(From fourth left) Benyamin, Jeju Special Self- Governing Province Director General of Tourism Bureau Lee Seung Chan, AirAsia X Group CEO and AirAsia executive chairman Datuk Kamarudin Meranun flanked by cabin crew and the Jeju tourism mascot at the launch of AirAsia X’s latest direct flight to Jeju Island from Kuala Lumpur.
KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia X Bhd aims to achieve a 80 per cent load factor for the newly-launched Kuala Lumpur-Jeju route.
Chief executive officer, Benyamin Ismail said this is based on the number of Malaysian tourists who visited the island last year.
“Based on South Korean immigration, Malaysian tourists were the highest number, after those from the Chinese mainland,” he said after launching the Kuala Lumpur-Jeju route.
He also said at the moment, there is no direct connection from Southeast Asia to Jeju.
“This is the right time for us to go to Jeju. It is cheaper for passengers to fly to Kuala Lumpur before making the onward connection to Jeju, as compared to flying to Incheon (Seoul) and Gimhae (Busan) airports before flying to the island,” added.
Benyamin said the new route would provide an additional capacity of more than 150,000 annually.
He contends that it will be a significant boost towards strengthening business and tourism ties between Malaysia and South Korea.
AirAsia X will fly four times weekly from Dec 12, 2017 to Jeju with an all in-in promotional fare from RM199 one-way. — Bernama