Philippines AirAsia

Philippines AirAsia
IATA ICAO Callsign
Z2 EZD ZEST AIRWAYS
Founded December 2010
Hubs
Frequent-flyer program BIG[2]
Fleet size 13 [3]
Destinations 12
Parent company AirAsia
Headquarters Philippines Pasay, Metro Manila
Key people Antonio O. Cojuangco, Jr. (Chairman)
Michael L. Romero (Vice-Chairman)
Capt. Dexter Comendador (CEO)
Website www.airasia.com/ph

AirAsia Inc., operating as Philippines AirAsia is a low-cost airline based at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Metro Manila in the Philippines.[4] The airline is the Philippine affiliate of AirAsia, a low-cost airline based in Malaysia. The airline started as a joint venture between three Filipino investors and AirAsia International Ltd, a subsidiary of AirAsia Berhad.

The original Filipino group includes: Antonio O. Cojuangco, Jr., former owner of Associated Broadcasting Company/owner of Dream Satellite TV; Michael L. Romero, a real estate developer and port operator; and Marianne Hontiveros, a former music industry executive and TV host.[5] In 2013, a share-swap agreement with Zest Airways added Alfredo Yao of Zest-O Corporation as an additional owner of the company. Zest Airways was rebranded as AirAsia Zest and operated as a separate brand from AirAsia until merged into Philippines AirAsia in Janaury 2016.[6]

History

Since section 10, Article XII of the Philippine Constitution does not allow 100% foreign ownership of a Philippine-registered business,[7] Malaysian investor Tony Fernandes entered into a 40-60 joint venture with a group of Filipino business people. The joint venture application was approved on December 7, 2010 by the Board of Investments of the Philippines.

On August 15, 2011, Philippines AirAsia took delivery of its first aircraft,[8] a brand-new Airbus A320 which arrived at Clark International Airport in Clark, Angeles City, Pampanga. On November 8, 2011, Philippines AirAsia took delivery of its second A320.

On February 7, 2012, the airline received its Air Operator Certificate[9] from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines which gives the airline permission to fly in Philippine airspace.

On April 8, 2012, Philippines AirAsia partnered with Victory Liner, one of the largest provincial bus companies operating in the Philippines, to provide free shuttle service for inbound and outbound passengers of Clark International Airport.[10]

An Airbus A320-200 of Philippines AirAsia over Singapore Changi Airport.

On March 11, 2013, an agreement was made between Philippines AirAsia to swap shares with Philippine-based airline AirAsia Zest. Zest Airways received a mix of $16 million cash and a 13% share in Philippines AirAsia, while Philippines AirAsia now owns 85% of Zest Airways, with 49% of its voting rights. The share swap also gives Philippines AirAsia access to Ninoy Aquino International Airport, allowing further growth of its route network. The deal closed on May 10, 2013.

On July 30, 2016, AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes appointed Capt. Dexter Comendador as the new CEO of the company. Comendador joined AirAsia Philippines in 2011 as director of Flight Operations, and was promoted to chief operating officer in 2015 before his appointment.[11]

Comendador is also famous in the Philippine aviation community as one of the hero pilots of PAL434 which was bombed by terrorist Ramzi Yousef in 1994.

Destinations

Philippines AirAsia commenced its operations in March 2012 utilising two brand new Airbus 320-200.

In the three months ending March 31, 2013, Philippines AirAsia carried 144,215 passengers.[12]

Fleet

The Philippines AirAsia fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of August 2016):[13]

Aircraft Total Orders Passengers Notes
Airbus A320-200 15 20 180 2 aircraft from Philippine Airlines and PAL Express.

Sports teams

References

External links

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