AirAsia Raises International Airport Taxes

Text/Compiled and reported by Wei Ruyu

Due to increased airport taxes in Malaysia, AirAsia international flights will be subject to new airport tax fees starting this December. AirAsia announced that, as a result of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) raising the Passenger Service Charge (PSC) for all international flights at Malaysian airports, starting December 1, 2011, all passengers departing from Malaysia on AirAsia international flights will be required to pay the newly increased airport taxes.

AirAsia Chairman Dato’ Aziz Bakar said: “As a staunch supporter of low-cost aviation, we believe whether airport taxes should be increased depends on whether the airport itself provides passengers with truly excellent services and facilities. Currently, several major Malaysian international airports are far from meeting the expected standards — such as cramped check-in counter spaces, obvious parking shortages, poor restroom quality, inadequate cleanliness of facilities, and safety concerns — all of which do not justify such high airport taxes. Additionally, many friends from Kuching and Langkawi have repeatedly expressed hopes for more international flight routes, but we may not be able to meet their demands now, because the increased airport taxes will reduce travel demand in those regions. Especially as some airports have raised their airport taxes to RM65 (approximately NT$650), which is almost half the price of our international tickets, this will undoubtedly significantly dampen public interest in travel and severely impact the entire tourism industry.”