Although the manufacturers were reportedly reluctant to suggest worldwide A350 fleet inspections, regulators have now stepped in, as the investigators look into the fuel system of the Cathay Pacific flight that was forced to return to Hong Kong.

A350 fleets operated by Singapore Airlines and Japan Airlines were undergoing preventive maintenance after Cathay Pacific revealed that fuel line repairs were required on 15 of the airline’s 48 A350 aircraft.

Even though the current position seems to indicate that no widespread defect has been found right away, as per a Reuters report, it was too soon to rule out additional research/analysis that might eventually call for other airlines to take action.

The jet headed for Zurich had to return to Hong Kong due to an engine issue that was later found to be caused by a fuel leak, thereby putting both the A350-1000, the larger of the two models in the Airbus A350 family, and its Rolls-Royce XWB-97 engines, under heavy scrutiny.

A flexible pipe feeding a fuel injection nozzle in the XWB-97 engine was found to have been punctured, according to preliminary investigations. Investigators based in Hong Kong are now expected to concentrate on determining whether the hole caused the fuel leak or if it was the result of another issue that hasn’t been found yet.

Meanwhile, Europe’s air safety regulator has now ordered inspections on engines of the A350-1000 jets, saying that it was acting to prevent similar events after consulting regulators and accident investigators in Hong Kong, where Cathay is based, as well as Airbus and engine supplier Rolls-Royce.

“This action is a precautionary measure, based on the information received from the initial investigation of the recent Cathay Pacific serious incident and on the airline’s findings in its own subsequent inspections,” EASA Executive Director Florian Guillermet said in a statement.

EASA also confirmed that the failure of a hose in the fuel system had caused a fire that was quickly tackled by the crew.

“We will continue to follow closely all information that will be made available through the ongoing safety investigation,” Guillermet added.

The move affects the larger of two models of twin-engine A350, the A350-1000, which represents 15% of the A350 fleet or 86 jets. The smaller and widely sold A350-900 is not affected.

EASA has given airlines between three and 30 days to carry out visual checks and measurements on the fuel hoses but did not call for parts to be removed for the work, unless they were found to be damaged. It excluded engines already inspected by Cathay.

Rolls-Royce and Airbus are now working closely with authorities to comply with the planned directive, to minimise any short-term disruption.

EASA said the Cathay Pacific flight powerplant fire had caused heat damage to the engine housing, including ducts used for reverse thrust on landing.

“This condition, if not detected and corrected could, in combination with additional failures, lead to a more severe engine fire and resulting damage to an aeroplane,” it said.

By ordering checks, however, EASA partially overrode efforts by manufacturers to avoid disruptive action on the whole fleet based on their own technical analysis, Reuters stated.

Several airlines have already carried out precautionary inspections on their Airbus A350 fleets, immediately after Cathay Pacific found 15 planes that needed fuel line repairs. The affected aircraft was a five-year-old Airbus A350-1000, which was using Rolls-Royce’s Trent XWB-97 engines.

However, carriers are also inspecting the more popular A350-900 aircraft which use a different engine model.

While airlines like Japan Airlines and Qatar Airways have completed the maintenance checks on their A350-1000 fleets, Air China will perform general engine checks. Singapore Airlines, which has a fleet of 63 A350-900 planes, said it was inspecting the engines on its aircraft but there was no impact on flights. Taiwan’s Starlux, on the other hand, which operates six A350-900s, said it had contacted Rolls-Royce “out of caution” and was awaiting an official reply.

Air France and Lufthansa Group, which also have A350-900s, are reportedly in touch with Rolls-Royce and Airbus and are monitoring the situation closely.

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Despite the merger, both Air Do and Solaseed will continue to retain their distinct brands post-merger. However, according to the carriers, they will aim to further reduce costs by standardising operations and streamline their organisation structure.

In a joint statement, the carriers said, “In order to quickly recover the damaged financial base of both companies, survive the new business environment, provide more added value to customers, and achieve sustainable growth…the … cooperative relationships between the two companies will be further deepened.”

