Latest news with #GulfHub
UAE Moments
a day ago
- Business
- UAE Moments
AirAsia Might Set Hub in Ras Al Khaimah or Saudi Arabia
Malaysian budget airline, AirAsia, is planning to strengthen air links between South-East Asia and the Gulf by opening a hub in the region. The airline has shortlisted four airports, including the one in Ras Al Khaimah and another destination in Saudi Arabia, according to the airline's CEO, Tony Fernandes revealed in an interview with Dubai Eye radio channel on Monday, June 30. He said, "But I can be very open that countries that are interested in us and [those] we are interested in … includes Saudi Arabia, [and] Ras Al Khaimah as well." He also said, "Sharjah is well served by a very good airline, Air Arabia. And Dubai wouldn't be somewhere that we looked at. That's a big airport, a complicated airport." The move comes as AirAsia recovers from a bankruptcy-like restructuring post-COVID-19. According to reports, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), is preparing to invest about $100 million in the Malaysian airline. This would be the airline's second attempt to set up a hub in the Gulf region, after AirAsia pulled out of Abu Dhabi in 2010 because of some operational issues.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Business
- Irish Times
AirAsia plans Gulf hub and new European destinations this year, including Dublin
AirAsia plans to open a Gulf hub this year and extend its flight network to a host of European destinations, including Dublin and London's Gatwick airport, as the Malaysian budget airline tries to bounce back from pandemic-era financial troubles. Chief executive Tony Fernandes said he had held talks with government officials from Gulf states at the recent Paris Air Show about setting up a regional hub and was unfazed by the threat of war in the region following the recent conflict between Israel, the US and Iran. 'From there, Europe is [a shorter] distance away,' he told the Financial Times in an interview. 'We can then start looking at those kinds of exciting, longer-haul fares, and start taking people around the world through a one-stop and multi-hop strategy.' AirAsia is emerging from a bruising pandemic, when the Kuala Lumpur-headquartered airline was forced to pull out of several markets and was classified as a distressed company by the Malaysian government. READ MORE Asia's budget carriers are enduring a period of intense competition and rising costs, which could be exacerbated by increased fuel prices resulting from the conflict between Israel and Iran. [ Avolon could lease 100 aircraft made by Vertical to AirAsia Opens in new window ] Last week, the closure was announced of Qantas-owned Jetstar Asia — which has served south-east Asia out of Singapore. Mr Fernandes, who is a former shareholder in Dublin Aerospace, the leading Irish aircraft maintenance company, said increased costs were affecting all airlines and that Jetstar's closure was also to do with some airports deciding they did not want to receive low-cost carriers. 'I think destinations that decide that they're premium are missing out on a big market,' he said. 'We're going back to the Ryanair strategy of looking at alternative airports to serve those markets.' As AirAsia's primary hub, Kuala Lumpur International Airport sits at the centre of more than 160 destinations served by the airline and its subsidiaries. Fernandes said about 8 per cent of its passengers made connecting flights in its network, a figure he would look to grow. 'Airlines such as ours have just been point to point, but a shift [to a network strategy] could be a very, very profitable part of the business for us,' he said. AirAsia has not decided which Gulf airport it will use as a hub, but it has been expanding its connections to the region in recent years. Last month, it announced it would add new routes, connecting Kuala Lumpur to Riyadh and Dammam, as well as increasing flights to Jeddah. Through its long-haul AirAsia X brand, the group briefly operated flights to Gatwick and Stansted in the UK more than a decade ago, along with Paris's Orly airport, but terminated the routes in 2012. Under the new strategy, Fernandes said AirAsia would utilise the Middle Eastern hub later this year to fly to cities across Europe, particularly in eastern Europe, as well as secondary cities such as Cologne, Manchester, Glasgow, and Dublin. Mr Fernandes added that a London flight would be AirAsia's 'only big glamour destination' in Europe. 'Gatwick would be my first choice,' he said. 'One of the things we're trying to do is offer customers a chance to use other low-cost carriers when they arrive, and there's a lot of connectivity at Gatwick.' - Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
