Low-cost long-haul flights have returned to the UK with the launch of Air Asia X services from London to Kuala Lumpur.

A send-off ceremony was held at 9am local time on Wednesday morning at Kuala Lumpur airport to mark the inaugural flight.

The first plane carried a full load of 286 passengers to London’s Stansted airport.

Demand for the flights, tickets for which started at £99 return, has been high. So much so that Air Asia says it’s considering upping the frequency of the flights from five a week to daily.

The new flights also mean it’s possible to fly to Australia in just two hops via low-cost airlines for the first time.

Travellers can connect to Air Asia flights to Perth, Melbourne and Queensland in Kuala Lumpur. The airline is currently selling one-way fares to Perth from £18, Melbourne from £39 and Queensland’s Gold Coast from £51 until 15 March.

Air Asia X's UK launch flies in the face of the credit crunch, which has already claimed many low-cost casualties.

Last year, Oasis, which flew from London to Hong Kong, went bust in April, while Zoom, which flew to the US and Canada, went under in August.

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