AirAsia Group has made its clearest indication yet it could pull out of the Indian market.
There has been speculation for a few months it could exit its joint venture with local partner Tata Sons and admits the business and its now shuttered Japanese joint venture have been ‘draining cash.’
AirAsia owns 49% of the India joint venture.
It is now undergoing a review of AirAsia India, hinting it could exit the market.
"Our businesses in Japan and India have been draining cash, causing the group much financial stress. Cost containment and reducing cash burns remain key priorities evident by the recent closure of AirAsia Japan and an ongoing review of our investment in AirAsia India," said AirAsia Group President Bo Lingam.
AirAsia India flies to 19 cities in India with a fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft.
AirAsia Japan ceased operations last month.
There were reports several weeks ago Tata was in talks to buy out AirAsia Group’s stake.
Still, it remains optimistic for the group as a whole.
"The general outlook is that air travel will be bouncing back real soon; we expect to get back to pre-pandemic levels on many routes across the group by mid-2021, if not earlier," Lingam said.
However the troubled AirAsia X long haul unit is to undergo debt restructuring amid a massive multi-billion dollar debt pile.
Written by Ray Montgomery, Asia Editor
