Establishment
AirAsia was established in 1993 and commenced operations on 18 November 1996. It was originally founded by a government-owned conglomerate DRB-Hicom. On 2 December 2001, the heavily-indebted airline was purchased by former Time Warner executive Tony Fernandes's company Tune Air Sdn Bhd for the token sum of one ringgit. This was after great deliberation as the initial offer was fifty sen. Fernandes proceeded to engineer a remarkable turnaround, turning a profit in 2002 and launching new routes from its hub in Kuala Lumpur International Airport at breakneck speed, undercutting former monopoly operator Malaysia Airlines with promotional fares as low as RM1 (US$0.27).Second hub
In 2003, AirAsia opened a second hub at Senai International Airport in Johor Bahru near Singapore and launched its first international flight to Bangkok. AirAsia has since started a Thai subsidiary, added Singapore itself to the destination list, and commenced flights to Indonesia. Flights to Macau started in June 2004, while flights to Mainland China (Xiamen) and the Philippines (Manila) started in April 2005. Flights to Vietnam and Cambodia followed later in 2005 and to Brunei and Myanmar in 2006, the latter by Thai AirAsia.Expansion Abroad
On August 2006, AirAsia took over Malaysia Airlines's Rural Air Service routes in Sabah and Sarawak, operating under the FlyAsianXpress brand, the routes were subsequently returned back to MASwings a year later citing commercial reasons. AirAsia's CEO Tony Fernandes subsequently unveiled a five-year plan to further enhance its presence in Asia. In the plan, AirAsia will strengthen and enhance its route network by connecting all the existing cities in the region and expanding further into Indochina, Indonesia, Southern China (Kun Ming, Xiamen, Shenzen) and India. The airline will focus on developing its hubs in Bangkok and Jakarta through its sister companies, Thai AirAsia and Indonesia AirAsia. Hence, with increase frequency and addition of new routes, AirAsia expects passenger volume to hit 18 million by end-2007.F1 partnership and AirAsia X
On 5 April 2007, AirAsia announced a three-year partnership with the British Formula One team AT&T Williams. The airline brand is displayed on the helmets of Nico Rosberg and Alexander Wurz, and on the bargeboards and nose of the cars.AirAsia X was launched the same year as a separate but affiliated entity of AirAsia. Its first route was Gold Coast, Australia. AirAsia X has grown tremendously and currently serves 15 international cities.
Route expansion
On 27 September 2008, has on its list 106 new routes to be added to its current list of 60 over the next few years. The number of old routes discontinued has not been publicly disclosed.Operations
AirAsia operates with the world’s lowest unit cost of US$0.023/ASK and a passenger break-even load factor of 52%. It has hedged 100% of its fuel requirements for the next three years, achieves an aircraft turnaround time of 25 minutes, has a crew productivity level that is triple that of Malaysia Airlines and achieves an average aircraft utilisation rate of 13 hours a day.All scheduled AirAsia departures out of Kuala Lumpur International Airport are operated via the Low Cost Carrier Terminall. AirAsia abolished fuel surcharges on November 2008.
The airline and disabled passengers
Disabled passengers from BEAT 'The Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group' protested against the airline for its refusal to fly passengers who were completely immobile. The protesters, headed by the group's co-ordinator Christine Lee, asserted that the disabled were discriminated against when booking AirAsia tickets online, where an icon would appear on the website asking if the ticket purchaser would require “special assistance”. According to Lee, the passenger clicked 'yes', then they would not be able to proceed with the booking. Lee also said that AirAsia charged RM12 for renting out a wheelchair, which a passenger could use to go from the ticketing counter to the departure hall. When interviewed by Malaysia's Daily Express, AirAsia Chief Executive Officer Datuk Tony Fernandes denied that the low cost airline turned away wheelchair using passengers.
He said, the airline's ground staff take the disabled to the aircraft and physically carry them onboard, "We do not even charge for this service and there is certainly no discrimination against them," he claimed. AirAsia's 'Service Fees' post a charge of RM12 Malaysian Ringgit for wheelchair service fees. Several consumerist groups have rallied behind the disabled and wheelchair-using travellers, lobbying to bring about changes in Malaysia's anti-discrimination legislation; among them the 'Fly Air Asia? Not Me' website utilizes viral advertising to pressure legislators. In 2007 the activist group used AirAsia's sponsorship of the Williams Formula One Team and the fact that team owner Sir Frank Williams uses a wheelchair to garner public attention and apply pressure upon legislators and the carrier. It is unclear whether such groups have had any measure of success. AirAsia has provided two ambulifts, however, one in its LCC Terminal hub at Kuala Lumpur and another in its Kota Kinabalu hub. A year after the BEAT protest these remain the two hubs that are equipped - while the airline's December 2007 Annual Report affirms that AirAsia flies over 100 routes across 11 countries in Asia and states, 'AirAsia has a firm commitment with a purchase order for 225 Airbus A320 aircraft.' It does not stipulate whether it has any plans to expand access for disabled passengers beyond the two domestic ambulifts.
Rights-based advocate for an inclusive and accessible Malaysia and former assistant coordinator of BEAT, Peter Tan writes from The Digital Awakening, 'Despite assurances by AirAsia CEO Datuk Tony Fernandes on 20 July and again on 4 August this year [2007] that disabled passengers will be treated with dignity, the airlines is still subjecting disabled passengers to discriminatory policies.' after he was required to sign an indemnity releasing AirAsia from all liabilities before being allowed to board the aircraft at Kota Kinabalu International Airport's Terminal 2, agreeing to surrender rights to hold AirAsia liable for damages, injuries or other claims.
Fees
The airline claims 'No Admin Fee', but has introduced a number of fees for services that are free on many airlines. Its fees and charges are: seating fee (charged for pre-selecting seats, higher for 'hot seats' near the front or exits, with priority boarding), 'convenience fee' (a per passenger, per flight charge imposed for all means of payment other than direct debit (only available for customers of certain Malaysian banks)), marked-up airport tax charges, a charge for in-flight entertainment including use of seat-back video, a checked luggage fee (charged by weight, not by piece, with excess baggage charges payable for carrying baggage exceeding 15 kg, if not pre-booked), charges for food, for use of a wheelchair and for amenity kit (pillow, blanket and eyeshade).Subsidiaries
Thai AirAsia
Main article: Thai AirAsia
Thai AirAsia (Thai: ไทยแอร์เอเชีย) was established on 8 December 2003 as joint venture with Shin Corporation. Flight operations commenced on 13 January 2004 from its base in Don Mueang International Airport. Since 25 September 2006, the airline is based at the new Suvarnabhumi Airport.Indonesia AirAsia
Main article: Indonesia AirAsia
AirAsia (Indonesian: Maskapai AirAsia) acquired the then defunct Awair in 2004 with a 49% stake in the airline. Awair commenced services on behalf of AirAsia in December 2004; full rebranding to Indonesia AirAsia was completed on 1 December 2005. The airline is based at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport with a secondary hub at Denpasar (Bali) Airport.VietJet AirAsia
Main article: VietJet AirAsia
On February 2010, AirAsia announced that it has purchased a 30% stake in VietJet and changed the name to VietJet AirAsia. VietJet AirAsia is based in Hanoi, and plans to fly to Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang.
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