Tiger Airways Low Fares

Crikey, Tuesday 26 May 2009

Tiger Airways announces the ultimate low fare – “Tiger Raw,” which allows customers to access the absolute lowest air fares, without the AUD5 convenience fee normally applicable for passengers booking with a credit card.

“Tiger Raw” fares are fully inclusive of taxes, charges and GST, and provide a free hand-baggage allowance of 7kgs.

To access “Tiger Raw” fares, customers simply purchase their Tiger Airways flights online using a Mastercard Debit or Visa Debit card issued by an Australian financial institution.

Tiger Airways Australia, Commercial Director, Steve Burns, announced  “Tiger Raw” epitomises the Tiger Airways brand, “which is all about consistently offering Australians the lowest fares for air travel and allowing the passenger to choose which optional extras, if any, they want to suit their travel needs.
“Tiger Raw essentially strips the product right back so you are only paying for your seat. By choosing to pay by Debit Card, there are no extra charges added so you know the fare you see online is the fare you will pay – and you get up to 7kg of hand-baggage for free. As well as having the option to pay $5 extra per flight for making a credit card instead of debit card payment, customers continue to have the option to purchase added extras such as a checked baggage allowance up to 30kg and pre-selected seats.

“Mastercard Debit and Visa Debit card holders now have another low fare choice when making their travel plans. You can still buy Tiger Airways fares using other Mastercard and Visa cards as normal. “Tiger Raw” simply provides an alternative to save an additional AUD5 per passenger for every flight purchased and we’re confident will be popular with many Tiger Airways customers, wanting the ultimate in low fare deals. The introduction of “Tiger Raw” fares continues our mission to dramatically lower the cost of air travel in Australia” he says.

Angry Flyers Lounge – Tiger turns on the charm offensive

Crikey, Monday 25 May 2009
Ben Sandilands

At the risk of having to open a Happy Flyers corner, Tiger seemed to sever its ‘cultural’ links with Ryanair yesterday and today as one jet, and one sixth of its fleet, remained on the ground at the Gold Coast after a ‘technical’ problem.

The problem wrecked its timetable.

But this time it apparently rolled out alternatives for the stranded, full refunds, travel credit vouchers, an accommodation allowance for those suddenly up for another night in soggy paradise, or flights with other airlines at no extra charge if they couldn’t find room on other Tiger jets.

There is of course a reason for the charm offensive.

Once Tiger goes for the real trunk routes, starting with Melbourne-Sydney in July how it handles the bad hair days compared to Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Blue is going to tell instantly.

Operationally this is also another divergence from the Ryanair model, which largely avoids major airports, and sissy stuff like covered aerobridges and check in counters which involve paying fees to airport owners.

Australia doesn’t have enough secondary or tertiary markets of the size of Europe to make that model sustainable. And Singapore Airlines which controls Tiger would have known that from the start.

It just went bush (comparatively speaking) for 19 months getting its operations up to speed before turning its attention to routes where it can exercise pricing power with a few jets on services in which its larger rivals have invested dozens of  jets and make most of their money.

Thwarted Tiger ponders local partner

The Australian, Friday 22 May 2009
Steve Creedy

TIGER Airways says it is seriously considering taking on a local investment partner for its Australian operations if it is unable to change rules that prevent it from flying international routes from this country.

Tiger currently cannot emulate Jetstar’s strategy of using Perth and Darwin as staging posts for Australian services to Southeast Asia because it is a foreign-owned domestic carrier.

Tiger chief executive Tony Davis said the airline was continuing to push for changes to legislation so it could start flying aircraft from Australia to overseas destinations.

But he said it was looking seriously at the possibility of taking on a local partner if this was not achievable.

“I think at this stage I wouldn’t want to commit on any specifics,” he said. “I think what we are saying is, if the legislation is unlikely to be changed in the foreseeable future then the only way that we can access those markets is to work with an Australian investor.

“And that’s something we’re seriously considering.”

Mr Davis said allowing Tiger to fly overseas would create jobs, ensure the efficiency of its Australian operations and ensure that the economic benefits of those operations flowed through the Australian treasury.

“On something like our Singapore-Perth route at the moment, we have to operate aircraft from Singapore because we’re not allowed to do it the other way round,” he said. “So if it makes money, the profit ends up flowing through Singapore.”

Mr Davis made the comments as combined traffic figures for Australia and Singapore showed Tiger Group’s full-year seat capacity soared by 43.1 per cent, while passenger growth increased 42.4 per cent to 3.2million passengers.

