AirAsia Malaysia recently celebrated flight resumption to India, with the airline’s leaders announcing big plans for the future. The airline has already started flying to some cities in South India, and more flights are scheduled to resume in the coming weeks. Encouraged by an uptick in international travel, AirAsia is hopeful of establishing a solid network between Malaysia and India by the end of this year.
Direct connectivity between India and Malaysia was boosted recently, with AirAsia Malaysia resuming flights between Kuala Lumpur and some Indian cities. As reported earlier, the carrier has relaunched flights to India after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To mark the resumption of services between the two countries, Bo Lingam, Group CEO of AirAsia Aviation Group Limited (AAAGL), and Riad Asmat, CEO of AirAsia Malaysia, met with Ms. C. Sushma, the Chargé d'Affaires of the High Commission of India in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on April 13th and discussed further growth opportunities in this sector.
AirAsia Malaysia flights between Kuala Lumpur and Bengaluru (2x weekly) and Chennai (4x weekly) commenced on April 1st, and to Tiruchirappalli (4x weekly) on April 5th. Flights to Kochi (1x weekly), Kolkata (1x weekly), and Hyderabad (4x weekly) will start on April 18th, April 22nd, and May 1st, respectively.
AirAsia will also launch five routes connecting India with Thailand from next month. Flights from Jaipur and Kochi to Bangkok will launch on May 1st, with flights from Kolkata starting on May 2nd. Additional services from Chennai and Bengaluru to Bangkok will launch on May 4th.
Asmat hopes to establish a solid network between India and Kuala Lumpur in the coming few months. Noting the importance of the Indian market for the carrier, he said that AirAsia will continue to review and add to its expanding network to cater to the increasing demand for air travel, including 30 total weekly flights from Malaysia to India launching by the end of May.
He also added that with a total of 71 weekly flights to be operated by the end of 2022, AirAsia Malaysia would soon return to pre-Covid capacity, flying more than 140 weekly services to and from India.
India and Malaysia have both relaxed entry requirements, giving airlines a chance to re-establish previously suspended profitable flights. While the Government of India re-opened its international borders to tourists in October 2021 and its commercial airspace for scheduled international flights from 27 March 2022, Malaysia re-opened its border to international travelers on April 1st.
The India-Malaysia sector witnesses substantial passenger traffic, and AirAsia would want to capitalize on the demand once again. It’s not just South India receiving love from the airline; the group’s long-haul budget airline AirAsia X will also commence flights to New Delhi from April 20th.