Air Asia has announced it is set to commence flying with its new Indian low-cost airline by the fourth quarter of 2013. The airline is a joint venture between Air Asia and the Tata Group.

The Air Asia Group CEO, Tony Fernandes, said that by opening this new venture, its customers would be able to travel by the same low-cost airline brand from Japan all the way to India.

The airline will be based at Chennai, in southern India, and will use Air Asia’s Airbus A320s if permitted. Air Asia will also carry out maintenance for the airline.

India is already a booming low-cost industry, with a number of airlines already well-established and carrying a large number of passengers every year. However, Air Asia’s brand is well known and established, and it is likely to make significant inroads into the market.

Air Asia, based in Malaysia, currently has subsidiary airlines in Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines.

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