AirAsia seeks to increase traffic by 3 mln passengers in Langkawi

LANGKAWI: AirAsia aims to fly an additional three million passengers to Langkawi over the next five years.
This is on top of the current 1.6 million passengers it ferried in 2015 and in the face of potential demand for traffic to the holiday island.
Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said to achieve the target, the airline is looking at more international routes from and to Langkawi, including Hong Kong, Jakarta and Shanghai.
AirAsia today welcomed its inaugural flight from Guangzhou to Langkawi at the Kompleks Lang Merah, Langkawi International Airport.
The budget airline had announced during the LIMA Airshow in March last year that Langkawi would be its latest international hub in Malaysia.
“Our plan is to base five planes here and over the next five years, I believe AirAsia can reach five million passengers.
“We will continue to add to the passengers to Langkawi and Kedah,” he told reporters after the welcoming ceremony.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir and Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai were also present to welcome the inaugural flight.
It landed with a healthy 92 per cent flight load.
Among the guests on board were representatives from the Guangdong Tourism Authority and members of the media.
AirAsia currently holds a 60 per cent market share in Langkawi air traffic in operating direct flights to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore.
Fernandes cited the Guangzhou-Langkawi route as not only strengthening the airlines’ presence on the island, but also further boosting its economy with potential investments from China.
“By making Langkawi an international hub, we are confident we can boost the tourism traffic to the island.
“We have invested substantially to ensure this hub can accommodate and facilitate our projected traffic growth and achieve the goal of turning Langkawi into a regional Low Cost Carrier (LCC) hub,” he said.
Fernandez said AirAsia had received an average booking of above 80 per cent for the commencement of the inaugural flight from Guangzhou, which indicates a boom in tourism for Langkawi in respect of Chinese tourists.
To celebrate the momentous occasion, the airline is offering an all-in-fare from as low as RM199 one-way from Langkawi to Guangzhou and from Jan 25 until Feb 7, 2016 for the travel period of Jan 25 to May 2, 2016. – Bernama


Tony Fernandes to deal in AirAsia shares
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): AirAsia Bhd ( Valuation: 0.60, Fundamental: 0.20)'s group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes intends to deal in the company’s shares during the closed period prior to the release of its results for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2015.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, budget airline AirAsia said Fernandes, also AirAsia’s non-independent executive director, owned 530.14 million shares or 19.05% in the company.
AirAsia said the 19.05% stake comprised a 0.06% direct portion and an 18.99% indirect interest.
Fernandes' indirect 18.99% interest in AirAsia is held via Tune Air Sdn Bhd, according to AirAsia. His direct stake in AirAsia is held under CIMB Group Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd.
At 11:01am, AirAsia shares rose two sen or 1.5% to RM1.34, for a market capitalisation of RM3.73 billion.
The stock saw some four million shares transacted.
AirAsia's share price compares to the company's latest reported net assets per share at RM1.37.
(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)
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