AirAsia admits defeat in two-year attempt to break into Japan’s low-cost airline market

AirAsia, a Malaysia-based no-frills carrier, has admitted defeat in a two-year attempt to break into Japan's low-cost airline market after abandoning a joint venture with ANA, the Japanese airline, citing disagreements over strategy.

ANA is set to buy AirAsia's 49 per cent stake in the venture, known as AirAsia Japan, for about $25 million. The development is a rare setback for Tony Fernandes, a Malaysian entrepreneur who has seen his AirAsia business grow rapidly into one of the world's most successful low-cost carriers since buying what was then a failing state-owned airline in 2001.

ANA said the venture struggled because it sought to save money by applying existing AirAsia systems to a Japanese market far different from AirAsia’s southeast Malaysian base. – Copyright: The Financial Times Limited 2013