Sarawak's own airline AirBorneo took to the skies for its inaugural flights on Friday (Jan 2) after completing the acquisition of MASwings Sdn Bhd the previous day.
The flights to Mukah and Tanjung Manis took off from Kuching International Airport at 8.25am and 8.45am with 54 and 15 passengers respectively, in ATR72-500 and Twin Otter aircraft bearing the AirBorneo livery.
01:15For Sarawak, air connectivity is not a luxury. It is a necessity.
01:22As a geographically dispersed Sarawak aviation plays a vital role in connecting our rural and remote communities,
01:33supporting trade, tourism and enabling access to education and healthcare and facilitating business and investment.
01:44As Sarawak's government's decision to establish Air Borneo reflects a strategic approach to aviation as one of the key enablers of development.
01:57Globally, aviation has been shown to generate strong multiplayer effects, creating employment not only at airlines and airports but across supply chains, local businesses and supporting industries.
02:14Improved air connectivity is closely linked to higher income levels, job creation, tourism growth and the attraction of higher value economic activities.
02:29Through Air Borneo, our Sarawak government now owns and operates a mass wing which continues to provide essential rural air services across Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan.
02:43During this transition period, operations will continue as business as usual with safety, reliability and service continuity remaining our top priorities.
02:56Air Borneo has been designed with a dual mandate.
03:01It will operate with commercial discipline and sound governance while at the same time fulfilling an essential public service role in keeping our communities connected.
03:14As rural air service operations operationalized operationally and financially,
03:21Air Borneo will progressively expand to selected regional routes.
03:28This expansion will be guided by aircraft availability, market demand, route sustainability and applicable bilateral air service agreement.
03:40This major approach ensures prudent growth and long-term viability.
03:48How about the business plan for the coming this one, Air Borneo, and how it marginalize the cost in order to sustain in a run?
03:56Because we understand the cost for operating the airline is more to the maintenance of the aircraft and the fuel efficiently.
04:04So how to marginalize the things so Air Borneo can sustain in the long run like AirAsia, MAS or other airlines?
04:12I pre-empt your questions.
04:14I know that's a question that you all like to ask.
04:18But I think it's now we just took over.
04:22This is the interim major moment.
04:24Now we have Air Borneo with the team.
04:26So we'll have the relevant teams and the task force to look into all these majors.
04:33And we have to look at it professionally.
04:37And you take time to know there are a lot of technical and financial makers that we need experts to look into.
04:45And give us some time.
04:47Now today we've just started.
04:49So we just got the Air Operating License.
04:53So from now, we are now the legal owner, ledger owner of the Air Love.
05:01Must be taking over a must be acquisition.
05:03So give us a bit of time.
05:05We will work this out.
05:07So is it in the pipeline?
05:08Of course, certainly we will look into all these aspects.
05:11You see, Air Borneo is different from other airlines.
05:17We are operating on two aspects.
05:21One is to provide rural air services to remote communities.
05:27And that is under a subsidy scheme, which is under what we call the rural air services,
05:33where there is a public service obligation, PSO agreement.
05:38And we have to follow the agreement.
05:40And our team here will review this.
05:43Because for this year, it's more or less been said.
05:46But we will look into the longer term.
05:49We are also planning maybe for the next five years on the subsidy model for the rural air services.
05:55Then, the other aspect will be the commercial airline.
05:59This is, we will be flying regional.
06:02That will come at the landing stage.
06:04So, you know, we will have the team to look into it.
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