Category Archives: AirAsia (Philippines)

AirAsia reports improved results in the first quarter of 2022

Capital A Berhad (formerly known as AirAsia Group Berhad) (“Capital A” or the “Group”) presents the following operating statistics for its airline business for the First Quarter of the Financial Year 2022 (“1Q2022”).

Capital A Berhad Consolidated AOCs¹ has posted another significantly improved result across key operational metrics including a healthy load factor of 76% and capacity of 4.9 million passengers carried respectively in 1Q2022. The number of passengers carried has increased by 284% to 3.7 million year-on-year (“YoY”) in 1Q2022 leading to a 9 percentage points (“ppts”) improvement in load factor. The Group introduced additional capacity of 238% YoY to support the surge in demand, alongside relaxed travel restrictions across the Group. As a result, Available Seat Kilometres (“ASK”) soared by 223% and Revenue Passenger Kilometres (“RPK”) jumped by 264% YoY, primarily attributable to the strong domestic travel rebound and the gradual further easing of travel restrictions in 1Q2022.

For AirAsia Malaysia, the number of passengers carried and the capacity improvement jumped 464% and 455% respectively, compared to the same quarter in the previous year, off the back of the resumption of a significant number of additional domestic flights and the relaunch of numerous domestic routes to connect people between major cities, particularly during the festive season. In 1Q2022, the load factor increased by 1 ppt YoY to 74%. ASK jumped 475% and RPK jumped 476% YoY. These very promising achievements were driven by added frequencies of domestic flights in line with increased demand and were also attributed to the promotional campaigns that took place in 1Q2022.

AirAsia Indonesia also achieved a much improved load factor of 76% in 1Q2022, which surged 20 ppts YoY. Passengers carried and capacity improved by 126% and 141% quarter-on-quarter (“QoQ”), respectively, off the back of additional frequency added for domestic flights, particularly Jakarta to Denpasar and between Jakarta and Medan, to meet huge pent-up demand. The RPK surged 129% to 436 million from 190 million QoQ and increased 22% YoY from 357 million in the quarter.

AirAsia Philippines has continued to record the Group’s highest quarterly load factor at 86%, which rose by 12 ppts YoY, uninterrupted by the steep rise of Omicron variant cases in the Philippines during the quarter. In 1Q2022, the number of seats sold and capacity increased 233% and 186% respectively, compared to the same period last year. Similarly, ASK and the number of flights flown rocketed 203% and 186% YoY, with the support of the huge summer demand following the Philippines Government’s confirmation of further relaxed travel protocols.

In 1Q2022, AirAsia Thailand carried 1.45 million passengers, up 48 ppts YoY, an impressive increase over the past two consecutive quarters, mainly due to a strong recovery in travel demand and the easing of the entry rules as well as the reopening of the Thailand Pass (Test & Go). Noticeably, international tourist arrivals to Thailand increased as a consequence. Furthermore, AirAsia Thailand has increased its flight frequency and routes to cater for the evolving resurgence in travel demand, eventuating in a 32% growth in flights flown to 11,002 flights, in part, from a resumption of international flights. Similarly, the ASK and the seating capacity also improved by 34% on a robust rebound. Moreover, AirAsia Thailand has reallocated its capacity and flights to align with the reviving demand. As a result, the load factor in the reporting quarter was recorded at 73%, rising 7 ppts from the same period last year.

Capital A Berhad Consolidated AOCs – Malaysia, Indonesia & Philippines
1st Quarter 2022 Operating Statistics

Note: (i) The fleet count excludes:
– Two (2) A320 aircraft leased to a third party airline

Malaysia
1st Quarter 2022 Operating Statistics

Note: (ii) The fleet count excludes:
– Two (2) A320 aircraft leased to a third party airline

Indonesia
1st Quarter 2022 Operating Statistics

Philippines
1st Quarter 2022 Operating Statistics

Thailand
1st Quarter 2022 Operating Statistics

1. Number of earned seats flown. Earned seats comprise seats sold to passengers (including no-shows)
2. Number of seats flown
3. Number of Passengers Carried as a percentage of Capacity
4. Available Seat Kilometres (ASK) measures an airline’s passenger capacity. Total seats flown multiplied by the number of kilometres flown
5. Revenue Passenger Kilometres (RPK) is a measure of the volume of passengers carried by the airline. Number of passengers multiplied by the number of kilometres these passengers have flown
6. Number of flights flown
7. Number of aircraft including spares

¹ Capital A Berhad Consolidated AOCs refers to AOCs whose financial and operational results are consolidated for financial reporting purposes and these are the Malaysian, Indonesian and Philippines AOCs.

