AirAsia India

AirAsia India
IATA ICAO Callsign
I5[1] IAD[1] RED KNIGHT[2]
Founded 28 March 2013 (2013-03-28)
Commenced operations 12 June 2014 (2014-06-12)
Operating bases Kempegowda International Airport (Bangalore)
Secondary hubs
Fleet size 19
Destinations 21
Company slogan Now Everyone Can Fly
Headquarters Bangalore, India[3]
Key people
Website www.airasia.com/in/en/home.page

AirAsia India is an Indian low cost carrier headquartered in Bangalore, India. The airline is a joint venture with AirAsia Berhad holding 49% stake in the airline, Tata Sons holding 49%, R Venkataramanan holding 1.50%, and S Ramodarai holding 0.50%, respectively, the latter two holding other key positions in Tata Group. Air Asia India commenced operations on 12 June 2014 with Bangalore as its primary hub.

AirAsia is the first foreign airline to set up a subsidiary in India and the company marked Tata's return to the aviation industry after 60 years, having ceded Air India in 1946. As of May 2017, AirAsia India was the 4th largest low-cost carrier in India, after IndiGo, GoAir, and SpiceJet, with a market share of 3.3%.

History

In Feb. 2013, with the Indian government allowing a foreign direct investment of up to 49% in airlines, AirAsia Berhad applied to the Indian Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) seeking approval for commencing its operations in India.[4][5] In March 2013, AirAsia announced that it would establish a joint venture with Tata Sons and Telestra Tradeplace with Tata Sons representing the airline with two non-executive directors in the board.[6][7][8] The airliner planned to operate with the world's lowest unit cost of ₹1.25 (1.7¢ US) per available seat Kilometre and a passenger break-even load factor of 52%. It also planned to hedge 100% of its fuel requirements for the first three years and to achieve an aircraft turnaround time of 25 minutes.[9]

AirAsia planned to begin operations to various tier 2 and tier 3 cities with Chennai International Airport as its main operating base.[10] According to KPMG, the introduction of AirAsia was expected to cause another price war, ultimately leading to an increase in air traffic and some consolidation in the Indian aviation sector.[11] AirAsia initially invested an amount of US$50 million and in preparation for its operations in India, it struck deals with online and offline travel agents.[12][13] On 3 March 2013, the FIPB officially permitted AirAsia to rent or lease aircraft and to carry cargo on its scheduled flights. The airline then applied for permission to schedule aircraft and transport passengers,[14] which the FIPB accepted on 6 March.[15]

AirAsia India was established on 28 March 2013 and became the first foreign airline to set up a subsidiary in India.[16][17] In April, the airline started recruiting candidates for pilots and cabin crew.[18] As the final procedure to obtain Air Operator Permit, a proving flight was conducted on 1 and 2 May 2014 flying from Chennai to Kochi, Bangalore and Kolkata.[19] On 7 May 2014, the DGCA issued an Air Operator Permit to the company.[20] On 30 May 2014, the airline announced the shifting of its base to Bangalore and its first flight from there to Goa.[21] AirAsia operated its maiden flight on 12 June 2014.[22][23] In June 2015, the airline made Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi its secondary hub for North Indian operations.[24] In August 2015, Tata Sons increased its stake to 40.06% from 30% earlier by injecting fresh equity while Telestra's share was reduced to 10% from 20%.[25][26] As of May 2017, AirAsia India is the fourth largest low cost carrier in India, far behind IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoAir, with a market share of 3.3%.[27][28]

In January 2018, managing director and chief executive Amar announced plans of the company to expect a fleet of 21 aircraft by the yearend, which will make it eligible to operate overseas flights.[29]

