Southeast Asia’s budget airline boom turns sour amid coronavirus pandemic
- Auditors for Malaysia’s AirAsia and Vietnam’s VietJet are concerned about funding, while Indonesia’s Lion Air stopped a flotation
- Even before the pandemic, bankers and leasing bosses were worried about aircraft ordered during a decade-long buying frenzy
Southeast Asian low-cost carriers, a key growth engine for planemakers and leasing companies for a decade before the pandemic, are faltering financially as demand plunges, raising questions over whether they can replace and double their fleets.
Even before the pandemic, bankers and leasing bosses were worried about whether aircraft ordered during a decade-long buying frenzy by Southeast Asian carriers would end up being delivered.
The carriers, which have offshoots in multiple countries, have 938 planes on order and lease most of their existing fleets of 476 planes, according to Aviation Week data.
To be sure, budget airlines with large domestic operations are well-placed for a post-pandemic recovery, despite having less financial support than state-owned rivals.