Last year, it was reported that the Japanese government is mulling merging both All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Airlines to help the carrier survive the Covid-19 crisis. The idea to merge both carriers has come from Heizo Takenaka, a former minister and advisor to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

Both ANA and Japan Airlines are major international carriers and are among the biggest carriers in Asia, carrying nearly 100 million passengers between them. The carriers are also rivals with similar fleets and competing on similar routes.

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If approved, the joint venture with Japan Airlines would help Qantas revive its international operations and weather the Covid-19 storm which has brought havoc in the aviation industry. It is reported that Qantas customers would have access to 14 new codeshare destinations in Japan, whereas, Japan Airlines’ customers would have access to 15 new codeshare destinations in Australia and New Zealand.

Qantas Group chief executive officer Alan Joyce told the media, “Around half a million people visited Australia from Japan in 2019. We want to see that tourism resume and grow even further by making it easier for Japanese travellers to visit. It will be a win for our customers, a win for trade and a win for the one million people who work in tourism across Australia.”

Last month, it was reported that the Japanese government is mulling merging both All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Airlines to help the carrier survive the Covid-19 crisis. South Korean aviation giants Korean Air and Asiana announced a similar plan to merge their businesses in order to sustain their operations. Both ANA and Japan Airlines are in need of government aid to weather the Covid-19 storm, and hence a merger would make sense for the carriers.

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Recently, South Korean aviation giants Korean Air and Asiana announced a similar plan to merge their businesses in order to sustain their operations. Both ANA and Japan Airlines are in need of government aid to weather the Covid-19 storm, and hence a merger would make sense for the carriers.

Both ANA and Japan Airlines are major international carriers and are among the biggest carriers in Asia, carrying nearly 100 million passengers between them. The carriers are also rivals with similar fleets and competing on similar routes. A potential merger between ANA and Japan Airlines would create one of the biggest airlines in Asia.

However, no decision has been taken as of yet and the idea has only been floated unofficially. No prominent decision from the Japanese government can be expected within a short period of time.

Last month, Japan Airlines forecasted a record operating loss of as much as ¥380 billion yen for the year through March because of the coronavirus pandemic. The carrier also announced that it would retire 24 of its Boeing 777 aircraft to sustain its business amid the difficult times. During the same period, ANA also said that it would retire more than a tenth of its Boeing fleet and delay two aircraft orders for similar reasons.

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The deal will focus on flights between Japan and Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, and Australia.

Both Singapore Airlines and ANA also signed the deal to stay competitive in the busy and crowded Southeast Asian aviation industry.

The deal will focus on providing connectivity to both Singapore Airlines and ANA’s customers. The two carriers will offer joint mileage programmes to its customers and better coordination on check-in baggage and connecting flights.

The two carriers already have a codesharing agreement which allows them to sell seats on the other carrier’s flights. The new deal will allow the carriers to adjust flight timetables to make connections easier and also cut fares to boost demand.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval. Once approved, Singapore Airlines will become the third airline to have a joint venture agreement with ANA. The Japanese carrier has signed similar agreements with United Airlines in 2011 and Lufthansa Group in 2012.

Last year, Singapore Airlines signed an agreement with Malaysia Airlines to expand their existing codeshare routes. According to the agreement, SilkAir, which is owned by Singapore Airlines, will codeshare on 16 domestic locations with Malaysian Airlines, while allowing the former to codeshare on flights to Europe, South Africa, among other destinations.

During the same period, Vistara, in which Singapore Airlines owns a 49 percent stake, also signed a codeshare agreement with the Singapore-based carrier.

In a press release, Vistara said that Singapore Airlines and regional subsidiary SilkAir have signed an agreement with Vistara to expand codesharing to international routes.

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Singapore Airlines competes in the aviation market in India through its joint venture Vistara. While Singapore Airlines owns a 49 percent stake in Vistara, the remaining 51 percent is owned by Tata Group.

Reportedly, the carrier is also considering adding more A320neo-family planes to its existing fleet. The new jets will be used to fly to destinations in the US and Europe from India.

