(From second left) AirAsia Aviation Group Ltd (AAAGL) deputy group chief executive officer (airline operations) Datuk Captain Chester Voo, Airbus head of commercial accounts for Southeast Asia Krish Parampathy, AAAGL group CEO Bo Lingam, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Hasbi Habibollah, AerCap chief commercial officer Peter Anderson, AAAGL deputy group CEO (corporate) Farouk Kamal, chief commercial officer Paul Carroll and AirAsia Malaysia managing director Datuk Captain Fareh Mazputra. (Photos by Sam Fong)

SEPANG (Aug 1): Air travel demand is likely to remain strong through 2024, according to AirAsia Aviation Group Ltd (AAAGL) group chief executive officer Bo Lingam.

He is optimistic that strong air travel demand will keep AirAsia’s load factor at the 90% level throughout the year.

“I don't see it (a slowdown in air travel demand) in the near future, unless fuel goes crazily up or foreign exchange is up, or there is a [new] war somewhere. I think air travel demand is still very robust,” Lingam said after a ceremony taking delivery of four A321neo aircraft at the group’s headquarters in Sepang, Selangor.

India and Asean are the major markets that contribute to strong air travel demand for the group, he added.

AirAsia is the aviation arm of Capital A Bhd (KL:CAPITALA). Lingam leads the AirAsia airline business, and oversees the five airlines in the group, namely AirAsia Malaysia, AirAsia Philippines, AirAsia Thailand, AirAsia Indonesia and AirAsia Cambodia.

Lingam: India and Asean are major markets.

For the first half of 2024, Capital A said the number of passengers carried was more than 30 million, leading to a strong load factor of 90%, supported by visa-free travel implementation at the end of 2023 for Chinese and Indian travellers to Malaysia.

Lingam said this year marks a pivotal year for AirAsia's growth, as Airbus A321neo deliveries to the group resume, aligning with the strong demand forecast.

“These new aircraft are game changers, allowing us to enhance our route network, offer longer-range flights, and improve operational efficiency,” he added.

With the addition of the four aircraft, AirAsia’s total fleet size has expanded to 221 aircraft. Over the next five years, the target is to have over 300 aircraft to carry over 100 million guests annually.

“We expect to receive another five A321neo aircraft by the end of this year. This marks a new era in our journey to become the world's first low-cost network carrier from Asia, redefining the future of affordable global travel,” Lingam added.

Nearly 10% fuel savings with A321neo aircraft

Lingam noted that the A321neo aircraft could save about 10% fuel, and with its single-aisle design accommodating 240 seats, it is capable of covering greater distances.

However, details of the costs and potential savings from the acquisition were not disclosed.

Meanwhile, he shared that the group is set to welcome a number of inaugural flights from several new routes that were recently launched, with a focus on China and India following the visa-free initiatives for their citizens.

"We will mark the very first international flight of our newest airline, AirAsia Cambodia, which will depart from Phnom Penh and arrive in Kuala Lumpur in a couple of hours. Additionally, the group will be welcoming inaugural flights from Kozhikode and Guwahati in India, [as well as] Ningbo in China, and Kota Kinabalu this week," he said.