Silkair To Boost Phuket Service

SilkAir to boost Phuket service

PHUKET: The blue skies of Phuket tend to empty of airliners during the “green” season but Singapore Airlines (SIA) plans to buck this trend by scheduling more Phuket-Singapore flights every week between April and October.

Chan Chee Chong, manager of SIA Thailand, said yesterday that SilkAir – SIA’s regional subsidiary – will add three Phuket-Singapore flights to its schedule each week from April 1.

Mr Chong also indicated that studies are underway to assess the viability of SilkAir using Phuket as a “hub” for service to other countries.

SilkAir currently operates 15 flights a week on the Phuket-Singapore route. The additional three flights will take off from Phuket at 2:55 pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

The aircraft used on the route are the Airbus A319-100 and Airbus A320-200, which have capacity for 128 and 142 passengers respectively.

Mr Chong suggested that SilkAir may usher in the introduction of the new flights with promotional offers. Economy round-trip tickets currently cost around 6,000 baht while business class fares cost 13,200 baht.

“We all know that Phuket is booming,” he said. “The number of foreigners working and businesses starting up in Phuket is substantial. Many people need to travel for business reasons.”

Mr Chong said that SIA’s market in Phuket had grown between 5% and 10% since last year.

--Phuket Gazette 2004-02-17