KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia X Bhd
(AAX) carried a total of 890,289 passengers in the fourth quarter of 2023 (4Q23), which was 2.6 times the number of passengers it carried in the previous corresponding period.
In a statement, the airline company said it also achieved an encouraging passenger load factor (PLF) of 82% in 4Q23, up by three percentage points year-on-year (y-o-y).
AAX said this was even as seat capacity multiplied by 2.5 times as compared to the same period in the preceding year.
“This came as the company ramped up its fleet size and network reach over the past 12 months, further buoyed by the peak year-end holiday and travel season.”
During the quarter under review, AAX said its number of operational aircraft stood at 16 aircraft, as opposed to six aircraft in 4Q22, delivering increased flight frequencies and network ramp-ups.
“This ultimately boosted the company’s available seat kilometres (ASK) capacity by 2.8 times y-o-y to 4.77 billion, tracked by revenue passenger kilometres growth of close to three times y-o-y, standing at 3.84 billion.
In terms of network, AAX said it launched a new route to Hong Kong (seven times per week) in the month of December, supported by immense demand from the market.
“In 4Q23, the company increased its flight frequencies to Seoul (to 12 times per week), Sydney (11 times per week), Melbourne (12 times per week), and Bangkok (seven times per week), bringing the total weekly flight frequency to 144 flights by year-end.
“On a full-year basis, AAX posted a healthy PLF of 80% up by two percentage points against the preceding year. Despite a 6.6 times growth in seat capacity, the company carried over 2.8 million passengers, reflecting a y-o-y growth of about 6.8 times.”
With the increase in the number of operational aircraft and the number of flights to 9,799 flights for the year, AAX’s ASK capacity surged by 7.5 times to 15.6 billion.
In 2023, AAX served a total of 22 destinations, with a total of eight routes launched over the 12-month period.
AAX's total fleet size stood at 18 A330s as of the end of Dec 31, 2023, with 16 aircraft activated and operational, while AAX Thailand's total fleet size stood at eight A330s, with seven aircraft activated and operational.
