JOHOR BARU – Johor is expected to continue to be the air gateway to the northern states in the peninsula, including Penang, just like it was before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country in 2020.
Firefly Airlines chief executive officer Philip See Yew Jin said that starting in April, with three flights per day, Firefly expects to receive as many as 1.8 million passengers using the service until the end of this year, including tourists from neighbouring countries.
He said that flights between Senai International Airport in Johor and Penang International Airport had to be stopped last year due to Covid-19, and to restore this exciting route, a strategic plan has been drawn up by Firefly and the Malaysian Association for Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) for Penang and Johor.
“To begin with, we have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the three parties, with various activities and interesting campaigns to be planned to promote tourism products in both states.
“FireFly has been informed by Penang and Johor Matta, who will also work with Penang Global Tourism and Tourism Johor to list interesting places for tourists.
“In addition to travelling from Penang to Johor Baru using Boeing 737-800 jets, starting from April, Firefly has also launched other flights to Langkawi, Kuching, and Kota Kinabalu, and in August will launch flights to Phuket, Thailand,” he said at a press conference in Wembley-St Giles Hotel, Penang yesterday after the MoU signing by FireFly and Penang and Johor Matta.
Penang Matta was represented by its chairman Vergis Matthew while Johor Matta was represented by deputy chairman Kathryn Lee Hwee Ching.
See said that as a start, tourists will get special offers when they use the services of travel agents registered with Matta in Johor and Penang.
“The offer package includes airfares, hotel accommodations, and breakfast at RM599 for two people and is valid until July 27, 2023, in addition to several other offers that will be provided by Matta travel agents.
“We entered into this MoU and offer because we believe that the domestic tourism sector is now recovering after the pandemic and also plan to enter into several more agreements with Matta to promote domestic tourism,” he said. – Bernama, July 31, 2022
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