History of AirAsia liveries:

 

AirAsia Philippines welcomes strong summer demand

AirAsia Philippines is gearing up for a stronger travel demand this summer as the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) placed Metro Manila and 38 other provinces, mostly AirAsia destinations, under Alert Level 1 beginning today until March 15, 2022.

Intrazonal and interzonal travel is allowed under Alert Level 1 for all public transport including airlines which will be at 100% capacity.  This is expected to entice more people to travel, especially that all AirAsia destinations are now accepting vaccination cards for fully inoculated travelers.  Partially vaccinated guests will also be accepted but subject to LGU travel requirements such as Antigen tests.

But even before the lowering of the alert level, AirAsia Philippines has already recorded a whopping 145,978 seats sold for travels from March 1 to 31, 2022 alone.  This is an increase of 131% from the same month of 2021.

AirAsia Philippines Spokesperson Steve Dailisan said, “AirAsia Philippines attributes this significant increase to revenge traveling with relaxed travel protocols being implemented in most of its destinations. In fact, we are looking forward to sustaining full capacity in time for the various festivities in the different provinces we fly to. Our contribution to our LGU destinations moving forward is to bring as many guests as much as we can with strict adherence to standard health and safety protocols.”

The Malay-Boracay Tourism Office meanwhile recorded 47,500 local and foreign tourist arrivals in the island for the month of February alone. The Bohol Tourism Office also reported the same buoyancy as it recorded 4,196 tourist arrivals in January.  Puerto Princesa Tourism Office on the other hand recorded 1,158 tourist arrivals from December 2021 to February 2022.

Seeing the impending influx of travelers, guests may take advantage of AirAsia Philippines’ 3.3 Summer Blowout and purchase from as low as P233 one-way base fare for popular destinations such as Boracay, Cebu, Bohol, Puerto Princesa, Davao and Cagayan De Oro.

AirAsia Philippines increased its flight frequency for the month of March.  Flights to popular summer destinations like Caticlan have been increased from 18x weekly to 34x weekly; Kalibo which is another gateway to Boracay, from 7 x weekly to 11 x weekly; Cebu from 14 x weekly to 21 x weekly; Tagbilaran (Panglao) from 7 x weekly to 14 x weekly; Puerto Princesa from 7 x weekly to 14 x weekly.   Flight frequency to other destinations such as Bacolod was also increased from 7 x weekly to 14 x weekly; Iloilo from 7 x weekly to 14 x weekly; Tacloban from 21 x weekly to 23 x weekly; and Cagayan from 7 x weekly to 9 x weekly.

AirAsia Group is now Capital A

AirAsia Group Berhad has announced a name change for the group holding company to become Capital A Berhad (Capital A or the Group).

The name change reflects the Group’s new core business strategy as an investment holding company with a portfolio of synergistic travel and lifestyle businesses, which have rapidly transformed the AirAsia brand into much more than just an airline.

CEO of Capital A, Tony Fernandes said: “This is not just about unveiling a new logo. It’s a significant milestone that marks a new era for the Group. Today’s announcement reinforces we are not just an airline anymore.

“While the airline will always underpin the AirAsia brand, it has long been my firm intention, well before Covid hit, to leverage the strong data we have built up over 20 years and incorporate industry-leading new technologies to offer a broad range of products and services, over and above selling just airfares. The pandemic has allowed us to accelerate that strategy.