The airline said full-year group gross revenue was up 25 per cent but it did not release specific figures, saying its financial results would be announced later in the year.

Full-year load factors were down by 0.4 per cent.

Fourth-quarter passenger numbers were up 7.6 per cent and capacity was up 11.4 per cent following the delivery of two Airbus A319s and an A320.

Mr Davis said the figures, which did not break out statistics for Australia, showed Tiger was bucking the trend.

“The current economic climate is actually creating opportunities for growth for us,” Mr Davis said.

“While certain competitors, as you know, are grounding aircraft and reducing capacity, we’re still growing our capacity.”

The group’s Singaporean and Australian operations between them now fly 16 Airbus A320 family aircraft, including four in Melbourne and two in Adelaide.

It added five new routes in Australia out of its new Adelaide base during the quarter, taking its Australian domestic route total to 16, and expanded its Singaporean operations to ports such as Jakarta and Kota-Kinabalu in response to accelerated aviation liberalisation in the region.

New routes to Sydney from Melbourne and Adelaide start in July. Tiger is also looking at secondary points in Malaysia and has applied to operate additional points and capacity between Singapore and The Philippines.

“I think the other thing we’re seeing is that more and more passengers who, perhaps in better times, wouldn’t have considered flying on a low-fare airline like Tiger are actually switching to us,” he said.

“We’re seeing more people in business attire, we’re seeing certainly a lot of SMEs contacting us to try to get credit arrangements so they can book with us more easily.

“I think that’s indicative of the fact that people are looking for better value for money in this environment.”

Mr Davis said the current lower oil prices — about 40 per cent down in the fourth quarter versus the third — and the weaker US dollar were also providing opportunities.

Tiger has 56 A320s on order and has already accelerated some deliveries for next year and 2010. “And we’re saying we’re looking to accelerate further deliveries of aircraft,” Mr Davis said. “We’ve also extended the lease of one of the aircraft that was due to go back this year already and we’re looking at possibly extending leases on another aircraft.”

Asked about the airline’s unsuccessful move to set up joint ventures in The Philippines and Korea, Mr Davis said the big opportunities were now in new agreements between Singapore and Malaysia and increased liberalisation with Indonesia.

“We’re now flying to Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur,” he said. “We weren’t flying either of those routes 12 months ago.”

While not releasing specific figures, Mr Davis said growing an existing business was more cost effective than starting up a new one.

“The fact that those opportunities are there for us in our existing businesses probably means we’ll get a return on investments quicker than we would on a brand new start-up,” he said.

“Brand new start-ups generally lose money in the first couple of years while you build up volume and economies of scale and get the business bedded down.”

Mr Davis said Tiger was also doing well in terms of reliability in both markets.

He said punctuality in Australia was running at 81.5 per cent, mishandled bags at just 0.58 per 1000 and flight completion at 99.6 per cent for the period from April last year to March this year.

Tiger Airways experiences growth in passengers, aircraft and routes

e-Travel Blackboard, Friday 22 May 2009

Tiger Airways experienced significant growth in passengers, aircraft and routes in both its Asian and Australian operations, during Quarter 4.

Tiger Airways saw more opportunities for growth with an increase in passengers and capacity up 7.6% and 11.4% respectively in the Q4 period, which ended on 31 March 2009.

The airline also received delivery of three additional aircraft during Q4, which took the group fleet to 16 A320 family aircraft with 56 new aircraft still to be delivered.

Tony Davis, Group CEO and President of Tiger Aviation said, “Tiger Airways is delighted to be bucking the industry trend being repeated by legacy airlines around the world of doom and gloom.

“Not only have we seen strong consumer demand for our existing seat capacity and network, our low fare business model has meant that we have been able to continue to increase our fleet and network as other airlines park planes and cut capacity.”

Davis continued, “In these uncertain times Tiger Airways is reaping the benefits of building a solid and sustainable platform for its business in Asia and Australia.

“As a result I am delighted that Tiger Airways is in an enviable position of being able to continue to grow the number of aircraft that we operate, the network of destinations that we serve and we continue to grow our passenger numbers.

“Our analysis suggests that consumer demand for low fare air services, such as those offered by Tiger Airways, remains strong and when combined with the recent significant drop in oil prices presents opportunities for continued strong growth in capacity throughout 2009/10.”

Both Tiger Airways Singapore and Tiger Airways Australia are well positioned for growth.

The diversity of the group network ensures that they can adapt their network to react to competitor capacity cuts, at the same time as responding to economic recovery in some of the world’s key development markets of India, China, South East Asia and Australia.

