KUALA LUMPUR, 9 April 2026: AirAsia X welcomed Tan Sri Jamaludin as the Independent Non-Executive Chairman earlier this week, as the group outlined its strategy to navigate rising fuel costs and growing uncertainty across global aviation markets.
Despite the increasingly complex operating environment, the group remains confident in its resilient business model, strong Asean network and the region’s long-term growth.
It continues to see solid travel demand and remains committed to strengthening Kuala Lumpur as its main hub for seamless, affordable regional connectivity.
Commitment to the Bahrain hub
AirAsia X also reaffirms its commitment to developing Bahrain as a key strategic hub, connecting travellers between Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The service is scheduled to commence on 26 June 2026, with optimism that the conditions in the region will normalise by then. In the meantime, the group has proactively reallocated capacity to stronger-performing and higher-yielding routes, such as Almaty (Kazakhstan), Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Istanbul (Türkiye), to capture displaced demand, whilst also exploring opportunities to further develop our key domestic hub in Senai, Johor Bahru.
Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim said: “While we are experiencing a period of global uncertainty, we are entering this phase from a position of strength. The group’s fundamentals are solid, supported by a lean and disciplined cost structure, a resilient Asean-focused network and robust Fly-Thru connectivity that allows us to respond quickly to market changes”
AirAsia X Advisor Tony Fernandes added: “Tan Sri Jamaludin’s distinguished leadership and deep governance expertise are pivotal to AirAsia X as the unified airline group embarks on a new chapter. His leadership brings the governance depth and independent oversight that our Board upholds, complementing the strength of our management team. I have full confidence that under his chairmanship, AirAsia X will continue to perform and deliver better value and reliability to our guests, partners and investors.
“At the same time, the strength of the Capital A ecosystem continues to provide its resilience to aviation – removing costs while driving higher revenue, where AirAsia MOVE has redoubled its sales and connectivity efforts, ADE continues to optimise and reduce the cost base, and AirAsia Next leverages its strong tech capabilities and extensive database to maximise aviation sales.”
(Source: AirAsia X)
