The Kuala Lumpur–based carrier is restarting flights down under with one-way fares priced from RM 499.
Downtown Auckland, New Zealand at first light. (Photo: georgeclerk/iStock)
AirAsia’s medium to long-haul affiliate airline has announced its return to two Australian state capitals, alongside New Zealand’s largest city, from November 1. These key routes boost the airline’s expansion plans with 13 destinations penciled in this year, including Sydney, New Delhi, Seoul, Tokyo, Sapporo, Osaka, and Honolulu, as well as London, Dubai, and Istanbul. Initially, services to Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport, Perth, and Auckland (flown via Sydney) have been scheduled on a thrice-weekly basis. Frequencies will gradually increase to daily by the first quarter of 2023 to meet strong demand.
Special fares from Kuala Lumpur to all three new destinations are available for booking on the airasia Super App and website until July 24, for travel between November 1, 2022 and March 26, 2023. One-way fares in economy start from RM 499 (US$112) to Perth, RM 699 (US$157) to Melbourne, and RM 1,999 (US$449) to Auckland, including airport taxes, fuel surcharges, and other fees. Guests can also experience AirAsia’s Premium Flatbed seat from RM 1,999 (US$449) to Perth, RM 2,999 (US$673) to Melbourne and RM 5,999 (US$1,346) to Auckland one way.
AirAsia X CEO Benyamin Ismail said in a statement, “We are thrilled to recommence our services to Australia and New Zealand as a core part of our expansion strategy… In 2019, we flew over a million guests to both countries, which shows that Australia and New Zealand are important markets for us.” He added, “After a two-year hiatus we are back stronger than ever and proud to renew our commitment to making medium to long-haul air travel affordable once again for everyone in this region as well as across ASEAN.”
The flight schedules for all three routes are as follows:
| Flight | From | To | Departs | Arrives | Days | Period 2022 |
| Melbourne (Tullamarine) | ||||||
| D7 218 | Kuala Lumpur | Melbourne | 20:10 | 6:30 (+1) | Tue, Sat | Nov 1–29 |
| D7 219 | Melbourne | Kuala Lumpur | 8:00 | 13:35 | Wed, Sun | Nov 2–30 |
| D7 212 | Kuala Lumpur | Melbourne | 12:45 | 23:05 | Thursday | Nov 3–Dec 1 |
| D7 213 | Melbourne | Kuala Lumpur | 0:20 | 5:55 | Friday | Nov 4–Dec 2 |
| Perth | ||||||
| D7 236 | Kuala Lumpur | Perth | 0:05 | 5:35 | Fri, Sun | Nov 4–Dec 4 |
| D7 237 | Perth | Kuala Lumpur | 6:50 | 12:40 | Fri, Sun | |
| D7 234 | Kuala Lumpur | Perth | 9:30 | 15:00 | Monday | Nov 7–Dec 5 |
| D7 235 | Perth | Kuala Lumpur | 16:05 | 21:55 | Monday | |
| Auckland (via Sydney) | ||||||
| D7 288 | Kuala Lumpur | Sydney | 22:50 | 9:45 (+1) | Tue, Thu, Sun | Nov 1–Dec 1 |
| Sydney | Auckland | 11:00 | 15:55 | Mon, Wed, Fri | Nov 2–Dec 2 | |
| D7 289 | Auckland | Sydney | 17:50 | 19:25 | Mon, Wed, Fri | Nov 2–Dec 2 |
| Sydney | Kuala Lumpur | 21:40 | 3:30 (+1) | Mon, Wed, Fri | Nov 2–Dec 2 | |
