KUALA LUMPUR, 13 September 2022: A little over 21 years ago, two gentlemen from the music industry Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun bought AirAsia for a mere MYR1 on 8 September 2001.
The almost bankrupt airline was saddled with debts of over MYR40 million in debt. Today, 21 years later, it has flown 700 million guests evolving from a two-aircraft airline to become a one-stop-shop platform to include e-hailing services, food delivery, logistics, fintech and airline engineering & maintenance.
Some 21 years, 252 months and 7,674 days later, Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A, the holding group that owns AirAsia, comments:
“What a ride it has been! Twenty-one incredibly meaningful years and a loyal family that I could not be more proud of and thankful for. Like every family, we’ve had some tough times. These last few years have been unimaginably challenging – we went from flying 90 million passengers a year to having to ground our entire fleet at one point due to the pandemic.
There are no words to express how grateful I am to my dedicated Allstars for weathering through these times and to our loyal guests who’ve supported us and chosen us repeatedly. I always say – we never waste a crisis or let it get us down.”
To celebrate this historic birthday, AirAsia has launched a new campaign with the underlying message ‘Some things never change.
“Through this campaign, we come together, near and far, as we reminisce about the impact AirAsia has had on our lives as a homegrown company that constantly strives to uphold its values as a brand that brings the masses together.”
In conjunction with its 21st birthday, the airline will launch a can’t-be-missed and a first-of-its-kind sales campaign.
