AirAsia Zest

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AirAsia Zest
AirAsia Zest Logo.svg
IATA ICAO Callsign
Z2 EZD ZEST
FoundedSeptember 1995; 28 years ago (1995-09)
(as Asian Spirit)
Commenced operationsApril 1996; 28 years ago (1996-04)
(as Asian Spirit)
September 2008; 15 years ago (2008-09)
(as Zest Air)
September 21, 2013; 10 years ago (2013-09-21)
(as AirAsia Zest)
Ceased operations2015; 9 years ago (2015)
(merged into Philippines AirAsia)
AOC #2009003[1]
Operating bases
Fleet size15[2]
Destinations13[2]
Parent companyAMY Holdings (Mazy's Capital Inc.)(2008–2015)
Philippines AirAsia
HeadquartersPasay, Philippines
Key peopleMarianne Hontiveros (Chairman)
Joy Cañeba (CEO)[3]
Websitewww.airasia.com/ph

Zest Airways, Inc., operated as AirAsia Zest (formerly Asian Spirit and Zest Air), was a low-cost airline based at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay, Metro Manila in the Philippines. It operated scheduled domestic and international tourist services, mainly feeder services linking Manila and Cebu with 24 domestic destinations in support of the trunk route operations of other airlines.

The airline was founded as Asian Spirit, the first airline in the Philippines to be run as a cooperative. After its acquistion by AMY Holdings of businessman Alfredo Yao in 2008, the airline was rebranded as Zest Airways. In 2013, he airline was rebranded as AirAsia Zest and became an affiliate of Philippines AirAsia operating their brand separately. The airline was merged into AirAsia Philippines in 2015.

History

Beginnings as Asian Spirit

Asian Spirit NAMC YS-11 airliner at Sandakan Airport, Malaysia (August 2007)
File:Asian Spirit Logo.png
Logo of Asian Spirit

Asian Spirit was established in September 1995 by Antonio "Toti" Turalba, Emmanuel "Noel" Oñate and Archibald Po, who contributed US$1 million each to start up the Airline Employees Cooperative (AEC). They arranged for 36 of their friends, mostly former Philippine Airlines employees, to run Asian Spirit through a salary-to-equity swap deal. The Po family held the majority of ownership.[4][5][6]

It started operations in April 1996 with two second-hand Dash 7 aircraft servicing only one scheduled commercial route with two flights per day from Manila to Malay, serving the fledgling resort island of Boracay. To maximise its aircraft utilisation, it introduced new routes to the present-day towns of San Jose, Virac, Daet and Alcantara, and the cities of Cauayan and Masbate, regarded as secondary and tertiary routes by Air Transportation Office, and not serviced by major airlines. In 1997, the cooperative changed to a corporate set-up with the establishment of Asian Spirit, Inc., whose registration was approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2005.

At the time, Asian Spirit has the distinction of being the first scheduled airline to serve Caticlan Airport, the nearest airport serving Boracay. Other operators served the airport on a charter basis then. It became the Philippines' fourth flag carrier (after Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines) in 2003.

The airline planned to fly to three international destinations to Sandakan, Malaysia from Zamboanga, to Seoul from Kalibo, Laoag, and Davao, and Macau from Angeles City. However these international routings never took off.[7] It also intended to commence international expansion to Bangkok in 2007.[8]

Rebranding as Zest Airways

Logo of Zest Air
A Zest Air Airbus A320 in 2012

In January 2008, Asian Spirit was sold to AMY Holdings, a holding company controlled by businessman Alfredo Yao.[9] The acquistion was completed on March 29 of that year.[10] After the success of the takeover, Yao expressed interest in merging Asian Spirit with South East Asian Airlines (SEAIR).[11] Yao had been expected to purchase a sixty percent stake in SEAIR,[9] but the merger talks failed and both airlines continued to operate independently.[10]

On September 30, 2008, Asian Spirit announced that it would be re-branding itself as Zest Airways to reflect the stake of the owner, Zest-O Corporation, in the airline.[12] In 2009, Zest Airways intended to establish a hub at Diosdado Macapagal International Airport.[13]

