| More Kuching-Mukah flights Number of flights between the two destinations will effectively double: MASwings KUCHING: MASwings will add flight frequency between Mukah and here, and also to introduce a new Kuching-Tanjung Manis route within a few weeks, with the target of hitting 750,000 passengers this year.  | CONGRATULATIONS: Dr Amin (fourth left) congratulates Telekom Malaysia Bintulu assistant manager Nurfarizan Rosli (second left) for being MASwings’ 250,000th passenger. Looking on is Wong (middle) and MASwings staff. Photo by Johnathan Bullet | | The East Malaysian rural air services operator announced yesterday that the Kuching-Mukah flight would commence on March 30, flying twice a day. With this, the number of flights from Mukah to the state capital will effectively double. Meanwhile, the Kuching-Tanjung Manis route will begin on April 5, flying three times a week. “The introduction of Kuching-Tanjung Manis route is to complement Hornbill Skyway, meaning that (combined) there will be daily flights to Tanjung Manis,” MASwings managing director Dr Amin Khan said yesterday. “We are looking at carrying 750,000 passengers in 2008; that is our target,” he told reporters at Kuching International Airport during a ceremony for the company’s 250,000th passenger. Also present was Urban Development and Tourism Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh. To achieve the target, Dr Amin also announced that MASwing would be taking delivery of the first of its five ATR-72 aircraft in August. “We are getting our new aircraft for the celebration of Merdeka. The first ATR aircraft will replace the Fokker 50 flying from Kuching to Bintulu. It will be able to carry 68 passengers, 18 more than the Fokker,” he said. But the managing director conceded that the remaining four aircraft would only be delivered in 2009. “It takes time for the aircraft to be delivered,” he said. Under a ‘five plus five’ agreement inked with ATR last year, MASwings has the option of purchasing a total of 10 ATR-72s should it want to. Presently, MASwings flies about 2,000 passengers in its 75 flights every day to 21 destinations in Sarawak and Sabah. Dr Amin said, “Since the launching on Oct 1, 2007, MASwings services have improved tremendously. For example, in January this year, we hit a 94 per cent on-time performance, meaning that you only have a six per cent chance of a flight being delayed.” Wong congratulated MASwings in his speech. “I believe that MASwings will go from strength to strength, which not only helps promote tourism, but also increase the movement of people to places like Mukah and Tanjung Manis,” he said. Both destinations, Wong said, would be crucial to the implementation of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewal Energy. “By 2020, Sarawak hopes to be on par with leading states in Peninsular Malaysia,” Wong said. Written by:
Yun Ji
The Borneo Post
20 March 2008 | 
