KUCHING: The State Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah hopes the Transport Ministry would reconsider its decision to cease operations for six routes in Sabah and Sarawak by next year to make way for commercial airlines.
He said: “Ceasing operations for these routes will not be good for business, tourism and movements within these states.
"It is hoped that the Transport Ministry and Mavcom will look into this matter deeply and not cease operation just based on load (factor) as it will greatly hinder the growth and development of towns where these flights are connected.”
He was quoted by The Borneo Post today.
The minister pointed out that Sarawak and Sabah are the two biggest states in the country which need good air connectivity between cities and towns within the two states.
Abdul Karim was commenting on the Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai’s statement that MASwings would cease operating the six routes next year to make way for commercial airlines.
The routes are Kota Kinabalu-Sandakan, Kota Kinabalu-Tawau, Kota Kinabalu-Miri, Kuching-Miri, Kuching-Kota Kinabalu and Kuching-Sibu.
He said the decision was reached after Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) had conducted a study on rural air services (RAS).
Mavcom’s finding was that the six existing routes, which are jointly operated by MASwings with commercial airlines like Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia, have high load factor up to 86 per cent, which makes it more profitable for commercial airlines.
Meanwhile the Assistant Minister for Education and Technological Research Dr Annuar Rapa’ee supports the decision.
Dr Annuar, who is Nangka assemblyman, acknowledged that MASwings could not provide a reliable service, with many delays and technical problems faced by the regional airline that affected its service to the people, especially those in the interior of Sarawak.
“Honestly, MASwings is not reliable and there are a lot of delays and technical problems and people get scared of the technical issues. Their frequency is also not that good.
“Therefore, if they think that it is better to open up (the routes) to private sector like AirAsia and other airlines to serve the people better, I think we should go for it. It’s an open market,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.
In stressing the importance of providing reliable service to the people, Dr Annuar said AirAsia has been able to provide a more reliable service compared to MASwings.
He cited the Kuching-Sibu route as an example, where the low-cost carrier’s flights were always on time, even though their flight frequencies were between two and three times a day. -@ybkarimsays
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