Air Asia X marks its presence in New Zealand

AirAsia X, a Malaysia-based long-haul budget carrier, commenced daily flights between Kuala Lumpur and Auckland via Gold Coast, Australia, today.

The inaugural flight, which saw a healthy 95 per cent load factor, was welcomed at Auckland Airport with a water salute and traditional Powhiri ceremony.

A celebration event followed by a press conference was held for the arrival of flight D7 206, where the Hon. Amy Adams, minister for broadcasting, minister for communications, minister for courts and minister for justice, New Zealand; Lim Kim Eng, high commissioner of Malaysia to New Zealand; and chief executive Auckland International Airport, Adrian Littlewood welcomed the guests from Kuala Lumpur.

Among the guests on board the inaugural flight were Rafidah Aziz, chairman of AirAsia X Berhad; Fam Lee Ee, board of director AirAsia X Berhad; and Benyamin Ismail, chief executive officer of AirAsia X Berhad.

AirAsia X is also commemorating this significant occasion by offering promotional all-in-fares from as low as RM699 ($174) one-way on economy seats and from as low as RM1,999 ($498) one-way on the award-winning AirAsia X Premium Flatbeds.

These promotional fares are available for booking online at airasia.com from now until April 3 for the travel period from March 25 until May 22, 2017.

The AirAsia mobile app on the iPhone and Android devices as well as the mobile site mobile.airasia.com are also available as convenient ways to book these promotional flights.

Benyamin Ismail, chief executive officer of AirAsia X Berhad, said: “We are very happy to be in Auckland today, and we would like to thank everyone from New Zealand who has helped to make the commencement of this route possible, from the airport to our business partners and of course the government of New Zealand. We look forward to connecting more people from across Asia and Australia into this beautiful city of Auckland through the vast route network in the AirAsia Group. I am proud to say that the flight into Auckland today operated at over 95 per cent flight load and we are confident that we will continue to see strong loads moving forward.”

Adrian Littlewood, chief executive of Auckland Airport, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Air Asia X here to Auckland. This new daily service is a fantastic addition to our international network, not only supporting the growing tourist demand from Malaysia and South East Asia, but providing New Zealanders with another Trans-Tasman route and the opportunity to connect into Air Asia’s extensive network through Asia and India.”

Following the commencement of this daily flight service, guests can now travel from Kuala Lumpur to Auckland, New Zealand with a quick stopover in Gold Coast, Australia. - TradeArabia News Service