13 June 2016
AirAsia, which accounts for the biggest share of passenger traffic at the RM4bil klia2, plans to launch a campaign to promote the klia2 budget terminal as Low-Cost Carrier Terminal 2 (LCCT2).
The low-cost carrier said in a statement that this would reinforce Kuala Lumpur’s position as the leading low-cost gateway to Asia and beyond.
AirAsia Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said in the statement: “As we grow towards becoming the Dubai of Asia, we want the world to know that the best value fares are here in Malaysia.
“To me, klia2 doesn’t mean anything. LCCT2, on the other hand, is synonymous with low-cost. It is a brand that we built up together with MAHB (Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd) and it shouldn’t go to waste. I urge MAHB to stop denying the fact that it is a low-cost hub.”
AirAsia currently operates over 220 flights daily to and from Kuala Lumpur. Guests can connect to over 100 destinations in 24 countries via Kuala Lumpur using AirAsia’s Fly-Thru service.
Fly-Thru allows guests to transit at Kuala Lumpur and other key hubs without having to pass immigration and with their baggage checked through to the final destination.
AirAsia Bhd CEO Aireen Omar noted that AirAsia group occupied 97% of operations at LCCT with an average of 37,000 guests daily. Last year, the AirAsia group flew over 2.3 million guests into its main hub in Kuala Lumpur.
“Additionally, 1.3 million Fly-Thru guests came through Kuala Lumpur. As of May this year, close to 700,000 guests have done the same, including significant traffic from Singapore. In fact, Singapore-India is one of our top five most popular Fly-Thru pairings,” she said.
“Malaysians used to go to Singapore to catch onward flights. The fact that Singaporeans are now coming here shows the strength of our wide network and we are the Asian low-cost hub”.
Aireen said in view of the high volume of traffic brought into Kuala Lumpur via the AirAsia group, the airline needed MAHB to acknowledge the fact that Kuala Lumpur is a true low-cost hub with enormous potential.
“They need to change their mindset to facilitate the need of a low-cost model and its rapid growth. (Bangkok’s) Don Muaeng airport has overtaken klia2 as the world’s largest LCC airport (in the first half of 2015) as it works closely with their customers to bring in the traffic. MAHB needs to adapt the same approach for it to be relevant and gain back that recognition for Malaysia,” she added.
Source: www.thestar.com.my
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