Air Asia, the Malaysian-based low cost airline, with subsidiary operations in Thailand and Indonesia, recently launched a long haul service, called Air Asia X. Service started last year, with flights between Kuala Lumpur and several Australian cities. At the end of this month, they start five-times a week service to London. Is a 12-hour flight on a budget carrier survivable? That’s what I, and the guy at iTravelNet, wanted to know. See their review of the Melbourne to KL flight.
I’m not sure if I could stand the flight to London, which is around 12 hours, but then, it probably depends on how badly I wanted to get to London.
Several papers are carrying news reports that the Malaysian government has agreed to build a new low cost terminal at KLIA. The new terminal will replace the existing low cost carrier terminal (LCCT), which despite expansion is bursting at the seams, due to the rapid expansion of its main user, Air Asia.
The new terminal will be completed in 2011, and unlike the current LCCT, it will be connected to the express train to the city, making it much more convenient. It will be able to handle up to 30 Million passengers a year, a big improvement over the 10 Million the current LCCT can handle. The airport will also build a third runway to further increase the overall capacity of KLIA.
The announcement appears to signal the end of a long-running dispute between Air Asia and the government over inaction on the airport expansion.
