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Lao Airlines expands global ticketing network
Lao Airlines has expanded its global marketing network as it plans to put its first jet aircraft into service at the end of this year, according to a senior company official.
The state-owned enterprise's Planning and Cooperation Department Chief, Mr Noudeng Chanthaboupha, said yesterday the airliner had signed a new contract with APG, an international air ticket booking firm, to represent the company in the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and Switzerland.
“APG is an air ticket booking firm that will help us to sell our services to passengers in these countries,” he told Vientiane Times in an interview about the airliner's new marketing strategy, which it expects to launch after putting its Airbus 320 aircraft into service at the end of this year.
APG already represents Lao Airlines in Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany and France.
Mr Noudeng said the airliner expects tickets for its routes to sell well in the new markets, particularly the Vientiane-Singapore direct flight which will be launched at the end of this year.
Lao Airlines decided to introduce three flights a week from Vientiane to Singapore on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays after market research showed that demand for a direct flight between the two nations is on the increase due to strengthened relations and economic cooperation.
Some people travelling to Laos also prefer to avoid transiting via Bangkok, after the unexpected closure of the airport there due to political turmoil in 2008.
APG manager Mr Richard Burgess said the company has sold more Lao Airlines tickets in Europe, North America and Australia than first expected.
“We are delighted that, in light of this achievement, Lao Airlines has decided to extend our cooperation across further key markets where we can offer support to new routes that will develop on the back of the new A320s joining the fleet,” he was quoted as saying in a news article posted on its website.
Lao Airlines also plans to launch flights to Seoul, Republic of Korea, and several cities in China next year. The airliner will use its Airbus 320 aircraft on the Vientiane-Singapore sector as well as on existing flights between Vientiane and Bangkok and Hanoi.
The airliner expects passenger numbers to surge by 15 to 20 percent annually once it introduces the two new aircraft at the end of this year. The company expects to carry about 500,000 passengers in 2011, up from 440,000 in 2010.
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