AirAsia is in the midst of securing rights to land in Seoul and Sidney by the middle of next year.

The budget airline is also spreading its wings in India to 12 new routes in 2010, said its group chief executive officer Tony Fernandes.

tony fernandez and airasia He said AirAsia received tremendous response from the South Korean government, and it is in the process of obtaining approval for flight to Seoul.

"South Korea is the new country and they are very excited about it. As for India, it has been a very successful destination so far and we are looking into 12 new routes including Hyderabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai," he told reporters after celebrating AirAsia's eighth anniversary today.

To date, the budget airline flies to four destinations in India - Trichy, Trivandrum, Kolkata and Kochin, while its current destinations in Australia are Gold Coast, Perth and Melbourne.

He said Thailand and Indonesia will also be two strong countries for AirAsia next year.

Commenting on the airline's outlook next year, he said AirAsia was confident it will be an "amazing year".

"For the past three quarters, we have recorded profit amid the sluggish economic environment, and the fourth quarter looks very strong," he said.

- Bernama