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A Thai tiger shows its stripes
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Sirima Eamtako, Bangkok (2010-08-02)
NEWLY-FORMED low-cost carrier (LCC) Thai Tiger aims to open a whole new market of low-end travellers by offering the "cheapest" fares to domestic and regional routes - even lower than Thai Airways International (THAI)'s own LCC, Nok Air.
The 51:49 joint venture LCC between THAI and Tiger Airways, which is partly-owned by Singapore Airlines, is set to fly early next year.
The two airlines today inked an MOU to establish the LCC with a registered capital of 200 million baht (US$6.2 million).
"Thai Tiger will compete head-on with that one foreign-owned LCC in Thailand," THAI president Piyasvasti Amranand said, referring to Thai AirAsia.
Tiger Airways Group president and CEO, Tony Davis, said Thai Tiger would operate independently and would be managed by a Thai CEO and local team, similar to Tiger Airways' model in Australia. It will have its own fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft.
While details of Thai Tiger's initial route network and marketing plan were still being decided, Davis told TTG Asia e-Daily that "fares will be the cheapest" and "will also be lower than Nok Air fares".
Nok Air, in which THAI holds a 39 per cent share, would continue to focus on domestic routes and expand its network to Thai provincial cities, said Piyasvasti.
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