New Airline Flymojo To Increase Air Connectivity, Competition

By Nor Baizura Basri and Mohd Iswandi Kasan Anuar JOHOR BAHARU (Johor), March 17 (Bernama) -- flymojo, the new player in Malaysia's airline industry, will increase air connectivity and competition in the skies. The airline Tuesday sealed a US$1.47 billion (RM5.44 billion) agreement with Canada's Bombardier Commercial Aircraft to acquire 20 CS100 aircraft. The first customer and operator of the CS100 aircraft in the region, will be based out of Johor Bahru, Johor and Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. The announcement was made at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition in the presence of Prime Minister Najib Razak. Johor Tourism, Domestic Trade and Consumerism Executive Committee chairman, Tee Siew Kion, said the airline was expected to boost the state's trade and tourism industry. Tee said the announcement was indeed good news for the state. "It will place Senai as an important destination in the country in terms of trade and tourism industry. It will also attract more tourists," he told Bernama here Tuesday. Tee said currently, there were about five to six airlines flying from Senai. "With this new airline, it will provide more options for customers. So far, there are 14 to 15 entry points into Johor from land, sea and air," he said. He said with Iskandar Malaysia being one of the most successful economic corridors in Malaysia, it would further attract more businessmen as well as tourists into Johor. Meanwhile, Ahmad Maghfur Usman, Regional Transportation Analyst at RHB Research Institute, told Bernama consumers should be happy with the emergence of the new airline as ticket prices would go down with market competition. "Competition will increase when new airlines enter the market. Surely, it will have a negative effect on existing airlines," he said. Ahmad Maghfur, however, said there was still 'a long way to go' because the airline would start flying next year. "We don't know yet where it is heading," he said. -- BERNAMA