Discussion Panel Universitas Terbuka by Jony Oktavian Haryanto

Source: IBS Center for Management Research

COMMUNICATION IN A CRISIS:
INDONESIA AIRASIA
On December 28, 2014, Indonesian low-cost carrier, PT Indonesia AirAsia (Indonesia AirAsia), announced
that its flight QZ8501, travelling from Surabaya , Indonesia, to Singapore with 162 people on board, had
gone missing. The announcement was made soon after the flight lost contact with air traffic control. On
December 29, after confirming that the flight had gone missing, the National Search and Rescue Agency
Republic of Indonesia (BASARNAS), a government agency, announced that an international search and
rescue mission from Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia had been mobilized in the search for flight
QZ8501.

On December 30, Indonesia AirAsia officially confirmed that the flight, with 155 passengers and 7 crew
members on board, had crashed into the Java Sea . The announcement was made after the wreckage
and the remains of passengers on board the aircraft were found. Commenting on the disaster, Sunu
Widyatmoko (Widyatmoko), Chief Executive Officer of Indonesia AirAsia, said, “We are sorry to be here
today under these tragic circumstances. We would like to extend our sincere sympathies to the family
and friends of those on board QZ8501........Indonesia AirAsia had had a good track record ever since it
was founded in December 2004 as a low-cost airline in Tangerang, Indonesia, by Tony Fernandes
(Fernandes). The crash involving flight QZ8501 was the first fatal air crash in the airline’s 10-year-old
history. Immediately after reports surfaced of the flight going missing from the radar after the air traffic
control lost contact with it, Fernandes, Group CEO, AirAsia, took to social media to announce that the
plane was missing.

In 2001, Tony Fernandes (Fernandes), a British-trained accountant, had plans to start Malaysia’s first
discount airline, but he could not obtain a license. It was at this time that he heard that Malaysia’s state-
owned airline, AirAsia, which had gone bankrupt with a US$ 11 million debt and two Boeing aircraft,
could be bought from the government of Malaysia. Fernandes had to sell his idea to Malaysia’s then
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad (Mohammad).

After announcing that the Indonesia AirAsia flight had crashed into the Java Sea, Fernandes apologized
to the families of the passengers and crew for the loss of their loved ones and said that he would honor
Indonesia AirAsia’s obligations to them, including by paying compensation. Addressing the media,
Fernandes said, “We are prepared, and we will not be running away from any of our obligations.

Some experts opined that Fernandes and the Indonesia AirAsia team had been exemplary in their
communication all through the crisis. They said that Indonesia AirAsia clearly had a crisis plan in place
that was articulated. Some analysts said that Fernandes and his team had demonstrated clear, action-
led leadership. They felt that there was accurate and frequent communication and an authentic, heart-
felt compassion that was often missing among market-driven CEOs.
Discussion Panel Universitas Terbuka by Jony Oktavian Haryanto
Source: IBS Center for Management Research

Though experts praised Indonesia AirAsia for handling the crisis, they cautioned that it had a long way to
go before it could put the disaster behind it. There could be a falloff in passengers from Indonesia, since
most of the victims hailed from the country. Being the biggest economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia was
an important market for Indonesia AirAsia.

Questions:

1. Explain about Branding strategy of Air Asia after the crash of QZ851. ( Jelaskan strategi merek
yang dilakukan oleh Air Asia setelah kecelakaan yang menimpa QZ851).
2. Explain the role of Fernandes in re-creating branding equity toward the crisis. (Jelaskan peran
Fernandes dalam menciptakan kembali ekuitas merek yang maksimal selama krisis yang terjadi.)
3. If you are the consultant of Air Asia, what do you suggest to prevent negative branding
perception? Expand your explanation. (Jika anda merupakan konsultan dari Air Asia, apa yang
akan anda sarankan untuk menghindari persepsi yang negative mengenai Air Asia. Jelaskan
secara kritis pendapat anda.)