AirAsia sets up regional centre in Jakarta
Moving towards the second decade of its operations, AirAsia sees the need for a major shift in perspective, strategy and operations to sustain its trajectory.
It sees enormous potential in the underserved market of 3 billion people across ASEAN, Northeast Asia and South Asia
In line with this shift, a regional base is established in Jakarta. Called AirAsia Asean, the office will be located far enough from AirAsia's airline offices in each of the countries it operates in. It is currently in the process of restructuring our management to accommodate this shift in emphasis on the future growth plans. Ideally, AirAsia Asean will provide it with an environment free of the pressures of day-to-day operations and the necessary "firefighting" that accompanies these endeavours, and allow senior managers the space, the time and the interaction so vital to keep us flying higher in our second decade.
“To avoid any misinterpretation, let me be very clear: AirAsia Malaysia's headquarters is not moving to Jakarta. AirAsia Malaysia is a Malaysian-registered airline, with all its aircraft registered under the Malaysian flag and it is a company listed on Bursa Malaysia. That will not change. AirAsia is committed to upholding our pledge to Malaysians that "Now Everyone Can Fly," Tony Fernandes, AirAsia’s Group Chief Executive Officer, said at a press conference today.
“The establishment of the AirAsia Asean office in Jakarta as our regional base is to help to more fully deliver on that pledge to all the people of ASEAN and beyond. We are blessed to be located in a part of the world where economic growth is expected to be sustained despite the chilly economic winds blowing through Europe and the United States. Shifting AirAsia's emphasis to a regional strategy is, we believe, not just good business, but also a move that will keep us ahead of the inevitable competition that is heading our way. But while others focus largely on trying to gain market share in domestic markets, we seek to expand our footprint throughout the region. After all, no single domestic market in ASEAN, not even Indonesia, can match the potential of a regional ASEAN market of 600 million people and a combined East Asian market of 2 billion,” he added.
A decade ago, AirAsia operated with a fleet of two aging Boeing-737's, six domestic routes and a staff of 250 Malaysian nationals. Ten years on, the group encompasses six airlines - AirAsia Malaysia, AirAsia Thailand, AirAsia Indonesia, Philippines’ AirAsia, AirAsia Japan and AirAsia X - serving 80 destinations on 142 routes, with an all-new fleet of 103 Airbus A-320's and 11 wide-body A330's and A-340's. Its staff are numbered 10,000 and they represent all the nationalities of ASEAN as well as nationalities from East, West and South Asia -- and elsewhere in the world.
AirAsia Malaysia currently has a fleet of 58 A320s, serving a population of 30 million and earning revenues of more than RM 1 billion. AirAsia Thailand has a fleet 24 aircraft while AirAsia Indonesia has just 18 aircraft. Thailand's population at 70 million is more than twice that of Malaysia, while Indonesia is home to 240 million people living in one of the fastest growing economies in Asia. In fact, I believe Jakarta, Indonesia's capital city, is by itself home to around 15million -- half of Malaysia's entire population. Then add Philippines, with its 90 million people spread across a vast archipelago, and where AirAsia Philippines now has just two aircraft. The LCC penetration in Japan is a mere 7 percent, and AirAsia Japan is launching in Tokyo with just one aircraft. Just one look, and it is clear where our future growth is going to come from. Malaysia is a maturing market, while Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Japan offer tantalizing possibilities for the Group's bottom line.
To the group, AirAsia Asean will serve as the "nerve centre" of its regional expansion. It will operate very much like how the Ryanair office in Dublin, Ireland, serves as the strategic planning centre of Europe's largest LCC.
