AirAsia facts for kids
An AirAsia Airbus A320neo
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| Founded | 20 December 1993 |
|---|---|
| Operating bases |
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| Frequent-flyer program | AirAsia Rewards |
| Subsidiaries |
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| Fleet size | 255 (including subsidiaries) |
| Destinations | 166 (including subsidiaries) |
| Parent company | Tune Group |
| Headquarters | Kuala Lumpur International Airport Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia |
| Key people |
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| Revenue |  RM 1.50 billion (2024) |
| Operating income |  RM −919 million (2024) |
| Net income | RM −491 million (2024) |
| Total assets | RM 28.98 billion (2024) |
| Total equity | RM −10.1 billion (2024) |
| Employees | 23,000 (2023) |
AirAsia is a big airline from Malaysia. It is known for offering flights at low prices. The airline started in 1993 and began flying in 1996. Today, it is the largest airline in Malaysia. It flies to over 166 places in 25 countries.
AirAsia's main base is at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). It uses Terminal 2, which is for low-cost airlines. AirAsia also has partner airlines in other countries. These include Thai AirAsia, Indonesia AirAsia, Philippines AirAsia, and AirAsia Cambodia. These partners help AirAsia connect many places in Southeast Asia and beyond. AirAsia also has a special part called Teleport. This part handles cargo and deliveries.
Contents
The Story of AirAsia
How AirAsia Started (1993-2001)
AirAsia began on December 20, 1993. It was first owned by a Malaysian government company called DRB-HICOM. It started as a regular airline. Its first flight was on November 18, 1996, from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi. It used a Boeing 737-300 plane.
In its early years, AirAsia had problems. It cost a lot to run, and it faced strong competition. By 2001, AirAsia was in serious debt. It was almost going to close down.
Becoming a Low-Cost Airline (2001-2002)
On September 5, 2001, two people, Tony Fernandes and Kamarudin Meranun, bought AirAsia. They bought it for a very small amount of money. Tony Fernandes had worked at a big media company before. He wanted to make AirAsia a low-cost airline. He was inspired by successful budget airlines like Southwest Airlines.
After they bought it, AirAsia changed its style. On January 15, 2002, it became a "no-frills" airline. This meant it offered very cheap tickets. Some tickets were as low as MYR 10 (about US$2.60). This attracted many passengers. In its first year as a low-cost airline, AirAsia made a profit. This was a big comeback for the company.
Growing to New Places (2003-2006)
From 2003 to 2006, AirAsia grew very quickly. In December 2003, it opened a second base at Senai International Airport. It also started flying to other countries. These included Phuket (Thailand) in December 2003, Bangkok (Thailand) in February 2004, and Manila (Philippines) and Xiamen (China) by April 2005.
In 2002, AirAsia was the first airline in Asia to let people book tickets online. They also added SMS booking. In 2003, Thai AirAsia was started. In 2005, Indonesia AirAsia began. These new airlines helped AirAsia reach more customers. By the end of 2006, AirAsia had 35 Boeing 737-300s and eight Airbus A320s. They also ordered 100 more Airbus A320 planes.
More Growth and New Services (2006-2012)
In late 2006, AirAsia's CEO, Tony Fernandes, shared a five-year plan. The plan was to make AirAsia even stronger in Asia. They wanted to connect more cities and fly to new places like Vietnam, Indonesia, China, and India. As part of this plan, Kota Kinabalu International Airport became a base in July 2006. Kuching International Airport also became a base in July 2006. These changes helped AirAsia carry many more passengers. They flew about 13.9 million passengers in 2007.
In 2009, AirAsia started Redbox. This was the world's first low-cost delivery service. The same year, they added Penang as another base. They started flights from Penang to Hong Kong.
Big Changes and Challenges (2013-2019)
Between 2013 and 2019, AirAsia kept growing. They started Philippines AirAsia and AirAsia Japan in 2012. Then, AirAsia India began in 2014. AirAsia also tried to start airlines in other countries. But they faced problems in places like China and Vietnam.
In 2014, AirAsia was the first Malaysian airline to offer Wi-Fi on its planes. This was a big step to help travelers stay connected. By 2018, AirAsia launched Teleport. This was a new part of the company for logistics and e-commerce. Teleport uses AirAsia's flight network to deliver goods.
AirAsia won the award for "World's Best Low-Cost Airline" from Skytrax for eleven years in a row. This was from 2009 to 2019.
