Budget carrier operating under the wing of Qantas Airways Ltd., JetStar On Thursday announced that it would be adding as many as 700,000 new seats to its existing network of domestic routes by July of 2010, in the hopes of boosting its market share which currently stands at 18%.

The move is being viewed as one the airline's largest expansions since its started operations in 2004, and will add nearly 7% capacity to its network. JetStar is looking to lure new "price conscious travelers" away from the arch rivals Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd. and Singapore Airlines Ltd.'s Tiger Airways, while also offering Qantas customers a cheaper alternative to fly domestic.

Under the new service, flights to Newcastle, Townsville and Launceston will also be increased, which are scheduled to commence between March and July and, according to Jetstar Chief Executive Bruce Buchanan, are a "direct response to continued strong consumer demand". In addition, the budget airline is also all set to take delivery of 9 new A320 airplanes over the coming year till July.

"Putting it into perspective, this new capacity we will introduce next year equates to close to half the amount of capacity that we launched across our Australian ports in 2004", Mr. Buchanan said.