TRAVELLING LIGHT: Goodbye to unfair fares

Published on Feb 14, 2004

Small airlines with big plans are changing the face of travel

Who says big is beautiful? An average Asian travelling to New York just has to contemplate the French (sorry, �Congress�) fries the size of surfboards, shoes large enough to sail the Atlantic and prophylactics bigger than laundry bags, to throw up his hands in dismay.

Michael Jordan�s footwear alone could accommodate the entire population of Burundi though you might need a LOT more space if you changed US$1 into Vietnamese Dong.

Nope, Asians are small. That�s why BIG airlines have SMALL seats and small servings and small toilets so that we are not offended by any exaggerated sense of scale. There�s only one thing better than this. SMALL airlines that offer BIG discounts.

Twenty years ago you could cross the Pacific at three US cents per mile eating palate-puckering stodge and assisting old biddies who claimed to be stewardesses. But across Asian skies you�d fork out more than US$0.26 per mile. Fortunately, big and bigger went bust, along with Anna Nicole Smith.

Asia�s proliferating small airlines offer decent service, well maintained aircraft and snappy on-time records. India�s hapless air travellers, long plagued by mysterious delays, cancellations and flights that were �pre-poned�, because overbooked flights took off as soon as seats were full, now have a choice. Fast-expanding Jet Airways (www.jetairways.com) flies to 41 Indian cities and has a loyal following.

Another option is Air Sahara (www.airsahara.net) that carries the tagline, �Emotionally Yours�. So what if the ladies at the check-in desk weep every time they greet you? This is Bollywood Country.

The youngest and most spunky contender on the Asian stage is the Malaysia-based AirAsia (www.airasia.com) under the helm of CEO Tony Fernandes who maintains his is the �only low-fare carrier in Asia�. This is no idle boast. In February 2004, Bangkok-Chiang Mai launched at a remarkable Bt99, cheaper than a one-day Skytrain pass.

The airline�s official Internet fare Bangkok-Chiang Mai is Bt600, and to Phuket it is Bt800. That�s not all. Kuala Lumpur to Penang starts at an astounding RM9.99(Bt102) and KL to Kota Kinabalu is RM99.99. AirAsia�s KL-Bangkok fare is four times cheaper than that offered by Malaysia Airlines (www.malaysiaairlines.com). A former music industry professional, Fernandes would now like to see the big boys face the music.

Cocking a snook at his rival across the strait, Fernandes sprang a cheeky advertising campaign. �There�s a new girl in town,� it trilled. �She�s twice the fun and half the price.� The similarities with Virgin, in style, philosophy and image, are remarkable. The airline sports a red-and-white logo and livery similar to Virgin�s. AirAsia plays an agile David to the national carriers� creaking Goliath with aplomb. It�s no surprise then that Virgin and AirAsia are exploring ways to work together. Virgin Blue (www.virginblue.com.au) is already well settled in Oz along with sister carrier Pacific Blue (www.flypacificblue.com) in New Zealand.

As the battle in Thailand hots up, state-controlled behemoth Thai Airways International (www.thaiairways.com) has slashed fares by up to 40 per cent on key domestic and international routes, this, officially, to welcome the New Year (of the Monkey).

Orient Thai (www.orient-thai.com) took off in 1990, with CEO Udom Tantiprasongchai setting up Cambodia International Airlines (CIA). Despite the racy acronym, the cocktail of Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese military proved unattractive for business travel and the airline, sensibly, pulled out to focus its efforts on the lucrative Bangkok-Hongkong and Bangkok-Seoul routes.

Other Thailand contenders include Air Andaman (www.airandaman.com), Phuket Air (www.phuketairlines.com), PB Air (www.pbair.com) and the briskly run, though not low-cost, Bangkok Airways (www.bangkokair.com) which operates its own quaint, laid-back airports in Koh Samui and Trat.

Singapore Airlines (www.singaporeair.com) fired around 600 staff in 2003 to fight Sars, war, George Bush jokes and a general travel slump. Along with its regional sibling SilkAir (www.silkair.com) it will potentially lose revenues to Singapore-based ValuAir and the Indonesian Lion Air (www.lionair.co.id) which offers Singapore-Jakarta runs at almost 60 per cent below the SIA price.

SIA will fight back with its own low-cost carrier, Tiger Airways, but the move has sparked heated debate over its �ferocious� name. Another snag is that Tiger Airways (www.tigerairways.co.uk) is already operating vintage biplane flights over the West Midlands of the UK.

One of the original low-cost trend-setters is Cebu Pacific (www.cebupacificair.com) and the Manila-based airline�s clarion call has been taken up by Vietnam-based Pacific Airlines (www.pacificairlines.com.vn). Others are due to follow. And these won�t be your-daddy-was-a-sailor unknowns. Their parents will include Thai Airways and Qantas.

The end result? More bums on cheaper seats. As Fernandes loves to quip, �Now everyone can fly.�

vijay verghese

www.smarttravelasia.com

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