In relation to Tiger Airways Singapore, the group has been encouraged by the pace of liberalisation in the ASEAN region including the opening up of more routes between Singapore and Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia.

The airline remains hopeful that further liberalisation will occur between ASEAN countries as the advantages of additional affordable air services to both the tourism sector and wider economy are embraced around the region.
Tiger Airways Australia has gone from strength to strength since it first commenced operations in Australia in November 2007.

With the delivery of two additional aircraft the airline has set up its second base in Adelaide, South Australia and expanded its network to 16 routes.

Tony Davis said “Tiger Airways Australia started with a purr in Australia and is now beginning to roar.

“With 16 routes operational and incumbent airlines reducing capacity, Tiger Airways Australia is in a strong position for continued expansion and passenger growth.

“On top of recently opening a second base in Adelaide after just over a year of operations, Tiger Airways Australia has announced that it will begin services on one of the world’s busiest air routes between Melbourne and Sydney, a route that presently has only two airlines operating on it.  It is a route which is crying out for real low fare competition.”

Over the next three years, Tiger Airways will actively look to accelerate aircraft deliveries in order to maintain a strong capacity growth rate in both its Singapore hub and Australia.

The compounded annual growth rate for the Tiger Airways group since 1 April 2005 now stands at 56%.

Tiger reaffirms interest in becoming an Australian flag carrier

Crikey, Thusday 21 May 2009
Ben Sandilands

Tiger Airways has told analysts in Singapore this afternoon that it is now advancing as Australian carriers retreat.

It also had international services by its Australian division ‘on the radar.’

Its president and CEO Tony Davis said the 16 jets in its fleet (10 in Singapore and 6 in Australia) will grow by 56 more single aisle A320s in the medium term.

Davis gave an upbeat presentation made even more so by not mentioning how much money it has lost either for the year, or the 31 March quarter, which he was reviewing.

The Q and A session still underway may cast some light on its financials but no one covering air transport in this hemisphere expected it would be making money.

The real value in this afternoon’s update is the chance to gauge the Singapore Airlines controlled low cost carrier’s commitment, and it didn’t blink.

A rapidly expanding Tiger seems as near a certainty as anything can be in the airlines game, and for this market this really gains momentum from 3 July when it begins serving the Sydney-Melbourne route.

The key disclosed metrics are captured in these two screen grabs from the presentation just over.

Davis’s reference to international routes infers that the Australian division could seek investment partners that would give it flag carrier status and access to them under most bilaterals by defining control as being 51% controlled in this country.

It will also add to the discussion that Qantas has been pursuing for many years that control should be defined not by residency of shareholding, but by the nature of the management, its HQ location and the home of its assets (in so far as you can nail down fleets of course.)

The thought that Tony Davis and Alan Joyce, the Qantas CEO, might actually find themselves on the same side of this argument could curdle the late night chocolate at Joyce’s Coward Street bunker in Sydney.

But nothing is all that surprising in airlines.

In the last year Davis has several times said he favoured Tiger Airways entering the Australia to Japan and New Zealand markets. It’s current rather indirect links to Singapore are by A320s flown by that division.

Tiger launching to Japan or New Zealand would start a ferocious brawl with Qantas’s Jetstar subsidiary, and in the latter case, quite possibly over the carcass of Air New Zealand, which somehow needs to escape from NZ Government ownership and get seriously refinanced, however implausible this seems at the moment.

Wellington’s long free trade commitment to aviation has seen Air New Zealand hunted into a corner by Pacific Blue, Virgin Blue’s local subsidiary, and Jetstar. But the Kiwi flag carrier is fighting back hard.

All that is needed to complete the Tiger picture today is a word or two about the bottom line. But in the context of being seen as Singapore’s instrument for driving itself an advantage in a trauma induced rationalisation of the industry in this corner of the world, focusing on how much it looses would be to miss the point.

This graphic also summarises Tiger’s view of the jungle as air traffic liberalisation spreads wider.

Tiger Airways May One Day Sale

Peanuts! Low Cost Airline News, Thursday 21 May 2009

Tiger Airways announces an incredible One Day Sale, today only, 21-May- 2009 with airfares across a number of popular routes from just AUD30* one way (including taxes and charges).

Steve Burns, Commercial Director, Tiger Airways Australia, says this is another incredible offer that further cements Tiger Airways as Australia’s true low fare airline.

