SEPANG: The government is looking into the possibility of setting up a new centre for the aviation industry in Malaysia, as the 10117ha of land reserve surrounding Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is inadequate to support the growth of the industry, said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (pix).
“That time we (only) thought of expansion for KLIA but we never realised about the low-cost carrier industry.
“Our expectation (then) when we reached 25 million passengers was that we have to build a new satellite, but (even) before we could do that we have low-cost airlines which contribute 40 million passengers and now we have a new terminal,“ he said.
Speaking to reporters after visiting AirAsia’s headquarters RedQ here yesterday, Mahathir said the aviation industry was expanding.
“We have to follow the trend, mostly it will be low-cost (airlines) flying and there will be demand for the planes,“ he said.
Mahathir said there are several countries who have expressed their interest to assemble planes and helicopters in Malaysia.
He added that while there was no timeline for the new centre to be realised, it must be established as soon as possible. — Bernama
