Flight AK1794 from Singapore to Kota Kinabalu marks the reopening of Sabah skies to international air travel

KOTA KINABALU, 16 APR 2022 - The arrival of AirAsia’s Flight AK1794 from Singapore into Kota Kinabalu marks the first international flight into Sabah after two years, which was welcomed by fanfare and a water salute ceremony upon landing. 

The inaugural post-pandemic flight AK1794 departed Singapore on time at 1210hrs (GMT+8) and arrived in Kota Kinabalu at 1430hrs (GMT+8) with over 124 passengers on board the 180-seat A320 aircraft. Arriving guests were warmly greeted by YB Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, State Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment and Chairman of Sabah Tourism Board, along with Dato Sri Dr Anil Jeet Singh Sandhu, Deputy Chairman of Tourism Malaysia; Noredah Othman, CEO of Sabah Tourism Board; and Tan Mai Yin, Chief Commercial Officer (AirAsia airlines). 

Three weekly flights are now available between Kota Kinabalu and Singapore with promotional one-way all-in fares available for booking on the airasia Super App on sale now from as low as RM149 only, and travel from now until 31 October 2022.

Apart from Singapore, AirAsia has also resumed flights to India, Brunei, the Maldives, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia from Kuala Lumpur. More international flights to and from Kota Kinabalu will begin operating soon.

YB Datuk Jafry Hj Ariffin, Minister of Tourism, Culture & Environment, Sabah said: “Since international borders re-opened on 1 April 2022, we have been working tirelessly with all parties to keep Sabah on top of tourists and travellers minds throughout these past two years. With the support of important stakeholders such as AirAsia, which has always been providing low-cost flights to connect people to Sabah, we are confident that our local tourism industry will soon resume to pre-pandemic levels.” 

Puan Noredah Othman, the CEO of Sabah Tourism Board added: “STB will continue to promote Sabah as a choice holiday destination to Singaporeans and also to use the popular Singapore hub as a transit point for long haul market travellers to reach Sabah. We are relieved that international flights are progressively resuming since we rely heavily on air connectivity for our tourism arrivals.”

Tan Mai Yin, Chief Commercial Officer (AirAsia airlines) said: “AirAsia is very proud to welcome the first international flight back into the state of Sabah, and would like to thank the Minister of Tourism, Culture & Environment Sabah, Tourism Malaysia, Sabah Tourism Board and all other involved parties for joining us on this significant occasion today. After two long years, this is indeed a day to celebrate as AirAsia continues to work alongside all Sabah travel and tourism stakeholders to revive the industry. 

Sabah is known worldwide for its beautiful nature, both on land and underwater, aside from the warm hospitality of Sabahans and the amazing local cuisine and array of seafood. Pre-COVID, AirAsia holds a 44.3% market share for international arrivals into Sabah, and we are committed to rebuild that market share and welcome travellers from across the region on our flights to Sabah again.” 

As part of its robust health and safety protocols, AirAsia Malaysia has successfully migrated over 95% of its guests to use contactless self-check-in service via the airasia Super App and its website, an initiative that was made mandatory at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic last year. The airline will continue to promote its contactless procedures as an integral part of its efforts to further strengthen its Covid-19 mitigation plan.

As part of an ongoing education process, AirAsia is encouraging all guests to migrate and upgrade to the all-in-one airasia Super App for a seamless and contactless journey. AirAsia’s counter check-in service will be strictly for exempted categories of guests only at all airports in Malaysia from 1 April 2022. Among the exempted groups are senior citizens aged 70 and above, people with disabilities registered with the Welfare Department, young passengers travelling alone, group bookings of 10 guests and more, charter flight passengers and more. 

AirAsia has twice been recognised for its robust and comprehensive Covid-19 mitigation plans, with highest levels of safety and operational integrity with a 7/7 rating from the aviation experts at airlineratings.com in 2021 and 2022. 

For more information on AirAsia’s safety measures and travel SOPs, please read the latest travel advisory here.

Stay up to date with everything from the airasia Super App by following @airasiasuperapp on Instagram and Facebook for the latest updates on airasia Super App’s offerings! For a seamless and enhanced experience, download your airasia Super App from the Apple App Store, Google Play Store or Huawei AppGallery now.

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