Budget airline Peach Aviation Ltd. is looking to start a service next year that will link Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, with a city in Southeast Asia, said Chief Executive Officer Shinichi Inoue.

The low-cost carrier, partly owned by All Nippon Airways Co., expects to log its first net profit in the year ending March 31 since inaugurating operations at Osaka's Kansai International Airport in March 2012, Inoue said in an interview Thursday.

"We would like to prove as early as possible that an LCC can be a viable business," Inoue said confidently despite the threat of high fuel prices.

"We will strengthen our network in Asia by turning Naha into a hub airport," he said, declining to name the country involved in the new route. He hinted, however, that he would like a destination within four hours of Naha. That would bring cities in Vietnam and Thailand into view.

"We can still tap potential demand for LCCs in Japan and Asia," Inoue said, adding that the airline plans to increase routes and flights in Japan.

The carrier increased revenues in 2013 by opening new routes, such as one linking Naha to Taipei.

From April to November, around 84 percent of the seats were filled, up from around 78 percent in the same period last year, thanks to a reduction in cancellations aided by an expanded fleet.