Roy Chang 11.35am on 1st October, 2011.  Somerville.  LowFare Flight.........Fright...!! How Air Asia Compromised Passengers' Safety  Read and decide for yourself...   Actually they do have a point – if you notice their arrival and departure  times, the turnaround time is very short only. Just time only for  cleaning the aircraft and passengers to board.  Hardly any time for any  checking the engines, etc, etc or whatever they need to do…………..   I guess this is not the only happening. I was caught in Taipei for 6 hours  waiting for the flight to take off and honestly I do not know whether  that plane is fit to take off.  We were told that something was wrong with  the plane and when they checked they could not find the fault and the  airport authority in Taipei would not let us go unless AA KL took full  responsibility. Guess what?....  KL sent that fax and we took off..... Were  we being compromised on our safety?  You probably know the answer   This guy has a valid point.  I always wondered how safe is AirAsia,  given the way it is managed and founded and how  much is being  compromised in the name of profits!  I find that it is one of the most  unfriendly airline.  It still  owes my wife RM80/- unpaid for the last 3  years!  It is not the money I care about but the principle of honesty  in its dealing with customers.  Don't believe me, try calling AirAsia  and see if you can get through to an operator!   Until this Fernandez fellow comes up with a true explanation, leaving no  stone unturned, this mail should be spread  throughout the world so that  those who fly AirAsia know that they do so at their own risk!   Good, I hope this warning reach as many people as possible, maybe it  is  time we should not take for granted that Air Asia is the cheapest flight  and try to save less than RM100.00, in exchange for our life.   Hope this message reach Air Asia - to shake them up. Thanks for your  warning.   Our Bangkok trip was superb but it was scarred by one thing. Our flight  with Air Asia. I will, and I am pretty certain my friends who were with me  too will NEVER, EVER FLY Air Asia again.  I do hope Tony Fernandez  or his team reads this. You DO NOT compromise the safety of traveller  under any circumstances. Even if the flight is free, of which IT is  not.   The good thing was, everything was on schedule this time - the flight  boarding time and all but nightmare soon followed when the plane was on  its way to the runway. We were all seated, the plane was packed to the  brim as usual and many were seen in chirpy mood after their superb time I  presume and the flight attendants were showing us the flight´s safety  procedure.   Out of the sudden, the plane´s engine STALLED. Came to a total Halt.  S-T-O-P-P-E-D.  Right there.   All the lights went off, no sound was heard from the engine or any  equipment in the plane whatsoever. It was total silence from the plane  and all we heard were whispers of confusion from our part. The pilot  announcement came much later citing main electrical problem and will  soon steer the plane back to the gate. I assumed that was for  either troubleshooting or putting us into another flight BUT ...AIR ASIA,  the HERO ... did not troubleshoot the problem but instead reloaded  some program only and restarted the plane´s engine and ready to take  off! To make matters worst, there wasn´t even any offer for passengers to  get off or to change their flights!   Fearing for our safety as images of the engine dying again, we informed  the crew on board we are getting off. I was not sure if the pilot had the  intention to get back to the gate as the plane were seen heading towards  a different direction. Alas after two desperate prompting from us, they  did. I thought getting off the plane under such circumstance are our  rights. After all, the plane was not 100% fit to fly and it should be checked  under any circumstances. But what came next was even better. The  Air Asia pilot whom I assume were on his xxx number of flight of the day  (he looked tired and his eyes were piercing red) asked if it is  necessary for us to get off! Is he afraid that the flight delay will  cost the airline xxx amount of Ringgit! Is that of utmost importance? The  pilot had the nerve even to explain that this electrical issue is no  big deal!   Air Asia, can you answer this. What if the engine died again during  taking off? What if the engine died in midair? What if the engine died  during landing? Air Asia simply can´t guarantee that the engine will not  die again without any proper trouble shooting.   That would be my last time stepping on an Air Asia plane. No more, thank  you. Moreover, I discovered a better flight within Kuala Lumpur and  Bangkok route and it is Lufthansa, the reputable German Airline. Not  that I´m trying to apple polish them, do hop over to their Lufthansa  Technical Group website to understand how stringent the German´s are  with Maintenance and Safety System.    Here´s my comparison between an Air Asia Flight versus Lufthansa which I   took back to Kuala Lumpur.    Air Asia    Fare Paid : approximately MYR 280 one way   Plane Type : Airbus 320   Seat Size : Small and Uncomfortable   Luggage : Pay Extra   Entertainment : Pay Extra   Meals : Pay Extra   Pillows and Blankets : Pay Extra   Punctuality : Average   Safety : Hell No!   Pilot Profile : Questionable. I have heard countless stories of Air Asia   pilots flying as many flights per day as possible akin to Malaysia   Express Bus Service style, and partying up to late nights.    Lufthansa    Fare Paid : approximately MYR 350 one way   Plane Type : Boeing 747   Seat Size : Much roomier than Air Asia as this is a transit flight from   Frankfurt to Kuala Lumpur   Luggage : 20 kg   Entertainment : Included   Meals : Full Meal and Drinks including Sparkling Wine   Pillow and Blankets : Included   Punctuality : Good   Safety : Very Safe with Top Notch Safety Procedure provided by Lufthansa   Technikar Group (own Maintenance Equipment   and Machine in Every Airport in the World)   Pilot Profile : The most well paid in the world at approximately 250K   Euro per annum.   Con : It is a non daily flight  Dear readers and friends,  Do spread the word around. For your safety, do not save the MYR 70.00 one way difference. You do not know how much the Malaysia government or media had covered up for Air Asia all this while. I simply do not believe they are all clean after this incident.  -- Peter Yong