By Rory Jones and Nicolas Parasie
DUBAI--AirAsia Bhd. is in talks to relaunch flights to the
United Arab Emirates from its hubs in Southeast Asia, and has this
time chosen Dubai rather than Abu Dhabi for its Western
expansion.
The low-cost airline's founder Tony Fernandes was in Dubai
Wednesday to talk to officials about flying Airbus Group NV A330
jets into one of the emirate's two airports, Dubai International or
Al Maktoum International.
AirAsia also hopes to eventually win a license to set up a hub
in Dubai that could serve Europe and Africa, according to Mr.
Fernandes. Dubai would be added to its current hubs in Malaysia,
Thailand and Indonesia, and planned operations in Japan and India,
he added.
"I could bring a lot of Asians to Dubai," Mr. Fernandes said in
an interview. "There are opportunities for airlines like
AirAsia."
AirAsia X, the company's long-haul arm, quit flights to Abu
Dhabi in 2010 after just a few months of operations. Abu Dhabi, the
home of Etihad Airways, is investing $3 billion in new airport
infrastructure to meet the growth of its flagship carrier.
Less than a 100 miles away, Dubai is planning to construct the
world's largest airport at a cost of $32 billion. Due for
completion in six to eight years, the airport will eventually house
the operations of Emirates Airline, the world's largest carrier in
terms of international flight traffic. Dubai's low-cost carrier
Flydubai also is aggressively expanding routes and has more than
hundred Boeing Co. aircraft on order.
"Dubai is building the largest airport in the world and it can't
just be for Emirates Airline, Flydubai," said Mr. Fernandes.
AirAsia has more than 300 Airbus A320 jets on order. In July,
the airline said it plans to buy 50 of the new version of Airbus's
A330 long-range jet, a deal with a combined list price of US$13.8
billion, although airlines typically get significant discounts for
bulk purchases.
Mr. Fernandes said he expected the new A330neo aircraft, dubbed
"new engine option," to begin delivery in 2017. With a flying range
of up to 11 hours, the A330neo would be ideal to build a network
from Dubai into Europe and Africa, he added.
Write to Rory Jones at rory.jones@wsj.com
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