AirAsia X will officially rebrand as AirAsia on January 19, 2026, as founder Tony Fernandes completes a major corporate restructuring that consolidates the airline's long-haul and short-haul operations under a single brand with global ambitions.
The rebranding coincides with AirAsia X's completion of a RM6.8 billion (approximately $1.7 billion) acquisition of short-haul aviation businesses from parent company Capital A, unifying all flight operations while Capital A transitions into a holding company for non-aviation ventures including maintenance, logistics, and digital services.
Capital A will simultaneously submit its application to exit Practice Note 17 status—a classification for financially distressed companies established by Bursa Malaysia during the pandemic—on January 19, with the final court hearing scheduled for January 21 to formally lift this designation.
Fernandes revealed the consolidated airline is finalizing new aircraft orders designed to reduce operational costs and optimize fleet planning, targeting an ambitious 30% margin on earnings before taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) while aiming to double the company's stock price in the near term.
The unified AirAsia brand will leverage a strategic hub in Bahrain to build what Fernandes describes as a low-cost version of premium carriers Emirates and Qatar Airways, positioning the airline to cover all continents and strengthen its market dominance as one of Southeast Asia's leading budget carriers with improved operational efficiency.