“Our brand has continuously evolved based on driving innovation and meeting ever changing consumer demand. The strategy behind the change of name is to introduce a new corporate identity that better reflects the Group’s core businesses today and its future undertakings, in tandem with our rapid transformation from an airline into a one-stop digital travel and lifestyle services group. We believe that the new company name will also further enhance the marketability of our products and boost the success of our Group for the long haul.

“Essentially Capital A is an investment company with a broad portfolio of businesses which all deliver the best value at the lowest cost, supported by strong data built up over two decades. We also have one of Asia’s leading brands to ride on, a strong people-first culture and an underlying promise of remaining committed to serving the underserved in all that we do. Just like what the airline has done from day one, all of our different lines of business will deliver the same strategy that is underscored by doing what we do best – making travel and everyday lifestyle services affordable, accessible and inclusive to all.

“We are now delivering more products and services under one umbrella than any other brand in Asean and with access to over 700 million people in the region, I foresee incredible growth opportunities for our brand across many different industries in all of our core markets.

“We have 16 products and services on our airasia Super App, providing not only the best value flight and travel deals but also everyday lifestyle needs, from food to retail and e-commerce, to same day delivery, ride hailing and much more. We are already one of the top three online travel agents (OTAs) in Asean and our super app is on track to become the leading lifestyle app in the region very soon.

“All of our portfolio businesses are well on the way to becoming industry leaders in their respective fields across Southeast Asia, including BigPay, our aircraft engineering division Asia Digital Engineering (ADE) and logistics venture Teleport.

“We already have over 50 million monthly unique visitors on our super app which has been recognised as a tech unicorn in under two years, our fintech business BigPay, has been given a significant injection of USD $100million from South Korea conglomerate SK Group and overall we have raised over RM2.5 billion to date through our fundraising strategy. Following strong consumer and investor support for our transformation strategy, we now set our sights on further capital raising initiatives for the airasia Super App, Teleport and ADE which will be announced in due course.”

On the airline, Tony commented: “While Capital A will be the new Group holding company name, one thing that isn’t changing is the AirAsia brand name for our airlines. It’s one of the strongest brands in Asia and provides a solid platform for all of our other products and services to leverage from each other.

“Even though the last two years have been the most difficult and disrupted years in the history of commercial aviation, I welcome the year ahead with much greater confidence. Domestic air travel has already started to rebound in our key markets. While there may be some delays for international flights to return to pre-Covid levels due to the Omicron variant, I believe this will be short-lived as many global health experts are also predicting, alongside accelerated vaccines and booster shots as well as the world gradually learning to live with Covid. I am hopeful borders will reopen gradually throughout 2022 and we will see a return to normal capacity for our international services by the middle to third quarter of this year.

“Over the past two years we have spent the downturn in flying building a solid foundation for a viable and successful future, which is not solely reliant on airfares alone. Capital A signals an exciting new era for our airlines and all of our other portfolio businesses within the Group as we embark on a significant new growth phase.

“Importantly, the best is yet to come. We have pivoted, we have transformed and we have a five year plan in place which will see non airline revenues contributing around 50 percent of overall Group revenue by 2026. Once the airlines return to pre-Covid levels in the near future all of our other lines of business will benefit significantly and will all soar to new heights in tandem with one another.”

By 2026 Capital A aims to achieve amongst others:

  • Group airlines connecting over 1 billion people in Asean.

  • The engineering division (ADE) becomes an industry leader for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services in Southeast Asia.

  • airasia Super App to be the super app of choice in Asean.

  • 10 million monthly active users for BigPay.

  • 10% market share in Southeast Asia for Teleport, in the logistics and e-commerce industry.

  • 5 million sign ups for edutech arm AirAsia Academy.

  • Over 21 million monthly orders on airasia grocer.

The new holding company name, Capital A, is immediately effective following the successful registration of the name by the Companies Commision of Malaysia announced on January 3 and the subsequent formal approvals received yesterday.

The name change from AirAsia Group Berhad to Capital A Berhad will not have any effect on the Company’s ongoing operations. The AirAsia stock name on the main Board of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad will change with immediate effect to reflect the new company name.

