TransAsia Airways Corp (復興航空), a Taiwanese carrier focusing on regional passenger routes in Asia, expects revenue next year to grow 30 percent from a year earlier, as it continues to launch new routes, a company official said yesterday.
Sales could surpass NT$10 billion (US$343.6 million) next year, marking the highest in the company’s history. The airline posted NT$8.74 billion in revenue last year.
In the first 11 months of the year, TransAsia posted sales of NT$8.68 billion, up 8.29 percent from a year earlier, company data showed.
“TransAsia is entering an expansion period,” chief commercial officer Chooi Yee-choong (徐以聰), who joined the management team in the middle of last month, told a media briefing.
The airline welcomed its first A330-300 aircraft last month, with the plane set to make its maiden flight from Taipei to Singapore on Dec. 30, Chooi said.
After taking delivery of its second A330-300 aircraft from France-based Airbus SAS next month, TransAsia is looking to launch more regional services in Asia next year, he added.
The carrier is looking to open routes to Bangkok and Tokyo, Chooi said, adding that at least one new route would be launched in the first half of next year.
TranAsia hopes to commence flights between Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Tokyo’s Narita International Airport in the near future, he said.
It may also consider launching flights between Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, he added.
For its current operational routes — to Macau, South Korea, Singapore, China and Japan — Chooi said the carrier hoped to increase its flight frequency if it could obtain additional quotas.
Chooi was optimistic about revenue growth momentum in the current quarter amid the increase in capacity, saying sales were in line with company expectations.
“The fourth quarter is not bad ... year-end demand is holding up well,” he said.
The airline also unveiled its early bird offers for budget travelers in the Asia-Pacific region, part of its strategy to expand its market share.
The special promotions are only available online and applicable between March and October next year. They cannot be used during the summer break, the Tomb-Sweeping Festival in early April and the Mid-Autumn Festival in late September, it added.
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