Lion Air to commerce flights to S'pore

Lion Air to commerce flights to S'pore

Deutsche Press-Agentur, Singapore

The race among budget airlines to fly to Singapore is heating up with a third player, Jakarta-based Lion Air, joining the fray, a spokesman said on Wednesday.

"Singapore is a very important market for us," Lion Air spokesman Hasyim Arsal told the daily newspaper Streats.

"We believe both Singaporeans and Indonesians will benefit from Lion Air's connectivity within Indonesia," he was quoted as saying.

Lion Air is set to fly four times daily to Changi starting Nov. 14, likely charging S$90 (US$62) for a round-trip ticket or at least 30 percent less than other airlines plying the Jakarta- Singapore route.

Many Indonesians currently fly to the island of Batam and then take the ferry to Singapore to save on direct airfares, Arsal said.

Lion Air was started by Indonesian businessman Rusdi Kirana in June 2000 following the deregulation of Indonesia's aviation industry.

Singapore will be the second international destination for Lion Air, which already flies four times daily from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur.

Valuair, a no-frills carrier started by a former Singapore Airlines (SIA) executive, plans to take off in the second quarter of next year with short-haul flights from Changi Airport.

Arsal said that Lion Air is similar to Malaysia's AirAsia in that "we're low-fare, but we're a full service airline."

AirAsia, founded less than two years ago, starts flying twice daily between nearby Johor Baru and Kuala Lumpur starting Oct. 22.

With Changi Airport regarded as too expensive, AirAsia chief Tony Fernandes said the airline may consider using the small Seletar Airport instead.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) rejected last week a partnership with Thailand to set up a no-frills carrier based in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai.

The flag carrier has not ruled out setting up its own budget carrier based in Singapore. A decision is expected before the end of the year.