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Through the Pandemic and Recovery (2020-2023)
The COVID-19 pandemic greatly affected airlines, including AirAsia. In March 2020, AirAsia stopped most of its flights. This was because of travel rules. The airline lost a lot of money. They had to cut costs and reduce staff.
In late 2020, AirAsia launched the Airasia Super App. This app offered more than just flights. It included food delivery, e-commerce, and logistics. This helped AirAsia make money even when people were not flying much.
As more people got vaccinated, travel rules eased. AirAsia slowly started flying again in 2021. They first restarted flights within Malaysia. By late 2022, they began flying to other countries again. They focused on popular places in ASEAN and beyond. AirAsia's recovery continued in 2022. By the end of that year, they had carried about 9.95 million passengers. In 2023, AirAsia greatly increased its flights. They added more planes and restarted routes.
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New Plans and Global Goals (2024-Present)
On January 8, 2024, AirAsia X and Capital A (AirAsia's parent company) made a plan. They decided to combine AirAsia and its partner airlines under the AirAsia X brand. This merger was expected to finish by May 30, 2025. It would bring together over 200 planes and many more future orders. This would create one big airline group.
In March 2024, AirAsia started flying to Perth, Australia, using new Airbus A321neo planes. By late 2024, AirAsia planned to make Kuala Lumpur International Airport a major global travel hub. They aimed to increase their fleet to 92 planes and add eight new destinations.
As of November 2024, AirAsia was looking to buy up to 100 smaller regional planes. They were talking with Airbus, Comac, and Embraer. These planes would help AirAsia fly to smaller cities.
Capital A, AirAsia's parent company, worked to fix its money problems. It had been listed under "Practice Note 17" (PN17) by Malaysia's stock exchange. This means a company is in financial trouble. In December 2024, Capital A submitted a plan to get out of PN17. They aimed to complete this by early 2025.
AirAsia also planned to open a new base in the Middle East. They wanted to restart long flights to Europe, like to London Gatwick. In June 2025, CEO Tony Fernandes said they were looking at cities like Ras Al Khaimah and a city in Saudi Arabia for this new base. This hub would help connect Southeast Asia and Europe.
In July 2025, AirAsia signed a big deal with Airbus. They agreed to buy 50 Airbus A321XLR planes. These planes can fly very long distances. They are also good on fuel. This will let AirAsia offer low-cost flights to Europe with one stop in the Middle East. They could even fly to the United States with two stops. Tony Fernandes said these flights would be much cheaper than other options.
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Where AirAsia Flies
AirAsia has grown its network a lot since 2001. Its main base is at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). From there, it flies many flights. AirAsia has many flights within Malaysia. It connects major cities like Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Kota Kinabalu, and Kuching.
For international flights, AirAsia flies across Southeast Asia and beyond. It has flights to countries like Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, and China. The airline also flies to India and Australia. This wide network makes AirAsia a big player in air travel. It serves both business and vacation travelers.
AirAsia also uses other bases to help connect regions. These include Penang International Airport in northern Malaysia. Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Kuching International Airport help travel in Malaysian Borneo. Senai International Airport in Johor Bahru serves southern Malaysia and is close to Singapore. These bases help AirAsia serve its many routes.
Partner Airlines
- Citilink
AirAsia's Planes
Current Fleet
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As of December 2024, AirAsia uses planes made by Airbus Industrie:
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A320-200 | 69 | — | 180 | 4 planes from MYAirline | ||
| 186 | ||||||
| Airbus A320neo | 29 | — | 186 | |||
| Airbus A321LR | — | 36 | TBA | Deliveries start in 2025. | ||
| Airbus A321neo | 8 | 323 | 236 | |||
| Teleport Fleet (Cargo) | ||||||
| Airbus A321-200/P2F | 3 | — | Cargo | These planes are for cargo only. | ||
| Total | 109 | 359 | ||||
Private Aircraft
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bombardier Global Express | 1 | 0 | 13 | |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 13 |
New Planes and Changes
AirAsia used to fly Boeing 737-300 planes. But now, it only uses planes from the Airbus A320 family.
In June 2011, AirAsia ordered 200 new Airbus A320neos. This was one of the biggest plane orders ever. In December 2012, they ordered another 100 Airbus A320 jets. This made AirAsia Airbus's biggest customer.
At the Farnborough Air Show in 2016, AirAsia ordered 100 larger A321neos. They planned to use these planes for airports that had less space. AirAsia got its first A320neo in September 2016.
In 2019, AirAsia ordered even more A320 planes. This made them Airbus's biggest customer for the A321neo model too. By then, AirAsia had ordered 592 planes from the Airbus A320 family. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, AirAsia and Airbus changed their agreement in October 2021. The planes would now be delivered until 2035.
