Thai AirAsia (TAA) is zeroing in on China as part of an aggressive
growth plan over the next few years, planning to add four or five Chinese
cities a year to its Thailand-China network.
Tassapon Bijleveld, chief
executive of Thailand's biggest low-cost carrier, yesterday unveiled a
China-focused strategy that seems to eclipse TAA's expansion in Asean and
India.
China's growing love affair with
foreign travel, higher disposable income among Chinese and the country's open
sky policy are offering TAA a huge opportunity to tap, he said.
There is less room for TAA to
expand its network further in the 10 nations of Southeast Asia, as the airline
has already covered 80-90% of cities with good traffic demand, said Mr
Tassapon.
Only a few major cities remain
missing from TAA's Asean coverage _ Siem Reap in Cambodia, Vientiane in Laos
and Manila in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, TAA's bid to expand
into India, which featured prominently in its growth plan about two years ago,
has faced several restrictions such as securing traffic rights from Indian
authorities.
TAA's focus on China has already
begun in earnest with the inauguration of flights to Wuhan, the capital of
Hubei province in central China, and Xi'an, a historical city in central China
famous for its Terracotta Army, on Oct 19 and Nov 16, respectively.
TAA has operated flights from
Bangkok to Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chongqing since earlier this year in
addition to frequent flights from the capital to Hong Kong and Macau.
A major force behind TAA's China
pursuit is an increase in aircraft capacity as five additional A320 jets will
next year join TAA's all-A320 fleet, now comprising 25 aircraft.
Chinese have made up 11% of TAA's
passengers this year, the largest international group.
The airline also wants to focus
on more frequent flights for existing routes over the next 15 months.
TAA expects to carry 8 million
passengers this year and 10 million next year.
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