Much has been written about passenger entitlements following the AirAsia X Scheme of Arrangement as they seek to rebuild after the hibernation of aircraft during the Covid-19 border closures. The company has issued a statement on 15 November 2021 to clarify this issue.
The full statement as included below, explains that “a party is either a debtor if they are owing money to the company or a creditor if the company owes them money”.
They acknowledge that many passengers are owed money, but as there are only two classifications, they are classified as creditors. This has led people to assume they will also only receive a small return on their payment, assuming the scheme goes ahead.
Passenger entitlements Statement
AirAsia X (AAX) wishes to clarify various media reports on passenger classification and their entitlements as classified under the Scheme of Arrangement (Scheme) that was supported by 99% of all creditors.
Our priority is to comprehensively restructure and recapitalise the airline so that it can operate again as one of the world’s leading low cost medium haul operators. Our focus to raise new capital is necessary because the airline has not received any external financial support during this pandemic or any such time before. As such, the airline must reset and rebuild a solid platform for a sustainable and viable future so that new investors will be prepared to inject new capital into.
Our creditors, despite many being owed vast sums, voted overwhelmingly on 12th November, to give us the opportunity to survive and recover stronger, as it is in their best interest that we do. Similarly, it is in the best interest of our passengers to allow us to fly again so that we are in a position to honour their travel credits with us. Put simply, the alternative is that everyone loses without any chance of recovery of what is owed if we are not successful in this restructuring.
A lot has also been written about the classification of passengers as creditors. In a financial statement, besides being a shareholder, there are only two categories. A party is either a debtor if they are owing money to the company or a creditor if the company owes them money. It is clear that the company owes the passengers who have outstanding amounts owed to them, and hence the classification as creditors.
We assure all passengers affected by the restructuring that it is the firm intention of AAX to put in place travelling privileges in the form of travel credits, which can be utilised for future purchases of flight tickets once international borders reopen on top of the 0.5% they will receive and other cash based entitlements based on annual revenue performance over three years as explained in the Explanatory Statement issued to all creditors recently. Please note that these entitlements and the travel credits can only take place if AAX is successfully restructured pursuant to the terms of the Scheme. If the terms of the Scheme are not complied with and the Scheme fails, AAX will go into liquidation and the passengers will not receive anything in return. It is not the intention for AAX to place the passengers in this situation.
AirAsia X’s policies are in line with many operators in the travel industry worldwide and are fully compliant with all regulatory requirements in each of the regions we operate in.
The airline has ongoing dialogue with all consumer regulators across the region to ensure compliance and is ISO certified for customer complaint management, which is a global benchmark for maintaining the highest standards.
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