The move is part of the Singapore Airlines’ plan to stay competitive in India and compete against the likes of Etihad and Emirates. The two Middle Eastern carriers currently dominate the route between India and the US and Europe.

According to local media reports, Vistara is also planning to buy slots in the London Heathrow airport. An investment of around $70million would allow Vistara to acquire the slots for the next 20 years.

Vistara operates more than 1,400 weekly flights and its fleet comprises 39 Airbus and Boeing jets. The carrier has a market share of 5.8 percent, the lowest among the other domestic players in the industry.

Earlier this month, Singapore Airlines announced that it will fly a fifth weekly flight to Kolkata in India. At the same time, it announced that its regional wing SilkAir will stop its services to the city.

Singapore Airlines is also set to increase its collaboration with All Nippon Airways (ANA) with a focus on the Asian market. The partnership, which is expected to come into effect in 2021, will focus on routes between Japan and Singapore.

The two carriers have already signed a code-sharing deal that allows them to sell seats on each other’s flight routes.

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Five prospective buyers are in the fray, said Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammed, although he did not disclose their identities.

According to sources, among those are Air France-KLM that is expected to bid for a 49 percent stake while Japan Airlines is eyeing a stake of 25 percent.

Apart from these prospective foreign investors, there are also indigenous airline carriers that aspire to purchase a stake in Malaysia’s national airline. One is AirAsia Group and the other is Malindo Air, which is a subsidiary of Indonesia’s Lion Air in Malaysia.

Although the proposals from overseas airline carriers are indeed pretty lucrative, the government of Malaysia has discovered that the sovereign wealth fund that runs Malaysia Airlines prefers a transaction with AirAsia.

The source went on to say that the proposals from foreign investors are more all-inclusive as they seek to leverage the geographical advantage that Malaysia Airlines offers their services.

Following the double setbacks it suffered in 2014 – the strange vanishing of the airplane MH370 and the airplane MH17 being shot down over eastern Ukraine, Malaysia Airlines has been struggling to stay afloat.

And ever since, the Malaysian government is endeavouring to get a strategic alliance for its national airline. The same year, sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd acquired the airline by paying RM1.4 billion ($345 million) for the 30 percent of shares which did not belong to it.

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Both the airlines will begin joint operations from April 2020 for flights between Japan and Malaysia.

After receiving approval from the Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) and Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism, both Japan Airlines and Malaysia Airlines said in a statement, “The agreement for joint business will allow the two carriers to cooperate commercially on flights between Malaysia and Japan and aims to deliver customers with more benefits by providing additional flight choices, a larger network, better connections, and an enhanced frequent flyer programme.”

It is understood that Malaysia Airlines has been looking for a partner to help the carrier run its business for quite some time. According to media reports, Japan Airlines was among four other carriers that made the final list.

In October, Malaysia Airlines also signed a wide-ranging commercial agreement with Singapore Airlines to further strengthen the partnership between the two carriers. The carriers signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the month of June.

Last month, the Japanese carrier announced the expansion of its global network between Japan and the US, Finland, Russia, Australia, India, and China. As a result, the carrier will feature 34 international routes at Tokyo-Haneda airport, starting March 29, 2020.

Japan Airlines is also planning to target additional markets in the US. Next year, the airline will start new services from Haneda to Chicago, Fort Worth and Los Angeles as well as an additional flight to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.

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AI brings in targeted customers

Last year, Singapore Airlines embarked on a digital journey using artificial intelligence to rebrand itself and drive sales. The airline worked closely with technology firm Rocket Fuel to target users based on online behaviour. The two noticeable outcomes from the activity were bookings to offbeat destinations such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Myanmar increased and 14 percent of total website bookings in May occurred after seeing ads powered by Rocket Fuel.

Another technology driven model used by Singapore Airlines was natural language processing and machine learning. “As part of efforts to expand the airline’s digital servicing channels for customers, the public will be able to chat with our chatbot Kris via Facebook messenger as well as on our website. Kris can provide immediate and accurate responses to customers on topics such as baggage allowance, seat selection, and flight updates among others, thus improving staff efficiency and productivity,” a representative from Singapore Airlines told International Finance.

