SilkAir

From Open Encyclopedia

Silkair
Image:Silkair.gif
IATA MI	ICAO SLK	Callsign SilkAir
Founded		1989 (as Tradewinds)
Hubs		Singapore Changi Airport
Focus cities / secondary hubs
Frequent flyer program		KrisFlyer
Member lounge		Silver Kris Lounge
Alliance
Fleet size		10
Destinations		26
Parent company		Singapore Airlines Ltd.
Headquarters		Singapore
Key people		Mike Barclay (CEO)
Website: http://www.silkair.com

SilkAir is a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines and is based in Singapore. It flies from Singapore to 25 cities in Southeast Asia, South Asia and China. It serves 25 out of 49 short haul destinations in the Singapore Airlines group.

As the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, SilkAir enhances Singapore Airline's vast international network by developing new destinations in Asia and serving regional connections using Singapore as the ideal transit hub.

It is the first Asian carrier to offer handheld portable video-on-demand (VOD) inflight entertainment in the form of the digEplayer 5500, available on flights to China and India.

SilkAir boasts one of the youngest fleets in the South East Asian region, with 11 aircraft; 7 A320s (16 Business class and 126 Economy Class) and 4 A319s (12 Business Class and 106 Economy Class).

1 History
2 Incidents and accidents
3 Destinations
4 Fleet
5 Codeshare partners
6 See also
7 External links

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History

Image:Silkair-SIA.JPG The airline had its roots as a regional air charter company in the form of Tradewinds Charters at its formation in 1976, using planes predominantly leased from parent Singapore Airlines. Scheduled services were introduced when it leased McDonnell Douglas MD-87 airplanes. A major marketing overhaul was done in 1991, giving the airline its present name, and utilising up to 6 of the new Boeing 737-300s introduced just a year earlier. The mid-1990s saw two Airbus A310-200 aircraft in use.

As of 2005, Silkair's fleet was a combination of Airbus A320s and Airbus A319s.

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Incidents and accidents

On 19 December, 1997, SilkAir Flight 185, piloted by Captain Tsu Way Ming, plunged into the Musi River in Sumatra during a routine flight from Jakarta to Singapore, killing all 104 people on board.

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