Hold talks on Subang Airport regeneration plan to avert KLIA cannibalisation

2 November 2023

Policymakers and aviation industry players in Malaysia need to hold discussions on the Subang Airport Regeneration Plan (SARP) to ensure that the redevelopment of the 58 year-old airport to avert Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) cannibalisation.

Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) group managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail said the SARP could inevitably affect KLIA’s position and aspiration to be a strong international hub.

“It’s important that policymakers, industrial players must sit together to ensure that we don’t cannibalise KLIA.”

“The strategy of Subang and KLIA need to be really looked into and the product that Subang Airport delivers should not in any way cannibalise KLIA to a certain extent.

“But in reality, there would be cannibalism,” Izham said at the Airline Leader Interview session at the Centre of Aviation (CAPA) Asia Aviation Summit and Sustainability for Excellence Awards 2023 here today.

However, Izham said MAG remains supportive of the government’s aspiration to establish the SARP.

On 19 June, Izham told Business Times that the cannibalisation might happen as Subang Airport, also known as Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah (SAAS) airport, would draw some flights away from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

The SARP was announced by the Minister of Transport Anthony Loke Siew Fook in February this year.

The project will see the airport turn into a regional commercial and maintenance, repair and overhaul aviation hub that will have narrow-body aircraft operations again with maximum capacity of eight million passengers a year.

On Aug 7, Business Times quoted industry sources that the Subang Airport, which will be dubbed as Premium Green City Airport, would not cannibalise KLIA as it would not be able to expand beyond eight million passengers yearly.

The sources said there would be a shift from KLIA to Subang Airport in terms of passenger profile movements and routes and the SARP is needed to free up some airline slots and reduce passenger traffic at KLIA.

“The intention is that KLIA will focus on connecting or transfer traffic whereas Subang Airport will focus on point-to-point traffic. For example, if a passenger flies from London to Kuala Lumpur and has a connection to Langkawi on the same day, then he’ll be flying out of KLIA.”

“But if he will first spend a few days in Kuala Lumpur, then he may opt to fly to Langkawi out of Subang Airport,” said another source.

Currently, Subang Airport is handling 1.5 million passengers yearly. The groundbreaking of the SARP project is expected to be in 2025.

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