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flee

AirAsia plans to be the first choice for travellers

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By B.K. SIDHU

 

TEN years on after taking a chance to start a low cost airline, Tan Sri Tony Fernandes is sitting in a hotel room in the Westin Hotel in Busan, South Korea just after launching the Tokyo-Busan air sector that will be operated by his 49%-owned unit AirAsia Japan.

 

In a quiet surrounding, in contrast to his public persona and frenetic business empire, he gives an quick secession of interviews like he has done many times before.

 

For a man who is setting up affiliates across Asia, jet-setting to exotic destinations where the Formula 1 races are held and also appearing virtually every weekend on television while watching his Queens Park Rangers play, he is remarkably full of energy.

 

It was the same energy he had when he built AirAsia from two planes to 115 aircraft today, all along never wavering on the positiveness of his ebullient character. He is a man whose confidence never seems to fade.

 

In fact, he is now more energised and determined as he has delegated the rigmarole of day to day operations of the airline that he and his partner Datuk Kamarudin Mernanun built.

 

But it's never been easy street for Fernandes who has had to battle to get to where he is today, In recent times, he had to contend with issues like the recent selldown of AirAsia shares by the Employees Provident Fund where he and Kamarudin became the net buyers, the criticisms over his decision to move to Jakarta after a decade of building AirAsia from Kuala Lumpur, and the emerging competition that is more intense compared with a decade ago.

 

But his biggest competitor is himself because he was the one that taught and showed others that the low cost airline model works in Asia. He drew up the blueprint for a low cost carrier in Asia and others are now reverse engineering his methods and are using the formula to compete with AirAsia.

Be it Jetstar, Scoot, Nok Air, or Lion Air, they are after the same market that AirAsia is vying for over the next decade of growth.

 

Competition is no longer in-country but across all geographies because Fernandes has moved AirAsia across new frontiers after branching out his empire from Malaysia to parts of Asean.

 

His gameplan now is to make AirAsia a truly Asian airline. Big markets such as India and China offer vast potential but the stakes are high. But true to his nature, Fernandes is dead set on making it work though it may take him a better part of the next decade to realise his vision.

 

Full article here: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/11/3/business/12263921&sec=business

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it is not my 1st choice, but it is my only choice fly to sarawak ...

 

Why? sometimes you can get much more cheaper on MH... why is the only choice?

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Ditched AirAsia long time ago when they started to charge check-In fee. MAS does offer cheap tickets most of the time, for domestic that is. Prefer FY, CX and 3K these days.

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it is not my 1st choice, but it is my only choice fly to sarawak ...
Why? sometimes you can get much more cheaper on MH... why is the only choice?

I'm guessing it has something to do with existence of some 'managers' in Malaysia who are completely sold on the LCC=cheapest fallacy but fail to do their homework before dishing out office memos about travel expenses :)

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Air Asia is definitely not my first choice. It is usually my last choice...

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Air Asia will never be my first choice, not now and I reckon not in the foreseeable future.

 

I only travel on LCC if the journey is less than 4 hours. Beyond that I will always look out for full service carrier. In my latest booking, have chosen to fly with Royal Brunei even if they are slightly more expensive and needs to stop at BWN.

 

For domestic travel in Malaysia, I agreed, fares which are bought closer to your travel time with air Asia is hardly cheap, better off flying with MH. Sometimes the fare difference isn't that much, then AK will obviously failed to be the first choice. Checked a few months ago, flying to HAN, AK seemed to be more expensive than MH! As to how it still carries the tagline Low Cost Carrier, you really need to read between the lines. I have friends who are silly enough to believe Air Asia always offer them the best of deals and never bother to do more research about what other airline offers, until I showed them what BI, SQ, EK and MH offered.. Seems like an eye opener to them.

 

If there's any LCC which I prefer, it won't be Air Asia either. Prefer Jetstar and Virgin better. I have flown with V Australia, though they are full service carrier. My impression is that they are not a full service carrier nor a low cost carrier despite being associated with a low cost carrier, formerly Virgin Blue. If Air Asia needs to be my first choice, they need to be more consistent and honest with their fares and offers.

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Air Asia will never be my first choice, not now and I reckon not in the foreseeable future.

 

I only travel on LCC if the journey is less than 4 hours. Beyond that I will always look out for full service carrier. In my latest booking, have chosen to fly with Royal Brunei even if they are slightly more expensive and needs to stop at BWN.

 

For domestic travel in Malaysia, I agreed, fares which are bought closer to your travel time with air Asia is hardly cheap, better off flying with MH. Sometimes the fare difference isn't that much, then AK will obviously failed to be the first choice. Checked a few months ago, flying to HAN, AK seemed to be more expensive than MH! As to how it still carries the tagline Low Cost Carrier, you really need to read between the lines. I have friends who are silly enough to believe Air Asia always offer them the best of deals and never bother to do more research about what other airline offers, until I showed them what BI, SQ, EK and MH offered.. Seems like an eye opener to them.

 

If there's any LCC which I prefer, it won't be Air Asia either. Prefer Jetstar and Virgin better. I have flown with V Australia, though they are full service carrier. My impression is that they are not a full service carrier nor a low cost carrier despite being associated with a low cost carrier, formerly Virgin Blue. If Air Asia needs to be my first choice, they need to be more consistent and honest with their fares and offers.

