AirAsia X, the Malaysian based long haul, low fare affiliate of AirAsia has announced that from 24 October 2011, it will commence flights from Kuala Lumpur to Gatwick Airport. The new base for the airline is set to further increase passenger traffic from South East Asia to London and Europe with six flights weekly to Gatwick Airport by mid-December.

AirAsia X’s decision to switch from Stansted to Gatwick Airport was to maximise commercial opportunities at Gatwick, to ultimately drive increased traffic flow between UK and Malaysia, and also the various key feeder markets within AirAsia’s network in Asia Pacific. AirAsia X guests will be given a wider choice to of both domestic and international connections via Gatwick Airport. Public transport and accommodation facilities are easily accessible via Gatwick for guest stop overs or for those heading towards central London and the surrounding region.

According to AirAsia X Chief executive Officer, Azran Osman-Rani said, their aim has always been to open up travel for all. The popularity of the London-KL route is further testament to the pent-up demand for long-haul travel, provided the fares are low and the quality is high. That is the combination that  AirAsia X are offering to its guests. Azran also stated that Gatwick Airport was chosen as it demonstrated the passion to work with us in realising our objectives to grow passenger traffic between our hubs in Asia Pacific and London. 

An official statement been released by AirAsia X via AirAsia's Facebook fan page as below:

With AirAsia X's new home base in Gatwick, guests would be able to further benefit from the airport’s destination served, airline diversity, and beyond market connectivity potential with faster and cheaper rail connectivity to the city as compared to Stansted. AirAsia X also see’s strong potential for the airport as we believe our entry will address the fact that direct services to Asia is significantly underserved from Gatwick. 

Air Asia X A340 Launch Long Haul Low Cost Flying Into London Stansted (credit to bananamanuk)