‘For one last time, let's go home': Tears, laughs as last scheduled Jetstar Asia flight touches down

Straits Times

2 days ago

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Australian flag carrier Qantas, its parent company, said rising costs and stiff competition in the region had dented Jetstar Asia's ability to offer low fares.
– Mr Norazman Sapiie had tears in his eyes and a smile on his face as he readied the aircraft for departure, for the last time in his 20-year career as a flight attendant with Jetstar Asia.
After blowing kisses and waving goodbye to ground staff who had gathered on the tarmac and the aerobridge at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Mr Norazman took a deep breath, eyes closed as he turned away from the door.
As the aircraft picked up speed and lifted off, Mr Norazman, the in-flight customer service manager, said: 'Cabin crew, for one last time, let's go home.'
Mr Norazman, 57, is Jetstar Asia's longest-serving flight attendant. He joined the airline in October 2004.
The flight he was operating, 3K764, was Jetstar Asia's last scheduled flight as the curtains fell on the budget carrier, more than 20 years since its maiden flight in December 2004.
It departed Manila slightly behind schedule at about 6pm, with 156 passengers and seven crew members aboard the Airbus A320.
There was rousing applause from passengers after the flight touched down at Changi Airport.
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The Straits Times was invited to be on board the flight.
Jetstar Asia announced in June that
it would stop operations on July 31 and retrench more than 500 employees, including over 100 pilots and nearly 300 cabin crew.
Australian flag carrier Qantas, its parent company, said rising costs and stiff competition in the region had dented Jetstar Asia's ability to offer low fares.
The first time Ms Tikka Cheung, 35, flew Jetstar Asia, it was out of necessity, as she had missed an AirAsia flight bound for Kuala Lumpur.
That flight kick-started many trips with the airline for Ms Cheung, a teacher from Hong Kong.
When she heard of Jetstar Asia's closure, she was determined to be on the final flight 'for the memories', she told ST before boarding the flight.
She landed in Manila in the early hours of July 31 with her friend Herman Yip, also 35. The pair had travelled from Hong Kong to be on the last flight.
'It's a very sad moment,' said Mr Yip, an aviation enthusiast who works for a travel media company in Hong Kong. He carried on board a flight logbook that he asks crew on 'special flights' to fill in, including details such as how many passengers were on board.
Also aboard were Mrs Jester Agarrado and her son Josh, who had also specially travelled to Manila to take Jetstar Asia's final flight.
Mrs Agarrado's husband, Captain Roy Espinosa Agarrado, has been a pilot at Jetstar Asia for 18 years and travelled on Flight 3K764 as a passenger.
Captain Roy Espinosa Agarrado (centre), pictured here with his family, has been a pilot at Jetstar Asia for 18 years and travelled on Flight 3K764 as a passenger.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
'I want to show my support for Roy and the Jetstar Asia crew,' she said. 'He has worked so hard for the past 18 years.'
Josh was only a few months old when the family, who is from the Philippines, relocated to Singapore for his father's job.
He said: 'My dad's been working hard (my whole life)… this is the least I can do for my dad, to show him that I care.' Josh wants to follow in his father's footsteps and become a pilot.
For housewife Joy Garcia, it was her first time flying Jetstar Asia - and also her last.
She said it was memorable to be on the final flight. 'I'm happy, but at the same time, I'm sad,' said the 42-year-old.
While waiting to board, her five-year-old son Jodel made a poster encouraging Jetstar Asia staff.
Mr Barathan Pasupathi, a former chief executive of Jetstar Asia, was also on board.
Mr Barathan helmed the airline from July 2012 to February 2024.
He said he was joining the last flight in his personal capacity.
'It's extremely personal for me,' said Mr Barathan, now chief executive of Jazeera Airways, a low-cost airline in Kuwait. 'I wanted to stand in solidarity with the people I've worked with and I know personally.'
Norazman Sapiie (top right, 2nd from left), the customer service manager, making a speech on the last Jetstar Asia flight.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
Speaking to ST before boarding Flight 3K764, he said: 'It is a final chapter for Jetstar Asia, and I wanted to be there for the airline, and more so for the people.
'I'm here for them. Singapore is going to lose a star, but the people will carry on.'
In an announcement just before the plane made its descent, Mr Norazman thanked 'every passenger who walked through our doors'.
'You have not just filled our seats; you have filled our hearts,' he said, pausing to blink back tears.
Captain Mark Yeo, the commander of the flight, made a similar announcement before the plane started its descent into Singapore, drawing cheers and applause from passengers.
Capt Yeo, 53, joined the airline in November 2010.
After landing, Mr Norazman said into the public address system, to laughs from passengers and crew: 'Ladies and gentlemen, as you know, after today, we will be 'funemployed'.'
Owing to a delay, another Jetstar Asia flight from Labuan Bajo in Indonesia landed after Flight 3K764, closing a chapter for the airline.