Thai AirAsia merger grounded till 2027

[webfact]

 

The consolidation of AirAsia (AAB) and AirAsia X (AAX) might be a lengthy affair, extending up to 2027, according to Executive Chairman Tassapon Bijleveld.

 

The merger, aimed at creating a powerhouse in the industry, faces delays as AAX grapples with its ongoing rehabilitation process.

 

Last week, AAX made a revelation on the Malaysian stock exchange, announcing a non-binding letter of intent to acquire AAB and AirAsia Aviation Group (AAAGL) from Capital A. The master plan is to amalgamate the airlines under AAB and AAAGL into one.

AAB operates AirAsia (AK) out of Kuala Lumpur International, while AAAGL commands AirAsia Cambodia, Indonesia AirAsia, AirAsia Philippines, and Thai AirAsia, in collaboration with local partners.

 

by Puntid Tantivangphaisal 

Photo courtesy of ch-aviation

 

Full story: The Thaiger 2024-01-17

 

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[flyingtlger]

The merger will make it no longer a low cost airline...

[ezzra]

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

[MrJ2U]

1 minute ago, ezzra said:

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

Definitely a last resort airline to travel on.  It's worth paying a little extra to fly another airline than AirAsia and the hassles that commonly occurs and the lack (non-existent) customer support  support. 

[Skipalongcassidy]

YOU want mustard or ketchup with that... they are low fare for a reason... if you want condiments go pay more and leave the open seats for others... try finding other carriers with the time slots or routes... 555

[ezzra]

12 minutes ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

YOU want mustard or ketchup with that... they are low fare for a reason... if you want condiments go pay more and leave the open seats for others... try finding other carriers with the time slots or routes... 555

If you had a return flight from Australia to BKK abruptly cancelled on you (business class) forcing you to buy a

return ticket with another airline and  unable to talk to anyone at AirAsia as what is happening with the refund only

to a BOT who can't help you, than yes, i do want mustard and ketchup with it together with my lost 20,000 baht...

[NanLaew]

2 hours ago, flyingtlger said:

The merger will make it no longer a low cost airline...

 

The same reason the merger of Spirit and JetBlue in the US has been knocked back by Federal regulators. They cited that customers that currently benefit from Spirit's unique low-cost structuring will lose out.

[Skipalongcassidy]

10 minutes ago, ezzra said:

If you had a return flight from Australia to BKK abruptly cancelled on you (business class) forcing you to buy a

return ticket with another airline and  unable to talk to anyone at AirAsia as what is happening with the refund only

to a BOT who can't help you, than yes, i do want mustard and ketchup with it together with my lost 20,000 baht...

They have a contact for that and it works ... just notify your credit card and the charge will not go thru... I know it is upsetting but <deleted>e happens everyday... 

Wherever you are in the world, know that we’re only a click away. Contact us at any of our Customer Support lines using the contact details and numbers listed below.

For an instant response 24 hours a day and urgent assistance, please Chat with Bo via airasia.com, Superapp or support page by following the steps below:

i. Chat with Bo and select 'AirAsia Flights'. Then you may choose from the list option that matched your inquiry.  

 

Australia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail Service)	+61238138388	24 hours Monday to Sunday
China	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+862066618855	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Indonesia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+622129270880	24 hours Monday to Sunday
Japan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+81335277898	24 hours Monday to Sunday
South Korea	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+82261383444	9am - 6pm (GMT+9) Monday to Friday except public holiday
Taiwan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+886277283080	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Thailand	Thai AirAsia & Thai AirAsia X (Voicemail Service)	+6620297862	8am - 9pm (GMT+7)   Monday to Sunday

[scorecard]

2 hours ago, ezzra said:

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

 

Good pint, however I still have  a large AA credit for a flight Sydney to Bangkok. But I don't now the exact amount and I can't get anywhere with the robot girl.

[ezzra]

38 minutes ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

They have a contact for that and it works ... just notify your credit card and the charge will not go thru... I know it is upsetting but <deleted>e happens everyday... 

Wherever you are in the world, know that we’re only a click away. Contact us at any of our Customer Support lines using the contact details and numbers listed below.

For an instant response 24 hours a day and urgent assistance, please Chat with Bo via airasia.com, Superapp or support page by following the steps below:

i. Chat with Bo and select 'AirAsia Flights'. Then you may choose from the list option that matched your inquiry.  

 

Australia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail Service)	+61238138388	24 hours Monday to Sunday
China	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+862066618855	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Indonesia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+622129270880	24 hours Monday to Sunday
Japan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+81335277898	24 hours Monday to Sunday
South Korea	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+82261383444	9am - 6pm (GMT+9) Monday to Friday except public holiday
Taiwan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+886277283080	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Thailand	Thai AirAsia & Thai AirAsia X (Voicemail Service)	+6620297862	8am - 9pm (GMT+7)   Monday to Sunday

Like Duh, you think i didn't searched google? I have tried them all, only Voicemail Service, no humans

and beside, you can't cancel half a ticket 2 months after you have purchased it...

Edited January 17 by ezzra

[daveAustin]

Never had an issue with them since they started (other than the annoying sales spiel in three languages when in the air) and they have good connections others don’t, but will always use Smile/Thai where possible when making home country connection. Dunno if this potential merger would be a benefit though. 

[Spilornis]

1 minute ago, daveAustin said:

Dunno if this potential merger would be a benefit though. 

