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SINGAPORE : Low-cost carrier Jetstar will launch its first long-haul flights from Singapore to Melbourne at the end of the year.
Tickets for the Australian route are on sale on Wednesday and Thursday. They cost $98 between 3pm and 5pm on Wednesday and $248 on Thursday, for one-way tickets.
The carrier will also fly to New Zealand from next March.
Low-cost carriers are known for no frills and cheap fares to nearby destinations.
But now, some budget carriers are tapping a different market - long-haul destinations.
From December 16, Qantas-owned Jetstar will fly from Singapore to Melbourne; and from Singapore to Auckland from March 17 next year.
Bruce Buchanan, CEO, Jetstar, said: "We offer a fully-inclusive product, the Jetplus, where your meals are included and you pay for them upfront, and we also have the Jetsaver product where you pay just the basic fare, or Jetsaver Light without any bags. So you have a choice of either bringing your own food or eating at the airport beforehand or buying your meal on board or ordering your food beforehand."
Air Asia X is another carrier plying long-haul routes, with flights from Kuala Lumpur to Europe and the Middle East.
But is the model sustainable?
Paul Ng, Global Head of Aviation, Stephen Harwood, said: "Air Asia X has been operating for two years now and it is increasing the number of flights and destinations, and seems to be able to generate a yield that is sustainable for them out of Kuala Lumpur, and there is actually no competition out of Singapore.
"If Jetstar runs it out of Singapore, it will be the only airline that is offering this option to passengers, and I think they would have a reasonable chance of making it a success.
"In 2001 or 2002, if you asked a passenger to fly low-cost and with no frills, even for three hours, they would probably frown at it, but if the price is right, history has shown that passengers are prepared to put up with quite a bit."
Besides Australia and New Zealand, Jetstar also has plans to go long-haul into Europe and North Asia, tapping into two of the biggest markets in the travel industry.
The International Air Transport Association said that the Asia Pacific Region has overtaken North America as one of the largest travel markets, with nearly 650 million passengers last year. - CNA/jy/ms
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