AirAsia is among the airlines that Lufthansa hopes to model its planned low-cost carrier (LCC) after, as it seeks to expand into new regions and add destinations to an extensive network.

The German airline see the LLC service as a segment that is inherent with good business potential, particularly, in long-haul leisure tourism.

"AirAsia is an interesting prototype. As is the case with many airlines, Lufthansa’s challenge is to keep costs as low as possible," said Juergen Siebenrock, the New York-based Vice President (Americas) of Lufthansa.

He told Bernama this on the sidelines of the airlines' annual media conference here on Friday.

Senior representatives of other airlines affiliated with the Lufthansa Group such as Austrian Airline, Swiss and Brussels Airline, were also present.

Siebenrock said labour costs in Germany was very high alongside airport fees and fuel costs, as well as other related charges.

"One can always learn from others. It would be interesting to know how the LLCs manage their cost structure amid such challenges," he added.

He said the North American market was already congested for new LLC entrants who need to look at new markets and regions to tap potential.

"Opportunities lie in the leisure segment and we see promise in markets such as ASEAN, India and China.

"The growing middle class of these countries and region have been flying to transcontinental destinations. Like the United States, Europe is also a very popular destination for this constituency of travelers.

"ASEAN will be an interesting region for us. Every time a community breaks down trade barriers and eliminates other obstacles in the way of free trade, we see a lot of business developing for the airline industry," Siebenrock said.