Malaysia's AirAsia increases A320 order

AirAsia, Southeast Asia's largest budget carrier by fleet size, said Sunday it has agreed to buy 175 new fuel efficient A320 Airbus aircraft for at least 10.5 billion dollars. "We have placed a new order of an additional 25 A320s with Airbus," Tony Fernandes, group chief executive told AFP. AirAsia had previously ordered 150 aircraft.
Each A320 aircraft carries a catalogue price of 60 million dollars. The announcement comes on the back of the carrier being allowed to fly the lucrative Kuala Lumpur-Singapore route. AirAsia Friday said its fiscal first quarter net profit had risen by more than 150 percent on higher passenger volume.