Partnership with AirAsia and rebranding as AirAsia Zest

AirAsia Zest livery

On March 11, 2013, Zest Airways signed a share swap agreement with AirAsia Philippines. The share swap deal involved exchange of shares between the owner of Zest Airways, Filipino shareholders of AirAsia Philippines, Inc. and AirAsia Berhad of Malaysia.[14] On the same day, the airlines announced a strategic alliance that would integrate the operations of both airlines while still operating as separate entities.[15] The deal closed on May 10, 2013.[16]

Less than a year after the strategic alliance with AirAsia Philippines, on September 21, the airline was rebranded as "AirAsia Zest". During its initial phases, ZestAir's website carried an image of an aircraft featuring AirAsia's signature red livery and the Zest title on the body and AirAsia's signature red livery on the tail. The rebranded airline has a new theme "AirAsia Zest, the right way to fly."[17]

Merger with AirAsia Philippines

AirAsia Zest eventually merged with AirAsia Philippines in late 2015 to form Philippines AirAsia. This merger effectively phased out the AirAsia Zest brand. Both airlines completed the transition to a single operating certificate in September of that year.[18]

Destinations

Main articles: List of AirAsia Group destinations and List of Zest Airways destinations

Fleet

Prior to its merger with AirAsia Philippines, the fleet of AirAsia Zest consisted of the following aircraft:[19][20]

AirAsia Zest fleet
Aircraft In service Passengers
(Economy) 		Notes
Airbus A320-200 14 180
Total 14

Fleet history

Asian Spirit British Aerospace 146 in 2008
AirAsia Zest retired fleet
Aircraft Year retired
British Aerospace ATP 2008
British Aerospace 146-100 2008
British Aerospace 146-200 2008
CASA/IPTN CN-235 2008
de Havilland Canada Dash 7 2009
Let-410 2008
McDonnell Douglas MD-82 2008
McDonnell Douglas MD-83 2008
NAMC YS-11 2008
Xian MA60 2013

Incidents and accidents

As Asian Spirit

  • On December 7, 1999, Asian Spirit Flight 100, a Let L-410, crashed between Kasibu in Nueva Vizcaya and Cabarroguis in Quirino, killing all 15 passengers on board and 2 crew. The plane was headed for Cauayan Airport in Cauayan City. The accident forced the closure of the Manila-Cauayan route, which remained closed until Philippine Airlines restarted the route on August 15, 2008.[21][22]
  • On September 4, 2002, Asian Spirit Flight 897 was the last flight of the day to Malay, departing Manila at 3:36 pm for a one-hour flight. During the approach to Malay, the right main gear failed to deploy. The approach was abandoned and the crew decided to return to Manila for an emergency landing. The plane circled for about 35 minutes over Las Piñas to burn off fuel. The crew then carried out an emergency landing with the right gear retracted on Manila's international airport runway 24. After touchdown the aircraft swerved off the runway onto a grassy area.[23]
  • On November 14, 2005, Asian Spirit Flight 587, a BAe-146-200, reportedly hydroplaned and overran runway 04/22, a 4,429-foot (1350 m) long concrete runway at Catarman National Airport. The aircraft came to rest in a muddy rice field.[24]
  • On January 2, 2008, Asian Spirit Flight 321, an NAMC YS-11 departing from Manila, overshot the runway at Masbate Airport at 7:30 a.m., due to heavy tailwinds with gusts reaching 14 knots while landing on runway 21. Although none of the 47 passengers were seriously injured, the aircraft was badly damaged.[25]

As Zest Airways

  • On January 11, 2009, a MA60 operated crashed at Caticlan Airport while trying to land. The aircraft landed too short on the runway, skidded out of control and crashed into a concrete barrier. The aircraft caught fire and suffered extensive damage to its wing, landing gear, undercarriage and one engine. Several passengers were injured in that accident.[26]
  • In June 2009, a MA60 operated by Zest overshot the runway while trying to land at Caticlan airport. As a consequence of this accident, the runway was lengthened and a hill that obstructs one of its approaches was flattened.[27]

