Low-cost Malaysian carrier AirAsia X to enter Japan market in Dec.+

TOKYO, Sept. 21 Kyodo -
Low-cost Malaysian carrier AirAsia X said Tuesday it will launch a service
connecting Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo's Haneda airport on Dec. 9, making it the
first foreign budget carrier to serve Haneda.
''This day has been a long time coming, as we have been planning our entry of
service into the Japanese market for well over two years,'' said Chief
Executive Officer Azran Osman-Rani at a press conference at a Tokyo hotel.
''We want to make travel more affordable for the broader population in Malaysia
who can visit the huge diverse culture of Japan and we equally wish to extend
to the Japanese to come visit us, to our exotic islands,'' Osman-Rani said.
A one-way ticket will have a base fare of as low as 5,000 yen, which excludes
airport tax and fees of 3,000 yen, during a promotional campaign period from
Sept. 23 to Oct. 31. After the campaign, it will cost 14,000 yen to 68,000 yen
for economy class depending on availability of seats.
The carrier will operate one round-trip flight every Tuesday, Thursday and
Sunday. The plane will leave Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 2:40 p.m.
and arrive at Haneda at 10:30 p.m. The same plane will then depart Tokyo at
11:45 p.m. and arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 6:30 a.m. the following day.
The airline is an affiliate of AirAsia, one of the biggest low-cost carriers in
Asia. As budget airlines expand globally, AirAsia X is set to spur competition
in Japan.
All Nippon Airways Co. will also establish a low-cost carrier by the end of
this year with a plan to start serving customers in the second half of fiscal
2011 through March 2012 under a brand other than ANA, using Kansai
International Airport in Osaka Prefecture as its base.
AirAsia X, which focuses on long-haul air travel, uses fuel-efficient Airbus
planes. On the A330 aircraft, premium seats that have flatbed seats and are of
standard business class specifications are available.
It is expected to attract Japanese customers visiting Malaysia and other Asian
countries for business and sightseeing.
''Fukuoka, Osaka, Sapporo are all cities we have a strong interest in,''
Osman-Rani said of the company's future plans in Japan. ''It's a matter of
getting the airplanes delivered as well as testing the market. Tokyo is the
most important market and if we are successful it will give us confidence for
giving service to these other cities.''
AirAsia, a pioneering short-haul budget carrier in the region, had once
considered serving Ibaraki airport, which opened in March.
Moves are increasing among some regional airports in Japan to attract low-cost
carriers, as the number of their flight services has remained stagnant. Against
this background, AirAsia could also begin a Kuala Lumpur route servicing
Japanese domestic airports other than Haneda.
==Kyodo
2010-09-22 00:08:32