AirAsia X (D7, Kuala Lumpur International) has appealed a Bursa Malaysia decision to deny its application to exit PN17 status. AirAsia X filed notice of the appeal on November 2, 2023, just two weeks after the Malaysian bourse rejected its initial advance.
The stock exchange issues PN17 notices to listed entities in financial distress. Bursa Malaysia issued AirAsia X's PN17 notice in October 2021 after a disclaimer of opinion by auditors Ernst and Young in the audited financial statements. A PN17 notice instructs an entity to get its financial affairs in order and formulate a regularisation plan or risk delisting..
In July, when submitting the application to exit PN17 status, CEO Benyamin Ismail said the restructuring exercises the airline had undertaken in the past couple of years had allowed it to transform and operate with a more sound and viable financial position. More recently, Ismail told an AviationWeek podcast that since Covid-19, the airline had focused strongly on reducing costs, increasing revenues, and keeping operations lean.
I think in terms of the DNA of the low-cost carrier," he said. "We've always been looking at avenues to reduce costs. I think throughout the whole organization, it's always about cost, and we just came out restructuring as well. So company's pretty lean, so we just have to make sure that we maintain that kind of levels."
"We're pretty much close to pre-pandemic levels where we're sitting at about 83 - 84% load factor, and on the positive side, in terms of average fares, we're up about 80%."
AirAsia X's fleet of seventeen A330-300s fly to 23 destinations in 12 countries, including India, New Zealand, China, South Korea, Indonesia, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Japan, and Taiwan. On November 7, it announced it would drop its fifth freedom route between Sydney Kingsford Smith and Auckland International in favour of resuming flights between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Auckland in February 2024. "We will continue to monitor the situation, and if demand returns, we will consider reinstating the Sydney-Auckland service at a later date. However, for now and as a leisure-focused airline, we are seeing more demand across the Tasman to and from the Gold Coast," said Ismail.
