KOTA KINABALU, Nov 1 -- In future, Sabah may see AirAsia X, the long-haul franchise of AirAsia, commencing its service from the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA), according to an AirAsia top official.
AirAsia Bhd chairman Datuk Aziz Bakar has not denied this possibility but declined to elaborate on those destinations they were eyeing.
While not specifying the time period to achieve this, he said: "I am sure AirAsia X will look into it.
"But right now, the airline probably does not have sufficient aircrafts (to accomodate the flights)," he told reporters at the launch of the Kota Kinabalu-Singapore route at Terminal 2 of KKIA here Saturday.
Aziz was asked if the airline was interested in introducing long-haul services from KKIA, such as Australian destinations. AirAsia X's inaugural flight was on Nov 2, last year to Gold Coast, Australia.
The airline currently operates with just one A330-300, which undertakes four return flights a week between Kuala Lumpur and Gold Coast, as well as China's Guangzhou.
The long-haul budget airline is 48 per cent owned by Aero Ventures (a venture of AirAsia's chief executive Datuk Tony Fernandes and several of his business associates), followed by 16 per cent by Virgin Group and 16 per cent owned by AirAsia.
AirAsia X has also secured rights to land in China, Korea and West Asia and future destinations, include those in India, the Middle East and Europe.
AirAsia X is expected to launch its second Australian destination which is Perth Airport tomorrow, with six flights a week between the two cities, and services to Melbourne expected from Nov 12.
It is also expected to fly to Britain in the first quarter of 2009.
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