SEPANG, Malaysia, 27 August 2021: AirAsia Group claims it is ready to fly with its operating crew and frontline staff fully vaccinated ahead of the group resuming flights in the near future.
“We are ready to fly, and as part of our strict safety policy, we are mandating that all of our operating crew and frontline staff serving guests, including pilots, cabin crew and airport staff are fully vaccinated to return to work,” said Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes.
“The acceleration of vaccines in all of our key markets is setting us up for a strong return to the skies. More than 50% of the adult population in Malaysia is now fully vaccinated, and Malaysia is tracking to have at least 80% of its population vaccinated by the end of 2021. We also see promising progress in Singapore, Korea and the Philippines.
“More than 50 countries welcome vaccinated travellers again. As ASEAN accelerates the vaccination effort, we are hopeful that countries will soon ease travel restrictions for vaccinated travellers for both domestic and international travel and will resume plans for travel bubbles.”
Fernandes said he believed the end was now in sight.
“I’m hopeful we will be able to return to the skies in the coming weeks. Importantly, we are fully prepared and ready for take-off.”
Meanwhile, Philippines AirAsia intends to restart international flights by the first quarter of 2022 after resuming domestic services in the fourth quarter of 2021, the airline’s CEO Ricky Isla told local media last week.
In Thailand, Thai AirAsia should resume domestic flights during September at the earliest. International flights will resume much later, possibly in early 2022.
