Air Asia in Angeles City - Philippines

With its headquarters in Malaysia, Air Asia has become the top low fare airline in the Asian region. It pioneered in ticketless traveling. Low-fare carriers are airlines that provide minimal fares without the standard passenger services.

Living on its philosophy, Now Everyone Can Fly, the low cost airline has slowly revolutionized air travel as it has become the preferred airline in the region. It has stirred the excitement of passengers by providing a wide array of innovations and personalized services.

Air Asia was founded by a government-owned company DRB-Hicom and opened its doors to passengers in November 1996. However, already heavily indebted, the company was purchased by Tune Air Sdn Bhd, a firm owned by ex-Time Warner executive Tony Fernandes for a token sum worth one ringgit in 2001. Under his leadership, the low cost airline gained a profit after a year of operations and began to open new routes from its center in Kuala Lumpur International Airport breaking the monopoly of Malaysia Airlines.

In 2003, Air Asia launched its new second center at Johor Barus Senai Airport and inaugurated its first international flight to Bangkok, Thailand. The low-cost airline then opened its Thai subsidiary adding Singapore to its list of destinations. Aside from that, it began launching flights to Indonesia.

The years that followed saw Air Asia extending its services to other countries such as Macau in June 2004, Xiamen and Manila in April 2005, and Vietnam and Cambodia in the latter period of 2005. Flights to Brunei and Myanmar were launched by Thai Air Asia in 2006.

In March 23, 2006, the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) became the new home for Air Asia Bhd. Considered as the first of its kind in the region, the LCCT is projected to handle 10 million passengers annually. The LCCT is located at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Air Asia has the lowest operating cost in the world with its US$0.023/ASK as well as a 52% passenger break-even load factor. This low cost airline has set aside 100% of its fuel requirements for the coming three years. Through its years of operations, it has maintained an aircraft turnaround time of 25 minutes. Its crew productivity level is three times greater than Malaysia Airlines.

At present, Air Asia is the leading customer of the Airbus A320. It has ordered 175 units of the plane to ply its routes and at least 50 of these planes would begin its operations by the year 2013.

In April 2007, Air Asia has launched a new passenger service that would allow them to check-in online and print a hard copy of their boarding pass. This service is offered for domestic travel and for passengers with no check-in baggage.

In addition, the low-cost airline has likewise launched Xpress Boarding, which would give boarding priorities to passengers who would pay the fee for the service. This is available to all Air Asia hubs.

The cost of the tickets will vary depending on the type of flight and the destination. The price is available for viewing online on their website.

Air Asia has received several awards and recognitions including the 2008 Malaysian Brand Icon Award given during the Global Brand Forum as well as the Malaysia 30 Most Valuable Brands given by Malaysias Most Valuable Brands (MVVB).