SANDAKAN – Sandakan MP Vivian Wong will meet AirAsia next week to discuss the possibility of direct flights from Hong Kong and Singapore to the airport here.
She said she had met with MYAirline before this, but all plans had to be cancelled after the low-cost carrier suspended operations.
Sandakan Airport has yet to receive direct international flights despite completing the extension of its runway in June last year. Currently, it only receives direct flights from Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu.
Wong said tourism in Sandakan desperately needs a boost, and she has spoken to federal Transport Minister Anthony Loke about having more international airlines adding new routes to Sandakan.
“He (Loke) is supportive of the idea because we are not asking for all the airline companies, but only several targeted ones. We have also voiced this request to the (federal) Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry and certain airline companies,” she said.
Wong was speaking to the press after launching the Borneo Bird Festival at the Rainforest Discovery Centre here today.
Meanwhile, the two-day festival is set to attract more than 150,000 visitors to Sandakan, making it a major tourism programme.
The festival is jointly organised by the Sandakan Borneo Bird Club and Sabah Forestry Department, and supported by the Sabah Tourism Board and Birdwatching Asia.
According to Borneo Bird Club president Robert C. Ong, Sabah has the advantage of having birds endemic to Borneo, such as the Bornean bristlehead and the Sabah partridge.
“Sabah also has the most accessible birdwatching facilities such as the Kinabalu Park and the Rainforest Discovery Centre. We also have the best birding guides in Malaysia,” he told Scoop today.
He said the Borneo Bird Festival is different from birding events in other parts of the world because it does not only cater to birders.
“There is something for everyone. There are activities for children and even their parents. One does not have to be a birder to enjoy themselves.
“It fits our aim to spread and create public awareness in conservation and to realise the importance of nature in our ecosystem, while promoting birdwatching and nature tourism activities,” he said.
The Borneo Bird Festival is one of the largest nature festivals in Malaysia, and it has provided a platform for the annual gathering of nature enthusiasts, birdwatchers, wildlife photographers, and the community, both local and international. – October 21, 2023