MAS Well-placed To Capture Increased Passenger Traffic From London

From Noor Soraya Mohd Jamal

-Bernama

Malaysian Airlines is better poised to capture increased passenger traffic from London to Kuala Lumpur with its relocation to the newly-refurbished Terminal 4 at London's Heathrow International Airport and the opening up of its brand new Golden Lounge.

Its chairman, Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid said the opening of the new lounge in London is part of the national carrier's customer value proposition, which focuses on ensuring that customers' needs are always at the top of the mind."Besides providing five-star value services in the air, Golden Lounge is a great avenue for us to continue providing seamless services to our customers on the ground," he said during the official opening of the Golden Lounge here, Saturday.The event was officiated by Minister of Tourism Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen.Dr Ng said the opening of Malaysia Airline's Golden Lounge in London is in line with the ministry's efforts to promote Malaysia as an ideal holiday destination.

She said from January to September this year, tourists from the U.K to Kuala Lumpur rose 19.7 per cent to 362,000 and the number was expected to reach 400,000 by the end of the year.Dr Ng said the ministry was looking at the possibility of positioning Malaysia Airlines in London as the kick off point for tourists from Europe."I met operators in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki who discussed this possibility," she said.The Golden Lounge, which cost about RM11 million, has a floor space of 738 square meters.It is easily accessible as it is conveniently located next to Gate 6, the regular departure gate for all Malaysian Airlines flights and can accommodate a maximum of 100 passengers at any one time.Malaysia Airlines operates 12 Golden Lounges worldwide within and beyond Malaysia including in Los Angeles, Melbourne, Perth, Singapore and Sydney.

Malaysian Airlines operates 14 weekly direct flights from London to Kuala Lumpur.Within the U.K, Malaysia Airlines operates a codeshare agreement with British Midlands by proving connections to and from Aberdeen, Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester to London for onward connectivity to Kuala Lumpur.Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines Regional Manager for the UK & Ireland Syed Abdillah Aziz said the airline will launch special fares this Monday.Return tickets from London to Kuala Lumpur would cost 399 pounds inclusive of tax and fuel surcharge.-- source --BERNAMA