Old Planes AirAsia Used to Fly
AirAsia used to operate these aircraft:
| Aircraft | Total | Used From | Retired | Replaced By | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-300 | 32 | 1996 | 2009 | Airbus A320-200 | |
| Boeing 747-200B | 2 | 2000 | 2000 | None | Leased for short periods |
| 3 | 2003 | 2003 | Leased for short periods | ||
| McDonnell Douglas MD-11ER | 1 | 1999 | 2000 | Leased for a short period |
What AirAsia Offers
On Board
AirAsia has a menu called "Santan." You can buy food, drinks, and other items on the plane. If you buy meals before your flight, they are cheaper. AirAsia follows certain rules. It does not serve alcohol or pork on its regional flights. However, its long-haul airline, AirAsia X, does sell wine and beer.
Frequent Flyer Program
AirAsia has a program called "AirAsia rewards." It used to be called "BIG." With this program, you earn points when you fly with AirAsia or buy from its partners. You can then use these points to get free AirAsia flights.
AirAsia's Offices
AirAsia's main office is called RedQuarters (RedQ). It is located at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Selangor. This is also where the company is officially registered.
The airline moved its head office to this new building on November 7, 2016. The new office is very large. Before this, the head office was in the old KLIA LCCT building. The new RedQ office can hold about 2,000 AirAsia and AirAsia X employees. A flight attendant from the Philippines named the building "RedQuarters" or "RedQ."
AirAsia's Partner Airlines
AirAsia Cambodia
In May 2017, AirAsia planned to start a partner company in Cambodia. This was to help with more tourists visiting Cambodian cities. On December 9, 2022, AirAsia and Sivilai Asia agreed to create AirAsia Cambodia. AirAsia owns most of this airline. It started flying on May 2, 2024.
AirAsia India
AirAsia India was AirAsia's partner airline in India. It started on June 12, 2014. Its main base was at Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore. In 2022, AirAsia sold its share of AirAsia India. The airline then merged with Air India Express in 2023.
AirAsia Japan
AirAsia Japan was AirAsia's low-cost partner airline in Japan. It was based in Nagoya. It first flew in August 2012. This partnership ended in June 2013. AirAsia Japan stopped flying on October 27, 2013.
AirAsia Japan was relaunched in 2014. It started flying again on October 29, 2017. But because of low passenger numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic, it stopped flying again on October 5, 2020.
AirAsia X
AirAsia X is the part of AirAsia that flies long-haul routes. This means it flies to places that are very far away. It keeps costs low by using the same ticketing system as AirAsia. AirAsia X also works with Virgin Group and Air Canada. AirAsia X started flying on November 2, 2007. Its first flight was from Kuala Lumpur to Gold Coast, Australia.
Indonesia AirAsia & Indonesia AirAsia X
Indonesia AirAsia is AirAsia's partner airline in Indonesia. It flies both within Indonesia and to other countries. Its main base is at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta. AirAsia owns 49% of this airline.
Indonesia AirAsia X was a long-haul partner of AirAsia X. It flew long international flights from Bali. It started its first flight to Taipei on January 29, 2015. It stopped its regular flights in January 2019.
Philippines AirAsia
Philippines AirAsia is a joint company between Filipino investors and AirAsia. It started on December 16, 2010. It began flying on March 28, 2012. The Filipino investors own 60% of the airline, and AirAsia owns 40%.
In 2013, it partnered with another Philippine airline called Zest Airways. Zest Airways was later renamed AirAsia Zest. In 2015, it merged with Philippines AirAsia.
Thai AirAsia & Thai AirAsia X
Thai AirAsia is a joint company between AirAsia and Thailand's Asia Aviation. It flies AirAsia's regular flights within Thailand and to other countries from Bangkok.
Thai AirAsia X is Thailand's first long-haul low-cost airline. It started flying in June 2014. Its first flight was from Bangkok to Incheon, South Korea. It then started regular flights to Japan.
In May 2022, AirAsia started its ride-hailing service in Thailand called AirAsia Ride. This service competes with other ride services like Grab.
Awards and Recognitions
- Skytrax
- World's Best Low-Cost Airline (2009–Present)
- World Travel Awards
- World's Leading Low-Cost Airline (2013–Present)
- World's Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew (2017–Present)
- Asia's Leading Low-Cost Airline (2016–Present)
See also
In Spanish: AirAsia para niños
- List of airlines of Malaysia
- List of airports in Malaysia
- Transport in Malaysia
