New | AirAsia tycoon Tony Fernandes faces first major crisis after turning troubled carrier into gold
Fernandes maintained an image of calm even as his company plunged into what he described as a nightmare after flight QZ8501 went missing in bad weather.
Malaysian mogul Tony Fernandes transformed a floundering carrier into Asia’s biggest budget airline. Now, he faces his company’s first major crisis after a Singapore-bound plane carrying 162 people disappeared from radar about halfway through the flight on Sunday.
“Obviously this is a massive shock to us and we are devastated... [But] our concern right now is for the relatives and the next of kin. That’s our number one priority,” he said after arriving in Surabaya, where most of the passengers are from.
“This is my worse nightmare,” Fernandes wrote on Twitter. “But there is no stopping. To all my staff Airasia all stars be strong, continue to be the best. Pray hard. Continue to do your best for all our guests. See u all soon.” Shares in the company this morning were down 11.56 per cent.
Read more on missing AirAsia flight QZ8501
The incident with QZ8501 caps a disastrous year for Malaysian aviation which saw beleaguered rival Malaysia Airlines suffer two air tragedies in rapid succession: the disappearance of MH370 in March and the rocket attack on MH17 just months later. Both flights had no survivors.
