November 9th, 2006, 15:39
AVIATION / BUDGET CARRIERS' GROWING CLOUT
Bangkok Post
Thailand to see sharp increase in budget-travel traffic
BOONSONG KOSITCHOTETHANA
AirAsia is among the budget carriers that have led the LCC charge.
The surge in intra-regional services and increased domestic operations by low-cost carriers (LCCs) will drive an increasing amount of budget traffic through Thailand in the next few years.
The Thailand-based LCCs Thai AirAsia, One-Two-Go and Nok Air are moving towards expanding their networks regionally, raising capacity on existing domestic routes and embarking on province-to-province flights domestically.
Meanwhile, foreign no-frills airlines such as Australia's Jetstar and Singapore's Tiger Airways have Thailand in their network expansion plans.
Aviation analysts said Thailand, particularly Bangkok, was likely to see continued sharp growth, at an annual double-digit rate, in LCC traffic as travellers had embraced the budget-carrier model and travel demand was growing steadily.
Attractive fares, promotional campaigns, expanding networks, convenience and time saving due to improved ground transport for domestic travel have also fuelled the popularity of LCCs.
Lower fares compared to full-service airlines have also spurred demand for regional travel, while Thailand's status as a leading tourist destination has encouraged budget carriers, especially foreign ones, to include the country in their networks.
Thailand's LCCs are also continuing to attract first-time travellers, who are estimated to constitute 30-40% of passengers.
Most of the carriers have plans to offer more regional services or add more routes to nearby destinations including southern China.
Nok Air is set to launch its first overseas route from Bangkok to Bangalore in January or February.
Earlier this year, Thai AirAsia started flying from Bangkok to Rangoon and Hanoi. Jetstar Airways, the budget airline of Qantas, is due to launch its first direct Melbourne-Bangkok flight on Nov 23, with the first Sydney-Phuket service launching the following day. The direct flights will run three times a week.
Meanwhile, Thailand-based LCCs are looking at offering domestic province-to-province connections to capitalise on new opportunities and supplement operations in Bangkok.
No new domestic trunk routes through Bangkok are available as all 12 routes have sufficient traffic to support commercial operations.
Meanwhile, no new local player is expected to enter Thailand's LCC market in the near future.
Since its inception in Thailand in December 2003, the LCC industry has been growing robustly, with aircraft movements through Bangkok rising from 22,000 in 2004 to 38,000 last year, and passenger volume jumping from 2.7 million to 4.4 million, according to figures compiled by Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT).
LCC movements through Bangkok in the first nine months of this year rose 33% year-on-year to 36,904 and passenger volume increased 37% to 4.2 million.
The figures exclude LCC traffic through provincial airports operated by the Department of Civil Aviation, for which statistics were not available.
Bangkok Post
Thailand to see sharp increase in budget-travel traffic
BOONSONG KOSITCHOTETHANA
AirAsia is among the budget carriers that have led the LCC charge.
The surge in intra-regional services and increased domestic operations by low-cost carriers (LCCs) will drive an increasing amount of budget traffic through Thailand in the next few years.
The Thailand-based LCCs Thai AirAsia, One-Two-Go and Nok Air are moving towards expanding their networks regionally, raising capacity on existing domestic routes and embarking on province-to-province flights domestically.
Meanwhile, foreign no-frills airlines such as Australia's Jetstar and Singapore's Tiger Airways have Thailand in their network expansion plans.
Aviation analysts said Thailand, particularly Bangkok, was likely to see continued sharp growth, at an annual double-digit rate, in LCC traffic as travellers had embraced the budget-carrier model and travel demand was growing steadily.
Attractive fares, promotional campaigns, expanding networks, convenience and time saving due to improved ground transport for domestic travel have also fuelled the popularity of LCCs.
Lower fares compared to full-service airlines have also spurred demand for regional travel, while Thailand's status as a leading tourist destination has encouraged budget carriers, especially foreign ones, to include the country in their networks.
Thailand's LCCs are also continuing to attract first-time travellers, who are estimated to constitute 30-40% of passengers.
Most of the carriers have plans to offer more regional services or add more routes to nearby destinations including southern China.
Nok Air is set to launch its first overseas route from Bangkok to Bangalore in January or February.
Earlier this year, Thai AirAsia started flying from Bangkok to Rangoon and Hanoi. Jetstar Airways, the budget airline of Qantas, is due to launch its first direct Melbourne-Bangkok flight on Nov 23, with the first Sydney-Phuket service launching the following day. The direct flights will run three times a week.
Meanwhile, Thailand-based LCCs are looking at offering domestic province-to-province connections to capitalise on new opportunities and supplement operations in Bangkok.
No new domestic trunk routes through Bangkok are available as all 12 routes have sufficient traffic to support commercial operations.
Meanwhile, no new local player is expected to enter Thailand's LCC market in the near future.
Since its inception in Thailand in December 2003, the LCC industry has been growing robustly, with aircraft movements through Bangkok rising from 22,000 in 2004 to 38,000 last year, and passenger volume jumping from 2.7 million to 4.4 million, according to figures compiled by Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT).
LCC movements through Bangkok in the first nine months of this year rose 33% year-on-year to 36,904 and passenger volume increased 37% to 4.2 million.
The figures exclude LCC traffic through provincial airports operated by the Department of Civil Aviation, for which statistics were not available.