Lombok not without challenges, says Jetstar

Lombok not without challenges, says Jetstar
By admin


Being the first carrier to operate direct services between Australia and Lombok is no guarantee of its success on the route, Jetstar has admitted.

The low cost carrier this week commenced non-stop Airbus A320 services between Perth and the Indonesian island which lies 150km to the east of Aussie favourite Bali.

The launch of the new route has been six to nine months in the making and follows the opening of Lombok’s new international airport in 2011, Jetstar head of commercial Nigel Fanning told Travel Today.

He said it was a case of “being in the right place at the right time.”

“We’re the first but that’s not by design,” he said.

Other carriers are expected to swiftly follow suit and commence serving the route, which Fanning sees as a “vote of confidence” in Australian demand for travel to the lesser known destination.

But being first does not offer significant advantages, he said, particularly when faced with challenges such as the lack of awareness of both the destination and the new route, along with the need for suitable infrastructure to support a tourism influx.

Although many travellers may see Lombok as a quieter alternative to Bali, Fanning is confident the new route will not cannibalise traffic to the more established destination. Instead, he predicted the new services would grow the overall market, with significant potential for customers to combine both destinations on one trip.

Meanwhile, the airline will closely monitor the route’s performance to assess if there is room for growth.

“If the route is very strong, we will look at adding frequencies on the days that we don’t serve within a relatively short period of time,” Fanning said.

But servicing demand for Lombok from Sydney and Melbourne will be more problematic, he revealed. The longer distance would require an A330 or, in the future, a Boeing 787 until a newer version of the A320 becomes available.

“Those are very big aircraft, so we’d need to fill a lot of seats,” he said. “This market is there to be grown, so we’ll start with a smaller aircraft then if the demand is there we’ll add a larger aircraft.”

Latest News

  • Destinations
  • News

APT Launches 2025 Asia Adventures

APT has launched its Asia Adventures for 2025, including new luxury holidays in India, Sri Lanka and Japan. Five new tours lead guests to the highlights of India, including a seven-night cruise along the rarely travelled Lower Ganges aboard the Ganges Voyager. Further south, Sri Lanka’s greatest destinations are revealed on a new 15-day Land […]

  • Cruise
  • Luxury
  • News

Seabourn announces Western Kimberley Traditional Owners as Godparents of Seabourn Pursuit

Seabourn has named Western Kimberley Traditional Owners, the Wunambal Gaambera, as Godparents of the ultra-luxury purpose-built Seabourn Pursuit. It is the first cruise line to appoint Traditional Owners as godparents of a ship. Seabourn Pursuit embarks on its inaugural season in the Kimberley region this June. The naming ceremony will take place on Seabourn Pursuit’s […]

  • Luxury

Malolo Island Resort opens brand new Spa

Fiji’s Malolo Island has added another string to its bow – opening its $1.3 million day spa on Thursday, 18th April 2024. (Lead Image: matriarch Rosie Whitton with spa staff) Located at the edge of the resort’s luscious patch of tropical rainforest, the new “Leilani’s Spa” adds another level of elevated experiences to Malolo’s already […]