By Ling Hui
KUCHING, April 3: The first international flight bringing Sarawakians home from Singapore after Malaysia reopened its borders on April 1, touched down in Kuching at 7.35pm today.
Deputy Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Datuk Sebastian Ting and permanent secretary Hii Chang Kee were at the Kuching International Airport (KIA) to welcome the Scoot passengers, especially Sarawakians who have not returned to the State for over two years due to travel restrictions.
Ting said there were altogether 157 passengers onboard the flight tonight, and 65 of them were transiting through Singapore while 96 passengers will be departing from Kuching to Singapore on the return flight.
Looking at the encouraging figures, he said the number of Scoot flights would be increased if there is demand.
“At the moment, for Singapore Scoot, we have 3 flights per week to Kuching. To Miri, we have two flights in a week,” he said during press conference at KIA here today.
With the Scoot flights up and running, Ting said it means Sarawak is truly opening up its borders and welcoming tourists.
“The Sarawak government especially the tourism ministry is ready and well-prepared for that.
“We are confident we can reach the target of having 1.2 million tourists arriving in Sarawak (in 2022). In fact, with Scoot flights, we are expecting more actually,” he said. — DayakDaily
