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Kota Kinabalu: State Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe said the chaotic and unpleasant situation at Tawau Airport is being addressed.

He said he was informed by Federal Transport Minister Anthony Loke that the Federal Cabinet had specially approved the plan to upgrade facilities at both the Tawau and KK International Airport.

The Tawau airport’s project tender process began a few weeks ago and is expected to be implemented by the end of this year.

"The Federal Government will also allocate funds for the upgrading and enhancement of KKIA,” Phoong said.

He noted that domestic tourism, including in Sabah, has returned to pre-pandemic levels or even better, following the implementation of visa-free travel agreement between Malaysia and China, a few months ago.

Phoong also mentioned that, thanks to government efforts, the congestion issues at the state’s ports have been resolved.

He said the imbalance in infrastructure development between East Malaysia (including Sabah and Sarawak) and the peninsula, due to various political factors, is regrettable and in need of correction and improvement.

Phoong was responding to Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS) President Tan Sri T.C. Goh who urged the Federal Government and airport authorities to promptly address the pressing issue of inadequate facilities at Tawau Airport, which caused great inconvenience and dissatisfaction to both domestic and international travellers.

Goh said this often caused long queues at the check in counters, which inevitably led to many passengers missing their flights.

He said Tawau Airport made a breakthrough when it received its first direct flight from China in May, marking a good start for tourism in Tawau and Semporna. Subsequently, more direct flights from China followed, leading to the airport’s current overloaded and overcrowded situation.

“The Federal Government, especially the airport management company, must ensure Tawau Airport does not suffer from inadequate facilities, which could undermine the growth of Sabah’s tourism industry,” he said.

Goh, who is also a member of the Sabah Economic Advisory Council (SEAC) made these remarks at the 30th-anniversary celebration and swearing-in of the 14th Central Committee and various committees of the FCAS at the Wisma Hakka’s Banquet Hall. 

“If the airport management company cannot effectively manage Tawau Airport, the Sabah Government should consider taking over,” Goh said, adding with direct flights from Shenzhen, Nanjing, Macau and Chengdu, Tawau airport authorities should have taken proactive measures long ago.

This include training ground staff or officers who can speak Chinese to communicate more effectively with Chinese tourists.

“Pome duty-free allowances for incoming international tourists, equivalent to those at international airports, to prevent the recent incident of ‘wrongful tariff collection’ at Tawau Airport happening again,” Goh said.

Tawau Airport currently handles 115 flights per week, with capacity of 20,200 seats, including 58 flights to and from Kuala Lumpur, four direct flights to Johor Bahru, and 6 flights to and from Kota Kinabalu. 

Between January and June this year, there were 32 chartered direct flights from China to Tawau, including 20 from Nanjing and 12 from Guangzhou, with flights also connecting Tawau directly to Macau, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and Nanjing.

Some passengers missed their flights, others took two hours to enter the departure hall, some had to sit on the floor due to lack of seating.

There were also complaints about the poor attitude of ground staff, resulting in significant dissatisfaction among passengers.