Branson honours bet to Tony Fernandes

A Kuala Lumpur-bound AirAsia X aircraft from Perth, Australia touched down at the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT), here, today with aviation billionaire Sir Richard Branson wearing make-up and high heels onboard, serving the aisles as its flight attendant.

Donning the carrier red female flight attendant outfit, the Virgin Group chairman, together with AirAsia Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and A330 flight passengers arrived at the LCCT at 12.30pm and were welcomed by more than 50 people who were amused by Branson's appearance.

He departed from Perth earlier today on the charity fundraising flight to honour the bet he lost to Fernandes at the Grand Prix over two years ago.

The feat helped the shaved legged Branson in sexy red skirt suit to pull in about AU$300,000 in donations to the Starlight Children's Foundation in Australia.

The bet between Branson and Fernandes was wagered more than two years ago over which of their Formula Racing teams would finish ahead in their debut season of the 2010 Formula One Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Fernandes' Team Lotus finished two spots above Branson's Marussia Virgin Racing team in the final rankings.

When met by reporters, Fernandes said the flight was one of the "nice and fun" flights he and the passengers ever had, adding that it was amazing how a bet like that would become such a media event and raised some money for those in need.

Branson in his brief speech said he was elated to have finally honoured the bet and contributed to the charity drive.

"I am grateful to have had Tony (Fernandes), whom I lost the bet to, willingly help me out on the flight. I trust we kept the passengers well fed and amused. It was a lot of fun," he said.

Asked whether there would be another betting between them, Fernandes said he and Branson would want to rest for a while and focus more on future plans.

"He wants me to go to space with him and maybe I will go and perhaps when we are at the moon, we have something to bet on," he said.