Pampanga, Philippines – Since 2003, UPS has been the logistics sponsor for the annual Philippine Hot Air Balloon Fiesta, transporting balloons from across the world to Clark, Philippines. For this year’s event, UPS moved 26 balloons from 11 countries for the event, which was stagedl on Feb. 10-13, 2011.

The Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta is the largest aviation sports event in the Philippines. As the nation marks the centennial year of airplanes in the Philippine skies, this year’s celebration is expected to be bigger and more spectacular with more than 100,000 people expected to visit the four-day event.

“We are proud to continue to be associated with this exciting annual event which has become one of the most highly anticipated aviation events in the Philippines. The job of carrying the balloons from different parts of the globe from countries as far away as Sweden and the Netherlands and neighboring Asian countries demonstrates the range, reliability and flexibility of the UPS network,” said Tim Gohoc, managing director of UPS Philippines.

UPS covers more than 220 countries and territories worldwide with 216 aircraft and a delivery fleet of more than 100,000 vehicles.

“The sponsorship has allowed us to showcase UPS’s abilities in handling special cargo and the mastery of logistics we offer customers. These balloons are extremely important to the owners given their high value. Being a partner of the event since 2003 is a testament to the trust and confidence the organizers and the balloonists all over the world have placed in UPS,” added Gohoc.

Since it started in 1994, the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta has been recognized as one of the major ballooning events in the world, alongside similar events held in Japan and New Mexico, U.S.A. The Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta has given Filipinos a unique entertainment experience from balloon take-off to aerial displays and exhibits.

2.

All Nippon’s A&F Aviation to Lease 10 Airbus A320s

2. All Nippon Airways Co.’s low-cost affiliate will lease 10 Airbus SAS A320 aircraft to tap regional demand for leisure travel including in China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy.

A&F Aviation Co., which aims to start flights this year, plans to serve 6 million passengers within five years on international and domestic routes at about half the cost of legacy airlines, Chief Executive Officer Shinichi Inoue told reporters today in Osaka. The aircraft will be leased from GE Capital Aviation Services, according to an A&F statement.

A&F will take delivery of the single-aisle planes over two years and may fly to China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Philippines as economic growth and rising wages boosts travel demand. Skymark Airlines Inc., Japan’s biggest low-cost carrier, plans to triple its fleet in four years and to add as many as 15 Airbus A380s and to start offering international services.

“We want to tap into Asia’s growing demand,” Inoue said. “Our strength as a low-cost carrier, relative to overseas airlines, is that we can fly domestically as well as internationally.”

A&F chose Kansai International Airport, which serves Japan’s second-largest metropolitan area including the cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe, as a 24-hour hub. The airport, on a manmade island off Osaka, is about one hour closer by air than Tokyo is to mainland Asian destinations, Inoue said.

China will be the biggest contributor of new passengers to global air traffic over the next five years, adding 181 million on domestic routes and 33 million on international services, according to International Air Transport Association estimates released today.

China’s forecast growth rate of 11 percent a year on international routes is more than double the pace for Europe and North America.

The ANA affiliate chose the name A&F to include an initial for All Nippon and one for Hong Kong-based investor Victor Chu’s First Eastern Investment Group, which will own as much as 33.3 percent of the carrier.

A new name will be chosen next month, Inoue said today.

All Nippon gained 1.3 percent to 305 yen at the 3 p.m. close of trade in Tokyo today. The shares are up 19 percent in the past 12 months, compared with a 6.3 percent advance for the Nikkei 225 Stock Average

NEHA JAIN

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