BUDGET airline Scoot will take off to Kertajati in Indonesia from September and Melaka in Malaysia from October on its new Embraer regional jets.
It will fly the Embraer E190-E2 planes to Kertajati twice a week from Sep 28, and to Melaka five times each week from Oct 23, Scoot said in a statement on Aug 6 (Tuesday).
The new services will start after Scoot receives its third and fourth Embraer aircraft in September and October.
These flights to Kertajati and Melaka will be available for booking from Aug 6 via the airline’s website and app, and progressively through other sales channels.
Scoot, the low-cost arm of national carrier Singapore Airlines, said that the Embraer E190-E2 jets will also be deployed on existing routes, such as to Pekanbaru in Indonesia twice a week from October.
It will also operate the aircraft to Balikpapan and Makassar in Indonesia four times a week from October.
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From November, the jets will serve Davao in the Philippines nine times weekly – up from the current seven times a week with its Airbus A321neo jets. The Embraer planes will from December serve Vientiane, the capital of Laos, four times each week – up from thrice a week now with its Airbus A320 planes.
Scoot’s announcement comes on the back of its addition of daily flights to Subang Airport in Kuala Lumpur, that are slated to start from September, operated by its Airbus A320 aircraft.
With these changes, the carrier noted that it will operate 78 weekly flights to Indonesia and 115 weekly flights to Malaysia by October. It will run 37 weekly flights to the Philippines by November.
Scoot added that this means it will serve 72 destinations worldwide, providing more direct links to cities across South-east Asia.
At present, the airline flies its Embraer jets to Krabi, Hat Yai and Koh Samui in Thailand, and Miri, Kuantan and Sibu in Malaysia.
The carrier ordered nine Embraer E190-E2 planes, and received the first two aircraft in April. The maiden commercial flight by its first Embraer jet took off on May seven from Singapore for Krabi.
The fifth Embraer aircraft will be delivered by the end of 2024, with the remaining four jets slated to arrive in Singapore by the end of 2025.
The smallest commercial aircraft based out of Changi Airport, the Brazil-made Embraer E190-E2s have a capacity of 112 passengers, and therefore can be used to serve thinner and less popular routes in the region, fly to airports that cannot accommodate larger jets, and increase frequencies on existing routes.
Scoot chief executive Leslie Thng said that the airline continues to see strong demand for its flights after the launch of its Embraer aircraft in May. THE STRAITS TIMES
