KUCHING, May 11: AirAsia should look into the appropriate quantum of compensation for passengers affected by flight disruptions due to the airline’s fault, and most importantly, ensure passengers’ welfare will not be affected during the upcoming public holidays of Wesak Day and Hari Gawai Dayak.
Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP) Dato Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi suggested this as he believes that AirAsia should follow Rapid Rail’s action in giving out one-way travel coupons to commuters affected by Tuesday’s (May 10) disruptions along the LRT Kelana Jaya line in Kuala Lumpur as compensation.
This came following AirAsia’s feedback to KPDNHEP regarding recent consumers’ grievances and complaints over the low-cost carrier’s flight delays.
“Riad Asmat (AirAsia Malaysia chief executive officer) has apologised to all passengers for the inconvenience caused by the flight disruptions following the sharp increase in demand during the festive season.
“However, Wesak Day and Hari Gawai are approaching. KPDNHEP will continue to protect the rights of consumers in this matter, while the operation of airlines will be scrutinised according to the jurisdiction of Mavcom (Malaysian Aviation Commission) and MOT (Ministry of Transport),” he said in a social media post today.
In feedback, AirAsia Malaysia reported that a limited number of aircrafts, regulatory and operational constraints, technical issues and weather conditions as the four major factors contributing to the delays and rescheduling of flights involving various destinations in recent weeks.
Apart from unprecedented demand during the recent festive period and coupled with the reopening of Malaysia’s borders since April 1, AirAsia Malaysia explained that the number of aircrafts in operation was cut down to 40 compared to almost 100 pre-pandemic due to shortage of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services in the region.
Maintenance is mandated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) to ensure an aircraft that has been placed on long-term parking can be declared safe to fly again.
Secondly, certain countries still require pre-departure PCR test results before travel and verifying these documents take more time and thus result in flight delays.
The airlines added that in the last couple of weeks, it had also unfortunately experienced technical issues daily with about three to five of its aircraft, which it described as a common occurrence in airline operation worldwide, but some issues would lead to aircraft being grounded for a longer period of time.
Nanta noted that bird strikes on aircraft engines were among the issues which damaged aircraft structure and engine fan blades when operating flights at Langkawi and Ipoh airports, apart from lightning strikes on the aircraft.
AirAsia Malaysia also disclosed that adverse weather conditions in Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan, among other locations, in recent weeks have also affected its flight schedule and resulted in the rescheduling of most flights.
To minimise disruption on all passengers and ensure that everyone can arrive at their respective destinations as soon as possible, the airlines said that it has launched a number of rescue flights to carry stranded passengers from Kuching and Miri to Kuala Lumpur as planned. — DayakDaily
