Air Busan to start direct KK flights
Published on: Friday, May 10, 2019
By: Ricardo Unto
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is set to see an increase in the number of Korean tourists with the commencement of weekly direct flights by Air Busan from two South Korean cities to here soon.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Christina Liew, who is also State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, said the maiden Air Busan flight from Daegu will touch down at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA), here, on May 15.
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She said the new Daegu-Kota Kinabalu flight service will have four frequencies per week – every Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday.
“The carrier will commence its second link - from Busan to here – on a daily basis starting on May 22,” she added.
Air Busan is a subsidiary of Asiana Airlines, one of South Korea’s major airlines.
“The two flight services will be Air Busan’s first links to Sabah, showing their strong confidence in our destination,” she told a press conference, here, Thursday.
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With the additional services, Liew said, there will now be a total 48 weekly direct flights from South Korea to KKIA.
“Having new airlines flying from new destinations is part of the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to make Sabah more accessible,” she added.
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According to her, Sabah has recorded more than one million tourist arrivals up to March, an increase of 9.1 per cent compared to the same period last year.
“From South Korea alone, we received 82,074 tourists, making it the second largest market source for international arrivals to Sabah.
“We hope with this initiative, we are able to receive more visitors to the State’s East Coast.
“We have plans to upgrade the airports in the East Coast to enable foreign airlines to establish direct flights there.
“Next week, we will be officiating an awareness campaign in Tawau to encourage the local community to prepare and welcome tourism,” she said.
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