Rural airline MASwings eyes international routes

KOTA KINABALU: Regional carrier MASwings is positioning itself as a community airline for Borneo and the Philippines, starting with plans to fly to Bandar Seri Begawan and Pontianak. The wholly-owned subsidiary of national carrier Malaysia Airlines (MAS) reckons an expansion into the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) region will make MASwings more than just a rural airline for Sabah and Sarawak.

Pending approval from the Transport Ministry, MASwings hopes to mark its foray into the international scene by introducing flights from here to Bandar Seri Begawan and from Kuching to Pontianak. The airline is eyeing a bigger slice of the region's aviation market after the two planned routes take off in October, said MAS managing director Datuk Seri Tengku Azmil Zahruddin. “This will position MASwings not only as a community airline for the people in Sabah and Sarawak but for the entire community in Borneo and the BIMP-EAGA region,” he told reporters after launching the MASwings/Enrich Frequent Flyer Partnership programme here yesterday.

Under the scheme, Enrich members can earn and redeem “Enrich Miles” when flying on MASwings. The accrual and redemption are applicable for all MASwings flights except those using Twin Otter aircraft. Tengku Azmil, who is also MASwings chief executive officer and chairman, said the move into the BIMP-EAGA region will transform MASwings into an international player. “MAS and MASwings foresee a vast potential of economic development and customer movement that may be explored to the fullest, given the progress and stability in the BIMP-EAGA region,” he said.

Tengku Azmil added that MASwings' plans augur well for Sabah's intention to make the Kota Kinabalu International Airport the gateway for travellers coming from various points in the region. MASwings stared operations in October 2007 with 450 flights per week covering airports in Sabah and Sarawak. It has close to 940 flights per week now.
-thestar online.