Budget Terminal and Budget Airlines

Excerpt from newspaper:LOW-COST carriers Jetstar Asia and Valuair have given up plans to move to Changi's Budget Terminal, swayed by passengers who voted overwhelmingly in favour of Terminal 1, with its good shopping, nice carpets and aerobridges.

People are so afraid of uncertainty. Thru my experience of flying budget airlines, budget airline's non-assigned seating works to our advantage. If u queue early, u can get the best seats - near the exits, with the most leg space.. but of cos, such privileges come with responsibility, the air stewardess will tell u what to do in case of emergency. U r supposed to open the door etc so that pple can evacuate. But hey, that also means u can escape first (if *touch wood* emergencies happen). Of cos, u may argue that u hv elderly / children and u cant move as fast as the youngsters to grab the seats, NO PROBLEMO... the airline crew will give priority seating to elderly and those with children. Even if u r pregnant, u and ur husband can also board first (provided u look obviously pregnant).. i doubt anyone would complain abt that.

Next, budget terminal. It's not that bad. We can self check- in customs the 'MRT way' - scan ur passport, gate opens, cross, scan ur thumbprint, open another gate, cross and voila! done. Abit slower than our MRT 'touch-n-go' that's all. There r some shops n cafe inside with free internet. The supposely non-sheltered path to the aircraft ? Its so short! Just that few tiny steps, the length of a zebra crossing... u hv to climb up the stairs to the aircraft though. But what's a short flight of stairs? If u r that frail, i am sure there's bound to be a good samaritan nearby, who would help u. Just make sure ur handcarry luggage isnt too heavy.

My complaint is : WHERE ARE THE SAVINGS? Tigerairways flies via budget terminal, yet I noted that my tax + admin fees are higher than airlines using Terminal 1/Terminal 2. Here's a sample of the admin charges + taxes for different airlines:
base on flights fm SG to BKK round trip, per person (exclu ticket fare)
Tigerairways - S$92
SQ - $101
Cathay Pacific - S$71
Swissair - $69
Jetstarasia - S$93
AirAsia - $84
ThaiAirways - S$85
Garuda - $50

Ok, so Tigerairways is not the most expensive, but how can its taxes / admin fees be higher than a full fledge airline or any other airline that operates at the higher cost Terminal 1 / Terminal 2 of Changi Airport?Another point to note: Jetstarasia and Airasia taxes / admin Airasia charges are pretty high too, more expensive than full service Cathay pacific, Garuda and Swissair airlines etc..

Yes, the ticket prices for budget airlines are lower than full service airlines. But u are paying peanuts for no-frills service on board, hence the low fare. The downside is, u pay more or unjustified prices thru taxes / admin fees. Also, budget airlines can cost much more than normal airlines if u book the tickets near to ur departure date . If u hv less than a month to ur travel date, its best u scour normal airlines for deals. The airticket prices of budget airlines would hv risen to ridiculous levels by then.