KUALA LUMPUR, AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes said the group is poised for more expansion after reporting a record net profit of RM549 million and passenger growth of 21 percent in 2009.
“There are early signs that the global economy is stabilising and the benefits are already visible in the aviation industry. Passenger traffic is growing, particularly in the LCC segment,” Fernandes said.
“The supply-demand conditions are favourable to upward- revision of fares in certain sectors.”
Fernandes said AirAsia had identified nine new routes to be launched “and this will support passenger growth of 11%-14% in 2010”.
“Based on the forward booking trend, the underlying passenger demand in the first quarter 2010 is positive,” he said.
Fernandes also said that current conditions provide AirAsia with an opportunity to review, re-evaluate and restructure its internal operations and build on its strong foundations so as to benefit fully from the reviving economy.
“We’re fine tuning the current route network to extract higher yields.
“We’re also set to become an all-Airbus fleet throughout the group by the third quarter – which will help lower operational costs, increase capacity and give us a clear edge over the competition,” he said.
In addition, AirAsia’s joint collaboration with Australia’s Jetstar (and Jetstar’s parent, Qantas) in operational aspects such as procurement, engineering and ground handling is expected to contribute substantial savings, he said.
The group is also determined to increase its penetration in the Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region.
While it already operates through its hubs in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, AirAsia has also entered into a joint venture with VietJet in Vietnam with the goal of launching operations out of that country in 2010.
