KUCHING, Jan 5: China Eastern Airlines is set to introduce new routes connecting Nanjing to Sarawak and Sabah in June, offering flights between the capital city of Kuching and Kota Kinabalu, and this will mark a significant milestone as the first direct flight from Sarawak to China in several years.
Federal Minister of Tourism, Arts, and Culture Dato Sri Tiong King Sing announced that the Nanjing to Kuching route will resume services on June 24 with three weekly flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, using aircraft such as the Boeing 737-800 or Airbus A320neo for both routes.
“In addition, China Eastern Airlines plans to gradually launch daily flights from Shanghai Pudong Airport to new destinations in Malaysia in the second half of the year. These destinations include daily flights to Penang starting July 24 and roundtrip daily flights to Kuching, Sarawak, commencing mid-September,” he said in a statement on his social media yesterday (Jan 4).
Tiong shared this exciting news for the Malaysian tourism industry following the confirmation from two Chinese airlines, China Eastern Airlines and its subsidiary Shanghai Airlines, regarding an increase in roundtrip flights between Malaysia and China to a minimum of 62 flights weekly throughout the year.
He highlighted that these airlines are set to open five new departure destinations from Beijing, Xi’an, Urumqi, Nanjing, and Kunming, with additional destinations including Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, and Penang. Xi’an and Urumqi are particularly strategic, serving as key hubs targeting the Muslim Chinese market.
“Based on statistics from Shanghai Airlines, the implementation of a visa waiver for Chinese tourists by the Malaysian government resulted in a 45 per cent increase in Chinese passengers visiting Malaysia within one month until Dec 31, 2023. Similarly, Malaysian passengers travelling to China saw a 23 per cent increase during the same period.
“The positive response to the visa waiver prompted airlines to boost flights and open new routes, aiming to meet the high demand in the market and encourage visits between the two countries in the coming year,” he emphasised.
In terms of immediate actions, Tiong mentioned plans to increase existing Shanghai Airlines flights, specifically on the Shanghai Pudong Airport to Kuala Lumpur route. Commencing Jan 19, the number of flights will increase to 21 from the previous 17, operating three flights daily using a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
In addition, starting Jan 26, China Eastern Airlines will commence flights on the Beijing to Kuala Lumpur route, with one roundtrip flight every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, using the Airbus A330 aircraft.
“I have also made a suggestion and hope that China Eastern Airlines will consider increasing the frequency of flights to once a day as soon as possible based on market demand after the route is opened,” he said.
On the new Urumqi-Kuala Lumpur route, Tiong said China Eastern Airlines plans to implement charter flights as early as May and late July, with three weekly flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. After the initial three months, they plan to switch to roundtrip flights scheduled daily during the Hajj season.
The airline will also launch direct flights from Kunming-Kuala Lumpur starting on Feb 1 and Xi’an-Kuala Lumpur beginning March 25.
With these new flights, Tiong called on Malaysians and local tourism operators to prepare for a surge in Chinese tourists.
“Let us together play a role of giving them a sweet experience while in this country, and at the same time, take this opportunity to boost Malaysia’s tourism industry,” he said.
He also expressed gratitude to China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airlines for their active cooperation in providing these flight services and to Tourism Malaysia and various agencies for their joint efforts in boosting Malaysia’s tourism. — DayakDaily
