MAVCOM approves 21 ATR applications in 3Q
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) has approved all of the 21 Air Traffic Rights (ATR) applications received in the third quarter (3Q) of 2021, representing a 110 per cent jump in application rates compared to the second quarter of the year.
Eighteen of the 21 applications were from the cargo sector, signalling continued healthy growth within the sector, said the economic regulator for the civil aviation industry.
“The commission has approved 14 ATRs for international destinations and seven ATRs for domestic routes,” it said in a statement yesterday in conjunction with the release of its ATR Report for the July 1-Sept 30 period and 10th Consumer Report for the first half (1H) of 2021.
MyJet Xpress Sdn Bhd and World Cargo Airline Sdn Bhd were awarded the highest number of approvals with five ATRs each, Mavcom said.
They were followed by AirAsia X Bhd with four ATR approvals,
MAB Kargo Sdn Bhd with three ATR approvals, and Malaysia Airlines Bhd and AirAsia Group Bhd with two ATR approvals each.
In addition to these approvals, the commission is continuing to support industry players in their recovery from the Covid19 pandemic by extending its suspension of the evaluation of domestic ATR applications, which has been in place since October 2020, until further notice.
A total of 157 complaints were submitted to Mavcom in 1H21, a 59.1 per cent reduction in filed complaints compared to the same period last year.
It said 98.1 per cent were complaints regarding airlines while 1.9 per cent of the complaints were related to airports.
Mavcom said it successfully resolved 97.5 per cent of the complaints received within the six-month period while 82 of the complaints were nonactionable due to incomplete documentation by consumers, complaints falling beyond the scope of the Malaysian Aviation Consumer Protection Code 2016 (MACPC) or complaints being filed over a year from the date of the incident.
Resolved complaints included those related to refunds, frequent flyer programmes and flight cancellations.
At the same time, a total of 675 Covid-19-related refund requests were submitted to Mavcom in 1H21.
Executive chairman Datuk Seri Saripuddin Kasim said with the ballooning demand for e-commerce coupled with reduced belly space cargo capacity thrusting the cargo sector globally forward, Mavcom continued to support local players to take advantage of the prospects ahead.
“As air travel resumes, the commission looks forward to further improving its efforts in protecting the rights of consumers and supporting aviation industry players in their post-pandemic recovery,” he said.