IPOH: With the impending halt to AirAsia’s Ipoh-Singapore flight route, some local folk are urging the airline to reconsider the move, while others are proposing flying to destinations in Thailand.
Lawyer K. Nathan called on the government to introduce flights from here to Thailand as a replacement to the budget carrier’s Ipoh-Singapore route, which will be suspended effective April 25.
The 57-year-old suggested flights from Sultan Azlan Shah Airport here to Haadyai in southern Thailand as an option.
“From Haadyai, passengers can then fly to Bangkok and from the Thai capital, to anywhere else in the world.”
Nathan, a frequent flyer, pointed out that the Malaysian-Thai immigration borders were packed during weekends, often causing delays of up to three hours.
His comment comes after Perak tourism, industry, investment and corridor development committee chairman Loh Sze Yee said the state would form a committee with AirAsia to study possible new flight routes to and from Ipoh.
Like many in the state, Nathan said the termination of the Ipoh-Singapore route would deny the local community an essential link to international travel.
“From Singapore, you can fly anywhere in the world. Without it, we have to go to other airports, an inconvenience for us.
“Not forgetting too the benefits of bringing more Singaporean tourists to Perak and boosting the state’s economy,” he said.
Teacher Nur Akmar Abdul Rahman, 51, meanwhile, said she would like to see flights from Ipoh to Bangkok, a popular destination with Malaysians.
“I’m surprised that the Ipoh-Singapore route will not be available soon as I’ve noticed a good number using it.
“With an Ipoh-Bangkok flight, more Thais could fly here too,” she said.
A frequent traveller to Singapore, businessman Ethan Lim hopes AirAsia would reconsider its move.
“Many Singaporeans also visit Ipoh, while a number of folk from Ipoh work in Singapore.”
Lim, 35, said that while Scoot, another low-cost carrier and a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, remains an option, the absence of AirAsia as an alternative limits choices for travellers.
“If the flight by Scoot is full, we would at least have another option through AirAsia,” he said, suggesting having more flights to serve the Ipoh-Johor route.
