AirAsia Offers Free Seats To Singapore

Asia's largest low-cost airline, AirAsia, is launching a free seat campaign to celebrate its newly added frequencies and services to Singapore from East and West Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia.

"We are thrilled to be adding frequencies and introducing new services to Singapore.Giving out free seats to our customers is the perfect way to share the excitement with them," Regional Head of Commercial AirAsia, Kathleen Tan said in a statement Tuesday.

To celebrate, the airline is giving away free seats to Singapore from Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Pekanbaru, Phuket and Bangkok.

Customers only have to bear the fuel surcharges, airport tax and admin cost.

The free seat promotion will commence on Oct 29-Nov 2 for the travel period of Dec 1, 2008-July 31, 2009.

"While other airlines are cutting back on routes, we are expanding and have the ability to service the underserved markets," she added.

This offer is available exclusively via online at AirAsia's website at www.airasia.com.

Menzies Aviation wins AirAsia X contract

Menzies Aviation announced the contract gain of AirAsia X at Perth and Melbourne. The contract includes six flights per week in Perth for cargo handling services and seven flights per week in Melbourne for cargo, passenger and ramp handling services.

Alistair Reid, VP Oceania for Menzies Aviation, said: “AirAsia X have plans for expansion in the region and we look forward to working with all of the AAX team during this three year agreement to ensure that our great service is aligned with their growth aspirations.”

Moses Devanayagam, Director of Operations for Air Asia X said:“AirAsia X is looking forward to be working closely with Menzies in the interest of our valued guests.”

AirAsia To Fly To India From Dec 1

AirAsia Bhd will fly to India beginning Dec 1 with its inaugural flight to Thiruchi in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

AirAsia's group chief executive officer, Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes, said the airline expected a huge growth from Indian tourism to contribute to its new route.

"I anticipate very high load factor for this flight (probably) about 90 percent from the first week, which should probably be the strongest route we have ever done," he told a media briefing here Monday.

He said there was a huge potential for the airline as Thiruchi was the fourth largest city in Tamil Nadu with a population of 1.6 million.

Thiruchi, famous for its fusion architecture and monuments, will be the first destination for AirAsia, before it embarks on nine other locations in India within the next one-and-a-half years.

Other routes include Madras, Cochin, Madurai and Kovaibutore while for AirAsia X, they are looking at New Delhi, Mumbai and Hydrabad.

Tony said to cater to the new routes, the carrier would be spending about RM5 to RM7 million for new infrastructure including the opening of an office in Thiruchi.

Booking for the flight, which will be on a daily basis, will start on Wednesday midnight with offer price starting from RM49 while an average fare price of RM200 for one-way flight.

For India, AirAsia would be using 10 A320 planes.

AirAsia gets nod to fly to India

KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia has finally conquered its “last frontier” with the Indian Government giving the low-cost carrier approval to fly to India.

AirAsia chief executive officer Datuk Tony Fernandes said the airline would start selling tickets to Tiruchi in Tamil Nadu at midnight on Wednesday with the first flight to take off on Dec 1 at 7.40am.

“It will be a daily flight and we are looking at even adding a second flight now as the initial response has been tremendous,” he told reporters Monday during a press conference here.

Special promotional prices for the flight will cost RM49 one-way while the normal ticket price will cost about RM200 one-way.

Fernandes said plans are now in the works for the next one and a half years to fly to many more destinations in India including Madras, Madurai and Kochi with AirAsia.

“AirAsia-X meanwhile will fly to places like New Dehli, Bombay, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Calcutta,” he added.

He said AirAsia would initially invest between RM5mil to RM7mil to set up infrastructure in India and he is confident that it will do well.

“This is an exciting period for us and I’m looking at a high load factor of at least 90% for our first flight,” he said.

Fernandes said it had taken the airline seven years to reach this stage and with India now in its pocket, his mission as CEO is complete.

“I had said then that India would be the last place we need to get to. It is now over to AirAsia-X to grow the business to Japan, South Korea, Europe and the United States.”

Fernandes said he expects a huge growth in Indian tourism in Malaysia and that he is not worried about the global economic slowdown.

“I believe that you have to be innovative. While other airlines are cutting back we are expanding and can take up their slack.

“Maybe some of the population in India cannot afford to fly with us, but there are many more who can and this is the market we are after,” he said.

Fernandes also said, in response to recent Malaysia Airlines (MAS) advertisements, that his battle with MAS is over and that it is time to move on.

Asia's top budget airlines listed

MUMBAI: Online travel magazine Smart Travel Asia has published its list of the top 10 budget airlines in Asia, rating them on ticket prices, schedule reliability, service, route network and access. The list is:

1. AirAsia Berhad: Based in Kuala Lumpur, AirAsia flies domestic and international flights and was the first carrier to introduce low-cost travelling in Asia when it launched in November 1996. It was founded by government-owned DRB-Hicom. When the airline ran into hard times, it was taken over and revived by former Time Warner executive Tony Fernandes. AirAsia is now a public listed company on the Malaysia Stock Exchange and flies to more than 60 destinations. It has 69 aircraft.