AirAsia Philippines to fly only vaccinated passengers or those with those with signed medical certificates

AirAsia Philippines made this announcement:

AirAsia Philippines will abide by and implement the Department Order 2022-001 issued by the Department of Transportation on January 11, 2022 setting new transportation guidelines for fully vaccinated and non-vaccinated guests.

“From the onset of the pandemic, AirAsia has always been working closely with the IATF, DOTr and its attached agencies along with medical experts in the implementation of multi-layered approaches to safety in the aviation sector,” said Ricky Isla, AirAsia Philippines CEO

Beginning January 17, 2022, the world’s best low-cost airline will continue to fly fully vaccinated guests from its Manila hub, compliant with the latest travel guidelines set by the respective Local Government Units (LGUs) of their destination.

Meanwhile, non-vaccinated guests with essential purpose of travel from Metro Manila such as persons with medical conditions that prevent full COVID-19 vaccination will still be allowed to fly, provided that they present a duly signed medical certificate with name and contact details of their physician. Likewise, persons who will provide essential goods and services as evidenced by a duly issued barangay health pass or other appropriate proof that will justify travel will also be accepted during the flight.

Isla added, “AirAsia Philippines considers this initiative from the DOTr as an effective tool to encourage every Filipino to take the shot, and get an added layer of protection against any emerging COVID-19 variant.”

AirAsia Group reports a loss in the third quarter, launches Teleport

AirAsia Group Berhad reported its financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 (“3Q2021”).

Unaudited Consolidated Third Quarter 2021 Results of AirAsia Group Berhad

The Consolidated Group posted 3Q2021 revenue of RM296 million, lower by 37% year-on-year (“YoY”) and 20% quarter-on-quarter (“QoQ”). Aviation revenue declined 70% YoY and 37% QoQ as travel demand was constrained by limited available flights caused by the lockdown imposed in Malaysia, since January 2021. Digital businesses reported stronger revenue, up 141% YoY led by contributions from Teleport, which tripled its revenue YoY driven by strategic growth in its cargo network.

EBITDA loss was RM281 million for the quarter, which narrowed by 38% YoY. Fixed costs were successfully reduced by 23% YoY, primarily attributed to lower staff costs and lower other operating expenses. The Consolidated Group ended the quarter with an improved cash position of RM401 million due to cash proceeds from Fly Leasing, funds from the convertible loan note into BigPay and tight ongoing control of costs. Net operating cash flow burn was lower YoY, averaging RM68 million per month in 3Q2021.

The airasia Super App reported 7% YoY revenue growth, attributed to new product offerings and commissions. BigPay posted significant growth in revenue, up 26% YoY driven by payments and remittances. Teleport’s revenue tripled YoY due to strategic growth of its cargo network to establish its presence in the market.

The Consolidated Group posted a 3Q2021 Net Loss Before Tax of RM1.11 billion, which narrowed by 4% YoY. Active capacity management and concentration on flying the most profitable routes as well as lease restructuring, asset optimisation, targeted cost control and the absence of any fuel swap loss, resulted in a 65% reduction in aviation operating expenses YoY. Overall, the loss was attributed to a shortfall in revenue and a foreign exchange loss of RM217 million in comparison to a foreign exchange gain of RM44 million in 3Q2020.

Operating Performance

AirAsia Philippines outperformed AirAsia’s other airline entities during the third quarter of 2021, reporting stronger YoY and QoQ key operational metrics. AirAsia Philippines demonstrated a strong performance in 3Q2021, posting 167% growth in the number of passengers carried YoY and a 5% increase QoQ. Load factor was healthy at 77%, attributed to active capacity management.

Revenue per ASK (“RASK”) for the Consolidated Group improved by 48% YoY to 21.83 sen during the quarter, while load factor was firm at 67%, 1 ppt higher YoY, supported by active capacity management.

Cost Performance

Airline operating expenses for 3Q2021 reduced by 65% YoY while fixed costs were efficiently reduced by 23% YoY and 15% QoQ. Airline staff costs declined the most by 38% YoY and 4% QoQ, contributed by headcount rationalization, salary cuts and natural attrition. Other operating expenses reduced by 11% YoY and 33% QoQ due to strict cost control measures implemented for marketing, rental and IT spend.