As AirAsia Zest

  • On December 30, 2014, AirAsia Zest Flight 272, an Airbus A320-216 registered RP-C8972, overshot the runway during landing at Kalibo International Airport. All 159 passengers and crew survived uninjured.[28]

See also

References

  1. ^ "List of airlines subject to an operating ban or operational restrictions within the European Union" (PDF). European Commission for Transport. European Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 17, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2013.
  2. ^ a b Camus, Miguel (October 21, 2013). "AirAsia Zest launches flights to Miri, Malaysia to service OFWs". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved October 24, 2013.
  3. ^ "AirAsia Zest names new CEO". ABS-CBN News. May 20, 2014. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  4. ^ "Asian Spirit History". Asian Spirit Website. Archived from the original on August 19, 2007. Retrieved October 3, 2007.
  5. ^ "Asian Spirit". Tony Lopez, ABS-CBN Interactive. Retrieved December 20, 2007.[dead link]
  6. ^ "Asian Spirit: The Niche Player". Makati Business Club. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved October 3, 2007.
  7. ^ Amojelar, Darwin G. (September 13, 2007). "Asian Spirit to acquire more aircraft for regional expansion". The Manila Times. Manila Times Publishing Corporation. Archived from the original on June 26, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2007.
  8. ^ Amojelar, Darwin G. (November 6, 2007). "Asian Spirit joins refleeting bandwagon". The Manila Times. Manila Times Publishing Corporation. Archived from the original on December 9, 2007. Retrieved December 20, 2007.
  9. ^ a b Yao Group to acquire Asian Spirit Archived February 14, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Manila Bulletin, January 21, 2008
  10. ^ a b Arnaldo, Ma. Stella F. (March 29, 2008). "Asian Spirit sold for 'around P1B'". BusinessMirror. Retrieved November 1, 2022 – via ABS-CBN News.
  11. ^ "SEAIR, Asian Spirit merger looms; streamlining eyed". BusinessWorld. April 14, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2022 – via GMA News.
  12. ^ Carreon, Don Gil K. (September 30, 2008). "Asian Spirit now called Zest Airways". BusinessWorld. Retrieved November 1, 2022 – via GMA News.
  13. ^ "Zest Air eyes DMIA as hub for int'l flights". Manila Bulletin. August 2, 2009. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009.
  14. ^ "AirAsia to acquire 40% of Zest Air | Inquirer Business". Business.inquirer.net. March 11, 2013. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  15. ^ "AirAsia, Zest sign 'dream alliance' | Inquirer Business". Business.inquirer.net. March 11, 2013. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  16. ^ "AirAsia now controls Zest Air". ABS-CBN News. May 24, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  17. ^ Agcaoili, Lawrence (September 21, 2013). "AirAsia, ZestAir launch rebranded airline". The Philippine Star – via ABS-CBN News.
  18. ^ Simeon, Louise Maureen (September 27, 2015). "Air Asia Zest brand to be phased out". The Philippine Star. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  19. ^ Zest Air eyes DMIA as hub for int'l flights Archived August 17, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Manila Bulletin, August 2, 2009. "Zest Air expands route, fleet; plans to fly regional, international | the Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on May 27, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2011.
  20. ^ AirAsia Zest - ch-aviation.com
  21. ^ "ASN Aviation Safety Database". aviation-safety.net. December 7, 1999. Retrieved April 7, 2007.
  22. ^ "Philippines crash claims 17 lives". BBC News. December 8, 1999. Retrieved April 7, 2007.
  23. ^ "ASN Aviation Safety Database". aviation-safety.net. September 4, 2002. Retrieved May 7, 2008.
  24. ^ "ASN Aviation Safety Database". aviation-safety.net. November 14, 2005. Retrieved May 7, 2008.
  25. ^ "Plane overshoots runway in Masbate City". abs-cbnnews.com. January 2, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2008.[dead link]
  26. ^ "PICTURE: Zest MA60 crashes on landing in Philippines". Flight International. January 12, 2009.
  27. ^ "Philippines' Zest MA60 overshoots runway at Caticlan". Flight International. June 25, 2009.
  28. ^ "AirAsia flight overshoots runway in Kalibo, Philippines". December 31, 2014.

External links

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