2. Jetstar Asia: Based in Singapore, the airline launched in December 2004 with a Hong Kong service. Qantas and Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited jointly own more than 80% of Jetstar Asia. The carrier merged with Valuair in July 2005 and both fly out of Singapore to major cities in South-east Asia. It has 10 aircraft. In the Skytrax Airline of the Year survey for 2006, Jetstar Asia was awarded the best low-cost airline for both the Asia and South-east Asia categories, and last year was ranked as the world's best low-cost airline by SkyTrax.

3. Nok Air: Based in Bangkok, Nok Air was established in February 2004 by Sky Asia Co.

4. Tiger Airways: Offering one of the lowest possible airfares in the market, Tiger Airways first flew from Singapore in September 2004 with two aircraft and three routes in its network. It now flies to more than 25 destinations across nine countries in the Asia-Pacific. it has just ordered 50 new Airbus A320s to grow its fleet to 70 Airbus aircraft.

5. Cebu Pacific: Launched in March 1996, Cebu Pacific pioneered low-coast flying in The Philippines. It started flying internationally in November 2001 and now has services to Bangkok, Guangzhou, Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kaohsiung, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Macau, Osaka, Pusan, Shanghai, Seoul, Singapore and Taipei. It has 21 aircraft.

6.Virgin Blue: Founded by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, Virgin Blue started in August 2000 with just two aircraft as the first low-fare airline in Australia. It is one of the world's most profitable airline groups incorporating Virgin Blue, Pacific Blue (Australia), Pacific Blue (New Zealand), Polynesian Blue and V Australia. Virgin Blue was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in December 2003. With its
international carriers Pacific Blue and Polynesian Blue, it has a fleet of 60 aircraft.

7. Air Deccan: India's first low-cost airline, Air Deccan was launched by Capt GR Gopinath in August 2003, flying from Bangalore to Hubli. It revolutionised air travel in India by offering tickets affordable for most Indians.

8. SpiceJet: Based in New Delhi, SpiceJet started flying in May 2005. Now India's second-largest low-cost airline in terms of market share, it was earlier known as Royal Airways, a reincarnation of ModiLuft.

9. Viva Macau: China's Viva Macau was founded in 2004. With its fleet of 15 Boeing 767 wide-body jetliners, it offers non-stop services to Sydney, Ho Chi Minh and Jakarta.

10. Hong Kong Express: Hong Kong Airlines and Hong Kong Express Airways were established in 2001 and 2004 respectively. The sister airlines provide services between Hong Kong and more than 30 cities in Asia with its fleet of 13 Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

Two-hour delay at most for AirAsia

Low-cost carrier AirAsia has reduced its on-time guarantee from three to two hours.

From Nov 1, AirAsia passengers would receive a RM200 e-voucher if their flight is delayed for more than two hours, said its group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes. “I dare say we are the only airline that is offering this service. It is a clear case of a low-cost carrier doing what premium airlines have not done,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

On how the current recession would affect the carrier, Fernandes said the objective was to improve demand from travellers by giving them incentives to switch from premium airlines to AirAsia. When asked by reporters whether AirAsia would raise fuel surcharges, Fernandes said the airline would not, unless global fuel prices went past US$100 (RM357) per barrel.

“We are looking at getting rid of the fuel surcharge actually. We need to see consistency and stability in the world (oil) prices first,” he said.

AirAsia has been chosen one of the top five most recognised and admired airlines in the Asia-Pacific region, based on a survey in which 3,600 people in 10 countries participated.

It is also the sole low-cost carrier to be listed in the “Top 10 Asia-Pacific Airlines” category in the survey conducted by market research company TNS.

Fernandes expressed his pride in the ranking, calling it “a great achievement” for the airline.

“Over the last seven years, AirAsia has quickly become a household name with flights operating from every Asean country,” he said in a statement yesterday.

The results indicate the success of a brand in understanding and meeting the needs of its clients, said TNS Hong Kong & Singapore client services and insight director Guy Hearn.

AirAsia Further Increases Singapore - KL Capacity

AirAsia is to add one additional frequency to Singapore from its Kuala Lumpur hub. With this new addition, the low cost airline will have a total of seven daily direct flights from Kuala Lumpur – Singapore from 1 December 2008.

To celebrate this new frequency, AirAsia is offering free seats and even waiving the fuel surcharges, so passengers only have to pay for the taxes and admin fee. The promotion is available for booking until 28th October 2008 for travel between 1 December 2008 and 31 July 2009.

Kathleen Tan, Regional Head of Commercial AirAsia, said, "We have been steadily building up our presence in the ‘Lion City’, having only recently announced four additional frequencies from Kuala Lumpur and new daily flights from Kota Kinabalu and Kuching to Singapore in October alone. There are robust demands between the two major cities and tourist gateway in the region. Since its inception last February, we have recorded over 90% load. We are confident that this new additional frequency will do just as well."

Jointly, the AirAsia group will have a total of 101 flights weekly to Singapore from various points in the region which include 49 flights weekly from Kuala Lumpur, 7 flights weekly from Kota Kinabalu, 7 flights weekly from Kuching, 7 flights weekly from Phuket, 28 flights weekly from Bangkokand 3 flights weekly from Pekanbaru, Indonesia.