Asia's first no-frills airline, AirAsia, will launch its Macau hub next month with ultra-low fares to Bangkok, after confirming that it has no plans to include Hong Kong in its network.
The Malaysian-based airline is offering 10,000 promotional one-way tickets to Bangkok for just 149 patacas (HK$145). Regular one-way fares are also low at only 219 patacas.
The carrier plans to operate daily flights on the heavily travelled route, expanding to four flights a day within months.
Donning a red cap and T-shirt while handing out business cards of the same corporate colour, upbeat AirAsia chief executive Tony Fernandes described as 'an achievable goal' his forecast of 10 million passengers flying to and from Macau over the next 10 years.
Mr Fernandes said he had abandoned any negotiations with the Hong Kong Airport Authority, and ruled out using Hong Kong as another AirAsia hub.
'Hong Kong wants a low-fare carrier, but is not prepared for the cost structure,' he said.
The ticketless airline operates more than 100 flights, connecting dozens of cities within Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, as well as international flights from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore and Laos.