Royal Brunei Airlines is eyeing network opportunities in North Asia and India, as it looks to “key regions” for future network growth.
Airline commercial chief Joshua Law says: “We are currently in a situation where we are evaluating a few key regions…predominantly on the North Asia side, all the way to the Indian subcontinent.”
Law was speaking to FlightGlobal at the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) assembly of presidents in Brunei.
He notes that travel demand out of India to the Southeast Asia region has been strong since the easing of pandemic restrictions more than a year ago.
The airline made its return to India – after a 20-year hiatus – on 5 November, launching thrice-weekly flights from Brunei to Chennai. Royal Brunei previously operated to Kolkata but exited the India market in 2004.
On China, Royal Brunei is seeing a mixed demand picture. The national carrier in late-October suspended its twice-weekly flights to Beijing’s Daxing airport, citing “market conditions”. FlightGlobal understands that demand has been slower to recover than expected, since Mainland China’s reopening.
Still, Law notes that with the recent release of the Chinese public holidays for 2025, the number of flight searches on Chinese booking sites have surged. This is a “hopeful” sign that demand will continue to recover in the new year.
Separately, Law says the airline is on schedule to take delivery of the first of four new Boeing 787-9s in 2028.
The airline ordered the new 787s - its first new aircraft order in about a decade - at the Singapore air show this year. The new aircraft will replace its fleet of five 787-8s.
Law says the 787 replacement “was something we had always been looking at”, adding that the airline was looking at an aircraft that could serve its long-haul routes to London and the Middle East, as well as to Melbourne in Australia.
“We said it’s time to look into it, otherwise…[there is the possibility that the] timeline…will keep dragging further and further,” says Law.
