Annual Report 2020

Faced with a plethora of pandemic-related challenges throughout the year, the second half of the year was a push towards recovery for AirAsia. We leveraged on our digital business in response to a heightened demand in e-commerce and our corporate exercise helped to optimise the efficiency of the business as a whole. Our plans for expansion in the Southeast Asian region; implementation of the Scan2Fly digital health pass which determines flight eligibility; a good showing from our digital businesses; increase of domestic flight routes; and a clever repurposing of assets and resources, AirAsia is ‘quietly optimistic’ about the future. RECOVERING & RETURNING STRONGER In our efforts to recover from the difficulties of last year’s operating environment, we have reviewed and revised how we operate by eliminating loss-making routes while focusing on popular and profitable ones in South-East Asia. This lays the groundwork for us to return as a leaner and more robust airline post-pandemic. BUILD & REBUILD Flight restrictions throughout the past year pushed us to explore and expand on our digital business offerings. Our efforts to improve the capabilities of our digital businesses over the past years have allowed us to shift our focus towards meeting consumer demands for home deliveries. We built airasia food as a platform for small f&b businesses to utilise over this period. We also introduced airasia fresh and airasia farm to support local farmers with efficient deliveries to consumers and businesses. We scaled back aircraft delivery plans and reassessed cash flows of the air travel business with a focus on recovering capacity on a quarterly basis, starting with domestic flights. NAVIGATING THE NEW NORMAL E-commerce and home delivery have taken a precedence during these times and we focused our efforts to leverage on these shifting trends. We have also seen forward bookings for future travels, reflecting a pent-up demand for traveling and flying. We have stepped-up our precautionary measures, introduced safe flying campaigns to educate travellers on SOPs and requirements, and implemented end-to-end contactless procedures alongside a digital health pass in our endeavour to offer a seamless and secure experience for our guests. Our efforts are centred on laying to groundwork for the revival of the domestic and international tourism industry. TRIBUTE TO ALLSTARS Our Allstars have been exemplary in displaying an unwavering spirit throughout these difficult times. We have witnessed positivity and agility in adapting to the situation, from salary cuts, to upskilling and reskilling, and transferring internally to contribute to the company as required. Many exceptional sacrifices were made along with painful decisions that helped us emerge stronger and better. Our utmost gratitude to those we had to let go. We would not be where we are today without our amazing Allstars who have remained dedicated and passionate throughout this difficult time. We truly thank you for being an integral part of our journey.