KUCHING: Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports, Datuk Haji Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AirAsia Berhad, Aireen Omar yesterday welcomed AirAsia inaugural flight from Pontianak, Indonesia to Kuching, Sarawak.
AirAsia flight AK 1029, with 80 per cent of the 160 seats occupied, was greeted with a water salute as soon as it landed at Kuching International Airport at 1.50pm.
Guests onboard the inaugural flight included General Manager of Supadio International Airport at Pontianak, Bayuh Iswantoro, as well as an Indonesian media group.
The direct Pontianak-Kuching flights will operate seven times weekly.
Also present to welcome the inaugural flight were Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth And Sports, Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Datu Ik Pahon Anak Joyik, Deputy Chief de Mission at the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia in Kuching, Bapak Muhammad Abdullah and Chairman of the Sarawak Tourism Board, Datuk Haji Abdul Wahab Bin Aziz.
Karim hailed the direct flight as another milestone in the development of tourism in Sarawak.
“Connectivity is one of our prime areas of concern in the industry circle. We will work together with AirAsia to develop this route. Sarawak Tourism Board is currently working together with AirAsia on several promotional activities to excite the market and to help sustain the flights focusing on Pontianak and beyond.
“The joint team is also currently looking at engaging all stakeholders in the medical tourism industry to formulate a strategy plan for the joint promotion of medical tourism in Indonesia. We also plan to bring together the education tourism industry to find common ground in promoting higher education in Sarawak,
“Both initiatives need the support and full cooperation of an airline partner to ensure its success and to sustain our long term strategic interests,” added Karim.
Meanwhile, Aireen said, “We are confident that Indonesian tourist arrivals into Sarawak will continue to grow with the commencement of this route and foster Sarawak’s effort in attracting five million tourists this year. On the other hand, Sarawakians can now enjoy the best of the ‘Equator City’ with direct flights and daily low fares.
“This latest route from Kuching is part of our initiative and commitment towards developing Sarawak as a top holiday destination and a regional hub for travellers to Borneo. We feel there is a lot of growth potential in this state, and are currently reviewing direct connectivity from ASEAN countries, China, Indochina, North Asia, Australia and many more.”
To celebrate the momentous occasion, all-in-fares from as low as RM89 one-way are being offered on www.airasia.com from now until 18 June, 2017 for the travel period of 5 June, 2017 until 14 January, 2018. The promotional fares can also be booked via AirAsia’s mobile app on iPhone and Android devices as well as the mobile site mobile.airasia.com.
As the capital city of West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Pontianak is also known as Kota Khatulistiwa (Equator City) for being the only city in the world situated right on the Equator that divides the northern and southern hemispheres. It is famously home to the Equator Monument and biannual festivities that witness a shadowless moment twice a year.
Pontianak is also known for its floating restaurants on the 1,143 kilometre-long Kapuas River, the most important river in the area. Diversity has made the city a culinary charm; visitors can savour Pontianak’s signature drink which is a mix of aloe vera with syrup, its delectable street food and enjoy fresh seafood at the famous Pondok Seafood “Abang Kepiting”.
AirAsia now flies to ten destinations from Kuching with a total of 468 weekly flights both ways. The destinations are Miri, Sibu, Bintulu, Kota Kinabalu, Johor Bahru, Kota Bharu, Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Pontianak.
There are two daily flights, namely, AK 1028, which departs Kuching at 11.55am (Malaysia time) and AK 1029 which arrives in Kuching at 1.50pm (Malaysia time).