Collaboration and research is of utmost importance while developing new digital business models. Singapore Airlines also works with Agency for Science, Technology and Research and Rolls Royce to develop a predictive maintenance solution to enhance aircraft reliability and flight punctuality.

This model is a wholly data driven solution. Machine learning techniques are used to predict aircraft component failure based on historical flight recorder data—a similar method that many airlines are adopting as a criteria. “This prevents flight delays and ensures aircraft safety,” the Singapore Airlines representative said. “We are able to develop and deploy a machine learning algorithm using historical flight recorder data from both normal flights and flights with component failures,” the Singapore Airlines representative added.

The component algorithms developed by Singapore Airlines with Agency for Science, Technology and Research have been deployed since the end of last year. Essentially, the algorithm will give an output that reflects the health of the aircraft’s component, which allows analysts to calculate the probability of failure or identify a pattern.

“The component algorithms developed with Agency for Science, Technology and Research have been deployed since end 2018. The airline has managed to mitigate more than 500 minutes of flight delay time across all the component models developed by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research and Rolls Royce,” the Singapore Airlines representative added.

It is important to understand that all machine learning algorithms become adept as data is repeatedly fed into them over time. Singapore Airlines and Agency for Science, Technology and Research’s Predictive Maintenance Joint Lab will continue to create additional training events and data to retrain the deployed models, improve accuracy and lead time. “The team is poised to embark on new predictive maintenance use cases related to emerging issues, possibly utilising new and appropriate methods including unsupervised learning,” the Singapore Airlines representative said.

AI and IoT take care of dirty engines

Malaysian budget airline AirAsia is leveraging AI to a great extent in its critical functions as part of its digitisation strategy. Last year, AirAsia partnered with Google Cloud to integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning into its business culture. The airline has pre-installed more than 10,000 IoT sensors into its aircraft to help engineers to save time in aircraft maintenance and reduce wastage of spare parts.

With the help of artificial intelligence, the data collected from those sensors is being used to implement predictive maintenance. Defect analysts can simply understand what is to be done on a specific aircraft component or system as a turnaround action by anticipating and mitigating failure. The result is significant cost-savings for the airline.

An AirAsia representative told International Finance earlier, “Dirty engines consume more fuel, and while engine cleaning is regularly scheduled, monitoring the data allows for adjustments and cleaning. What we can do now is if an engine is starting to burn more fuel, we can go ahead and send it in for washing earlier. Now, we can be more proactive and these things will save us money.”

Those sensors can collate up to 24,000 data parameters related to aircraft systems or component sensors in every flight it is installed. The data is gathered as soon as the aircraft is switched on and is captured by the maintenance management systems. In the next step, a predictive maintenance machine learning algorithm analyses the data to predict failure of a specific target system, such as depletion of oxygen from the crew oxygen bottle.

AirAsia is also exploring other business models and methods to limit its exposure to volatile fuel prices. It has partnered with American conglomerate General Electric to use Flight Efficiency Services to make its aircraft more fuel efficient in terms of cost and carbon footprint. The technology used by General Electric is the Industrial Internet that can enhance the airline’s efforts in fuel cost management.

In theory, Flight Efficiency Services will amplify airlines’ precision to follow advanced routes, that are otherwise estimated to be 20 percent inefficient across the aviation industry. AirAsia predicts that it will save between $30 million and $50 million over the next five years by using this technology.

Machine learning which is a subset of artificial intelligence is also useful for weather pattern prediction, that is an extremely important part of flight management. AirAsia has been assessing the technology to equip its passengers with flight delay predictions ahead of time.

Earlier getting customer feedback through surveys and polls was a cumbersome exercise that they have now streamlined the feedback process fully using artificial intelligence for constructive data. AirAsia is exploring sentiment analysis that could scan pictures of passengers as they board and leave the plane to determine their level of satisfaction with the airline.

Last year, AirAsia introduced Fast Airport Clearance Experience System to improve the boarding experience for its passengers. This facial recognition technology identifies enrolled passengers as they come closer to the automated boarding gate—and therefore, will not have to submit their travel document.

