Tony Fernandes
The story of Tony Fernandes and AirAsia
When he was six years old, he announced that he will start an airline and his father, a physician, quipped, "if you make past the doorman of Hilton Hotel, I will be happy". Well, he did make past the doorman of Hilton and then did not stop there. He says marketing is in his blood as his mother ran a successful direct-selling Tupperware business in Malaysia.
He won a Formula One racing bet, and some bet it was, as a few months from now the person who lost the bet, Richard Branson, the founder and chairman of Virgin Group that owns 400 companies, will wax his legs, don a red skirt and walk down the aisle of an AirAsia flight serving beverages to passengers.
He won a Formula One racing bet, and some bet it was, as a few months from now the person who lost the bet, Richard Branson, the founder and chairman of Virgin Group that owns 400 companies, will wax his legs, don a red skirt and walk down the aisle of an AirAsia flight serving beverages to passengers.
Tony Fernandes turned AirAsia into a profitable airline within 2 years
The story of Tony Fernandes and Air Asia Tony Fernandes: Born April 30, 1964
Acquired bleeding low-cost subsidiary of air Malaysia from Malaysian government.
2001: Launched AirAsia
Turned it into a profitable airline within two years.
Adopted a JV model for expansion in the South East Asian region.
JVs in Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand.
Goes on to become the largest low-cost airline in the region.
Acquired bleeding low-cost subsidiary of air Malaysia from Malaysian government.
2001: Launched AirAsia
Turned it into a profitable airline within two years.
Adopted a JV model for expansion in the South East Asian region.
JVs in Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand.
Goes on to become the largest low-cost airline in the region.
AirAsiaX flies 45 weekly flights out of India
AirAsiaX, Fernandes' low cost international airline launched flights to India in 2010.
Flies 45 weekly flights out of India.
In 2011, orders 200 A320neos from Airbus.
Has an order of 350 aircraft in total.
Out of these 118 have been delivered.
87%: Aircraft is on balance sheet - highest owned ratio for an Asian airline.
Flies 45 weekly flights out of India.
In 2011, orders 200 A320neos from Airbus.
Has an order of 350 aircraft in total.
Out of these 118 have been delivered.
87%: Aircraft is on balance sheet - highest owned ratio for an Asian airline.
Tony Fernandes would have ended up as a doctor
Forty-eight-year-old Anthony Francis Fernandes, better known as Tony Fernandes, who is worth $615 million today, would have ended up as a doctor, like his father (originally from Goa), had he been a disciplined child who followed the path chosen by his parents. Instead, Fernandes, who left Malaysia at the age of 12 to study at Epsom College in Surrey, England, and then graduated from London School of Economics, had other plans. Fernandes, an accountant, started his career with Warner then moved to Richard Branson's Virgin Communications only to move back to Malaysia in 1992, to dabble in a career in the music industry. He became the youngest managing director of Warner Music, Malaysia, and would have stayed in the industry-he plays guitar and piano-revolutionizing ethnic music to take it from the fringes into mainstream of contemporary music.
Tony Fernandes's appetite for taking risks had him move into airline industry
But his appetite for taking risks had him move into the uncertain world of airline industry and that too, right after the 9/11 terror attacks. In October 2001, Fernandes mortgaged his home to buy an airline for one ringgit (Rs 17 at current exchange rates). It meant he bought two ageing Boeing 737 jets, 200 employees and $11 million in debt.
A year later, the airline miraculously broke even. There was no turning back. Today, if the West has the loose-talking Micheal O'Leary, the CEO of Dublin-based Ryanair, the low-cost carrier that is both loved and loathed in Europe, the East has Tony Fernandes, the group CEO of the Kuala Lumpur-based low-cost airline AirAsia Berhad. Fernandes is the only airline chief on this side of the planet who has a way with words and cheap tickets, which he manages to offer without losing the plot.
A year later, the airline miraculously broke even. There was no turning back. Today, if the West has the loose-talking Micheal O'Leary, the CEO of Dublin-based Ryanair, the low-cost carrier that is both loved and loathed in Europe, the East has Tony Fernandes, the group CEO of the Kuala Lumpur-based low-cost airline AirAsia Berhad. Fernandes is the only airline chief on this side of the planet who has a way with words and cheap tickets, which he manages to offer without losing the plot.
Tony Fernandes well-versed he is with the working of AirAsia
So, once in every two months or so, he is a cabin crew member on one of his flights or he is handling the check-in counter or he is supervising the loading and unloading of bags. His jokes reveal how well-versed he is with the working of his airline. Like for instance: in an aviation conference he attended in Mumbai about four years ago he spoke about doing business in different countries and how cultural difference can throw up its own set of problems.
"Our pilots and flight attendants are ferried together to and from the aircraft in a coach bus. But when we launched operations in Thailand the pilots there protested, saying they will not travel with flight attendants. Now that was a surprise to me, as in Malaysia, the pilots protest if they are not allowed to travel with flight attendants," he said.
"Our pilots and flight attendants are ferried together to and from the aircraft in a coach bus. But when we launched operations in Thailand the pilots there protested, saying they will not travel with flight attendants. Now that was a surprise to me, as in Malaysia, the pilots protest if they are not allowed to travel with flight attendants," he said.
"Believe The Unbelieveable.Dream The Impossible.Never Take "No" For An Answer !"
~Tony Fernandes~
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