AirAsia set to rattle market with low-cost, long-haul routes
21 Apr 2007
London: Tony Fernandes, chief executive of AirAsia, leading Asian low cost airline, has said that he is planning return fares for routes between Europe and Malaysia at a cost 50 to 60 per cent below the lowest fares offered by other airlines, when he launches the world's first low cost long-haul scheduled carrier.
The fares, from the pioneering venture, are likely to be in the range of £130 to £170. Fernandes revealed some plans of his pioneering venture in an interview with FT.
The Malaysian capital based airline, Fernandes said, would develop a network of medium and long-haul routes to China, India, the Middle East, Australia, Japan, Korea and Europe including London Stansted, Europe's biggest centre for low cost operations.
According to Fernandes, the duration of flights would be in the range of four to 12 hours with an average of around 7 hours. "Medium-haul in Asia is the sweet spot," he said.
The launch route is expected to be to Australia, while Europe will follow within six months.