France honours Air Asia chief with Commander of the Legion d’Honneur award

Chennai: The French government has conferred Tony Fernandes, Group CEO of AirAsia with the Commander of the Legion d’Honneur award, signifying Fernandes’s outstanding contributions towards the economy of France through the aviation industry.

Francois Hollande, President of France conferred the honourable award to Fernandes in a ceremony held yesterday at the Elysée Palace in Paris, France. 

The Legion d’Honneur award was established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802 to recognize outstanding service of individuals to France, and the Commander of the Legion d’Honneur is the highest rank of honour that the French government can award to a non-French citizen.

“As the Group CEO of AirAsia and Co-Chairman of Caterham Group, I am proud that we are positively contributing both directly and indirectly towards many peoples’ lives in France and across the world. This is great motivation for me to continue to steer both Caterham Group and AirAsia to greater heights, and once again, I am grateful for this incredible honour,” said Tony Fernandes.

Fernandes was previously conferred the Officier of the Legion d'Honneur award by the French Government in 2010.

Caterham Group signed a 50/50 joint venture with Renault in November 2012, creating a business that will design, manufacture and sell a brand new range of Caterham Cars and Alpine models throughout the world from 2016. Further models will come from the joint venture which has seen Caterham Group make significant investment in Renault’s Dieppe manufacturing facility, further demonstrating its commitment to the French economy and long-term prosperity.