Tony Fernandes CEO Blog

Am reflecting on Merdeka day. It has been a busy few weeks with Krispy Kremes introduction on our planes and announcements on Abu Dhabi and Chengdu. We are gearing up to pave the way ahead for AirAsia as a whole. Was just reading the comments on the post for the women pilots of AirAsia and it it dawned on me that not enough has been said about the other women of AirAsia. Just had to take time to say a few words on how we are dispelling the myth that in Asia, only males can dominate the business world and profession of importance and AirAsia is going to be that catalyst of paradigm shifts.

At AirAsia, this does not only mean women in our flight operations have a window to excel but it also extends to our women engineers as well. We have wonderful women engineers who also stand tall among their male counterparts and challenge the notion that certain jobs are stereotyped to certain genders alone. The women engineers do not take any shortcuts nor given any slack when compared to the men and they have performed admirably. Where required, they have been out in the field, grunting their way to excellence in a normally dominant male field and they have shone as well. This is proves that women too can achieve success regardless the playing field as long as they have been given the opportunity. They are living testament that defies the myth that only men can succeed in any career regardless of the physical demands or perceptions of the public in general.

These women who have chosen to be engineers but more importantly to defy what constitutes what a female can do are great examples of stories worth telling.

Engineering Apprentice, Izyan Syazwani Mahfuz.

We call her Syaz. And at just 21, she's setting a prime example in aircraft engineering. She left Petronas to dabble in aircraft engineering based purely on her love for aviation and in her own words, "Most importantly I want to enjoy every work I do, learn sincerely, and fulfill my dream ie to follow my father's footstep and become an engineer." This Ampang lass finds the most challenging aspect of her job is in working with guys under the hot sun and for crazy hours. And in this insane smile she actually told me, "But having fantastic and helpful colleagues, they don't really matter anymore.". Izyan is really into live performances and scuba diving and has shared her dreams with us for three years already.

Izyan lasted just one year doing her foundation with Universiti Teknologi Petronas before finding her calling and her way into AirAsia. She has proven to be simply a fantastic new recruit and for her to brave a lucrative alternative with another corporate giant and work on equal terms with men, Syaz is blazing her own engineering trail.

Engineer, Noorasykin Abd Aziz

Fourth among eight siblings, Noorasykin graduated from electronic engineering and just looking at her soar to her current heights is simply awesome. She's a volleyball enthusiast and definitely another great women engineering braving the demanding hours and physical exertions while all at the same time contending with men. And she has simply given us no excuse to doubt women being as capable or even more capable in a male dominated field. The reason she took up the offer? It was simply challenging.

The women of our senior management also stand out with our head of commercial, Kathleen Tan who is simply a woman general personified. Heading our commercial team, she has continued to play a prominent role in carrying the AirAsia flag high and continues to chart our commercial growth to stand among the world's best. Another woman who is a force to be reckoned with in our ranks is Aireen Omar who has been simply sensational in heading our corporate finance and garnering international awards in Islamic financing. Rafizah who's recently joined our ranks to head our ancillary income is also an excellent addition to the AirAsia family and a woman giant in her own right. These woman embody who and what AirAsia stands for which is a champion of equal rights and a platform of woman power and equality at it's best.

Why are we what we are? One of the reasons is that we practice meritocracy at every level where sometimes many Malaysian companies ignore what woman can contribute to the growth and sustainability of a company. We recognise this and were the first to allow the women of our cabin crew to retire at the same age as men. MAS, SIA and other legacy carriers do not share the same vision as us. We have been the first to have women pilots and we are going to chart new regions based on this belief. Not only that women power should prevail, but simply, that we are going places because we believe in making a difference with the best in any given field. Signing off by saying that women power absolutely rocks.

Merdeka is a great day for all of us and our nation. We are a proud 52 years old and I hope that Merdeka will also mean Merdeka to women, and to private businesses who compete with government linked multinationals (GLCs). It is my hope that Merdeka is to all irrespective of race, creed, colour, age or sex. In essence, more independence to all. Happy Merdeka!