“Our customers love to take advantage of Tiger Airways’ consistently low fares. We’ve already saved Australians more than AUD60 million** in reduced airfares since we commenced flights in Australia in November 2007 and with amazing air travel deals like this, that saving just gets bigger and bigger.

“If you’re planning an interstate winter getaway, business trip or a social catch-up with family or friends in the month of June, make sure you jump online today and take advantage of our One Day Sale,” he says.

Mr Burns urges everyone interested in low fares to sign up to the Tiger Airways e-newsletter database to be among the first to hear about Tiger Airways special deals and offers.

Lucky passenger to get a surprise from Tiger

e-Travel Blackboard, Monday 18 May 2009

A Tiger Airways Australia passenger will get a surprise today at Adelaide Airport when the airline congratulates him or her for being the 2 millionth customer since November 2007.

Tiger Airways revealed today that the 2 millionth customer will fly from Adelaide to Canberra today at 1:25pm on flight TT872.

They will be greeted by the airline at the airport and receive a Tiger Airways travel voucher for flights to use on any of the carrier’s Australian routes.

This year, the carrier will start an Adelaide-Sydney route on 31 July with one-way airfares from $48 whilst a Melbourne-Sydney route will start 3 July with one-way airfares from $39.

There is currently a sale on airfares for travel from Adelaide and Melbourne to Queensland. Fares start from $88 and sale ends Wednesday 20 May at midnight.

For more information www.tigerairways.com

Send Your Mother Packing Or Your Mother In-Law Away With Tiger Airways’ Mother’s Day Promotion

e-Travel Blackboard, Monday 11 May 2009

• Mother’s Day promotional airfares starting from just AUD $28 one way*
• Buy period: now until Tuesday 12 May 2009 (or until sold out)
• Fly period: from 11 May 2009 to 3 October 2009

Send your mother packing or your mother in-law away with Tiger Airways’ Mother’s Day promotion featuring special airfares for interstate travel across Australia starting from just AUD $28 one way* (price includes taxes and charges).

During the promotional period, Tiger Airways is offering discounted airfares across the Tiger Airways Australia network (all 17 routes). Tickets are on sale now until Tuesday 12 May 2009 (or until sold out).

Tiger Airways Australia Commercial Director, Steve Burns, says Tiger Airways consistently provides Australians with the lowest fares for travel across the country and urges people to get in quick to take advantage of the special Mother’s Day offer.

“Mother’s Day is a special day and in these tough economic times it’s possibly more difficult than usual to find a special gift that won’t break the bank. Tiger Airways Mother’s Day special fares mean you can give her something she will really love at a price cheaper than a meal out, bouquet of flowers or a gift basket.

“Our Tiger Airways Mother’s Day special fares start from just AUD $28 (one way*) which means not only can you send your mum or mother in-law away, you can bring them back too with a return trip airfare gift,” he says.

Visit www.tigerairways.com for tickets and booking details. See below table for list of routes on sale and the fly/buy period for each route.

TIGER AIRWAYS MOTHER’S DAY PROMOTION:

To/from Melbourne

Melbourne Base Buy Start Date	Buy End Date
6-May-09	12-May-09

Route	Fare (A$)	Fly From	Fly By
Melbourne – Adelaide	AUD 28.00	1-Aug-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Alice Springs	AUD 98.00	1-Aug-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Canberra	AUD 35.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Hobart	AUD 28.00	1-Aug-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Launceston	AUD 28.00	1-Jul-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Sunshine Coast	AUD 88.00	11-May-09	31-Aug-09
Melbourne – Mackay	AUD 98.00	1-Jun-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Gold Coast	AUD 78.00	1-Jun-09	31-Aug-09
Melbourne – Perth	AUD 128.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Rockhampton	AUD 88.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Melbourne – Sydney	AUD 39.00	3-Jul-09	3-Oct-09

To / from Adelaide

Adelaide Base
Buy Start Date	Buy End Date
6-May-09	12-May-09

Route	Fare (A$)	Fly From	Fly By
Adelaide – Alice Springs	AUD 98.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Adelaide – Canberra	AUD 48.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Adelaide – Hobart	AUD 78.00	11-May-09	31-Aug-09
Adelaide – Melbourne	AUD 28.00	1-Aug-09	3-Oct-09
Adelaide – Gold Coast	AUD 98.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09
Adelaide – Perth	AUD 98.00	11-May-09	3-Oct-09

* Terms & Conditions

• Fares are subject to availability.
• Fares are only applicable for bookings made during the stated buy period and for scheduled flights during the operational travel period.
• Fares are available for one way travel only.
• Fares may not be available during peak periods, public holidays or certain blackout periods. Not available in conjunction with any other promotions or for group bookings.
• All bookings are non-refundable and non-transferable. Tiger Airways reserves the right to change, modify and cancel this promotion without prior notice. Prices will vary by direction of travel.
• A $5 convenience fee is charged for each electronic booking, per person, per sector.

