He shared pictures of himself boarding a Singapore Airlines plane, and the view from his seat, which appeared to be in economy class.
A return economy flight between Kuala Lumpur, where AirAsia is headquartered, and Singapore costs about US$70 on the budget carrier. The same flight with Singapore Airlines typically costs US$60 to US$130 more.
Fernandes’ post drew praise from some users. One wrote: “It is so refreshing to see the CEO of a private airline respect his customer bookings and not find a ‘corporate’ method to shuffle some passengers around.”
Scoot throws Australian off flight for slapping passenger, trying to fight others
Scoot throws Australian off flight for slapping passenger, trying to fight others
Not everyone is buying Fernandes’ explanation, however.
“Good choice you won’t miss your flight now!” quipped one user. Another wrote: “Don’t lie Tony. Even you don’t wanna fly AirAsia.”
“Lol you had to take @singaporeair because of the seat quality given on your own company @flyairasia,” another user wrote.
The since-deleted post sparked debate over whether it was appropriate, with some users slamming it as unprofessional and uncomfortable.
How J.Y. Pillay helped Lee Kuan Yew turn Singapore Airlines into a global giant
How J.Y. Pillay helped Lee Kuan Yew turn Singapore Airlines into a global giant
Fernandes took the helm at AirAsia in 2001, after acquiring the then-failing airline from the Malaysian government. Under his management, it became Asia’s fourth-largest airline until the pandemic struck and sparked the bankruptcy of its Japan and Thai operations.
For the past 14 years, the airline has been named the world’s best low-cost carrier by airline review site SkyTrax.
AirAsia did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.