Corporate affairs

AirAsia India is headquartered in Bangalore, India.[30] Prior to the airline's formation, Tony Fernandes, founder of AirAsia group, announced that he would like Ratan Tata to be the chairman of the airline; however the latter refused, though he later consented to being the chief advisor to the AirAsia India management board.[31][32] On 15 May 2013, AirAsia India appointed management consultant Mittu Chandilya as CEO.[33] A month later, on 17 June, S. Ramadorai, the non-executive vice-chairman of Tata Consultancy Services, was appointed as the chairman of the airline.[34] In April 2016, Amar Abrol replaced Mittu Chandilya as the CEO of the airline.[35]

Destinations

AirAsia India operates over 100 daily flights connecting 21 destinations across India.[29]

State City Airport Notes Ref.
Andhra Pradesh Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam Airport [36]
Assam Guwahati Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport [37]
Chandigarh Chandigarh Chandigarh Airport [38]
Delhi Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport Hub [37]
Goa Goa Dabolim Airport [23]
Gujarat Surat Surat Airport [39]
Jammu and Kashmir Srinagar Sheikh ul-Alam International Airport
Jharkhand Ranchi Birsa Munda Airport [40]
Karnataka Bengaluru Kempegowda International Airport Hub [23]
Kerala Kochi Cochin International Airport [41]
Madhya Pradesh Indore Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport [42]
Maharashtra Nagpur Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport [43]
Maharashtra Pune Pune Airport [44]
Manipur Imphal Imphal Airport [45]
Odisha Bhubaneswar Biju Patnaik International Airport
Punjab Amritsar Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport [46]
Rajasthan Jaipur Jaipur International Airport [38]
Tamil Nadu Chennai Chennai International Airport
Telangana Hyderabad Rajiv Gandhi International Airport [47]
West Bengal Siliguri Bagdogra Airport
West Bengal Kolkata Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport Hub [40]

Fleet

AirAsia India operates a fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft

As of August 2018, AirAsia India operates 19 Airbus A320s with plans to bring total fleet to 20 by the year-end.[48]

AirAsia India fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers Notes
Airbus A320-200 19 180
Total 19 –

