Mr Geoff Dixon, Chairman of Jetstar Asia Airways

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

I am truly honoured to be here this afternoon to mark the launch of Jetstar Asia Airways.  With Christmas drawing near, this inaugural flight is an ‘early Christmas present’ to our holiday-makers and certainly adds to the festivities of the season.

2.                  Jetstar Asia is the 9^th new carrier to start operations at Changi Airport this year, which has also seen the birth of three local airlines – Valuair in May, Tiger Airways in September, and Jetstar Asia Airways today.

3.                  This latest addition brings the tally of carriers operating at Singapore to 75.  Travellers now have a choice of more than 3,700 flights a week, to more than 170 cities in over 50 countries.

State of the Airline Industry

4.                  The global airline industry has taken some hard knocks in recent years. SARS, terrorism fears and soaring oil prices have prompted airlines around the world to adopt drastic measures to stay competitive, and in some cases, to survive. But conversely, certain global trends have shaped the industry positively. Ongoing advances in technology and globalisation now make it possible for more people to fly to more places and in a shorter time. The demand for affordable travel continues to grow unabated; likewise the urge to venture to new destinations.

5.         Despite the ups and downs faced by the air travel industry, the fact remains that it now serves more than 1.6 billion travellers worldwide, every year. In particular, passenger growth in the Asia Pacific region alone has been phenomenal. The Pacific Asia Travel Association has observed that international visitor arrivals to this region has reached nearly 200 million for the first 11 months of this year, an impressive increase of 11%, over the same period in 2002, before the impact of the SARS crisis. The association has projected that these arrival numbers will reach a record high by the end of this year.

6.         So you can see that there remains a promising and very fast-growing travel market for airlines in this region. South East Asia has 38 metropolitan cities, and its total population is more than half a billion. With a variety of travel choices situated within 5 hours of one another, there is a golden opportunity for low cost carriers like Jetstar Asia to tap into South East Asia, and the greater Asian market beyond.

7.         Jetstar Asia is clearly bullish about its prospects in this market, when it announced that it will be flying to Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei, Pattaya, Jakarta, Surabaya and Manila – all popular holiday destinations for Singaporeans. As such, even travellers from outside Asia can enjoy the benefits of the low airfares brought about by low cost carriers or LCCs like Jetstar Asia. As LCCs continue their growth, they will provide travellers with an even wider range of fares and destinations to choose from.

Civil Aviation Links with Australia

8.         The birth of Jetstar Asia, as a Singapore-based carrier, is also testimony to the close relations between Australia and Singapore.  Qantas is already the largest foreign carrier based at Changi, flying 45 weekly passenger services from 6 Australian cities to Singapore.  More than half of these flights go on to London and Frankfurt. 

9.         This latest investment by Qantas enables it to tap into the wider aviation market in Asia, which offers tremendous business and growth opportunities.  The increased network of services provided by both Qantas and Jetstar Asia will mean wider access to more cities and exotic destinations within South East Asia, with Singapore as a convenient connecting point. Now, with Jetstar Asia’s operations, Australians travelling to Europe, or on a short hop to one of South East Asia’s beautiful beaches will be able to use the integrated network of both carriers to achieve a seamless journey to their ultimate destinations. 

Conclusion

10.       I shall not hold back this inaugural flight to Hong Kong any further. Let me end by wishing all passengers onboard a pleasant and enjoyable journey.  My congratulations once again to the vibrant team at Jetstar Asia Airways, and best wishes for the journey ahead.