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AIRASIA X commemorates its 16th anniversary with a replica of its first flight from Kuala Lumpur to the Gold Coast, Australia. The airline is bouncing back from the challenges of the pandemic and increasing flights to popular destinations in Australia and New Zealand.
With 17 Airbus A330-300s in its fleet, AirAsia X is planning to introduce flights to new destinations based on consumer demand and attractive prices. After surviving some dark times during the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic that grounded its operations, AirAsia X is roaring back to life and this week celebrated the 16th anniversary of its first flight on November 2, 2007.
Fittingly, an AirAsia X Airbus A330 replicated that first flight by operating between Kuala Lumpur and the Gold Coast, Australia’s most popular tourism destination.
On last Wednesday, AirAsia X flight D7200 departed Kuala Lumpur International (KUL) at 23:38 and arrived yesterday at Queensland’s Gold Coast Airport (OOL) at 9:05. The flight landed 16 years to the day of the first AirAsia X flight, which also happened to be between KUL and the Gold Coast Airport.
Flight D7200 was operated with a 2013 Airbus A330-300, registration 9M-XBF and MSN 1475, that later departed at 10:58 and arrived in Kuala Lumpur at 17:38 after an 8:40-hour flight. Data from ch-aviation shows that the Airbus A330 was first delivered to Philippine Airlines in December 2013 and joined the AirAsia X fleet in December 2022.
It is configured in a three-class layout of 309 seats, including 18 in business, 24 in premium economy and 267 in economy. The fleet data shows that AirAsia X (AAX) has 17 Airbus A330-300s with an average age of just over 12 years and all but three are listed as in active service.
According to AirAsia X CEO Benyamin Ismail said the airline is thrilled to reach this incredible milestone, particularly after two of the most challenging years during the pandemic. Now we are well and truly back and stronger than ever, returning to our most popular destinations first. Australia and New Zealand are core destinations in our network, which combined with the AirAsia Group now exceeds over 130 destinations across Asia and Asia-Pacific.
“We are pleased with ongoing demand for our services to and from Australia/NZ and are already increasing the number of flights from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth to cater for significant demand ahead of the peak upcoming travel season,” he said.
As more aircraft return to service AAX is also looking forward to introducing more flights to existing destinations and to new ones it has not flown to based on consumer demand. In restarting after the pandemic with limited available aircraft, AAX has followed a successful strategy by starting with known popular destinations to kickstart the airline.
AAX resumed direct services from Kuala Lumpur to Sydney in September last year and is now flying the route daily, with up to eleven weekly flights during peak periods. The low-cost carrier also operates daily between Sydney and Auckland (New Zealand) and between KUL and Melbourne and Perth.
For Australians and Kiwis, AAX is an attractive option both price-wise and for its seamless connections throughout the AirAsia network, including India, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, China, South Korea and the Philippines.
To celebrate its 16th Anniversary, AAX has special one-way fares from Australia and New Zealand to Kuala Lumpur from under AU$500 (US$330). These specials are only available until November 5, 2023, and cover an extended travel period from October 30, 2023, until September 30, 2024. [sources/photo special]
