KLIA passenger traffic soars by 4.4pc to 50 million

RAPID: Growth instrumental to country’s economic development, says Liow

THE Transport Ministry has commended Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) for its 4.4 per cent growth in passenger traffic for the first nine months this year.

Its minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, said KLIA provided significant contribution to Malaysia in the nearly two decades of its operation.

“Its rapid growth has been instrumental towards Malaysia’s economic development, opening up opportunities in trade and tourism.

“With the opening of klia2, its second terminal serving low cost carriers, KLIA currently caters to 50 million passengers a year, with over 60 airlines serving more than 120 direct destinations. This is indeed a far cry from our days at Subang Airport which at its peak handled nearly 16 million passengers a year,” he said at the KLIA Awards 2015 at Sama-Sama Hotel here yesterday.

Meanwhile, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) chairman Tan Sri Dr Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Abdullah said the growth had exceeded the initial traffic forecast for this year by 2.5 per cent.

He said the entry of new airlines was among the contributions that led to the growth rate in passenger traffic movement this year.

“KLIA has continued to see not only the entry of new airlines, but also the introduction of new routes and increase in frequencies from existing airlines,” he said .

He said among others, the international airport had welcomed VietJet Air from Vietnam, while KLM had increased its frequency to 10 weekly flights for its Kuala Lumpur–Amsterdam route.

He added that in October, All Nippon Airways had introduced a new direct route to Haneda Airport, Tokyo from KLIA.

Japan Airlines had also introduced its Dreamliner 787-9 aircraft. Kuala Lumpur was its first destination in Asia to welcome the airline that will service the Narita–Kuala Lumpur route daily. Ethiopian Airlines has also introduced its 787 Dreamliner aircraft, servicing the Kuala Lumpur–Addis Ababa route.

“All this had contributed to the commendable growth rate in passenger traffic movement this year for its Malaysia operations,” said Wan Abdul Aziz.

He said to cater for the increasingly sophisticated needs of passengers who were no longer awed by world-class infrastructure alone, it became increasingly important for an airport operator to place high priority on ensuring that airport users have a joyful experience.

Liow, who was the guest of honour at the awards ceremony, applauded those who played a role in ensuring that the country’s aviation sector remained strong and resilient.

“It is the hope of the ministry to see better services, not only by the airport operator, but from all within the airport community to uplift its service standards,” he said.

The 2015 KLIA Awards was held to recognise and reward its business partners for their outstanding performances and services.

A total of 17 awards were presented at last night’s gala award’s event. Winners were chosen based on their achievements in their respective categories last year in sectors such as passenger movements, growth factor, sales performance, international recognition and service excellence.

Themed ‘Total Airport Experience”, the gala dinner was attended by about 400 guests. The theme was also in line with MAHB’s intention to transform itself from an airport operator into a service leader.