" I want to complete AirAsia's presence in Asia".. With these words, Tony Fernandes, CEO of the AirAsia group, justifies the two joint ventures signed in April and May respectively with Vietnamese and Chinese partners. For the VietnamIt's an old story of love and disappointment. AirAsia was considering setting up a subsidiary in Vietnam, banking on the emergence of a new middle class keen on travel, a symbol of a certain social status. In 2010, the Malaysian carrier took a 30% stake in the capital of a new carrier, Vietjet. Then came the time of disillusionment. Wanting to rename the airline AirAsia VietnamHowever, the Malaysians encountered resistance from the government. With the Vietnamese civil aviation authorities opposed to the project, AirAsia finally withdrew from the joint venture in October 2011, citing " failure to obtain Vietnamese regulatory approvals" . Vietjet will continue its career, and is now hot on the heels of Vietnam Airlines in terms of passenger numbers.
Vietnam has more potential than ever
"Vietnam has more potential than ever".says Tony Fernandes, who doesn't seem in the least bit put off by his first unhappy experience. It has to be said that the air traffic growth in 2016 (28%) was three times higher than in the rest of Asia. Since 2013, domestic air traffic has doubled, making Vietnam the world's leading air transport destination. the region's fifth largest aviation market behind China, India, Indonesia and Japan.
According to Bloomberg, the low-cost airline has found a local partner, Gumin Co, Ltd, headed by the businessman Tran Trong Kien which also owns the Victoria Hotels & Resorts chain. The Vietnamese will own approximately 70% of the new venture, with AirAsia taking the remainder. The JV will need an initial investment of 44 million.
No sooner had the ink dried on the Vietnam agreement than the low-cost carrier signed a second joint-venture agreement with China for the creation of a subsidiary based in the city of Zhengzhou, in the centre-east of the country. Zhenghou is considered to be one of China's fastest growing cities, with a total population of over six million. In particular, it is the centre of bus manufacturing in the country.
the final piece in the AirAsia jigsaw
The joint venture brings together AirAsia, the Chinese Everbright group and the Henan government. In addition to the creation of the low-cost carrier and the development of its network, AirAsia China will contribute to development of aeronautical infrastructures of the region with a low-cost terminalA training centre for pilots, crews and aeronautical engineers, as well as aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities. " This Chinese company represents the final piece in the AirAsia jigsaw puzzle" said Tony Fernandes. With its Japanese airline due to start flying at the end of the year, the development of its subsidiaries in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and India, the launch by its long-haul airline of routes to the United States and this autumn to Europe, the AirAsia group will succeed in linking the whole of Asia to the rest of the world.