On the airline performance results and outlook, Group CEO of AirAsia Aviation, Bo Lingam said:

“Load factor for the Group remains healthy in 3Q2021 at 67%, up 1 ppt attributed to active capacity management to match demand. Growth during the quarter was driven by AirAsia Philippines which grew its passengers by 167% YoY and pushed the load factor up to 77%.

“AirAsia Malaysia, AirAsia Indonesia and AirAsia Thailand experienced subdued momentum QoQ due to limited operations as travel was restricted for the most part of the quarter. Nonetheless, in a month-on-month (MoM) breakdown, AirAsia Malaysia more than doubled the number of passengers carried in September as compared to August, which resulted in a 13 percentage point (“ppt”) higher load factor improvement. The encouraging growth was primarily driven by the opening of the Langkawi travel bubble from 16 September. Since then, we have observed a continuous improvement in bookings, as travel demand gradually recovers following the authorization of nationwide interstate and some limited international travel, since 11 October onwards.

“Aside from Malaysia, recent positive developments for air travel across Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines have contributed to a significant increase in seats sold for immediate and near-term travel, in line with our expectation of stronger bookings for spontaneous travel due to pent-up demand. The upcoming year-end holiday season will further spur air travel demand, especially in the visiting friends and relatives (VFR) as well as the leisure and spontaneous travel markets. We expect to see a continuation of this upward trend throughout 4Q and well into 2022 as global travel restrictions continue to ease. Our aim is to fly 60% of our pre-Covid domestic flight capacity by December 2021.

“We continued to improve our cost base through stringent cost containment measures. Our 3Q2021 fixed costs reduced 23% YoY, as airline staff costs were down 38% YoY due to headcount rationalization & attrition. Other operating expenses reduced by 11% YoY and another 33% QoQ due to strict cost control measures implemented for marketing, rental and IT spend. We have been reporting a zero fuel swap loss since 2Q2021.

“Many countries have started to reopen and allow vaccinated travelers in. Most recently, the governments of Malaysia and Singapore announced the commencement of the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL), which paves the way for a gradual flight resumption between these two countries. We look forward to kick starting our Kuala Lumpur-Singapore flights at the end of this month and we are hopeful of the establishment of similar initiatives in other key markets in the near future.

“We continue to work closely with the authorities to ensure that the highest standards of health and safety are maintained at all times. In addition, we have also implemented numerous contactless innovations and procedures to provide a more hygenic and and seamless travel experience for our guests and to help restore consumer confidence in air travel.

“With our robust short haul business model, lean operations, contactless procedures, optimized network, strong dominance in Asean combined with pent-up demand, vaccines and travel lane formations, we remain confident of a fast recovery upon the further relaxation of travel restrictions in the near future.”

On Asia Digital Engineering (ADE)’s performance and outlook, CEO of ADE, Mahesh Kumar said:

“Asia Digital Engineering is actively ramping up its service offerings to become the leading maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) provider in Asia. In 3Q2021, ADE obtained foreign approval from the Indonesian authority to conduct base maintenance works in Malaysia. ADE also received the relevant approvals to carry out base maintenance services for the A320neo aircraft type in Malaysia. While rapidly expanding its service capabilities, ADE expects to receive a number of additional approvals by the end of 2021. To further support our expansion plan, we have embarked on a fundraising exercise which is expected to complete by the end of first half next year. Having successfully completed the first cargo-on-seat conversion for Teleport and carried out the first ka-band installation for airasia wifi, ADE is actively exploring strategic partnerships and collaborations with service providers, including an inflight broadband solution, to further enhance its position as a one-stop solution for all MRO requirements.”

