Southeast Asia slowly reopening its borders, here are the major low-cost airlines
Southeast Asia is slowly preparing for a return to normalcy, Italians can go to Singapore and [...]
Southeast Asia is slowly preparing for a return to normalcy, Italians can go to Singapore And as of November 1, they will reopen the doors of Thailand. Bali is defining the modalities of reopening, while there are destinations, such as India and Sri Lanka, which have reopened for many months.
In this article:
Intrigued by the idea of flying to discover the wonders of Asia? Here are the companies you need to know about to succeed travel lowcost, spending as little as possible. Carriers always ready to offer attractive deals, with generally low cost fans.
AirAsia
It is the leading low-cost airline in the asian market. Its numbers are also supported by the many controlled carriers that allow the fleet (total) to reach 255 aircraft, with more ci 160 destinations offered by the travel package. Of main interest, among the subsidiaries, is AirAsia X, usually present in the Top 5 of the best low-cost airlines operating in Asia. Its fleet consists of a total of 96 aircraft, mainly Airbus A320-200, then there are 29 Airbus A320neo and 2 Airbus A321neo.
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Its costs are unbeatable, considering the $0.023 per seat per kilometer guaranteed. The carrier's history was radically changed in 2001, when it was sold for a token sum to Malaysian entrepreneur Tony Fernandes. His policy of lowering prices led to a profitable balance sheet after one year, following agreements made to take on all corporate debts.
The related companies, operating in the industry, are as follows: AirAsia X, Thai AirAsia, Indonesia AirAsia, Philippones AirAsia, Thai AirAsia X, and AirAsia India. Its main hub is in Kuala Lumpur and here are the destinations From which to choose:
- United Arab Emirates
- Australia
- India
- Malaysia
- New Zealand
- Philippines
- Brunei
- Thailand
- China
- South Korea
- Vietnam
- Sri Lanka
- Bangladesh
- Hong Kong
- Saudi Arabia
- Nepal
- Taiwan
- United Kingdom
- Laos
- Macau
- Maldives
- Mauritius
- Oman
- Japan
- France
- Cambodia
- Georgia
- Iran
- Croatia
- Indonesia
Scoot
Low-cost company belonging to the Singapore Airlines group. 
The company's main hub is in Singapore. The fleet consists of 51 aircraft, mainly Airbus A320-200s (four will be retired by the end of 2021). Airbus A320neo and A321neo are added, as well as Boeing 787-8 and 787-9.
The list of destinations is quite extensive, considering the large number of countries touched:
- Australia
- Bangladesh
- China
- Greece
- India
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Laos
- Malaysia
- Philippines
- Saudi Arabia
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
Jetstar Asia
This low-cost airline is linked to Jetstar Airways, a subsidiary carrier of Australia's Qantas. It is based in Singapore and operates mainly Regional flights in Southeast Asia. From Burma to Cambodia, from Malaysia to the Philippines, via Thailand and Vietnman. In addition to this, there are also connections to East Asia, with a focus primarily on Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Of great significance are the codesharing agreements made over time. The main one is with Qantas, which also involves Valuair. All passengers of the Australian carrier are, therefore, easily connected with the Asia Pacific region. Added to this are agreements made with Emirates, Finnair and SriLankan Airlines, making Jetstar Asia one of the most important airlines in the area.
The carrier has 24 destinations, divided among the following countries: New Zealand, India, Thailand, Australia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Myanmar.
Routes covered by 14 aircraft, Airbus A320-200, exploiting as main hub the Singapore airport Changi.
Spring Airlines
Relatively young low-cost company. In fact, it was founded in 2004. It boasts a fleet of 104 aircraft and has experienced marked growth over the past five years. Suffice it to say that the fleet was stationary at 63 aircraft in 2016. In that time, the number of destinations covered has doubled, from 50 to 100.
Two main hubs of the company are Shanghai Pudong and Shanghai Hongquao. A total of 104 aircraft make up the fleet, mainly featuring Airbus A320-200s (80 vehicles). This is supplemented by Airbus A320neo and A321neo.
The carrier maintains absolute control over the cost of its tickets, which are sold through its official website and a few, few, partner operators. The cost is kept low mainly due to the absence of free meals or drinks on board (this includes water). However, it is possible to make purchases during the flight. Here is the countries to which it is possible to travel:
- China
- Japan
- Cambodia
- Indonesia
- Malaysia
- Singapore
- Myanmar
- South Korea
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
IndiGo
It is a low-cost airline based in India. According to the latest data, dating back to 2020, it is the largest Indian carrier in the world in terms of passengers carried and fleet capacity. Broadening its gaze and turning it to the entire Asian market, however, it ranks sixth in size. It boasts 1,500 daily flights to 87 destinations, mainly domestic. There are 24, to date, international ones:
- Bangladesh
- China
- Hong Kong
- India
- Kuwait
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Myanmar
- Nepal
- Oman
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Singapore
- Sri Lanka
- Thailand
- Turkey
- United Arab Emirates
- Vietnam
The carrier's main hub is in Delhi, with additional bases at:
- Bangalore
- Chennai
- Hyderabad
- Kolkata
- Mumbai
- Jaipur
- Ahmedabad
All of this is taking advantage of a fleet of 280 aircraft, consisting of Airbus A320-200, A320neo, A321neo, A321 LR, A321 XLR and ATR 72-600.
