KUALA LUMPUR – Amid continuous outcry by passengers who have yet to receive refunds for their cancelled flights caused by the ongoing effects of the pandemic, Capital A Bhd chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes has assured that AirAsia will do everything in its power to pay back affected passengers.
Despite receiving no financial support, the business tycoon said the low-budget airline will get “everyone” – presumably referring to former employees who were laid off in a bid to downsize operations in 2020 – back to work and compensate affected guests.
“We do what it takes and despite no financial support, we will get everyone back to work and pay everyone back because we do what it takes to win and do the right thing,” he said.
In June, AirAsia Aviation Group Ltd said they have finalised over 99% of all customer queries and will work towards progressively settling the final 0.8% in the coming months.
The two medium to long-haul affiliate airlines, AirAsia X and Thai AirAsia X, also have firm plans in place to compensate all guests affected by the unprecedented flight disruptions over the past two years due to Covid-19, within the coming months.
As of June 10, it was reported that the majority of all affected guests had received their travel vouchers, totalling over 155,000 guests.
Fernandes also guaranteed that all is well despite the recurrence of flight delays and rescheduling involving the low-cost airline.
In a response to a question posed by a follower Robert Tua Siregar in his Instagram post regarding the frequent rescheduling of flights, Fernandes divulged that it was largely caused by the time taken to fix planes after not servicing them for two years.
“Planes are taking longer to fix after two years of not servicing them, but all solved very soon,” he replied.
Meanwhile, another Instagram user Prakash Vos refused to pass up the opportunity to chime in on the matter saying, “Why did you sell those flights knowing it would take longer to fix those planes after two years of not servicing them? Isn’t that a valid question?”.
Fernandes then explained that the aviation company expected the planes to be “ready”.
“You have to plan and forecast, but we never had planes out for two years. So new experiences. Anyway, all in order,” he said.
In May, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry said it was investigating complaints of flight delays and rescheduling involving AirAsia, following public outcry on social media.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi, said he took note of the complaints and grievances voiced by consumers pertaining to the flight delays involving various domestic destinations.
Nanta said the initial investigation found that the delays began occurring late last month and have persisted since.
The ministry, he said, would continue to conduct its probe from the aspect of consumers’ interest, and would cooperate with the Transport Ministry to resolve the problem, for the sake of ensuring it does not repeat and persist. – The Vibes, July 9, 2022
