Lion Air to expand Batam hub. Can it emerge as an alternative to nearby Singapore Changi?

Lion Air Group is planning further expansion at its Batam hub with several new domestic routes by early 2014 followed by the launch of international services by the end of 2014. Flights to Bangkok, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Jeddah are part of an ambitious plan by Lion to position Batam as its major Indonesian hub for domestic to international connections.

Batam, an Indonesian island located close to Singapore, has quietly emerged as a Lion domestic hub with 13 routes and a large volume of transit passengers. Batam is currently the ninth largest hub or base for Lion but the island's Hang Nadim Airport, which will also host a new Lion maintenance base, could become the group's largest transit hub.

Lion is keen to position Batam as an alternative transit point to congested Jakarta. The group is also planning to acquire a ferry to shuttle passengers between Batam and Singapore, avoiding the congestion and higher cost of Changi Airport.