Beginning July, Malaysia Airlines will increase international connectivity, as other nations start reopening borders. The flag carrier will resume flights to destinations in Asia, Australia, and Europe. Following the state’s announcement on June 7th to relax interstate travel, the airline will also resume domestic flights this month.
In a press release seen by Simple Flying, passengers must “check entry and exit requirements before their journeys with travel restrictions remaining in place in most countries.”
With the release of schedules for the next two months, Malaysia Airlines explains that these are impermanent. The flag carrier plans to continue adjusting it according to travel demands and reach a fixed outcome by October.
According to an official statement, CEO Captain Izham Ismail said,
“We are pleased to announce the resumption of our services by increasing capacity to domestic and international routes, and we look forward to welcoming our passengers back on board.”
International flight schedule
Where international flights are concerned, Malaysia Airlines has released its July schedule. Flights will resume to popular destinations in South East Asia, as well as Australia and India. The only European city that the carrier will fly to is London, operating twice weekly starting July.
According to the carrier, the recommencement of services will also allow families to reunite. Families who were unwillingly separated due to the corona-crisis and global travel restrictions can now find their way back to each other, Malaysia Airlines says.
Domestic flight schedule
On June 7th, the Malaysian government gave the all-clear for citizens to resume interstate travel. Hence, Malaysia Airlines has begun ramping up its schedule for domestic tourism, starting this month.
For travelers in Malaysia, flights between Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kuching will take off thrice weekly in June. For the following month, services to Kuching will increase to five times a week.
As for months of June and July, flights from Kuala Lumpur to cities in Sarawak such as Buntulu and Sibu will take off once per week. For the cities of Alor Setar, Johor Bahru, Kota Bharu, Langkawi, Terengganu, Labuan, Miri, Sandakan, and Tawau, flights will occur twice a week.
In conjunction with the resumption of domestic services, the airline has also released a promotional video. The video, which showcases different tourism destinations in Malaysia, serves as a way to encourage citizens to resume travel.
An uncertain future for Malaysia Airlines
It is possible that by resuming flights from June, the carrier hopes to start recuperating from the losses of the past few months. The airline has also appointed a new chairperson to help turn things around. Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee will begin his duties in July.
However, with discourse surrounding mergers and buyouts, the airline’s future remains uncertain. Pre-coronavirus, the airline was already struggling. At that point, the airline was operating over an estimated 3,000 flights a week. Seeing the schedule for June and July, the number of weekly flights has not even crossed a 100.
It will take much longer before passenger demand increases, and revenue approaches pre-pandemic figures, and the question is, will Malaysia Airlines live to see the day?
Airlines taking to the skies in June
Many airlines have similarly begun prepping a return to the skies. June and July, being popular holiday months, it is no wonder that some airlines have chosen to continue operating despite the low travel demand.
In Southeast Asia, Singapore Airlines and Philippine Airlines have started to resume essential travel services internationally. PAL will operate limited services to the USA and Canada on top of Asia and Middle East destinations.
With European countries relaxing its borders to welcome summer months, some airlines have also started to ramp up its schedules. For instance, Spain’s flag carrier, Iberia, is resuming travel to selected holiday destinations this month.
