Singapore Airlines’ Scoot has joined the heated competition among budget carriers in Korea, announcing Tuesday that it would start the first low-cost services connecting Incheon and Singapore from June 12.

Even though the company didn’t disclose its detailed pricing policy, the round-trip fares to Singapore were expected to be as much as 40 percent cheaper than other full-service carriers.

“Our exceptional value airfares offer the people of Korea even more reasons to visit Taiwan, Singapore or any of the hundreds of destinations accessible beyond,” said Scoot CEO Campbell Wilson at a press conference in Seoul on Tuesday.

Scoot, which specializes in mid- and long-haul routes, will also allow travelers to fly to more destinations such as Bangkok, Sydney and the Gold Coast in Australia via Singapore.

It is the first low-cost airline to announce a new long-haul route in Korea since the Malaysia-based AirAsia X opened the route to Melbourne, Australia, in 2011.

Scoot will operate flights three days a week ― every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. It will charge for carry-on luggage and in-flight meals.

With the entry of Scoot, competition among low-budget carriers in Korea is expected to get fiercer.

Aside from four Korean carriers, six foreign-based companies ― Japan’s Peach Aviation, AirAsia Japan and StarFlyer, Philippines’ Cebu Pacific Air and Zest Airways and Malaysia’s AirAsia X ― are offering services here currently.

Even though they are still small players in the nation’s total aviation market, their passenger numbers recently surged more than 50 percent from 780,543 in 2011 to 1.18 million last year.

Adding to the concerns of Korean carriers, including full-service companies, most of them are low-cost units of airline giants with extensive global networks.

Currently, Jetstar Japan is finalizing its entry plan to Korea this year after its due diligence was recently completed, while other companies are considering expanding existing routes and flights.

“Korea is an attractive market where the number of aviation passengers is surging every year despite the economic slowdown. More foreign companies are expected to join the race to heat up the market,” said an official of a Korean carrier, declining to be named.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)