KUCHING, March 5: AirAsia Malaysia will be reintroducing fuel surcharges beginning March 8 for all its domestic and international flights.
The reintroduction of the fuel surcharge by AirAsia is to offset the escalating jet fuel prices, which has exceeded USD120 per barrel.
AirAsia has not been charging fuel surcharges since it was abolished in 2015. The airline has instead been absorbing the oil price increase over the years, while other carriers were already adjusting fares and increasing fuel and admin charges to counter rising operating costs as early as 2018.
Effective March 8, AirAsia Malaysia will impose a fuel surcharge rate of RM10 for all domestic routes.
For international routes, the company will impose RM25 for one to two hours flight, RM35 for two to three hours flight, RM50 for three to four hours flight and RM60 for over four hours flight.
The fuel surcharges will be applicable for new flight bookings made on and after March 8. All bookings made prior to the said date will not be affected.
AirAsia Malaysia chief executive officer (CEO) Riad Asmat said airlines the worldover are affected by the rising oil prices and the continuous upward spiral caused by the situation in Eastern Europe and other external factors have made it imperative for the company to reintroduce the fuel surcharge, despite its best efforts to resist it for as long as it could.
“Since we last abolished fuel surcharges in 2015 when the global fuel price was as low as USD48 a barrel, we have faced numerous occasions when the fluctuations have caused other airlines to start imposing surcharges.
“However, at AirAsia, we have been absorbing past increases in oil prices to continue to provide the best value to our guests.
“Unfortunately, the current situation where the oil price has shot up more than 160 per cent than what it was in 2015 has made it no longer sustainable,” he said in a statement today.
He further said AirAsia will continue to ensure its fares remain as low as possible despite the fuel surcharge while other carriers were already adjusting fares and increasing fuel and admin charges to counter rising operating costs as early as 2018.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and at the same time capitalise on technological and digital innovations as ways to keep costs at bay and make air travel affordable for everyone,” he added.
For the record, AirAsia has twice removed its fuel surcharge in the past.
It first introduced fuel surcharge in 2005 and abolished it in 2008, and later reintroduced it in 2011.
In 2015 the jet fuel price was at its high of USD78 per barrel but AirAsia decided to immediately remove the fuel surcharge as soon as the price went down to around USD48 per barrel that year. — DayakDaily
