Cambodia to Launch National Airline

Photo: Sok An (R) signed an agreement the Indonesian firm.

Nov 23, 2007

Cambodia to launch national airline: officials

PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIA is to launch a national airline as tourism booms giving it a flag carrier for the first time since a previous effort folded in 2001, officials said on Friday.
The impoverished nation's government will ally with two private Indonesian firms, which will provide all the investment and absorb any losses that may arise, Deputy Prime Minister Sok An said at a signing ceremony.
'It's a great day ... a day for which we have waited a very long time,' Mr Sok An said as he celebrated the deal for the as yet unnamed airline.
The government hopes to start flights within six months to take advantage of the booming tourism sector and will have a 51 per cent stake in the venture, Mr Sok An said.
The two firms, Rajawali Group and Ancora International, will get 70 per cent of the carrier's eventual profits, the official said.
'A reliable and dependable flag carrier that is also the pride of the country is the key to strong and sustainable economic growth,' said Rajawali Group chairman Peter Sondakh.
Some 1.7 million visitors came to Cambodia in 2006 with the country set to surpass that total this year, according to tourism officials.
A national carrier would encourage visitors to stay longer in Cambodia, travel industry officials have said.
Extra domestic air routes would open up Cambodia's more remote locations and encourage travellers to seek sights beyond the famed Angkor temples in north-west Cambodia, its most popular tourist draw, they have said.
The last national carrier, Royal Air Cambodge, folded in 2001 after running up losses of US$30 million (S$43 million).
Several other domestic airlines have failed since then, giving at least 10 foreign carriers free reign to profit from growing tourist numbers. -- AFP