KUCHING: May 18: The Ministry of Transport Sarawak applauds the subsidised flight tickets initiative for the upcoming Gawai and Kaamatan festivals as it will reduce financial burden, particularly for students, while facilitating the return of people to reunite with their families and loved ones.
Minister Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin is delighted by the positive impact this decision will have on the people of Sarawak.
“We believe the Gawai festival this year will be a joyous one as more family members from Peninsular Malaysia will have the opportunity to return home and celebrate Hari Gawai with their loved ones.
“With a one-way airfare cap at RM300, excluding taxes and fees, this will also reduce the financial burden of returning individuals, particularly students,” he said in a statement today.
To accommodate the high demand during the Gawai festival and the upcoming school holidays from May 26 to June 5, Lee added that his Ministry has written and engaged with various airlines to increase the flight frequencies into Sarawak to ensure sufficient availability of flights and seating capacity.
“With that, we want to encourage returning passengers to plan their journey in advance and secure their flight tickets early to take advantage of the subsidised airfare,” he urged.
Lee expressed appreciation to the Federal government, the Ministry of Transport Malaysia and all airlines for their cooperation in providing subsidised airfare for the people of Sarawak.
Today, Federal Minister of Transport Anthony Loke announced that the government would cap airfare from Peninsular Malaysia to Sarawak and Sabah at RM300, excluding fees and taxes, for the forthcoming Gawai Dayak and Pesta Kaamatan.
The government is expected to spend between RM5.8 million to RM11.4 million to subsidise flight tickets for Sabahans and Sarawakians.
Loke said the government would purchase all remaining one-way flight tickets from the Peninsular to Sabah and Sarawak on the three days prior to the respective dates of the two festivals for this initiative.
The sale of these fixed-fare flights will begin on May 20 from the various airlines’ websites.
As of May 17, there are 17,708 available flights left between Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak and Sabah.
From Peninsular Malaysia to Sarawak May 29 to 31, there are 8,805 flights available,while to Sabah, from May 27 to 29, there are 8,903 flights available.
Additionally, the Ministry of Transport Malaysia, in collaboration with Batik Air, has arranged special charter flight services from the Johor Bahru-Sibu route, operating once daily on the same dates, subject to demand.
The Dayak Daily
