Bargain flights to KL set for take off

[March 9th 2009]

New bargain flights to Kuala Lumpur from Stansted airport will be launched on Wednesday.

Tickets for the flights with low cost airline AirAsiaX went on sale in November with prices from just £99. At the time AirAsia group CEO Tony Fernandes promised: “As time passes, there will be more promotions and the fare could well fall further – we always look to make the fare as low as possible”. Fares for under £50 are expected to be available.

The five times a week service to Kuala Lumpur will be operated by an Airbus A340 capable of holding up to 286 passengers. One of the most exciting aspects of the new service is that it will open up the possibility of bargain flights to Australia.

AirAsiaX already operates low cost flights between KL and Australia, with services to both Melbourne and Brisbane. Many of the passengers who fly from Stansted to Kuala Lumpur are expected to take connecting flights on to Australia.

AirAsia X is the low cost, long haul affiliate of AirAsia with shareholders including Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin group. AirAsia X covers destinations more than four hours flight time from Kuala Lumpur, complementing the existing AirAsia network of over 100 destinations throughout ASEAN, China and India.

The low cost airline is staging roadshows in Malaysia, Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta in the build up to the launch of the new flights. Two hundred free seats from KL to London Stansted are being offered at the roadshows. A London Bus, Royal Guard impersonators and British musical performances are being staged to entice locals to visit the UK.

The launch of the flights to KL is a vote of confidence for Stansted airport. “Like Kuala Lumpur’s Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) - the gateway of ASEAN - London’s Stansted has true potential to be the gateway of Europe. Our renowned low-fare offerings will stimulate more demand from the European community to discover ASEAN and vice versa”, says AirAsiaX CEO, Azran Osman-Rani.

“We are looking to expand from five flights per week to a daily service in the near future,” adds Osman-Rani.

Written by: Nick Purdom

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