AirAsia Aviation Group’s medium to long-haul affiliate AirAsia X (AAX) today announced that it has successfully compensated over 270,000 cancelled bookings caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These includes purchases of the RM499 one-year Unlimited Pass that was introduced in 2020, which customers were unable to utilise due to the grounding of the airline’s fleet during the two year period which restricted both domestic and international flights.
According to a recent press statement issued by AAX, compensation has been provided in the form of a five-year travel voucher – a similar approach that AirAsia Group’s primary airline had also opted for to reimburse its own customers. This allows guests to book any flights that are currently being offered by the medium to long-haul airline for immediate and future travel. On that note, it says that more routes will be added to its network later this year, including to several international destinations such as Japan, Australia, Hawaii, New Zealand, London, Dubai, and Istanbul.
The airline adds that it will continue to prioritise processing all remaining compensation entitlements in the coming weeks, including for bookings made by travel agents. In addition, AirAsia X is also reminding customers to register as an AirAsia Rewards member using the same email address that they’ve used for bookings in order to receive the travel voucher.
In the same statement, acting group CEO Tony Fernandes explains that the airline wasn’t able to pay cash refunds due to the legal process of its restructuring earlier this year. “While many have supported us through thick and thin, I understand many others have expressed frustration with not receiving a cash refund for the cancelled flights,” he said. “We may not always be perfect but we strive to do all we can for our people and our guests.”
“AAX now has perhaps the lowest cost base in the industry to remain more competitive than ever which we can pass onto consumers in the form of the best value fares once again,” said AirAsia X CEO Benyamin Ismail in the press statement. He also assured that the company will continue to honour its commitment to customers with outstanding credit.
(Source: AirAsia [press release])
