AirAsia granted Paris landing rights

"We would like to thank the Prime Minister for championing our cause in securing landing rights in Paris and for his faith in AirAsia," said AirAsia X CEO Azran Osman-Rani.

AirAsia Group CEO Dato' Sri Tony Fernandes was equally ebullient. "The Prime Minister's commitment clearly demonstrates the administration's support of AirAsia's efforts to help boost Malaysia's tourism industry and the national economy," he said.

Prime Minister Dato' Sri Najib, who was on a four-day official visit to France, told reporters in Paris that French President Nicolas Sarkozy had conveyed approval of the landing rights in their meeting at the Elysee Palace.

"The French government's approval places AirAsia in a significant position, in line with the plans by AirAsia X to expand our operations in Europe," said AirAsia X CEO Azran. Currently, AirAsia X flies seven times a week to London-Stansted, the airline's sole destination in Europe.

"AirAsia X had initially considered launching a route from Kuala Lumpur to Nice, France, next year but with this latest news, the airline will re-calibrate its strategy as we now have an opportunity to fly to Paris. We will work closely with the relevant authorities to make this flight a reality."

"The date for the launch of our flights to Paris will be decided upon completion of further discussions with the relevant officials. We will provide more updates as further developments arise," added Azran.

AirAsia Group CEO Tony said, "The breakthrough in Paris will greatly enhance our reach in the continent and further strengthen the position of Kuala Lumpur as Asia's major aviation hub and the gateway to the ASEAN region."

He added: "This provides a tremendous boost in our efforts to establish Kuala Lumpur as the region's low-cost carrier hub. The more routes we fly, the more guests we can bring into Kuala Lumpur. Their spending will boost Malaysia's tourism revenues while our unparalleled network connectivity in ASEAN will enable them to link seamlessly to destinations throughout the region."

"We would also like to thank the French government for giving us the opportunity to enter the country's airline market, and provide a low-fare option for French citizens and Europeans of other nationalities to travel to ASEAN while enjoying the premium services on board the world's Best Low-Cost Carrier," said Tony. AirAsia was chosen as the world's Best Low-Cost Carrier by a majority of respondents in a survey of 16 million air travellers conducted by the London-based, premier aviation consultancy Skytrax earlier this year.