Thursday, June 01, 2006

Fly Asia's Danum Valley plan

SEPANG: AirAsia plans to explore the untapped tourism potential of some rural destinations in Sabah and Sarawak by subcontracting operations of the turbo prop services (rural air services) to a new airline, Fly Asia Xpress (FAX) from Aug. 1.

The new airline will be working with state tourism authorities to provide flights to destinations like Mulu and Lahad Datu which are the entry point to pristine rainforest wonders like the Danum Valley.

Following the transfer, the previously coined rural air services operations will be reclassified as Turbo Prop operations with an aim to contribute towards the growth of tourism and the economy.

In tandem with the Government's decision, AirAsia would transfer the day-to-day operations of the Fokker 50s and Twin Otters services to FAX and monitor the performance of this new setup.

FAX is presently obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals to commence operations on Aug 1st this year, following domestic rationalisation and Malaysia Airlines' (MAS) withdrawal from these routes. The new company will operate six Fokker 50s and five Twin Otters.

Flights will commence from Aug 1st this year but details of the routes will be published by June 30.

Source: BERNAMA

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