AirAsia faces biggest crisis as jet goes missing

Singapore

AIRASIA was built up from two planes in 2001 to an airline industry titan that operates more than 180 jets in just over a decade but now faces its biggest ever challenge.

A dream run for the airline and its boss, Tony Fernandes, turned sour on Sunday, as Indonesia AirAsia reported that an Airbus 320-200 with 162 people on board went missing during a flight from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore (see infographic).

"This is my worst nightmare. But there is no stopping," Mr Fernandes said on his Twitter feed, which has nearly one million followers. "I, as your group CEO, will be there through these hard times. We will go through thi…