On airasia Super App’s performance and outlook, CEO of airasia Super App, Amanda Woo said:

“It’s a new era for the airasia Super App. We have just reached our one year milestone in October and we are on the right track to becoming the all in one travel and lifestyle platform of choice in Asean. We have launched many products and services in our first year, starting in Malaysia and we remain committed to bring the new airasia way of life to our many millions of users across the region in the near future. In 3Q2021, we acquired the Gojek business in Thailand for a share swap consideration, which valued airasia superapp at US$1 billion and kick started the rollout of our products and services in the Kingdom.

“We also launched airasia ride in Klang Valley, which gained substantial traction and closed more than 40,000 bookings within the first month. Soon after, we expanded airasia ride to Langkawi and Penang, and passengers can now book their rides while they are on our flights that are equipped with airasia wifi.

“Airasia Super App revenue increased by 7% YoY while our average monthly active users increased by 40% QoQ, driven by food and ride offerings.

“The aim is to deliver a seamless one stop travel and lifestyle experience for our users. As we continue to grow and evolve based on consumer demand, we revamped airasia fresh into airasia grocer and expanded both airasia grocer and airasia food into more cities. Our new product, airasia money, gained further traction with digital car insurance offerings.

“As expected, our Travel vertical saw higher bookings as travel restrictions were lifted. In September, the Travel vertical recorded 400% higher transaction volume MoM drive by Flights, Hotels and SNAP. Last month, we celebrated the gradual reopening in travel by strengthening our OTA positioning, connecting users to 700 international airline brands flying to over 3,000 destinations and promoting more than 300,000 hotels worldwide through the convenience of our single app. Just last week, we launched FACES, which is truly a game changer for fully integrated contactless travel and lifestyle experiences. It is an exciting time for us and we look forward to launching more products, partnerships and collaborations for the benefit of our users.”

On Teleport’s performance and outlook, CEO of Teleport, Pete Chareonwongsak said:

“Teleport’s revenue tripled YoY and increased 2% QoQ, lifted by a strategic growth in its cargo network. Delivery volume grew 53% YoY and 49% QoQ to more than 300,000 in 3Q2021. Margins improved for the quarter through active optimization of the cargo network.

Most recently, Teleport (Kuala Lumpur) launched its first dedicated 737-800 freighter, which will accelerate its goal to shift from a pure air freight logistics player to a complete multi-modal operator.

Stationed in Bangkok, the freighter allows us to be able to reach key markets including Hong Kong, Shanghai, Chennai, Mumbai and all other major destinations in Southeast Asia. We are fully committed to meet growing air cargo needs in the region by enhancing our capabilities and strengthening our position in the market. We are also in the midst of our first fundraising initiative which is expected to complete by the end of the year.”

Teleport, the logistics venture of airasia Digital, further reinforces its position as a formidable regional player in the cargo and logistics business with the launch of its dedicated 737-800 Freighter on November 3, 2021, including the unveiling of its unique livery.

The new aircraft’s livery design reflects the brand colors of Teleport as the dedicated freighter prepares for its first flight across key routes in Asia. The new design represents Teleport’s service philosophy, signaling its commitment towards further establishing Teleport and the AirAsia Group as amongst the Top 3 cargo operators by capacity in Asean.

The addition of the dedicated freighter, brings Teleport’s current active fleet to a total of 252 planes (including AirAsia Group’s passenger planes) and will enable greater consistent capacity on key air cargo routes across Southeast Asia.

Since the start of 2020, Teleport has set out to build a cargo-only network across the key air cargo lanes in the region to cater for the increasing e-commerce and general cargo demand. Teleport will continue to enhance its capabilities to compete in the fast growing, cargo and e-commerce markets across Asean.

On the group’s outlook, CEO of AirAsia Group Berhad, Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said:

“As a Group, we have taken advantage of the downtime in flying to tap new revenue streams and fully transform ourselves into an investment holding company with a portfolio of synergistic travel and lifestyle businesses. In just over a year and a half, Asia Digital Engineering, Airasia superapp, Teleport and BigPay have gained significant traction and established a strong presence in our key markets. As the world continues to open up and a strong recovery in air travel is on the horizon, we have ensured our portfolio companies are given autonomy to run their business independently to encourage innovation and ensure speed to market through even higher efficiency. Together as a group, each of our businesses continue to leverage significant data and industry leading technology to deliver the best value at the lowest cost, supported by one of Asia’s leading brands that remains committed to serving the underserved.