References

  1. 1 2 "AirAsia India". ch-aviation. Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  2. ↑ "JO 7340.2G Contractions" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. 5 January 2017. p. 3-1-10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 June 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  3. ↑ "AirAsia India to set up innovation centre in Bengaluru". Forbes India. 27 September 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  4. ↑ "AirAsia India to take to the skies in Q4". MCIL Multimedia. Archived from the original on 24 February 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  5. ↑ Kurlantzick, Joshua (23 December 2007). "Does Low Cost Mean High Risk?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 3 November 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2010.
  6. ↑ "AirAsia to tie up with Tata Sons for new airline in India". Times of India. 21 February 2013. Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "Tata Sons, Telestra Tradeplace and Air Asia to form Air Asia India". The Economic Times. 20 February 2013. Archived from the original on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  8. ↑ "AirAsia incorporates company for Indian venture". The Times of India. New Delhi. Press Trust of India. 31 March 2013. Archived from the original on 31 March 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  9. ↑ "Passengers' perceptions of low cost airlines and full service carriers". Cranfield University. 2005. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  10. ↑ "Tatas plan return flight with AirAsia on board". NDTV. Archived from the original on 21 February 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  11. ↑ "AirAsia's India foray good news; see more competition: KPMG". CNBC. 21 February 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  12. ↑ "FIPB approves AirAsia-Tata plan". The Hindu. 6 March 2013. Archived from the original on 28 May 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "Air Asia to make strong sales pitch, ties up with portals, agents". Business Standard. 23 February 2013. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  14. ↑ "Air Asia, Tata Group JV seeks permission for aircraft leasing". Indian Express. 3 March 2013. Archived from the original on 6 March 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  15. ↑ "AirAsia's India investment plan gets FIPB nod". Reuters. 6 March 2013. Archived from the original on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  16. ↑ "AirAsia incorporates Indian venture; files all papers with MCA". The Economic Times. 3 April 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  17. ↑ "FIPB to take up AirAsia India entry proposal on March 6". The Hindu Business Line. 22 February 2013. Archived from the original on 5 January 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  18. ↑ "AirAsia recruitment drive for India gets overwhelming response". The Economic Times. 14 April 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  19. ↑ "AirAsia India Proving Flights: Day 2". The Flying Engineer. 2 May 2015. Archived from the original on 3 July 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  20. ↑ "AirAsia India gets approval to fly". BBC News. 8 May 2014. Archived from the original on 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  21. ↑ "AirAsia India launches and shifts base to Bengaluru". anna.aero. 18 June 2014. Archived from the original on 26 June 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  22. ↑ "AirAsia India Tickets on sale from today". NDTV. 30 May 2014. Archived from the original on 29 May 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  23. 1 2 3 "AirAsia India announces maiden flight from Bangalore to Goa for Rs 990". IBNLive. 30 May 2014. Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  24. ↑ "AirAsia looking for a third hub after Delhi". The Economic Times. 21 May 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  25. ↑ "ATata Sons increase AirAsia India stake to 41%". The Economic Times. 18 August 2015. Archived from the original on 27 August 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  26. ↑ "Tata group ramps up stake in Air Asia". Ch-aviation. 18 August 2015. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  27. ↑ "India's domestic passenger demand up 25 percent: IATA". Business Standard. 6 April 2014. Archived from the original on 23 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  28. ↑ Traffic Report (PDF) (Report). DGCA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  29. 1 2 "AirAsia India Says No Plans to Look at Air India Stake". News18.com. 16 January 2018. Archived from the original on 16 January 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
  30. ↑ "AirAsia India shifts base to Bengaluru from Chennai". Times of India. 30 May 2014. Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  31. ↑ "AirAsia wants Ratan Tata to head JV". The Economic Times. 24 February 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  32. ↑ "Ratan Tata to be the chief advisor to AirAsia India". The Economic Times. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  33. ↑ "Singapore based Mittu Chandilya appointed CEO of Air Asia India". The Economic Times. 15 May 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  34. ↑ "AirAsia India appoints TCS' S Ramadorai as Chairman". The Economic Times. 17 June 2013. Archived from the original on 28 January 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  35. ↑ "Meet Amar Abrol, AirAsia India's new CEO who is set to replace Chandilya". Hindustan Times. 18 March 2016. Archived from the original on 22 May 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  36. ↑ "AirAsia India to start Bangalore-Visakhapatnam service from 18 June 2015". AirAsia India. 8 March 2016. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  37. 1 2 "AirAsia India set to launch flights from New Delhi". Business Standard. 20 April 2015. Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  38. 1 2 "Air Asia adds Jaipur and Chandigarh". Air Asia (Press release). 24 July 2014. Archived from the original on 20 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  39. ↑ "AirAsia India plans to connect Surat with Bengaluru in May | Surat News - Times of India". M.timesofindia.com. 2018-04-20. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
  40. 1 2 "Air Asia launches Kolkata Ranchi". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 22 March 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  41. ↑ "Air Asia announces Kochi flights". NDTV. 17 June 2014. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  42. ↑ "AirAsia India to commence flight operations to Nagpur and Indore". Business Standard. 27 February 2018. Archived from the original on 28 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  43. ↑ "AirAsia India to commence flight operations to Nagpur and Indore". Business Standard. 27 February 2018. Archived from the original on 28 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  44. ↑ "Airasia India launches services to Pune". New Indian Express. 18 December 2014. Archived from the original on 15 November 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  45. ↑ "AirAsia Adds Another New Route, Fares Start At Rs. 1/Km". NDTV. 3 June 2015. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  46. ↑ Bernama. "AirAsia India to launch Amritsar route next month". The Edge Markets. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
  47. ↑ "AirAsia India outlines plans to expand fleet, network". Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  48. ↑ https://m.planespotters.net/airline/AirAsia-India

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