AirAsia irked by long queues at klia2

KOTA KINABALU: AirAsia Group Bhd chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes expressed disappointment with Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) for its handling of complaints of Immigration counter congestion at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2).

Fernandes said AirAsia had submitted a letter to Mavcom requesting to resolve the congestion, but had allegedly received an unsatisfactory response.

“Mavcom is set up to sort out disputes and issues like this. Their mandate is to help consumers. We have written letters to them a month ago to help us on Immigration issues. Mavcom’s response was ‘please give us evidence’.

“If you are a regulator, you should come to the airport and look for yourself. That’s if they really care. Why should an airline be sending evidence? We, and even the public, have posted pictures (on social media).

“We received no help and response from Mavcom. It’s dissatisfactory. Being a regulator, Mavcom should come and take a look at the airport. If we are wrong, then we are wrong. If we are right, they should penalise the airport.”

Yesterday, AirAsia called on Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) to make adjustments at klia2 to address congestion at Immigration counters.

They claimed the situation had gotten worse as guests complained about missing their flights and important appointments.

AirAsia Malaysia CEO Riad Asmat and AirAsia X Malaysia CEO Benyamin Ismail said the long queues at Immigration counters for foreign passport holders were a daily occurrence and caused by the poor design and flawed configuration at klia2.

Yesterday, MAHB issued a statement saying some duty-free shops at the airport would be moved to facilitate smoother traffic flow in the Immigration area.