Competition grounds ANA, Asian Wings deal

The two airlines signed a partnership agreement in August 2013 under which ANA, Japan’s largest airline group, was to pay US$25million for a 49 percent stake in Asian Wings. It was touted as the first deal between an international airline and a domestic carrier and the ensuing joint venture would have had 10 Airbus A320 aircraft in operation by 2018.

 

However, Asian Wings confirmed that ANA was later put off by the small size of the domestic market and strong competition from more than half-a-dozen other domestic carriers.

 

“It is true that ANA cancelled the deal because the market is too small and competition is getting high. There are now 10 local airlines,” said Asian Wings chief executive officer U Kyi Win.