SINGAPORE: Tiger Airways says it is on track to launch domestic Australia services by the end of this year.
The airline, whose wholly owned subsidiary was recently incorporated in Australia, said a decision on the operating base in Australia would be announced in the next few weeks.
An online poll on the Tiger website shows that Brisbane is the most preferred operating base for Tiger Australia, followed by Melbourne and Sydney.
Tiger Airways has already received approval from the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board and has submitted its AOC (Air Operators Certificate) applications to CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority of Australia.
Tiger also has its eyes on the Philippines. An agreement with Philippine airline SEAir is still in progress for a Tiger Airways branded operation in the Philippines.
Aircraft lease agreements have been submitted to the Civil Aeronautics Board. SEAir has filed for additional domestic and international routes from Diasdado Macapagal International Airport to route authorities in the Philippines.
Tiger chief executive Tony Davis has reaffirmed the airline’s commitment of sticking to the true low cost carrier business model and will not be tempted to follow rivals and deviate into a hybrid model.
Davis said Tiger Airways was ready and keen to serve the routes between Singapore – Malaysia as well as Singapore – India pending approvals from the relevant governments and aviation authorities.
Davis added, “The last 12 months has cemented Tiger Airways’ pan-regional strategy that Tiger is not going to be a Singapore only airline. We will be an airline that has a significant presence on the global stage, that has a major presence across Asia and the Pacific with our operations in Australia.”
by Ian Jarrett
