AirAsia X has posted a quarterly net loss of RM5.67 billion for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. Revenue sank by 29.6% to RM38.49 as the majority of the airline’s fleet remains on the ground due to the pandemic.
The airline's liquidity is now at RM84.64 million as of March 31. AirAsia X remains in negotiation with lessors and creditors to restructure some RM64.15 billion of debt.
"Malaysia itself will remain under the Recovery Movement Control Order until the end of August, which effectively prohibits outbound and inbound international travel, while the Australian borders remain closed and there are limitations still in place in China, Japan, India and South Korea," AAX said.
To maintain liquidity during these challenging times, AAX said it has sought payment deferrals and concessions from its suppliers, lessors and lenders, and reduced capital expenditure wherever possible.
"Salary reductions have been implemented across all levels of the airline, apart from the most junior staff, and headcount has been reduced by 10%, with further reductions planned, primarily in the flight operations-related functions.
"We have also restructured a major portion of our fuel hedges, and are still in process of restructuring the remaining exposure. The actual volume of fuel consumed, as compared to the hedged volume, will be lower in the post-Covid-19 environment and a restructuring of the fuel hedges will reduce expected hedging losses if fuel price remains below the hedged price," it noted.
The airline confirmed that it plans to operate a leaner fleet size and to date has successfully returned one aircraft and states that it remains in discussions with the other aircraft lessors to achieve the “optimal fleet size” and to reduce future lease payments.
AirAsia X also says that it plans to make an application for a government guaranteed loan of up to RM500 million under the Danajamin PRIHATIN Guarantee Scheme (DPGS), and that it is in discussions with a financial institution to secure the DPGS loan.