Taiwan’s TransAsia Expands Overseas Network

TransAsia Airways is to further expand its international network in June with new services from its Taipei Taoyuan base to Phuket and Singapore. The independent carrier mainly focuses on the Taiwanese and Chinese markets but over recent years has boosted its overseas flights.

From June 4 it will introduce a regular link to Phuket, although this flight will be operated on a scheduled charter basis every four days with capacity exclusively available to tour operators only. Later the same month, on June 30, TransAsia will introduce a daily flight to Singapore, a route already served by China Airlines, EVA Air, Jetstar Asia Airways, Singapore Airlines and Tiger Airways which together operate more than seven flights per day. An estimated 702,000 O&D passengers travelled on the route in the last year, up 12.0 per cent on the previous 12 month period. The mix of low-cost and legacy airlines on the route means that yields vary significantly with fares from the budget operators averaging $190 each way, against a $600 sector average.

TransAsia, which has recently celebrated its 60^th anniversary, has plans to expand its activities across Asia and has revealed plans recently to expand its fleet to fulfill its growth requirements. In the past year it reported a NT$918 million (US$30.6 million) after-tax profit buoyed by its international network, particularly cross-Straits flights to China.

Schedule:

Taipei Taoyuan – Phuket
GE621 TPE0705 – 1015HKT 321
GE622 HKT1125 – 1700TPE 321

Taipei Taoyuan – Singapore
GE887 TPE1920 – 2345SIN 320 D
GE888 SIN0720 – 1140TPE 320 D 01JUL11-