As the loss-making airline strives to diversify its business, AirAsia Group, which is owned by Malaysian tycoons Tony Fernandes and Kamarudin Meranun, plans to launch an air taxi ride-sharing service in the Southeast by 2025. The airline stated on Wednesday that it has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Avolon, the world’s second-largest aircraft leasing company, to lease a minimum of 100 VX4 electric vertical take-offs and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
“I am truly excited about this partnership between Avolon and AirAsia and the potential for zero-emissions ultra-short-haul air travel in Southeast Asia,” said Fernandes.
In support of its efforts to establish a super-app that will compete with Southeast Asia’s digital titans such as Indonesia’s GoTo and Singapore’s Grab and Sea Group, AirAsia has been expanding into new areas such as fintech, ride-hailing, food, and parcel delivery. The airline’s Kuala Lumpur-listed holding company changed its name to Capital A earlier this month to reflect its diverse business groups
“We are now much more than just an airline with over 20 products and services on our superapp leveraging off each other including flights, hotels, food, retail, delivery, ride hailing and more,” Fernandes said in a statement.
Avolon and AirAsia will collaborate on local certification, research on possible business prospects, and infrastructure requirements for unmanned air mobility services across the region, in addition to their eVTOL cooperation, the partners said. AirAsia will also use its travel and lifestyle superapp to assist Avolon in developing and supporting an eVTOL ride sharing platform.