The traditional AA model was multiple companies that allowed for maximum loan leverage and an IPO of each business.

High interest rates and tougher lending covenants make that model a lot harder these days.

Fare wise Scoot seems to have kept its fares lower on the long haul flights by comparison to AAX. Flying through Singapore can however be inconvenient and its relatively high airport charges mean the short intra SEA flights can often seem expensive

[digbeth]

2 hours ago, ezzra said:

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

 

problem is that most of the Thai domestic airlines currently operating are worse, in terms of punctuality and not cancelling flights, if your destination is not served by Bangkok Airways, AirAsia is the choice over other airlines 

[ezzra]

2 minutes ago, digbeth said:

 

problem is that most of the Thai domestic airlines currently operating are worse, in terms of punctuality and not cancelling flights, if your destination is not served by Bangkok Airways, AirAsia is the choice over other airlines 

Again, any airline who don't want to talk to you to save on costs is an airline who doesn't care about the passengers, only costs..

[wensiensheng]

I can’t see how combining the ownership of two existing operations creates anything for the consumer. Savings in admin costs for the companies, sure. But no extra routes, no additional services and, I venture to say it, no cost savings passed on.

 

As someone who regularly flys between Phuket and Udon Thani, I really can’t understand why airasia either flies every day, as the have been doing, or flies not at all, as they seemingly are doing from the middle of next month. And it’s not just because of low season/high season. They flip flop on the route regularly.

 

Annoyingly, they never announce the changes, it’s always necessary to hunt around on their clunky website to try and find out what happened to flights on the route.

 

as for getting a refund….forgeddaboutit.

[wensiensheng]

5 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

They have a contact for that and it works ... just notify your credit card and the charge will not go thru... I know it is upsetting but <deleted>e happens everyday... 

Wherever you are in the world, know that we’re only a click away. Contact us at any of our Customer Support lines using the contact details and numbers listed below.

For an instant response 24 hours a day and urgent assistance, please Chat with Bo via airasia.com, Superapp or support page by following the steps below:

i. Chat with Bo and select 'AirAsia Flights'. Then you may choose from the list option that matched your inquiry.  

 

Australia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail Service)	+61238138388	24 hours Monday to Sunday
China	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+862066618855	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Indonesia	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+622129270880	24 hours Monday to Sunday
Japan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+81335277898	24 hours Monday to Sunday
South Korea	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Voicemail service)	+82261383444	9am - 6pm (GMT+9) Monday to Friday except public holiday
Taiwan	AirAsia & AirAsia X flights (Customer Support Line)	+886277283080	8am - 9pm (GMT+8) Monday to Sunday
Thailand	Thai AirAsia & Thai AirAsia X (Voicemail Service)	+6620297862	8am - 9pm (GMT+7)   Monday to Sunday

Please tell me you are joking. Those support lines have been useless every time I have tried them.

 

 

[Bangkok Barry]

7 hours ago, ezzra said:

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

 

At my local airport I have no choice. Used to have four airlines serving it I think before Covid, certainly three. They've spent huge on modernising the airport when it didn't actually need modernising, and if the last airline there leaves it's a white elephant. Same as a bus I used to use - was one an hour and now reduced to a van service. Interesting how a pandemic ended people's desire to travel even after it was over. No money, even for a bus? 

[ibjoe]

I found when trying to deal with AirAsia issues that if I pleaded with the Bot long enough (like 15 minutes of continuing to ask for a human rep in various ways) it would finally agree, and transfer me to a queue with typically a few hundred in front, but actually went down fairly quickly, like within an hour. Then I could chat with a real human, who might or might not resolve the issue. I avoid AirAsia, especially if I think there is any chance I might need to reschedule. The other option is to go to their booth at the airport and talk with human representatives there.

[Burma Bill]

I have flown with Thai Air Asia for several years now on International and Domestic routes. IMO an excellent budget airline and no complaints from me. When I lived in Thailand, Khon Kaen airport was the nearest for me and I always booked "Fly Thru" tickets to destinations in ASEAN - so convenient at that time as Air Asia was the only airline at KKC providing Immigration facilities in the International Departure lounge. I have never experienced cancelations, missed connecting flights, baggage problems, delays etc. Now living in Cambodia, I still use Thai Air Asia's "fly Thru" from Siem Reap to destinations in Thailand via DMK. Currently there are 3 flights to Bangkok DMK and 1 flight to Kuala Lumpur.  For me, so convenient to reserve and pay for flights on my home computer via Air Asia's website - never had a problem. I then print my confirmed booking and flight itinerary which I present when checking in. None of this app lark! Thank you Air Asia - you are my first choice  

[hotchilli]

9 hours ago, flyingtlger said:

The merger will make it no longer a low cost airline...

Stiff competition of LCC's this year may change things.

[candide]

10 hours ago, flyingtlger said:

The merger will make it no longer a low cost airline...

The two companies serve different geographical markets. How can the merger increase market power in these markets?

[thenewgoo]

11 hours ago, ezzra said:

Any airline that doesn't have a phone number, email address or a real customer service people to help you when you have

an issue and only a BOT to address your queries, is an airline i will never fly again with no matter how cheap they're and 

AirAsia is one of them...

Yep, left me and my young family stranded in KL and basically couldn't give a f##! Was my go-to airlines, now a very very last option.