A smile in the airline business is a pretty rare commodity these days. But when you can turn a 46-year-old factory worker who never has been on an airplane into a frequent flier, or carry a plantation worker and 18 members of his family from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi on a promotional fare of just 20 ringgit ($4) each and still turn a profit, you can afford to smile. Just ask Tony Fernandes. As CEO and part-owner of Air Asia, the 37-year-old has led the transformation of a money-losing also-ran into a tiny but profitable commercial brand in a part of the world that has yet to see much of the vaunted low-fare revolution. Along the way he is broadening horizons for thousands of Malaysians for whom an air journey previously was unthinkable.
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