JEDDAH, 17 May 2003 — Malaysia Airlines celebrated 25 years of its operations to Saudi Arabia on Monday night with the announcement of a plan to add a weekly third frequency to Jeddah and extra flights for the summer and Umrah seasons. “The entry of Malaysia Airlines into the Kingdom helped promote Umrah among pilgrims from the Far East,” Tuan Ibrahim Abdullah, the airline’s regional general manager for Middle East and Africa, said in his address. Malaysian Ambassador Mokhtar Ahmad cut a cake to mark the event held on the second day of the 10-day Malaysian food festival at Al-Salam Holiday Inn Hotel.
“Malaysia Airlines has charted a colorful path since its inception. We had difficulties after the 1997 financial turmoil that hit Asian countries. With the Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohammad’s leadership, we’re able to overcome the difficulties and are now on the road to recovery,” he said.
The journey was, however, not easy.
“As though the impact of Sept. 11 and the Bali bombings was not enough, we are now faced with the challenges arising out of the Iraq war and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The impact of Iraq is considered nominal as everybody was pre-pared for it. The impact of SARS, however, is phenomenal. Airlines especially are facing great difficulties from the fear created by SARS,” Abdullah said.
He emphasized that Malaysia was considered a SARS-free country. “Those who showed symptoms visited China and Singapore. None of them passed the sickness on to their families. In reality, no Malaysian was infected with SARS locally,” he said.
Like the Malaysian government, the airline too has taken precautions to allay the fears of SARS. “The aircraft cabin is fumigated regularly and the air cycle during flights is changed every 30 seconds.”
Abdullah said the airline viewed the Middle East as an important area for growth. “This area, including Jeddah, has great potential and our airline is prepar-ing itself for growth. New destinations are to be opened aside from strengthening the present ones.”
The weekly third frequency between Jeddah and Kuala Lumpur will be operated by Boeing 777 from June 18, Morad Omar, the airline’s area manager for Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Yemen, said.
