KUCHING, March 16: Firefly Airline is looking into establishing a new direct route between Penang and Miri in the coming months as part of the next step with the borders set to reopen on April 1.
Minister of Transport Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin announced this good news following courtesy visits from Firefly, MASwings, Malaysia Airlines and Malindo Airways to his office in Baitul Makmur building here in the past two days.
“This proposal was mooted by Firefly chief executive officer (CEO) Philip See as currently, Firefly has been approved by SDMC (Sarawak Disaster Management Committee) to operate the Penang-Kuching route seven times weekly with the inaugural flight to start on April 11,” he said in a press statement today.
All the airlines, he emphasised, have indicated their commitment and support in the development of the air transport industry in Sarawak which is strategically located within the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area) region.
“They observed that Sarawak has great potential in terms of growth in tourism and business travel as well as air cargo service,” he added.
The airlines were also briefed on the potential in the oil and gas sector in Sarawak notably with Shell Malaysia moving its upstream activities headquarters to Miri in which some 2,000 staff are expected to be relocated there, apart from Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) which is expected to kick start its operation in Miri as well.
“With this, it is opportune for the airlines to strategise and plan their flight connectivity to Miri City,” he pointed out.
In their respective meetings, MASwings chief operating officer (COO) Captain Nasaruddin Abu Bakar has stated that the airline has increased their flight frequency between Miri and Lawas from four times daily to eight times daily since February.
Meanwhile, Malindo Airways CEO Captain Mushafiz Mustapha Bakri also gave commitment to support Sarawak in building air connectivity, noting the setting up of Nusantara, Indonesia’s new capital city in Samarinda, Kalimantan.
He highlighted that Malindo has been rebranded as Batik Air Malaysia and will be working with Batik Air Indonesia under the Lion Air Group.
Lee emphasised that the Ministry is embarking on active and continuous engagement with the transport industry players so as to enhance international, regional and domestic air connectivity for Sarawak’s future.
“A synergistic collaboration between the airlines and the government can be a catalyst towards creating better economic growth and development,” he added. — DayakDaily
