Government Considering AirAsia X Routes Application

KUALA LUMPUR, May 27 (Bernama) - The Transport Ministry is considering AirAsia X's routes application to Beijing, Shanghai, Jeddah, Istanbul and Osaka as it is mindful of the importance of enhancing air services to promote and develop tourism and business investment into Malaysia. However, the approval of these routes depend on the traffic rights availability and the receiving country's rules and regulations, which includes among others, restrictions on low-cost-carrier, slots constraint and airspace control, said the ministry.

It said between 2007 and 2011, the government had approved AirAsia X's request to operate in 32 international destinations. "From the 32 international destinations approved, AirAsia X has only operated into 15 destinations," it said in reply to AirAsia X founder, Datuk Sri Dr Tony Fernandes comment yesterday that Malaysia would loose out by holding back routes approval for its long-haul budget carrier.

The ministry said AirAsia X has not fully utilised all the traffic rights granted to them for four destinations namely, Tianjin, Melbourne, Taipei and Tehran, which holds back the provisions of traffic rights to others. AirAsia X also has not provided any service into 16 destinations that was approved which included Amritsar, Fukuoka, Kathmandu, Manchester, Berlin, Vienna, Moscow, Dublin, Pusan, Sharjah and Bahrain. It said there were also routes which both AirAsia and AirAsia X suspended without prior notification.

-Bernama.