A plane takes off at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport October 17, 2021. – Picture by Hari Anggara
SIBU, Oct 27 — Lanang MP Alice Lau has urged the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) to look into the flight ticket prices for routes from Kuala Lumpur to Sarawak which remain very high despite the promises that it will return to standard prices.
She also said the flight frequency between Kuala Lumpur and Sarawak is still very limited, hence posing a lot of problems to the travellers.
“SDMC should immediately do something to rectify the situation,” she said when contacted.
Lau was in Kuala Lumpur for the 2022 Budget Session and had intended to come back on Nov 4 for a weekend break.
However, she found out that the flight ticket prices from all the airlines for the flights between Kuala Lumpur and Sibu and even the connecting flights to be very expensive.
“Crazy!!! Wanna go back Sibu next week. The available flights from Kuala Lumpur to Sibu and return. Economy class at RM5,307.20,” she posted on her Facebook page.
Later, in another post, she said: “Ok, I found `cheaper’ flight tickets. But it took long transit hours and it costs RM2,484.61. Acceptable?”
A check on Malaysia Airlines (MAS) website also revealed that there were no flights available from Oct 29 to Nov 4 with the exception of Nov 3 with the price of RM1,599 for Kuala Lumpur-Sibu flight.
Lau said even with the expensive flight tickets, there is no guarantee that one could get a seat.
At the moment, Lau said the increment of the flights frequency is under the jurisdiction of SDMC and SDMC should therefore look into this matter with urgency.
Sibu MP Oscar Ling, who is also in Kuala Lumpur to attend the Budget Session, said he had managed to get a connecting flight back to Sibu on Nov 4, costing more than RM1,000.
He also called on SDMC to review the flight frequency problem as the number of people going travelling is picking up.
“SDMC has promised to increase the flight frequency from Kuala Lumpur to Sarawak but till now, we have not seen any flight increase as yet,’ he said when contacted.
He also reminded the travelers to make their bookings early to avoid any disappointment.
“With the Kuala Lumpur-Sarawak flight frequency limited, either you will have to pay expensive prices for the tickets or you will not get any seat.”
Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Henry Sum Agong had recently announced that domestic flights ticket prices for routes from Kuala Lumpur to Sabah and Sarawak will return to standard prices when the total flight and frequency operates as usual.
He also mentioned the government will continue to monitor flight ticket prices for all domestic routes, saying the high flight ticket prices were a result of the implementation of the flight capacity limit by the Sarawak government which was part of the state government’s efforts to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. — Borneo Post