QZ8501: Comments from Tony Frenandes, founder, AirAsia, on the cost-safety balance:You put a price low enough, they'd risk their lives.
A) Tony Fernandes: "My engineers talk to my pilots about how to fly the plane more efficiently, "We went from 80 landings per set of tyres to 180. We showed them how to brake on the runway, how to use the reverse thrust, how they should descend. We burn just 770 US gallons per hour of fuel. MAS, using a similar plane burns 1100 US gallons. Vikram Khanna - Business Times Singapore - The no-frills CEO, 5th July 2003 B) Cost cutting is an obsession for Mr. Fernandes, who often oversees operations from AirAsia's tiny headquarters at Kuala Lumpur International Airport . He once suggested that pilots avoid using their brakes as long as possible upon landing. "Friction usually does the trick, so our brake pads and tires last a damn sight longer than most," he says. Discount Airlines Proliferate - 20 July 2004 Source: The Wall Street Journal C) Fernandes: No, I knew Malaysians very well. You put a price low enough, they'd risk their lives.