AIRASIA GROUP BHD
Tan Sri
Tony
Fernandes
CO- Founder, Group Chief Executive Officer
Childhood
Fernandes was born in Kuala Lumpur on 30 April 1964 to an Indian father and a mother of mixed Indian and Asian-Portuguese descent who had been raised in Malacca, Malaysia. At a young age, he would follow his mother who sold Tupperware at Tupperware parties.
He was educated at The Alice Smith School in Kuala Lumpur. Starting at age 12, from 1976 to 1983, he studied at Epsom College boarding school in England. He matriculated to the London School of Economics and graduated with a degree in accounting.
CAREER
He worked very briefly with Virgin Atlantic as an auditor subsequently becoming the financial controller for Richard Branson's Virgin Communications in London from 1987 to 1989 before he joined Warner Music International London as Senior Financial Analyst.
Fernandes was admitted as Associate Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in 1991 and became Fellow Member in 1996. He is currently a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
Fernandes was formerly a Warner Music executive in Malaysia[8], and Vice President, ASEAN at Warner Music South East Asia from December 1999 to July 2001.
When Time Warner Inc announced its merger with America Online Inc., Fernandes left to pursue his dream of starting a budget no-frills airline.
In September 2001, Fernandes purchased AirAsia and became its chief executive.
On 14 October 2017, Fernandes married a South Korean actress, Chloe, at Hotel Cap Estel
Believe the unbelievable, dream the impossible, never take no for an answer
AirAsia
It was through Datuk Pahamin A. Rejab, the former secretary-general of the Malaysian Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry that Fernandes came to meet with then Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad in October 2001.
Instead of starting from scratch, Mahathir advised Fernandes to buy an existing airline. AirAsia, the heavily indebted subsidiary of the Malaysian government-owned conglomerate, DRB-Hicom, was losing money.
Fernandes mortgaged his home and used his personal savings to acquire the company, comprising two Boeing 737-300 jet aircraft and debts of US$11 million (RM40 million), for one ringgit (about 26 US cents), and transformed it into an industry player.
One year after his takeover, AirAsia had broken even and cleared all its debts. Its initial public offering (IPO) in November 2004 was oversubscribed by 130 per cent.
PERFECT TIMING
Fernandes remained unperturbed by what others believed to be an incredibly bad time to purchase an airline.
This was also the year the world witnessed the most horrifying tragedy in aviation history – the 9/11 attacks in the US. The future seemed decidedly bleak. Airlines across the world were retrenching employees, and travellers feared air travel. The entire aviation industry seemed on the verge of collapse.
Fernandes and his team saw this as a golden opportunity to revive the industry by introducing a brand new airline with an unusual business model.
The slump in the aviation industry steered many skilled and experienced industry workers to the fledgling airline. Expanding the fl eet of aircraft also proved to be cheaper than expected, as lease prices were at an all time low. It was the most opportune time to expand the airline with bigger and better plans for the future.
A success story
It is 10 years on and AirAsia will go down in the annals of global history as the airline that could. The carrier has come a long, long way from its modest beginnings. At last count, the airline has a fl eet of more than 104 aircraft.
Red and white AirAsia planes take off and land in more than 76 destinations worldwide, and cover 132 routes – 40 of which are offered exclusively. Along with its low-cost, long-haul affi liate, AirAsia X, AirAsia now connects people travelling through three continents namely Asia, Oceania and Europe.
Millions of passengers have been safely transported around the world and in October 2010, the carrier flew its 100 millionth guest – a young, Indonesian newlywed visiting her husband in India. At present, the fi gure exceeds 140 million guests.
AirAsia’s reputation as an excellent employer, where staff is considered to be part of the AirAsia family, has attracted top-notch personnel. There are currently about 10,000 people, collectively known as ‘AllStars’, in employment with the airline.
Awards & accolades
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The Best Asian Low Cost Carrier for 2010 by TTG
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Air Cargo Industry Newcomer of the Year Award, ACW World Air Cargo Awards.
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World’s Best Low Cost Airline from Skytrax not just once but three consecutive times.
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Everybody’s favourite airline
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2009 New World Record, launched its 1 Million Free Seats campaign and 402, 222 seats were snapped up in 24 hours.
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first airline in the world to offer a total, comprehensive booking system targeting mobile phones and wireless devices in 2005
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Two years later, AirAsia X, the long haul equivalent of AirAsia, was launched, allowing passengers to travel greater distances at lower costs.
The low-cost airline regularly tops everyone’s favourite list due to its comfortable yet affordable flight experience, which allows passengers to personalise their air travels with clever options like choosing their own meals and seats and, upsizing baggage.
It doesn’t hurt that the company has a remarkable aptitude for keeping up with the times and staying fun and fresh by initiating the latest and best technological advances in passenger services.