The Malaysian low-cost airline Air Asia has been granted state loan guarantees. 

The government is liable for 80 percent of the loan amount in order to make the bank-financed loan possible in the first place. The ailing carrier would receive the equivalent of 240 million US dollars, like the news magazine Swiss Aviation reported. The first money should flow in as early as November. A confirmation is still pending on both sides.

AirAsia operates domestic and international scheduled flights and is Asia's largest low-cost airline. The hubs are Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur and Penang. The airline's fleet currently consists of 95 aircraft, more than two thirds of which are Airbus A320s, with an average age of 5,5 years.