INDONESIA AirAsia (IAA) will launch four weekly Surabaya-Johor Bahru flights on October 19, making the new route the airline’s fourth international service out of its Surabaya hub after Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Bangkok.

Speaking to the media in Surabaya yesterday, IAA president director, Dharmadi, said: “Surabaya-Johor Bahru provides a relatively lower-cost option for businessmen in East Java (travelling) to Singapore overland from Malaysia.”

Besides offering an alternative to the heavy air traffic between Indonesian cities and Singapore, IAA hopes to target leisure travellers who would prefer spending less on airfares.

“We are not only targeting the workers’ market, but also business and leisure travellers,” Dharmadi added.

IAA aims to reach an 80 per cent load factor on the Surabaya-Johor Bahru sector within six months of operation, Dharmadi revealed.

In the mean time, the airline also plans to increase its Surabaya-Bangkok service from four times a week to daily, and Surabaya-Penang flights from thrice-weekly to four times weekly.