KOTA KINABALU: International tourists are not happy with the 100 per cent increase in airport tax if AirAsia were forced to move to Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) Terminal 1 from Terminal 2 by June 1.
Rhoal Villamor, 26, from Manila, Philippines, who was here with his father and brother for a holiday, said moving AirAsia to another place within the city was not a problem for them to come back here for their next holiday trip, but increasing the airport tax from RM25 to RM51 was not acceptable as they chose AirAsia because of its low fare.
“During AirAsia’s promotion, we will get low airfares from Clark to Kota Kinabalu and at the same time we will be able to get cheaper flights from Kota Kinabalu to Jakarta.
“If the fare is going to be expensive to Kota Kinabalu, it would be better for me to fly to Kuala Lumpur for my next trip and get another cheap flight to other places,” he said.
Katy Bradbury from London who always chose Kota Kinabalu airport as a transit point to Jakarta and Taipei, would find other cheaper alternatives because she always travels on a budget.
She said flights from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Kinabalu by AirAsia were cheaper compared to Malaysia Airlines (MAS).
“AirAsia is very famous for its low fare, quality Airbus and friendly cabin crew. I have tried MAS’ subsidiary flight service from KL to KK but the flight was delayed. I am sorry to say but I am not pleased with the way they handled the situation.
“However, if AirAsia does not have any option but to move to the other terminal (KKIA), the relevant authority must be willing to proceed with tickets booked by their customers without charging the passengers,” she added.
Mona Bjelland from Norway, who was waiting for her flight to Sandakan for an Orang Utan visit yesterday, said as long as the airport was safe and provided accurate and optional travelling information, she had no problem with the airport location.
“If the airline is moving to another airport and charging the same ticket price, I do not have any problem coming back here but if they increase the price because of airport tax, I will have to choose whether to fly here or to Kuala Lumpur.
“Why doesn’t AirAsia just stay here (Terminal 2) and charge the lower airport tax?” asked Mona.
Her partner, Morten Bjerke also from Norway, suggested that travel agents in the city should provide more information, especially for first timers like him, to have many options of places to visit.
“I do not mind about the airport tax increase if travelling here is worth my money. After a few days in Kota Kinabalu and dealing with travel agencies in Wisma Sabah, we hardly find options of places to visit.
“More information and options in terms of places to visit and prices will be helpful. We can’t depend on brochures and travel books only. If we have to spend more money looking for information, then we need cheaper airfares to move around,” Morten added.
For Nick Nelson from the UK, after reading news that the KK-Jakarta flight will stop this year, he will not travel from his hometown to Kota Kinabalu if he plans to go to Jakarta.
“I might go straight to Jakarta or other parts of Indonesia if there is no AirAsia flight from Kota Kinabalu. The reason for me to choose AirAsia was because of the low fare and excellent service,” he said.
Recently, AirAsia chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes said the Ministry of Transport had set June 1 for AirAsia to move their operations to KKIA Terminal 1.
Tony who wants to continue operating at its present premises, said if AirAsia were forced to KKIA Terminal 1, it would mean the current airport tax of RM25 per passenger would have to be increased to RM51 because of the aerobridge and other facilities and this would mean more flights would be cancelled.
He added their Indonesian counterparts also wanted to cancel the KK-Jakarta flight soon due to the move.