For the best deals on travel throughout Australia visit www.tigerairways.com.

Airfare fight benefits tourists

AdelaideNow, Saturday 9 May 2009
Stuart Innes

AN airfare war has erupted just as budget airline Tiger has announced it will start flying the Adelaide-Sydney route offering one-way fares from $48.

Most major airlines are slashing fares, battling for market share as the economic downturn eats into tourism.

Consumers are benefiting from fares such as Jetstar’s offer of one-way Adelaide-Gold Coast tickets for $49.50 and Adelaide-Perth for just $69.50, including taxes.

These fares are part of the Jetstar fifth birthday sale and available until 11.29pm on Monday unless seats are sold out.

The fares are the result of a “take a friend” promotion, giving a two-for-one deal.

It means each person pays just $54.50 for Adelaide-Brisbane one-way and $84.50 for Cairns or Darwin.

Virgin Blue responded within hours, also having a sale until Monday night and cheekily calling the specials “It’s not our birthday bash sale”.

Virgin fares include Adelaide-Gold Coast at $99, Adelaide-Perth at $89, Melbourne $55, Canberra $75, Sydney $95 and Brisbane $95.

Terms and conditions apply, these specials not available on all dates or all flights. Check-in luggage is extra on some flights, as are credit card and/or booking fees.

Compared with Tiger’s $48 fare Adelaide-Sydney (about a 95-minute flight), driving a Holden Commodore on the 1400km road trip, averaging 9.5 litres/100km in fuel use at $1.30 a litre would cost nearly four times, or $173, in petrol alone.

Let alone wear and tear and possibly an overnight in a motel to break the 16-hour drive.

“The number of people travelling is falling, so the airlines are offering low fares to try to stimulate demand,” Tourism & Transport Forum executive director Olivia Wirth said yesterday.

“There’s increasing competition among the airlines as they battle for market share and the combination of those factors put travellers in the box seat.”

Tiger Airways Australia managing director Shelley Roberts said Tiger would fly daily each way between Sydney and Adelaide from July 31.

“Our new, low-fare route will mean Sydneysiders have no excuse not to visit Adelaide and its beautiful attractions,” she said.

Premier Mike Rann said the Tiger introduction was perfectly timed to go with the $4.5 million SA Tourism Commission’s “Isn’t it about time” eastern-states campaign.

Tiger to face scrutiny for “free” tickets?

Crikey, Friday 8 May 2009
Ben Sandilands

Singapore-owned Tiger Airways could get skinned by the ACCC over its sale of 30,000 FREE tickets last month that came with a cash price and were advertised contrary to the rules against component pricing.

The ACCC says it will neither confirm nor deny any inquiries or actions it may take.

But it did provide clear guidance over the issue of pricing goods or services by their parts in a manner which may deceive, mislead or misrepresent what was on offer, and pointed out that a further tightening of section 53C of the Trade Practices Act comes into effect on 25 May.

Airlines selling domestic flights in Australia must already prominently display a single price inclusive of GST and all other taxes or levies that is the minimum total cost of the fare between one place and another.

They must not quote an upper and lower range of fares, but one fare which allows consumers to make a ready comparison of competing offers.

Tiger broke that rule between 24 April and 27 April by advertising the fares as FREE in the largest type face in the text of its offer and alongside two equally sized but smaller figures of $22.08 and $35.13 (plus convenience fee*) each way.

Those figures were the range of additional charges plus the unavoidable credit card fee of $5 that represented airport charges and the GST component varying with the origin and destination of the FREE fare.

Even though FREE isn’t a monetary amount it is a representation of the price as being $0.00. The component prices displayed by Tiger were contrary to the rules that its competitor airlines have obeyed for seven years.

And selling something for money when it claimed to be FREE is misleading or deceptive advertising at the most fundamental level.

Is this all too trivial? Not if the law means anything, or if FREE really means $0.00 each way.

Tiger would have collected revenues of at least $812,400 and probably just over $1 million from the FREE sale.

Now that Tiger has emerged from the shadows with serious intent in terms of a massive expansion into the domestic market misleading and illegal pricing seems a matter requiring action.