AirAsia Philippines to Close 2024 with Strong, Steady Passenger Growth, Improved Fleet Size and Meaningful Partnerships

09 December 2024, MANILA — AirAsia Philippines is set to close 2024 on a high note, marking a year of significant growth and achievements that have shaped the airline’s journey toward sustainability and excellence in the aviation industry.

SMALL WINS, BIG GAINS FOR THE PUBLIC WE SERVE

This year, AirAsia Philippines flew over 7 million guests, surpassing the 6.6 million recorded in 2023 and showcasing its steady recovery and growth. Nearly 500,000 passengers are projected for December 2024, with an additional 250,000 expected in January 2025.

Key factors driving this success include a 77% increase in fleet size compared to 2023, with 16 serviceable aircraft. The airline also rolled out 11 double-digit promotional offers and its popular P1SO deals, staying true to its mission of democratising air travel across Asean and beyond.

This surge in capacity allowed AirAsia Philippines to strengthen its presence in key leisure destinations such as Caticlan (Boracay) Cebu and Tagbilaran (Panglao), and Narita, Osaka, Incheon and Bangkok  for international, ensuring the airline is a top choice for travellers seeking to explore new horizons.

Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A, echoed optimism, emphasing the airline’s pivotal role in supporting Philippine tourism. “Our goal is to bring more tourists into the Philippines in 2025 and continue to strengthen our domestic operations. We plan to add more aircraft, launch new routes, and possibly surprise destinations in the coming year,” he shared.

The World’s Best Low-Cost Airline’s footprint in the Philippines continues to expand with the introduction of new offline AirAsia Travel and Service Centers to 34 this 2024 from 29 last year , while AirAsia MOVE continues to record strong growth, ensuring seamless access for guests booking their flights, hotels and activities with 19.3 million total online visits.

Meanwhile, Nadia Omer, CEO of AirAsia MOVE, highlighted the importance of enhancing the traveller experience, “We are excited for 2025 as it will be a defining year for AirAsia MOVE. Our focus is on delivering seamless travel experiences and connecting travellers across the globe while offering a wide range of options that suit their needs,” she added.

SAFETY IS A TOP PRIORITY

AirAsia Philippines remains fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of its passengers. AirAsia Philippines under the AirAsia Aviation Group Limited have again been awarded for upholding the highest levels of safety and operational integrity with a perfect 7/7 rating from the experts at airlineratings.com. This achievement is driven by key initiatives such as extensive employee training, a highly experienced engineering team with more than 20 years of expertise, and rigorous maintenance procedures.

AirAsia has also shifted to revolutionise its presence across the region through strategic partnership with Asia Digital Engineering (ADE), the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) subsidiary of Capital A.

“At AirAsia, we put a premium on the safety and wellbeing of our guests. AirAsia continues to push the boundaries on what it means to be a low cost carrier because low cost doesn’t mean low service for our airlines”, said AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricky Isla.

WE ARE WINNING FOR YOU

By staying true to its brand promise of democratising air travel and making it accessible to everyone, AirAsia achieved remarkable recognition this year. It was named the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline by Skytrax for the 15th consecutive year. Recently, the World Travel Awards also honored the airline as the World's Leading Low-Cost Airline for the 12th year in a row. Additionally, its cabin crew received accolades for excellence, being named the World's Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew for the eighth consecutive year. These prestigious awards are a testament to AirAsia’s ongoing commitment to delivering exceptional service and best value travel experiences, making them key highlights of 2024.

AirAsia’s commitment to inclusivity and meaningful partnerships also stood out this year. By positioning the Philippines as a Halal tourist destination, the airline introduced Halal-certified inflight meals under its Santan menu, ensuring that it meets the diverse needs of its travellers while adding value to their travel experiences.

LOOKING TO 2025 AND BEYOND: STABILITY AND GROWTH

AirAsia Philippines is poised to support tourism growth in 2025, actively participating in festivals and further developing both domestic and international markets.

The airline is focused on forging meaningful collaborations with the government through the Department of Transportation and its attached agencies, CAAP, CAB and MIAA. It is likewise excited to open the new year by bringing customer journey to a new level at Manila’s gateway with the New NAIA Infrastgructure Corporation (NNIC).

“This year has been a transformative one for AirAsia Philippines. As we look back, this year was one of recovery, resilience, and above all, optimism. It hasn’t all been smooth sailing. But through it all, we have stayed committed. And it is your ongoing support that has helped keep our spirits sky high and our focus laser sharp.”

“We take pride in our achievements, which highlight the airline’s steady recovery. Looking beyond 2025, we are committed to sustainable growth and stability, ensuring we consistently deliver excellence and reliability to our guests,” Isla added.

***PR09122024***

About AirAsia Philippines

AirAsia is a leading low-cost carrier with licenses to operate in five Asean countries—Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Founded in 2001, AirAsia has stayed true to its purpose and tagline "Now Everyone Can Fly". The airline has made flying affordable and accessible to over 800 million guests, connecting people and communities across more than 130 destinations. Today, as one of the largest airlines in the region, AirAsia is expanding to become the world's first global low cost network carrier. It operates more than 200 aircraft and holds a significant orderbook for the next decade. AirAsia leads in sustainable aviation with green initiatives and a net zero target by 2050. In 2023, it avoided 130,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions from its narrowbody regional network through 20+ efficiency measures, saving US$40 million in fuel and over US$388,000 in shadow carbon costs.

About AirAsia MOVE

AirAsia MOVE, formerly known as airasia Superapp is the newest online travel agent+ (OTA+) in town, providing a seamless and personalised experience for travellers at the best value in Asean and beyond. It envisions a comprehensive travel ecosystem, providing various travel offerings, such as flights and hotel bookings from over 700 airlines, including AirAsia, and 900,000 hotels world-wide, plus ride-hailing, insurance, duty-free shopping and much more. The services are complemented by a community-led experience through features such as airasia chat, games, gifting, and a strong loyalty program that rewards users across its expansive ecosystem. It has been voted by World Travel Awards as ‘Asia’s Leading Online Travel Agency’ for two consecutive years since in its first nomination in 2023.

NOTE: The Communications and Public Affairs Group kindly requests for all media partners to follow the correct typography for the brand – for airline (AirAsia) spelled as one word with both As capitalized; and for non-airline (AirAsia MOVE) spelled as one word in lowercase. 

For more information, feel free to contact:

AirAsia Philippines Communications and Public Affairs Team

paa_commsandpublicaffairs1@airasia.com