Air Asia - Anyone Can Fly

One of the best things that has happened in SE Asia is the emergence of Air Asia.
When it started, I was sceptical. How can a new airline charge such low fares and survive? Then with the shortage of airline pilots, I wondered what sort of pilots they have. Are these new pilots from the bottom of the barrel? Can they fly? Will I be safe?
Last year, with a bit of foolhardiness and summoning sufficient courage, I decided to try Air Asia, flying from Kuala Lumpur to Siem Reap. Then I took another flight, and another flight. Not only was I converted, I was actually impressed!
Air Asia is a product of entrepreneurial genius. Who would have thought that there would be a place for a discount airline in the controlled skies of Asian aviation. It may have started as a Malaysian airline but as its name announces, it is really meant to be a pan-Asian airline, flying to places where other airlines do not.
I was on a flight to Hanoi and it was really good to see that the plane was full of Vietnamese “foreign” workers returning home for the Tet festival. Just think how good it is to have affordable transport to enable the migration of workers between Asian countries.
Every flight also brings in tourists from the relatively affluent countries to others who value the tourist dollar. How many more tourists are Siem Reap, Krabi, Manardo, etc having now because of Air Asia!
How many more jobs have been created in the places where Air Asia operates?
Air Asia is an industry by itself. Look at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal in Kuala Lumpur. A few years ago, that terminal must have been a plantation. Now it is huge structure teeming with people – workers of Air Asia, taxis, transport companies, travellers, etc. How much businesses have been created – hotels, taxis, buses, restaurants, etc? Economists talk of the multiplier effect. You can see it in action at LCCT.
And this is really the beginning. While other airlines shrink their business, Air Asia continues to roll out new destinations. Many more holiday trips will be made in Asia now because Air Asia has made places accessible. “Anyone can fly”; I think that’s what its slogan says. And Asia benefits.
Kudos to Tony Fernandez and the Air Asian team!