Jakarta Globe, AFP & Reuters, Dec 28, 2014
 |
| AirAsia Group chief executive Tony Fernandes, left, talks with Indonesia AirAsia chief executive Sunu Widyatmoko during a news conference at the Juanda International Airport in Surabaya on Sunday. (Reuters Photo/Beawiharta) |
Kuala
Lumpur. Malaysian mogul Tony Fernandes, who transformed a floundering carrier
into Asia’s biggest budget airline, faces his first major crisis after an
AirAsia plane went missing on Sunday with 162 people on board.
AirAsia is
credited with starting a revolution in the skies of Southeast Asia and has seen
spectacular growth under Fernandes’ low-cost, low-overheads model despite
intense competition.
The
ebullient tycoon is one of Asia’s most visible entrepreneurs, carving out an
image that has seen him frequently compared to colorful Virgin Group chairman
Richard Branson.
Fernandes
maintained an image of calm on Sunday even as his company plunged into its
first major crisis after an Indonesia AirAsia passenger jet went missing in bad
weather en route from Indonesia to Singapore.
“Thank you
for all your thoughts and prayers. We must stay strong,” he tweeted as he left
for Surabaya, where most of the passengers are from. “My only thought [sic] are
with the passengers and my crew.”
This
incident caps a disastrous year for Malaysian aviation which saw beleaguered
rival Malaysia Airlines suffer two air tragedies in rapid succession.
Indonesia
AirAsia is 49 percent owned by Malaysia-based AirAsia Bhd., with local
investors holding the rest.
“This is my
worst nightmare. But there is no stopping,” Fernandes said on his Twitter feed,
which has nearly 1 million followers.
“I as your
group CEO will be there through these hard times. We will go through this
terrible ordeal together and I will try to see as many of you.”
 |
| AirAsia Group chief executive Tony Fernandes walks in front of family members of passengers on board missing Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ8501, at a news conference in Juanda International Airport in Surabaya on Sunday. (Reuters Photo/Beawiharta) |
Unblemished
safety record
The AirAsia
group of airlines has had a virtually unblemished safety record until Sunday
compared with competitors like Malaysia Airlines and Indonesian carriers such
as Lion Air and Garuda Indonesia which have lost several planes in crashes over
the last decade.
“Tony
Fernandes and AirAsia are highly regarded with the aviation industry. The
airline is highly successful and had an excellent safety record,” said John
Strickland, director at London-based JLS Consulting.
Southeast
Asian carriers Lion Air and AirAsia have led an aircraft buying binge and
placed record orders worth tens of billions of dollars with Boeing and Airbus
as they race to get people flying in a region forecast to overtake the United
States as the biggest aviation market.
AirAsia was
built up from two planes in 2001 to an airline industry titan that operates
more than 180 jets in just over a decade.
With 475
aircraft ordered or delivered, AirAsia has emerged as the biggest Asian
customer of Airbus. The orders have been so large they have earned a footnote
in the world’s largest trade dispute between Airbus and Boeing over mutual
accusations of illegal subsidies.
The airline
has been feted by European politicians as it became one of the largest single
export customers for European industry and helped secure thousands of jobs.
Over the
last few months, AirAsia’s profits have taken a knock due to a grueling price
war in its home market and it has had to defer some plane orders, with signs of
over capacity in some Southeast Asian markets.
Defying
naysayers
A former
record industry executive who acquired the then-failing airline in 2001,
Fernandes is ranked 28th on the Forbes list of Malaysia’s richest with an
estimated net worth of $650 million.
The tycoon,
a flamboyant spirit in Asia’s staid business world who favors blue jeans and
caps over power suits, has made a habit of defying naysayers.
He took
over loss-making AirAsia shortly after the September 11 attacks in the United
States sent the global aviation industry into a tailspin, and was given little
chance of succeeding.
He bought
the airline, its two aircraft, and 40 million ringgit ($13.4 million) in debt for
the token sum of one ringgit, mortgaging his house to pour money into the
carrier.
But with
his motto “Now everyone can fly”, he turned it into a growing force in the
aviation industry, with profits mounting and its route system expanding
worldwide.
Fernandes,
who is of Indian-Portuguese descent and married with two children, struck a
deal with F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone in 2011 for a majority stake in Premiership
football team Queens Park Rangers.
Entrepreneurial
spirit
Endau
Analytics aviation analyst Shukor Yusof said his entrepreneurial spirit would
survive Sunday’s apparent tragedy.
“This
incident will not dampen Fernandes’ business spirit. This is such an
unfortunate incident. AirAsia remains a strong budget carrier. I think the
people will rally behind AirAsia,” he told AFP.
The
airline, which now has more than 120 A320s and is one of the biggest customers
for the European aircraft maker Airbus, is expecting nearly 360 new aircraft to
be delivered by 2026.
AirAsia,
which has some of the lowest unit costs in the world, has raked in business
awards and accolades over the years, while expanding aggressively.
In 2013 it
was ranked as Asia and the world’s best low-cost airline for the fifth time in
a row.
After
Sunday’s apparent disaster, AirAsia swiftly replaced its distinctive bright red
logo on its social media pages with a grey background.
Malaysia
Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared on a regular flight from Kuala Lumpur to
Beijing in March with 239 passengers and crew, and in July, MH17 was shot down
over troubled Ukraine killing all 298 on board.
News of the
missing plane comes at the end of a disastrous year for the country’s airlines.
Malaysia Airlines lost two aircraft this year.
Fernandes
has had a long-running war of words with flag carrier Malaysia Airlines and has
pushed hard for landing rights and butted heads with the Malaysian government
over securing new routes.
AFP & Reuters
No comments:
Post a Comment