For now, the technology is only operational at Senai International Airport in Malaysia. The airline’s representative said, “The more things we can digitise, the better we can improve our efficiency and our operations.”

AI to prepare airline food

China Eastern Airlines is another case of using artificial intelligence to create a better customer experience. Its data lab unit is trying to solve problems even before they could occur by developing a pilot service. For example, the in-flight meal preferences and feedback given by passengers will be gathered, analysed and and the data crunched will be used to prepare meals in future.

Another model that the state-owned airline’s data lab worked on is how to automatically classify thousands of complaints. The idea is to shorten customer response time that will positively impact the overall experience. This is especially relevant to the airline because complaints regarding its in-flight meal service stacked up quite a lot and managing them became a hassle.

Refined monitoring of customers’ response patterns and data analytics is a transformative step for the airline. Other airlines in the country might follow suit if the approach tested by China Eastern Airlines show significant improvement.

For many years, disruption has been the main concern in the aviation industry. Now Southeast Asian airline companies are swiftly marching toward artificial intelligence capabilities to manage an overwhelming customer base. The Asia Pacific region in particular is leading the aviation industry’s growth in terms of size—and is anticipated to handle more than 4.1 billion passengers by 2036.

SITA’s 2018 Air Transport Insights research explained that artificial intelligence has become a sophisticated technology offering strategic and operational advantages to airline companies. Japanese flag carrier Japan Airlines has replaced a decades-old passenger management system with Amadeus’ Altea programme to automatically to adjust ticket prices to match flight demand for higher revenue.

For Japan Airlines, the technology complements the task of optimising ticket prices, helps to understand losses from wrongly calculated demands and offsets the impact of high fuel prices on earnings. The upgrade has been referred to as a switch from bamboo spear to a machine gun — which firmly suggests the effect that artificial intelligence has on Southeast Asia’s aviation industry.

Self-service check in set for mass adoption

What does the future of AI in the Southeast Asian aviation industry look like? Passenger numbers are expected to double at Southeast Asia’s airports in a decade. At that level of passenger traffic, maintaining efficiency with human-controlled systems will become acutely challenging. This is where the impact of AI is expected to make drastic changes to aviation operations efficiency.

AI is today understood to be capable of handling end-to-end passenger handling and check-in operations on its own. In future AI combined with facial recognition technology will make self-service check in a reality at most major airports, possibly the first mass adoption will happen at airports in China. AI could also be used to maintain and repair aircraft at more Southeast Asian airlines.

One possibility is that AI can reduce the need for routine maintenance by triggering repairs only when they are needed. Also by using data from in-service aircraft, AI might be able to predict flight delays and faults to avoid traffic disruption and to enhance customer satisfaction. Essentially AI is taking aviation in Southeast Asia to a new elevated plane.

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Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah is the sole shareholder of Malaysia Airlines. The partnership between both airlines could result in more flights between the two countries.

In June, Japan Airlines President Yuji Akasaka said that the carrier would be interested in an investment in Malaysia Airlines. 

In recent years, Malaysia and Japan have signed deals in the financial sector including bond issuance and asset sales. More recently, the US government imposed a $300,000 fine on Japan Airlines for departure delays that trapped passengers on two planes for several hours.

In 2010, Japan Airlines filed a bankruptcy with a ¥2.32 trillion debt that became the biggest case of insolvency in Japan’s aviation sector. At the time, it was also one of the dominant airlines in Asia. However, it bounced back in 2012 as the world’s most profitable airline with a ¥186.6 billion profit record.

Last month, Malaysia Airlines received $71 million funding from the government, in addition to $119 million capital injected into the airline earlier this year.

Morgan Stanley has been hired to explore strategic options for Malaysia Airlines, including potential stake sale. Last year, the airline said that its loss was less compared to the previous years, with RM2.35 billion between 2015 and 2017. 

It operates a fleet of 81 aircraft and flies to more than 59 destinations — serving Asia, the Southwest Pacific region and the UK. 

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