Southeast Asia's low-cost airlines are betting on the travel demand despite their competition woes

Southeast Asia's largest budget airlines are on a brutal capacity expansion race, despite increasing cost pressures which are squeezeing profitability. Qantas Airways shut down Jetstar Asia in Singapore due to this.

In the last two decades, low-cost carriers have proliferated across Asia as disposable incomes increase and travel demand is strong from Chinese tourists.

Demand for air travel in Asia is expected to grow faster than other regions in the next few decades and carriers like Vietnam's VietJet Aviation and Malaysia-headquartered AirAsia are to buy more planes to add to their already large orderbooks as they seek to gain market share.

The margins in Asia-Pacific are smaller than those of other regions. This year, the International Air Transport Association, an industry association, expects Asia-Pacific carriers to have a net profit of just 1.9%, compared to a global average 3.7%.

Since the pandemic, airlines in Asia have restored much of their capacity, which has increased competition, particularly for budget-conscious travellers and lowered airfares from their recent highs.

ForwardKeys data show that international airfares in Asia fell 12% from 2023 to 2024. AirAsia reported a 9% drop in average airfares for the first quarter, as the airline increased capacity and passed on savings from lower fuel costs to its customers.

Costs such as airport fees and labour are on the rise, and a lack of new planes has led to an increase in leasing and maintenance charges.

The changing landscape has led Australia's Qantas, to announce that Jetstar Asia, its low-cost intraAsia subsidiary operating at a loss and after 20 years of operation, will shut down at the end of July.

Jetstar Asia reported "high cost increases" in its Singapore base. These included double-digit increases in fuel prices, airport fees, security charges, and ground handling.

Sheldon Hee is the Vice President of IATA Asia-Pacific. He said that operating costs are increasing in the region.

In a white paper published in February, aviation data firm OAG said that Asia-Pacific is the most competitive aviation market. Rapid capacity expansion has driven airfares down "perhaps to a level where profits are compromised".

The report stated that the balance between supply and demand, costs and revenue has never been more important.

"GO BIG OR GO HOUSE"

Southeast Asia is unusually dominated by budget international flights. CAPA Centre for Aviation statistics show that two thirds of all international seats in Southeast Asia were booked on budget airlines, compared with one-third worldwide.

Analysts say Qantas chose to shift Jetstar Asia aircraft to Australia and New Zealand, where they can operate more efficiently.

Brendan Sobie, an independent aviation analyst based in Asia, says that budget operators in Southeast Asia struggled to make a profit even before the pandemic. Now there are also higher costs.

Low-cost carriers provide bargain fares because they keep their operating costs low. The economies of scale are achieved by large fleets of a single aircraft type.

Jetstar Asia had only 13 planes, a fraction of the size of its local competitors. Singapore Airlines' low-cost subsidiary Scoot, which is part of AirAsia, had 53 aircraft as of March 31. VietJet, which includes its Thai branch, had 117 planes. Low-cost Philippine carrier Cebu Pacific had 99.

The four companies will add more aircraft to their fleets in the coming year, and even further into future.

VietJet signed a preliminary deal on Tuesday to purchase up to 150 additional single-aisle Airbus aircraft at the Paris Airshow. The airline said that this was only the beginning of its ambitious growth plans.

This deal follows weeks of ordering 20 A330neo wide body planes and 200 Boeing 737 MAX jets.

Tony Fernandes, the CEO of AirAsia said that it is in discussions to purchase 50 to 70 single-aisle long-range jetliners and 100 regional jets to allow for expansion to new destinations.

Subhas Menon is the director general of Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. (Reporting and editing by Lisa Barrington)

(source: Reuters)