LANGKAWI: Malaysia’s newest airline, flymojo, is set to boost air connectivity and underutilised airports, thus spurring economic growth, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi said.
“Definitely, we want to open up more cities, so I hope with this new airline, we can develop more cities through increased air connectivity and passenger traffic.
“There are many airports in Malaysia that are not fully utilised or capitalised, so this (airline) could create growth in new areas and cities,” he told Bernama on the sidelines of the two-day inaugural Asean Aviation Summit which began here yesterday.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak witnessed flymojo inked a deal with Canada’s Bombardier Commercial Aircraft to buy 20 CS100 aircraft for US$1.47 billion.
The parties, Fly Mojo Sdn Bhd and Bombardier signed a letter of intent for the sale and purchase of 20 CS100 aircraft with options for an additional 20 CS100 aircraft.
Upon execution of a firm purchase agreement, flymojo, which will be based out of Johor Baharu and Kota Kinabalu, is expected to become the first customer and operator of the CS100 aircraft in the region.
Abdul Aziz said the formation of the new airline is good for the aviation industry as the government would like to have more homegrown players.
“Apart from creating jobs, the new airline will help trigger growth for supporting industries, provide new rooms for consumers, new products and services in the industry, thus brings about a more competitive environment while expanding connectivity.
“There would also be new development of airports within Asean,” he added.
Meanwhile, the summit themed ‘The Future Landscape of Asean Aviation’ is held in conjunction with Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition 2015 (LIMA’15).
Co-organised by the Transport Ministry, the Department of Civil Aviation and LIMA’15, the summit was opened by Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai. — Bernama