AirAsia lands in the Northern Territory with inauguration of Kuala Lumpur-Darwin flights

DARWIN, June 30, 2025 -- AirAsia Malaysia (flight code AK) officially launched its inaugural Kuala Lumpur–Darwin route today with a strong load factor of nearly 90 percent, reinforcing the airline’s commitment to boosting tourism in the Northern Territory.

Photo caption: (Third from Left) Melanie Cobbin, Head of Operations of Airport Development Group; Siti Hadijah Arifin, Deputy Director of International Promotion (America/Europe/Oceania) of Tourism Malaysia; Hon. Robyn Cahill OAM MLA, Minister for Trade, Business and Asian Relations; Dato’ Captain Fareh Mazputra CEO of AirAsia Malaysia and Allan Woo, Head of Aviation Development of Airport Development Group at the inauguration event in Darwin for AirAsia Malaysia maiden flight into Darwin, Australia.

Flight AK612 departed from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (Terminal 2) at 5:55 am on 27 June 2025 and arrived at Darwin International Airport at 12:35 pm (local time) on the same day. The return maiden flight later departed from Darwin at 1:10 pm (local time) with an impressive load factor of more than 90 percent, reaffirming Malaysia’s appeal as a top destination in the lead-up to Visit Malaysia 2026.
The launch of this new route, along with the new service between Bali and Adelaide (commemorated on 26 June 2025 and operated by AirAsia Indonesia), marks a significant milestone for AirAsia and its strong ties with Australia. These new services underscore the Group’s ongoing commitment to expand its network, enhancing regional connectivity and offering more travel options for leisure, tourism and trade.

Minister for Trade, Business and Asian Relations, Robyn Cahill OAM joined AirAsia on its maiden flight to Darwin and commented: “The Territory’s aviation sector continues to go from strength to strength with this new route providing a boost to tourism, growing business and trade and connecting Territorians with a new international flight option.
“We are thrilled to partner with AirAsia and the Airport Development Group to expand AirAsia Group’s network into the Northern Territory and provide greater choice, connectivity and competition for travellers. More flights will make it easier for people to visit and do business in the Territory. Having just returned from Kuala Lumpur, I can attest to the beauty of the destination. I encourage Territorians who are heading to Malaysia to take advantage of this fantastic service with direct and affordable flights into Kuala Lumpur 4 days a week.”

Dato’ Captain Fareh Mazputra, CEO of AirAsia Malaysia said: “Darwin now becomes part of AirAsia Malaysia’s expanding network in Australia, further boosting the airline’s strong and growing presence in the region. Australia remains one of the Group’s key growth markets and we are thrilled to touch down today for the first time in the Northern Territory. We are confident this new service will be well received, not only offering the only direct and affordable connectivity between Darwin and Kuala Lumpur, but also as a gateway to our vast network of over 130 destinations across Asia and beyond at great value. 

“Our seamless Fly-Thru connecting services to Aussies’ favourites such as Vietnam, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Japan, China and beyond, continue to be extremely popular with the Australian market. For adventure-seeking travellers, the Top End of Australia now becomes an existing and affordable new destination to them. We also look forward to welcoming guests from Darwin to discover Malaysia or Fly-Thru to destinations to visit the rest of Southeast, as well as North and Central Asia.”

Datuk Manoharan Periasamy, Director-General of Tourism Malaysia said: “We laud the new Kuala Lumpur-Darwin route for enhancing connectivity with Australia, which has consistently been one of our top visitor-generating markets. This connection is crucial, as Malaysia and Australia share a deep and longstanding friendship, and tourism is a key pillar that brings our communities closer together. As we celebrate 70 years of Australia’s diplomatic presence in Malaysia in 2025 and gear up for Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026), we look forward to welcoming more Australian travellers to experience our unique cultural diversity and commitment to sustainable tourism. In 2024, Malaysia recorded 447,785 visitor arrivals from Australia, an 11.7% increase from 2023 and 6.3% above pre-pandemic 2019 levels."

Rob Porter, Executive General Manager, Airports at Airport Development Group said the collaboration was instrumental in delivering the new route, “This service is the result of strong cooperation between government, airline and airport, a shared vision to better connect the Territory with the region and the world. AirAsia Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur-Darwin route brings real benefits for Territorians, opening up international access at affordable price points, supporting local jobs and boosting inbound tourism that will flow through to hotels, tour operators and the wider economy.”

AirAsia Malaysia (flight code AK) will operate four weekly flights on the Kuala Lumpur-Darwin route, offering more than 1,488 seats weekly with fares starting from RM319* all-in one way for flights from Kuala Lumpur to Darwin while fares for its return flights from Darwin to Kuala Lumpur will be available as low as AUD219* all-in one way. The promotional fares are available for immediate booking until 6 July 2025 for the travel period between now and 27 March 2026 on airasia.com and the AirAsia MOVE app. 

*All-in fares are quoted for one-way travel only, including passenger service charge, regulatory service charges, fuel surcharges, and other applicable fees. T&C apply.

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