2 august 2019

The levy that will be imposed on travellers will depend on the destination and the class of airline flights.

KUALA LUMPUR - From September, all travellers flying out of Malaysia will have to pay a departure tax of between RM8 and RM150 (S$2.65 to S$50), Malaysian media reported on Friday (Aug 2).

Passengers travelling to countries in the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) region and flying economy class will be imposed a departure levy of RM8. Passengers flying on all other airline classes to the region will have to pay RM50.

The 10 countries in Asean include Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei.

Passengers travelling out of Malaysia to non-Asean countries on economy flights will have to pay a departure levy of RM20, while those travelling on non-economy flights will be charged RM150.

Cabin crew, infants and toddlers aged below 24 months or two years old as well as airline passengers transiting via Malaysia and leaving within 12 hours will be exempted from the levy, according to a separate order issued by Mr Lim.

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-as ... rom-sept-1

Shut up Hillbilly, now you've got me thinking of KLIA2
and f*** i hate that place.

Tried the container capsule things last year at klia2 - never again.

Kung-fu Hillbilly wrote: ↑Fri Aug 02, 2019 6:37 pm Tried the container capsule things last year at klia2 - never again.

Yeah, give me the indignity and discomfort on the floor any day, over those de-humanising pods.
But i just make sure i never have a long layover in KL these days, even if i have to buy slightly more expensive flights.

I used to quite like the old LCCT. Crowded, but easy to go for a wander outside, or slip down to the reasonably priced food court. It was the kind of old-style airport where you could comfortably smoke a joint, just outside.

SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Fri Aug 02, 2019 6:33 pm Shut up Hillbilly, now you've got me thinking of KLIA2
and f*** i hate that place.

Departures is a nightmare. I spent six years in bum-fuck China (Zhengzhou) and never saw an abortion like KLIA2 - 3000 Indians pushing and shoving in panic they will miss their plane. FUCK!!!

Soon after it opened i quipped to a friend
"it's like a shopping mall with an airport tacked on"
My line was stolen a few years later when new promo signs went up everywhere; "KLIA2 - the shopping mall with an airport". I kid you not.

It's huge, both the airport and the mall, but everything is done on the cheap. Really supercheap.
The shopping thing is a big part of all airports business model these days. But at least the functionality of the airport still has first priority. They design the shopping areas around the efficient flow of passengers.
At KLIA2, every passenger flow is designed to just dump you into the middle of this massive, very ugly shopping centre.
When you do eventually find the randomly attached airport function you need, it will be poorly designed and with inadequate facilities.

Vast area, disjointed services, choke points, poor signage, and long distances - means you get 300000 confused indians/chinese/australians etc pushing and shoving in a blind panic to get to their flight.

Not to mention the general vibe..
One of the ugliest places on the planet i reckon.

Not to mention there are only a couple of bars and a beer will set you back the better part of $10.

Emir Zainul
/
The Edge Financial Daily

August 02, 2019 09:53 am +08


KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia Group Bhd has called on Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) to prioritise more critical operational and passenger experience issues at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s second terminal (klia2), rather than the proposed plans to integrate klia2 with the main terminal (KLIA).

AirAsia said MAHB and the Malaysian Aviation Commission, which has endorsed the proposed KLIA-klia2 integration, have failed to design an execution model for the interlining.

Furthermore, the low-cost carrier (LCC) pointed out that MAHB has not engaged in appropriate consultation with AirAsia or AirAsia X Bhd (AAX), which together account for 97% of overall passenger traffic at klia2.

“MAHB’s focus should be on spending the increased money, in the form of airport tax they’re asking for from passengers, on bringing klia2 facilities up to the same standard as the luxurious KLIA, fixing the uneven aprons and taxiways, installing more guest-friendly spaces and redesigning boarding gates,” AirAsia Malaysia chief executive officer (CEO) Riad Asmat said in a statement yesterday.

“Other more prudent uses of the additional airport tax could, for example, include dealing with overcrowding at airports around Malaysia such as [the] Penang International Airport where the check-in area is simply too small to handle the growing volume of people using it,” he added.

AirAsia claimed that MAHB has also been relatively slow in embracing technology to improve the overall passenger experience.

This is soooo lame.... Nickle and diming peeps is not a way to build goodwill....

The government should adopt proactive strategies and policies to spur tourism as opposed to further burdening tourists, according to AirAsia Group Bhd chief executive officer Tony Fernandes.

Therefore, he hopes Putrajaya would reconsider its plan to impose a departure levy for all outbound air passengers, which was to be implemented in June but has since been deferred to after Hari Raya Aidiladha, which falls on Aug 11.

Speaking to Malaysiakini today, Fernandes pointed to the existing hotel and airport taxes to argue that there is no need for an additional tax.
"We are not making Malaysia affordable or welcoming. Furthermore, 2020 is the Visit Malaysia Year. Imposing an exit tax would send the wrong signal...