AirphilExpress eyes 25% market share by end-2011

Business Mirror
Sunday, 07 August 2011 18:07 Lenie Lectura / Reporter

WITH the scheduled arrival of new aircraft, new routes to explore, and a new hub, low-cost carrier (LCC) AirphilExpress (APX) intends to be a strong second player in the domestic travel sector.

With a market share of 23 percent at end-April, APX aims to increase this to at least 25 percent by the end of the year. It also targets to transport 4 million passengers this year from 1.5 million in 2010.

“We want to be a strong second LCC. We want to narrow that gap with [Cebu Pacific],” said senior vice president for marketing and sales Alfredo Herrera.

APX is 99-percent owned by the Lucio Tan Group of Companies. It is also Philippine Airlines’ budget carrier.

The company announced last week that its two new Airbus A320s are set to arrive this year and four more will come in by next year.

APX will also add domestic and international routes very soon as it expands its presence starting October??in Clark, Pampanga where it will put up a new hub. “AirphilExpress will soon be offering domestic and Southeast Asian routes based in the Clark international airport to serve the growing number of travelers based in the northern regions of the country,” said Herrera. “This is in line with our expansion process and consistent with our growth strategy to solidify our position as a key player in the local budget airline market.”

At present, APX operates from Manila, Cebu, Davao and Zamboanga. It flies to 25 domestic and two international destinations—Singapore and Hong Kong. Its fleet is composed of seven A320s, three Q300s and five Q400s. It recently commenced Manila-Tacloban flight, and will soon launch Manila-Ozamiz and Davao-Iloilo routes. A Cebu-Hong Kong flight also debuted in July.

Herrera declined to identify the airline’s planned new routes. “We won’t announce it yet because if we do our competitors will start to bring down fares for those routes,” he said.

APX seeks to corner a considerable share of the budget airline market by offering travelers with more value propositions. Among them are free 15-kilo check-in luggage allowance plus seven-kilo hand-carry baggage that used to be standard among budget carriers.

The airline also offers 20-percent discount to students. It recently launched a customer loyalty program where loyal APX travelers can receive a free ticket after logging in 10 trips.