77
AirAsia X Berhad • Annual Report 2014
The timing was not perhaps ideal, given ongoing political
unrest in the country which led to martial law being
declared by the army just a month after Thai AirAsia X
(TAAX) was born. Yet, despite lower tourist arrivals in the
country in the first three quarters of the year as a result
of the military coup, TAAX performed admirably well in its
first year of operations.
Beginning with flights from Bangkok’s Don Mueang
International Airport to Seoul on 17 June, the airline
was quick to announce the launch of two new routes
to Japan, a popular destination for Thais. Flights from
Bangkok to Narita International Airport in Tokyo and Kansai
International Airport in Osaka commenced on 1 September
2014 and have seen very healthy take-up by both Thai and
Japanese travellers.
As a result of strengthening tourism links between the two
countries, TAAX was officially presented with a Special
Japan Tourism Award in 2014 by the Japan National
Tourism Organization (JNTO).
While TAAX stands to benefit from the market reputation
of its more established sister airline, Thai AirAsia, the new
team is making the most of customer service perks that
are unique to the long-haul operations to market the new
airline. These include the Business Class seat (previously
known as Premium Flatbed), which is truly appreciated by
passengers as evidenced by AirAsia X’s Skytrax wins two
years in a row. A Business Class package also includes
complimentary 40 kilograms of check-in baggage, a
complimentary meal, free flow of soft drinks on board,
priority boarding and priority baggage services.
In addition, the marketing team launched an aggressive
campaign to advertise the availability of 24 new meals
on board and an X-Tra Onboard Sky Ticket service which
allows guests to purchase bus, train and attraction
tickets in Japan during their flight. These efforts, together
with operational excellence – such as an 89% on-time
performance, served to keep passenger load figures high,
averaging 85% for the year.
Currently operating with two Airbus A330-300 aircraft, the
airline aims to increase this figure in 2015 as it increases
the frequency of its current routes and adds new routes to
its network. On the cards are plans to double the frequency
of flights between Bangkok and Narita from once to twice
daily; and to grow the Bangkok-Osaka route from five to
seven flights per week.
A key achievement during the year was to launch flights to
Sapporo, thus breaking a two-year monopoly on the route
held by the Thai national carrier. Sapporo, the fourth largest
city in Japan, located on the northern island of Hokkaido, is
a popular destination given its snow festival which attracts
more than two million tourists from around the world every
year, and its fame as home to Sapporo Brewery.
In addition, TAAX will launch two new routes into China,
making the most of Thailand’s position as the second most
popular tourist destination among Chinese travellers.
As the airline increases its route network, it will also
promote AirAsia’s strong connectivity and available Fly-
Thru destinations. Currently, passengers from Japan
can conveniently connect to over 20 destinations in the
region and within Thailand while passengers from Seoul
can connect to over nine domestic and international
destinations via this facility, which earns TAAX extra
ancillary income.
In 2015, marketing initiatives will also focus on promoting
Premium Flex Fares for business travellers, along with the
new Book and Pay that enable guests to pay for tickets
at 7 Eleven outlets. At the same time, TAAX has been
working on further enhancing its X-Tra Onboard Sky Ticket
and looks forward to launching the second phase of this
service which will boast Lotte World Adventure Tickets for
passengers flying to Seoul along with airport limousine
service for those traveling to Thailand.
For the seven months that it has been operating, TAAX
achieved a notable revenue of Baht 1,560 million. Along
with a surge in tourism in the last quarter of the year, its
Q4 revenue hit an impressive Baht 990 million, lending
confidence of a much enhanced revenue collection in 2015
– boosted both by tourism numbers as well as a larger
fleet, higher flight frequencies and new destinations.
Our first regional affiliate has made an amazing new start
and we expect its first full year of operations in 2015 to be
even more spectacular.
22 APRIL 2014WAS A
SIGNIFICANT DATE FOR
ALLTHAIS AND FOR US IN
AIRASIA X.THISWASTHE
DAYTHAI AIRASIA XWAS
OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED,
MAKING ITTHE FIRST
LOW-COST LONG-HAUL
AIRLINE INTHE COUNTRY,
ASWELL AS OUR FIRST
REGIONAL AFFILIATE.
