Labuan-Kota Kinabalu airfare soars to RM1,207, pricier than flights to Seoul, Bangkok
LABUAN: Travellers from the duty-free island here are voicing frustration over skyrocketing airfares for the Labuan-Kota Kinabalu route, whish is now more expensive than international flights to Bangkok and Seoul.
For many in Labuan, air travel is not a luxury but a necessity – yet tickets for the 35-minute domestic flight are as high as RM1,207 for a one-way trip on July 2.
By comparison, tickets for flights from Kota Kinabalu to Bangkok, which takes about three hours, start at RM411, while flights to Seoul, a journey of over five hours, are priced from RM661.
David Lee, 49, who frequently travels between the two locations for an oil and gas business, told Bernama the fares were "absurd" and "unacceptable".
"I was planning my usual trip to Kota Kinabalu for a meeting and was shocked to see fares exceeding RM1,200. How can a flight under one hour cost more than an international trip to Korea?" he said.
Another traveller, Nurul Shafiqah Abdullah, 34, a government officer based in Labuan, said such high fares strain those who rely on the route for essential reasons.
"This isn't a holiday route. It's a lifeline for many who depend on travelling for medical check-ups, work commitments or family matters. These prices are pushing people to the edge," she said.
For Raymond Chong, 41, who runs a logistics company, the limited choice of carriers only adds to the frustration.
"It's either MasWings or Malaysia Airlines, sometimes small planes, sometimes a Boeing. There's no real competition, so you either pay or don't go," he said.
Local entrepreneur Faridah Musa, 45, urged the federal government and aviation authorities to address the pricing mechanism, calling the issue more than just a travel inconvenience.
"We are an island with no road access. Flights are essential, not optional. At this point, it's not just an inconvenience, it's an economic disadvantage for us."
She said calls are mounting for transparency in fare structures and for greater efforts to introduce more airline competition to ensure affordable travel for the people of Labuan. – Bernama
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