Singapore’s SilkAir is stepping up its flight cooperation with Bangkok Airways to make Koh Samui its third port of call in Thailand.
SilkAir will offer three flights a week from Singapore to Koh Samui under a code share with Bangkok Airways. The regional wing of Singapore Airlines will begin offering three flights a week from the city-state to Koh Samui on Sept 27, using Airbus A319s that feature both business and economy class cabins.
Already serving Phuket and Chiang Mai from its Changi airport hub, SilkAir is moving to tap new traffic opportunities on Thailand’s second-largest island, which is especially popular among Westerners. SilkAir will cooperate with Bangkok Airways, the privately owned airline that dominates traffic Koh Samui’s air traffic, by establishing a code-share partnership on SilkAir-operated flights. The arrangement will include Bangkok Airways’ existing daily flights between Koh Samui and Singapore.
Bangkok Airways also code shares on SilkAir’s Singapore-Chiang Mai and Singapore-Phuket routes. As well, SilkAir will code share on Bangkok Airways’ Bangkok-Koh Samui, Koh Samui-Phuket and Chiang Mai-Koh Samui corridors.
Peter Wiesner, Bangkok Airways’ senior vice-president for network management, said the arrangement for the Singapore-Koh Samui route would allow it to drive more traffic. “We plan to capture traffic from Singapore as well as through traffic from long-haul routes connecting from major aviation hubs such as Singapore’s Changi airport.,” he said.
SilkAir is Bangkok Airways’ latest code-share partner after Thai Airways International, EVA Air, Etihad, Air Berlin, Air France and KLM.
(Source Bangkok Post)