 

I have a lot of friend like that, they all have a mindset that Air asia is a low cost airline, and they din't bother to look at other option...and they argue that without purchasing seat, food, baggage, the fare are cheaper then other airline...

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Air Asia will never be my first choice, not now and I reckon not in the foreseeable future.

 

I only travel on LCC if the journey is less than 4 hours. Beyond that I will always look out for full service carrier. In my latest booking, have chosen to fly with Royal Brunei even if they are slightly more expensive and needs to stop at BWN.

 

For domestic travel in Malaysia, I agreed, fares which are bought closer to your travel time with air Asia is hardly cheap, better off flying with MH. Sometimes the fare difference isn't that much, then AK will obviously failed to be the first choice. Checked a few months ago, flying to HAN, AK seemed to be more expensive than MH! As to how it still carries the tagline Low Cost Carrier, you really need to read between the lines. I have friends who are silly enough to believe Air Asia always offer them the best of deals and never bother to do more research about what other airline offers, until I showed them what BI, SQ, EK and MH offered.. Seems like an eye opener to them.

 

If there's any LCC which I prefer, it won't be Air Asia either. Prefer Jetstar and Virgin better. I have flown with V Australia, though they are full service carrier. My impression is that they are not a full service carrier nor a low cost carrier despite being associated with a low cost carrier, formerly Virgin Blue. If Air Asia needs to be my first choice, they need to be more consistent and honest with their fares and offers.

"LIKE"....My situation is same as you...

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Less ppl flying Airasia means less competition for promo tix. Great for poor me who go on trips every month. :D

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...and they argue that without purchasing seat, food, baggage, the fare are cheaper then other airline...

And they do have a valid argument your friends

If I'm not too particular about where I am seated in the plane, I do not need a meal during the time I'm flying, I do not have baggage to send in and the fare is 'cheaper' - then it's fair game

One other critical choice criteria I guess would be how well the airline's schedule fit into one's schedule

 

But the thing is, many people just can't be bothered to embark upon this process of comparison, which admittedly is quite tedious - and the 'Low Cost' tagline affords some measure of perceived assurance on it being cheap

It need to be emphasized, the Low COST refers to how much it costs the airline to get you from point A to point B, not necessarily how much you need to pay them for doing so :D

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If it's cheap, I'll take them. Set my expectations as such and grin and bear it.

 

They're useful from time to time, and dare i say it, must survive - because competition is good for all of us.

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No choice for some exclusive direct routes only available from KL. Last choice if alternative is available, ... except 'free' seats, which is not free anymore, even after factoring in the various taxes

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With such lousy and annoying technique to increase their ancillary income by allowing only one pathetic piece of luggage / bag on board, I would always compare its fare with other airlines before considering to fly with them.

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Beware , flying air Asia has many repercussions for me ..at least ... Of which the biggest is the many hours of wasted time healing the trauma of flying it to begin with .

 

Air asia is not value for money , it's something I would avoid unless no choice at all.

 

It would be my last choice , even after tiger , jet star in Asia

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I will only fly Air Asia if no other airlines fly into that particular destinations. Convenience and get there quick, simple as that. In terms of price, there is not much difference in Air Asia prices compared to other airlines if you catch them in time. With the same price, it is not rocket science which one to choose. What I need is the bottom line prices where everything is provided not having to pay this and pay that just to fly comfortably. Having said that, my few experiences with Air Asia left a bitter taste in mouth. Maybe I wasn't that lucky....Who knows.

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I think that's how AirAsia has remained profitable. The cast majority of people are "stupid" travellers who don't do any research and automatically assume that they are the cheapest. They don't even consider the small price difference for so much more (including peace of mind) for flying a FSC.

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This year so far I spent 3 weekends in Aust, at RM600 a pop with D7. Dang, how stoopid of me! :)

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This year so far I spent 3 weekends in Aust, at RM600 a pop with D7. Dang, how stoopid of me! :)

I went to BKK for the Malaysian Wings anniversary with FD/AK and the damage was less than RM 200 return. I do lurve being stooopid! :D

Edited by flee

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Well I just woke up hoping to get a ticket for vacation for myself next year, and I didn't get any. Maybe I am just too bored with what's on offer. :D

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Unlike privilege few, majority of stoopid people don’t have corporate, gomen or someone else to pay for their air ticket. A 'small' saving e.g. RM200 could buy a meal far superior than EY meal served on board, a night of hotel room or spend on shopping.

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This year so far I spent 3 weekends in Aust, at RM600 a pop with D7. Dang, how stoopid of me! :)

 

How many months ago did you book that? Try book it closer t the time of travel and outside of sales period.

 

Unlike privilege few, majority of stoopid people don’t have corporate, gomen or someone else to pay for their air ticket. A 'small' saving e.g. RM200 could buy a meal far superior than EY meal served on board, a night of hotel room or spend on shopping.

 

This is too generalised as a statement. I hope I am a privileged few but I am not. Thee are times that EK are cheaper or similar in price compared to D7, who would you rather fly with?

Edited by S V Choong

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