AirAsia, the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline AIRASIA ROCKS INDIA

Jan. 27, 2010 - PRLog -- Kuala Lumpur, 27 January 2010 : AirAsia, the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline is all out to rock and paint the India skies red by extending its footprint with the launch of its direct flights to 6 new routes in the first quarter of 2010. Conquering India skies by storm, the new services to key metro cities include Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi from Kuala Lumpur and from Penang to Chennai.

The Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad sectors will be serviced by AirAsia’s A320 aircrafts, Mumbai and Delhi will be served by its long-haul affiliate, AirAsia X via its new Airbus A330 fleet.

AirAsia is the only airline which connects to the most points in India from Malaysia with a total of 148 flights weekly. This new development is subsequent to AirAsia’s huge success of Tiruchirapplalli (Trichy) followed-by Kolkata, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) recording an average of 80% load factor on all our four existing routes. Thus, these new services will not only complement AirAsia’s aggressive growth in India, but is also feeding more traffic into the country.

To mark the opening for sale of these new routes, AirAsia is offering an unbelievable all-in low fare from as low as RM 199 for the booking period from 27 – 31 January 2010.

AirAsia
Penang – Chennai : RM199.00 (INR 2,999.00)
Travel Period : 28 April – 30 October 2010

Kuala Lumpur – Chennai : RM199.00 (INR 2,999.00)
Travel Period : 17 May – 30 October 2010

Kuala Lumpur – Bangalore RM199.00 (INR 3,999.00)
Travel Period : 20 May – 30 October 2010

Kuala Lumpur – Hyderabad : RM199.00 (INR 3,999.00)
Travel Period : 20 July – 30 October 2010

AirAsia X
Kuala Lumpur to Mumbai  : RM299.00 (INR 4,999.00)
Travel Period : 6 May – 30 October 2010

Kuala Lumpur – Delhi : RM299.00 (INR 4,999.00)
Travel Period : 4 August – 30 October 2010

Promotional seats are limited and available on first-come, first-served basis and made exclusively available online via www.airasia.com and mobile.airasia.com.

Dato’ Sri Tony Fernandes, Group CEO of AirAsia Berhad said “AirAsia has well-arrived in the Indian market to change the very definition of low-cost airlines as the India market is booming. We are proud to position Kuala Lumpur as the gateway to India and at the same time it is India’s gateway to ASEAN. This is also a timely effort in response to our Prime’s Minister’s call on strengthening Malaysia – India bilateral relations. AirAsia will support this by liberalizing the air travel with our undisputed low-fares, opening-up the India market to the world and support businesses and more. To date, we have received an over-whelming response for our existing routes from Kuala Lumpur to India. Our continuous focus on making travel effortless for our guests with our simple, no-frills but convenient and renowned customer service, will stand AirAsia in good stead to compete with the best carriers in this region with the added bonus of lower fares. With the launch of these new routes we expect more guests from India to experience the pleasure of flying with the world’s best low-cost airline.”

AirAsia Regional Head of Commercial, Kathleen Tan said, “India has always been on our network radar and thrilled to create history in the aviation industry today. There are various cultures, linguistics and a myriad of attractions; in short India is such a colourful country which you have to discover. This is a clear indicative of the fact that our expansion plans are fully on track. In fact, this signifies our keen determination in offering our guests truly low fares, unrivalled route network, award-winning products and services and the best-in-class travel value in the industry. We have been receiving a lot of requests from our guests and the travel community in Malaysia and India and we believe that our low fares will help to stimulate and trigger new travel demand, and will help to boost tourism potential from both ends,”

“We are confident that AirAsia’s direct connection serving Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai & Delhi will be able to stimulate new travel demands and further tap markets, especially that of young working adults and families, to travel to Malaysia and thereafter use Kuala Lumpur as a gateway to over 130 routes in Asia, that includes regional ASEAN cities or long-haul sectors serviced by AirAsia X. This translates into a low-cost yet efficient travel experience for guests who benefit from using the LCC Terminal in Kuala Lumpur to connect to destinations as diverse as Australia (Gold Coast, Perth, Melbourne), China (Hangzhou, Tianjin, Chengdu), Taipei, London and Abu Dhabi,” concluded Kathleen.

To add value, AirAsia, under GoHoliday at www.airasiago.com, also offers some great online hotel deals to stretch the dollar where guests can choose their holiday lodgings from over 50,000 hotels, tour packages and ground transfers. Guests are also encouraged to purchase food, baggage, hot seats online to enjoy more discounts and savings through www.airasia.com. AirAsia’s low-cost model, with its ultra low fares and modern fleet of comfortable and spacious aircraft, is undoubtedly an attractive consumer proposition, strong enough to compete with premium airlines.

Kuala Lumpur is an exciting and bustling metropolitan city and the center and symbol of Malaysia's rapid rise as an economic powerhouse. This includes amongst others the modern buildings of the Golden Triangle, massive shopping malls, rocket-like Petronas towers which rise above the city and driverless trains that glide across the city. Yet nestled amidst the high-rises, it still offers a glimpse of its colorful heritage and a taste of traditional, exotic Asia. With a blend of unique cultures, great variety of food and world-renowned attractions such as KLCC Twin Towers, Genting City of Entertainment often frequented by families, Sunway Lagoon water park, the Telaga Tujuh Waterfalls located in the Langkawi islands, Taman Negara National Park, a major wildlife reserve, both Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur are renowned as perfect year-round holiday and business destinations. Guests are also spoilt for choice as there’s more than just Malaysia under the AirAsia network, with flights to exotic destinations across the ASEAN countries and beyond via its hubs in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu), Thailand (Bangkok, Phuket), and Indonesia (Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Bali).  
Flight Schedule KUALA LUMPUR – CHENNAI (commencing 17 May 2010)
Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Kuala Lumpur to Chennai   06:30 / 07:45   AK 243   Daily
Chennai to Kuala Lumpur   08:25 / 14:40   AK 244   Daily

Flight Schedule PENANG – CHENNAI (commencing 28 April 2010)
Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Penang to Chennai   08:15 / 09:15   AK 243   Daily
Chennai to Penang   09:55 / 15:55   AK 244   Daily

Flight Schedule KUALA LUMPUR – BANGALORE (commencing 20 May 2010)
Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Kuala Lumpur to Bangalore   15:10 / 16:35   AK 211   Daily
Bangalore to Kuala Lumpur    17:15 / 23:40   AK 212   Daily

Flight Schedule KUALA LUMPUR – HYDERABAD (commencing 20 July 2010)
Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Kuala Lumpur to Hyderabad   06:20 / 08:00   AK 223   Daily
  Hyderabad to Kuala Lumpur    08:40 / 15:40   AK 224   Daily

Flight Schedule KUALA LUMPUR – MUMBAI (commencing 6 May 2010)
Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Kuala Lumpur to Mumbai   09:20 / 12:00   D7 2516   Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday & Sunday
Mumbai to Kuala       Lumpur    13:20 / 21:00   D7 2517   Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday & Sunday

Flight Schedule KUALA LUMPUR – DELHI (commencing 4 August 2010)

Flights From    Departure/ Arrival    Flight No.    Frequency
Kuala Lumpur to Delhi   16:00 / 19:10   D7 2506   Daily
Delhi to Kuala Lumpur   20:25 / 04:35   D7 2507   Daily

Sherliza Zaharudin
Office No           : +603 8660 4294
E-mail               : sherlizazaharudin@airasia.com