AirAsia considering Ras Al Khaimah or Saudi Arabia for Gulf hub, CEO says
Malaysian budget airline AirAsia is planning to set up a Gulf hub this year as it seeks to capitalise on Europe connectivity from the region and strengthen air links between South-East Asia and the Gulf. The budget airline has four airports on the shortlist, including the one in Ras Al Khaimah and a destination in Saudi Arabia, founder and chief executive Tony Fernandes said on Monday in an interview with the Dubai Eye radio channel. 'We are in discussion with four cities, to be absolutely fair and transparent … [but] I don't want to make any comment right now on who we are talking to. But I can be very open that countries that are interested in us and [those] we are interested in … includes Saudi Arabia, [and] Ras Al Khaimah as well,' he said, adding that Dubai and Sharjah were not on the cards. 'Sharjah is well served by a very good airline, Air Arabia. And Dubai wouldn't be somewhere that we looked at. That's a big airport, a complicated airport,' Mr Fernandes said. 'Dubai wouldn't really benefit from an AirAsia. It's so successful already. But other Emirates, other places in the Gulf would benefit tremendously from the traffic we could bring both ways,' he added. The airline did not return a request from The National for a comment. The move comes as AirAsia emerges from a bankruptcy-like restructuring post Covid-19. The airline faced a financial crisis that caused massive losses, with the company's performance plummeting. Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has been reportedly preparing to invest approximately $100 million in the Kuala Lumpur-based airline. AirAsia parent company Capital A said in May that it is planning a significant expansion into Saudi Arabia, including new routes to Riyadh and Dammam, and increased frequency to Jeddah from Kuala Lumpur. Mr Fernandes held talks with government officials from Gulf states at the recent Paris Air Show about setting up a regional hub and is unfazed by the threat of war in the region following the recent conflict between Israel, the US and Iran, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. According to Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research, the Gulf is awash with robust, established and often state-backed airlines, which might pose a challenge for AirAsia's growth. 'Stepping into the UAE would be immensely difficult. The compelling product and network advantage UAE airlines enjoy is insurmountable. Sure, AirAsia may pick off low hanging fruit from other airlines operating in the UAE that don't have as much dominance, but that hardly augurs long term success,' he told The National. 'Almost certainly, a new entrant provides incentives and low fares to attract people to fly with them – and AirAsia does have a sizeable base in Malaysia for connections to the rest of Asia. The challenge is being able to draw in people in sizeable numbers.' He added that Kuwait, Oman or Bahrain 'represent better, less risky and less costly options given that these countries have fewer domestic airlines'. As for Ras Al Khaimah, Mr Ahmad said it's more likely that the introduction of a casino in the emirate and the growth in real estate and hotels is 'seen more as a regional getaway location as opposed to a Dubai-style gateway'. 'In isolation, a casino is not a game changer and won't be for everyone – it's earmarked for the select few that relish such activities,' he said. Meanwhile, asked if the new Gulf hub could involve a partner or sovereign investment from the UAE or Saudi Arabia, Mr Fernandes said it's 'not critical'. 'But it's nice to have … we have to treat these two things as independent,' he told the radio channel. This would be the airline's second attempt to set up a hub in the Gulf, after AirAsia X pulled out of Abu Dhabi back in 2010 for operational reasons. Two years later, the airline considered setting up a low-cost carrier to serve the Gulf region. AirAsia, which saw its fleet size grow to 225 aircraft as of the end of the first quarter this year, has been working with Airbus to secure a long-range aircraft, Mr Fernandes said on Monday. 'We now have one or two, actually. One is the Airbus 321 Long Range and the second one is a 321XLR. That allows us with one stop to probably get to most of the world,' he said. 'We want to extend our successful Asian operation to the world and allow people in South-East Asia and Asean and people in Europe to go to places.'
