PETALING JAYA: The authorities have assured that it will not compromise on the safety of airline operations, following the incident of a snake found onboard a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tawau.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said the ministry had been closely dealing with the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) about the matter.
He said CAAM, as the technical safety and security regulator, had managed the case well with the airline, according to all safety procedures and regulations.
"Every airline follows strict mandatory detailed pre-flight checks as part of regulated requirements and standard operating procedures.
"As a follow-up, CAAM will continue to monitor the situation with the airline management to ensure all risks are mitigated correctly and accordingly.
"CAAM will not compromise on any issue that could potentially jeopardise the safety and security of airlines operations," said Dr Wee, who is also MCA president.
The incident involved an AirAsia flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tawau, Sabah on Friday (Feb 11), in which a snake was discovered onboard.
The flight was safely diverted to Kuching International Airport, Sarawak, following required safety procedures.
AirAsia chief safety officer Capt Liong Tien Ling had said in reports that appropriate action was taken to get the reptile out of the aircraft before it rerouted back to Tawau.
He said the safety and wellbeing of passengers and crew were always their top priority.
It was unclear how the snake got into the aircraft, or if it belonged to any of the passengers.
No one was injured in the incident.
