WOW!Macao, the second registered airline in China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), is hopefully to take off in November, offering both low-cost and business-class seats at customers' choices. 

According to sources with the ongoing 54th Annual Conference of the Pacific Asia Tourist Association (PATA) Tuesday, WOW!Macao's launch hinges on negotiations with Air Macao for a sub-concession agreement.

Air Macao with a majority of the stake owned by China's state-owned National Aviation Corp., has a 25-year concession for Macao's air transportation starting from 1995. Thus, any new carrier has to compensate Air Macao for the use of its routes.

The Macao SAR government's latest intention to liberalize the aviation market has led to its nod to allow Air Macao to seek sub-concessions with new airline companies.

The core of the partnership talks between Air Macao and WOW!Macao lies in the compromising sum of payment for the sub-concession and the allocation of air routes. After the settlement of these issues, WOW!Macao, registered earlier this year, will need another four to five months making preparations for scheduling flights and booking planes.

Andrew J Pyne, chief executive of WOW!Macao, a former British Airways and Cathay Pacific executive, said that at the initial stage of operation, the company will rent two Boeing aircraft flying from Macao to the Philippines, Japan and South Korea.

Pyne said that the company plans to boast a fleet of 12 Boeing planes in three years with long-distance destinations to America, Australia, India, Africa and Europe.

The company with shareholders from China's Macao, Chinese Hong Kong, and Thailand, Australia and Italy is determined to establish itself as a real choice carrier offering cheap tickets to those who want them and more expensive ones for business class.

Pyne said he believed that Macao has a huge untapped potential with last year's visitor arrivals topping 16 million. However, the Macao International Airport only handled 6 million passengers and 170,000 tons of cargo in 2004, and Macao only has air links to 17 destinations, which are mainly in China's mainland, he said.

Attracted to Macao's huge potential, the Malaysia-based Air Asia opened the first low-cost route linking Macao with Bangkok last July. In March this year, Tiger Airways came in the second to offer low fare to Singapore. Then, Thailand's NOK Airways has expressed its intention to launch its low-cost route linking Macao with Bangkok in November.

(Xinhua News Agency April 20, 2005)