“As for funding, we are pleased to share that we have received shareholder’s approval for the proposed renounceable rights issue of up to RM1 billion, at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on 11 November 2021. We expect to complete the exercise by the end of this year. We have also completed two batches of lease restructuring and expect to complete the full exercise by the end of 2021. This will positively result in a lower lease rental per aircraft in the future. Additionally, we have received the approval from Danajamin Nasional Berhad (Danajamin) for an 80% guaranteed loan of up to RM500 million under the Danajamin Prihatin Guarantee Scheme and an approval from a foreigner lender for a US$150 million loan facility of which US$100 million has been drawn down. While we continue to evaluate further funding, potential monetization and other corporate exercises, as for now we expect to have sufficient liquidity until year end and throughout 2022.”

Clark International Airport is closed due to earthquake damage, hopes to reopen tomorrow

Clark International Airport near Manila issued this statement on social media:

The Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) is eyeing to resume partial operations at the airport Wednesday, April 24, after the assessment showed the tower, apron, runways and taxiways are structurally sound following the magnitude 6.1 earthquake that jolted Luzon Monday.

AirAsia Zest Airbus A320 overshoots the runway at Kalibo, Philippines

AirAsia Zest A320-200 RP-C8972 overshoots the runway at Kalibo

AirAsia Zest (AirAsia Philippines) (formerly Zest Air) (Manila), another associated airline of the AirAsia Group (Malaysia) (Kuala Lumpur), today (December 30) was involved in an incident in the Philippines while the world attention focuses on the crash of an AirAsia Indonesia Airbus A320. An AirAsia Zest Airbus A320-216, registered as RP-C8972 (msn 2826), today overshot the runway on landing at Kalibo on the island of Panay in the Philippines. Flight Z2 272 was operating from Manila to Kalibo with 159 passengers and crew members on board. There were no reported injuries.

Twitter photo by Jet Damazo-Santos.

Grounded Zest Air is now AirAsia Zest following an investment by AirAsia

AirAsia Zest A320 logo

Zest Air (Zest Airways) (Manila) has rebranded as AirAsia Zest (AirAsia Zest Airways, Inc., formerly Asian Spirit) following the investment of AirAsia (Malaysia) (Kuala Lumpur) through AirAsia Philippines (Clark).

In other related news, AirAsia Philippines will be temporarily suspending flights to Davao, Kalibo, Taipei and Hong Kong from Clark International Airport effective on October 9, 2013.

Flights between Clark and Hong Kong, however, will continue to operate from December 20, 2013 until January 6, 2014 to cater to the strong holiday demand.

Maan Hontiveros, Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia Philippines said, “The temporary suspension is primarily to manage costs following the recent grounding of Zest Air by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). This has affected many factors and allocating necessary resources such as aircraft and crew is critical to ensure its recovery.”

“Right now we need to focus our resources to support Zest Air where we have significant economic interest, and we believe in Zest Air’s potential with their Manila based operations,” added Hontiveros.

AirAsia Philippines holds a 49 percent share in Zest Air, a low-cost carrier operating in Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Manila; and Zest Air will be carrying the AirAsia brand once it is approved by the CAAP.

Read the full story from Business World Online: CLICK HERE

Zest Air: AG Slide Show

All images by AirAsia Zest.

AirAsia Zest A320 Cabin

AirAsia Zest Ad

AirAsia Philippines receives its AOC, plans to start operations next month

AirAsia Philippines (Manila-Clark) received its AOC on February 8, 2015 and intends to start operations on March 15, 2012 on the Clark-Davao domestic route along with service to Kalibo (near Boracay) and Puerto Princesa (Palawan) also starting in March 2012. International destinations of Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau are planned. The second group of international destinations is expected to be Bangkok, Seoul (Incheon). The carrier expects to lease around 14-16 Airbus A320s.

Read the full report from TTG Asia: CLICK HERE