Scoot to enter India, Middle East this year

Singapore - Scoot will enter the Indian and Middle Eastern markets within the next few months as it continues to take delivery of new aircraft this year.

The airline currently has 10 brand new Dreamliners in its fleet, and expects to receive two more this year. The remaining eight planes ordered will arrive from 2017 onwards.

The new planes will offer inflight Wi-Fi, in-seat power, Scoot's own TV service and other add-on perks.

Scoot is also considering putting cabin-crew bunks onboard some of its incoming Dreamliners, which would allow it to serve markets further afield. Typically, cabin-crew bunks are required for flights beyond a ten-and-a-half hour radius. This would bring markets such as Europe and Africa within reach.

A decision on this is expected to be made in the next few months, said Scoot chief Campbell Wilson at the Singapore Airshow.

The low cost carrier, which is part of the Singapore Airlines Group, saw S$18 million in operating profit for its third quarter ended Dec 31, 2015.

It is a S$35 million increase from the S$17 million operating loss incurred in the corresponding quarter of 2014, and is the airline's best quarterly result to date.

Mr Wilson said Scoot has 49 per cent capacity growth planned for the coming financial year, and is looking to add flights to more cities in China.

Scoot's flights to and from India are expected to begin in March or April, and the company will reveal within a month which Indian cities it will fly to.

Meanwhile, non-stop flights to the Middle East will commence in May this year. The airline is also planning to add other markets to its flight network in the second half of the year.

"The global aviation market is as good as I've ever seen," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice-president of sales, Randy Tinseth.

He added that the market has been growing, and has remained very resilient amidst the troubled economy.

This article was first published on Feb 17, 2016.
Get The Business Times for more stories.