AIRASIA Bhd, the low-cost carrier that flies only Airbus SE planes, will consider using newly-developed aircraft such as the Chinese-made C919 as the airline expands its fleet and destinations.
“I think as an airline you have to look at everything,” said AirAsia group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, when asked whether the carrier would consider the C919.
“We will be foolish not to look at new planes.”
Willie Walsh, chief executive officer of IAG SA, the owner of British Airways, has said the company would consider the Chinese-made aircraft.
Commercial Aircraft Corp of China Ltd, the planemaker, has commitments from 23 customers for about 570 of the C919, which took its maiden flight on May 5.
AirAsia made a key advancement in its goal to create a pan-Asian low-cost airline this month, when he announced a partnership with China’s Everbright group to create a budget airline in the country.
Fernandes is predicting the rest of the year will be better than last year, after the company posted a 30 per cent drop in first-quarter net income, saying the competitive environment is improving.
“We are seeing much better load and yields in the second, third and fourth quarter,” said Fernandes.
“So, 2016 was a record year. We think this year will be better than last year.”
Net income in the first three months of this year fell to RM615.8 million from RM877.8 million a year earlier, AirAsia reported on Thursday.
The carrier also said it planned to add 29 planes for a total of 201 by the end of this year.
The Chinese venture will be based in Zhengzhou, the capital of central Henan province. While Fernandes declined to identify specific routes for the Chinese venture, he said the carrier would focus on markets where it could grow and would “never go to Shanghai and Beijing”.
“We don’t want to disrupt existing markets,” he said. “We want to create new markets and build new businesses. That’s what AirAsia has been good at.”