AMSTERDAM, May 18 — Australia's budget carrier Tigerair tops a new list of the world's cheapest airlines, one that's dominated by carriers from Asia and the Middle East. 

Number crunchers over at Rome2Rio, a transportation and travel search engine, compiled a data-based ranking that averages the price per kilometer of travelling on airlines around the world. 

At less than a penny a kilometer — US$0.06 (RM0.20) — Tigerair emerged the most affordable airline overall, followed by Malaysia's AirAsia X and Indonesia AirAsia. 

For the report, analysts looked at economy-class fares displayed on their site over January and February of this year, totaling 1.5 million price points. 

Authors attribute Tigerair's bargain-basement prices to the large distances covered by the budget airline. 

They also note that the type of aircraft, routes flown, local salary and fuel costs, ancillary revenue and airport landing fees, all play significant roles in determining the cost per kilometer.  

Notably, the top 50 list is conspicuously void of airlines from North America. 

Here are the top 10 cheapest airlines in the world, according to the Melbourne-based Rome2Rio: 

1. Tigerair  2. AirAsia X 3. Indonesia AirAsia  4. Jetstar  5. Etihad  6. Citilink Indonesia  7. WOW Air  8. Oman Air  9. Lion Mentari Airlines  10. Ryanair — AFP-Relaxnews