Tiger Airways lures in 1.6m new passengers for 2010

From November 2009 to October 2010, a total of 5.6 million passengers flew with the budget carrier, an increase of 39% over the 4.0 million passengers in the preceding 12 months.

Average load factor for the 12-month period to October 2010 was 86%, an increase of 3 percentage points year-on- year.

In a statement, Tiger Airways said that 455,000 passengers boarded its planes for the month of October 2010, an 8% increase compared to October 2009. The average load factor across both airlines in Asia and Australia for the month was at 87%.

Tony Davis, President and Group CEO of Tiger Airways Holdings, said, “We are pleased to report continued passenger growth for the Group in October. Having launched our biggest ever flying programme for the northern winter season, we look forward to further growth in the second half of the financial year.

“Tiger Airways Singapore has launched new services to Manila in the Philippines and to Trichy and Trivandrum in India, and Tiger Airways Australia has launched its new base at Avalon Airport, with new services complementing existing flights from Adelaide and Melbourne (Tullamarine). With new aircraft coming into the fleet, Tiger Airways Singapore will start services to Taipei in January 2011 and will continue to add frequencies to existing routes. Tiger Airways Australia will launch flights between Brisbane and Sydney in February 2011, allowing us to complete the coveted ‘Golden Triangle’ in Australia.

“As we head into the peak travel period of December to February, forward bookings for the Group remain strong,” Davis said.