Exclusive | Will wealthy Hongkongers fly Maldives’ new all-business class airline? Beond sets sights on travellers with cash to splash
- Beond – pronounced ‘beyond’ – is targeting affluent travellers and hopes to fly to Hong Kong next year
- Its Airbus A321 will have only 68 seats, whereas other airlines fit 220 economy seats in the same space
A new luxury airline from the Maldives has set its sights on flying to Hong Kong next year following its expected launch this autumn, the Post has learned.
The new business-class only airline Beond – pronounced “beyond” – is targeting affluent holidaymakers to the Indian Ocean archipelago of 1,192 islands, offering a private jet experience with fully flat beds.
Dubai and Delhi are expected to be the first destinations when it launches later this year, pending regulatory approval.
Speaking to the Post from Dubai, Beond CEO Tero Taskila said the carrier was “very close” to taking off and was about to receive its first aircraft.
The Male-based airline hopes to start a non-stop service to Hong Kong early next year with a flying time of about 6½ hours, subject to securing aircraft and government approvals.
Taskila said it aimed to add three to five destinations in China, including Hong Kong, over the next 12 months depending on how quickly it could introduce new aircraft and complete regulatory negotiations with Beijing.
Airfares high and flight inquiries go up as Hong Kong quarantine rules loosened
“Hong Kong is a significant market. We are a niche carrier in a way that we are operating purely a private jet experience on a full premium class cabin and there are people who appreciate that kind of environment,” he said.
Beond will start with an Airbus A319 with only 44 seats, whereas other airlines fit 150 economy class seats in the same aircraft.
It expects to add the larger Airbus A321 aircraft next year, modified to have 68 seats where other airlines fit 220.
It has not announced fare details between Hong Kong and Male, but said a round-trip ticket from Dubai to Male would be about HK$23,500 (US$3,000).
Taskila anticipated significant demand from Hong Kong, saying the airline hoped to attract passengers seeking “affordable luxury”.
He said the cabin would be configured in rows of two seats, designed and made in Italy, with an Apple iPad Pro and wireless headset replacing the usual screens. Passengers would be offered chauffeured airport transfers.
The new carrier is jointly owned by Maldives-based trading company SIMDI Group and United Arab Emirates’ airline start-up Arabesque, and has ambitions to fly to 52 destinations in five years.
Since Hong Kong lifted all Covid-19 travel restrictions earlier this year, not all airlines that used to fly to the city have resumed operations.
About a fifth of the 72 carriers in the Board of Airline Representatives industry group have yet to resume flights to the city.
Airlines say high costs at Hong Kong airport and labour shortages slow recovery
There are currently no direct flights between Hong Kong and Male.
There were 1.7 million visitors to the Maldives in 2019, according to official data. As of July, there were a total of 1.02 million visitors this year, the top five markets being Russia, India, the United Kingdom, China and Germany.
The Maldives has a plastic problem. One resort gets creative to solve it
Most counts put the current number of island resorts in the Maldives at more than 160. Some hotels are spread out on their own private islands.
Hong Kong Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways flew to Male in 2020, but have not restarted their services there.
Dash for 50,000 cheap Cathay Pacific return tickets leaves Hong Kong users annoyed
Three Chinese carriers currently fly between the mainland and Male, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
According to Jebsen Travel agency, Gulf carriers Emirates and Qatar Airlines fly from Hong Kong to Male via Dubai and Doha, respectively, for about HK$6,400 and HK$7,800 on economy and HK$37,000 for business class.
Singapore Airlines flies from Hong Kong to Male via the city state for HK$7,600 on economy and HK$22,000 for business class.
Taskila said Beond would keep costs down by using the more efficient narrow-body Airbus aircraft, compared with the wide-bodied planes used by other international carriers.
He said the airline would work closely with travel agents to sell packages, rather than directly to passengers.
Lily Agonoy, managing director of Jebsen Travel, expected the new airline to appeal to a niche market.
“This would be for top-end luxury travellers, because the Maldives has many luxury hotels. If you look at the hotel rates, and if you stay for one week, the airfare is nominal compared with the whole stay,” she said.
Recovery of Hong Kong’s aviation industry ‘in sight’; city pursues air service deals
Shukor Yusof, founder of aviation advisory firm Endau Analytics, was sceptical of Beond’s business model, saying many of the wealthiest visitors to the Maldives, including celebrities and royalty, typically flew by private jet.
As for people on a once-in-a-lifetime trip for their honeymoon or anniversary, he wondered whether there would be sufficient numbers to fill regular flight schedules.
It appeared to him that Beond was appealing to the “money-no-object” type of traveller at a time when middle-class travellers were increasingly watching how much they spent, given global economic conditions.
But Taskila remained optimistic that his target group of passengers would show up.
“When you have something you are really looking forward to – a honeymoon, a wedding, an anniversary – you will save for it,” he said.
