news.com.au
Jetstar propels fare war
By GEOFFREY THOMAS
October 3, 2004
WA travellers are big winners in the most savage airfare war to hit our skies as Jetstar starts planning its entry into the market.
Fly Perth to Singapore for just $350 return, or Perth to Broome for just $149 one way as hundreds of fares are slashed to bargain basement prices.
Adjusted for inflation, they are the lowest fares ever offered to West Australians.
A Jetstar spokesman yesterday confirmed the airline's intention to start services to WA from the middle of next year with new 177-seat Airbus A320s.
While coy on start dates for intrastate WA routes, insiders at the airline said that plans for Perth to Broome services catered for later in 2005 – possibly August.
That would make the Perth-Broome route one of the most hotly contested in Australia, with Virgin Blue, Jetstar, Qantas and Skywest competing.
Jetstar is expected to replace its parent Qantas on the route, just as Australian Airlines, Qantas's low-fare international subsidiary, will take over the Perth-Bali route.
Perth-based Skywest Airlines has not matched Virgin Blue's $149 one-way fare to Broome but does have two-night packages, including return airfare, from $517, according to its website.
Virgin Blue has similar packages. It started its 180-seat Boeing 737-800 Broome flights in September with three a week – and will puton an additional Monday service from November 29.
Insiders say they expect the airline to have daily flights by May to coincide with the peak holiday season.
The airline is also considering other WA destinations as its fleet grows.
Tourist analysts suggest that fares on the Perth-Broome route could drop even further than Virgin's current special of $149 one-way when Jetstar enters the market.
On Friday Jetstar launched a huge airfare promotion on the east coast with fares from just $49. Virgin Blue matched the fares late on Friday.
Both Jetstar and Virgin Blue claim to have the lowest seat costs in the industry – half those of Ansett.
Singapore Airlines announced yesterday that it would offer fares from just $350 return plus taxes to Singapore.
Or fly to Bangkok and back for $480 before squeezing in a return trip to Hong Kong for $560 plus taxes.
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