KUCHING: AirBorneo will begin selling tickets for its first international route between Kuching and Singapore on 13 July through its official website and mobile app.
The daily service begins on 22 July, coinciding with Sarawak Day – two days after AirBorneo’s commercial launch between Kuching and Kuala Lumpur on 20 July. Economy Class fares start from RM399, while Business Class fares start from RM871, Bernama reported.
The new international route forms part of the roadmap AirBorneo outlined during a media roundtable earlier this week as it builds its commercial network alongside its Rural Air Services operations.
Building a premium regional airline
During the media roundtable, AirBorneo Holdings Sdn Bhd chairman Datuk Amar Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki outlined the airline’s long-term role in strengthening connectivity within Sarawak, where the state’s size and geography make air travel an essential mode of transport for many communities.
He said AirBorneo aims to strengthen links within Sarawak while improving connectivity with Peninsular Malaysia and the wider region as it develops into a premium regional carrier serving both Sarawakians and visitors.
“This is our aspiration, to become a premium airline that can provide the best service to our people, not only in Sarawak, but also our friends from other places. And as we all know, this airline is not only to service people from Sarawak to the other parts of the world, but we want to provide services for people from other parts of the world to come to Sarawak.”
Rather than expanding rapidly, AirBorneo plans to build its commercial network in stages. Chief executive officer Megat Ardian Aminuddin said starting with a smaller fleet would allow the airline to maintain cost discipline while establishing a sustainable foundation for future growth.
“Starting with two aircraft gives us a controlled growth trajectory. With two, we can be very disciplined on cost.”
As the network expands, AirBorneo plans to adopt a hub-and-spoke model centred on Kuching, allowing passengers arriving on commercial flights to connect with destinations across Sarawak.
Stabilising fares
Stabilising airfares between Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia is one of AirBorneo’s key mandates, with the airline introducing its RM375 all-inclusive “Sarawakku Sayang” Economy fare as part of its effort to keep fares consistent throughout the year, including during peak travel periods.
The airline’s first commercial initiative was the launch of bookings for the Kuching–Kuala Lumpur service on 7 July, with Business Class fares starting from RM736.
Megat Ardian said the RM375 fare was benchmarked against the average lowest fares offered by airlines operating the Kuching–Kuala Lumpur route after reviewing fare data from the first six months of the year, as well as average low fares from the previous year.
The all-inclusive fare covers airport taxes, a 23kg checked baggage allowance, 10kg cabin baggage, complimentary seat selection and an in-flight meal.
“Some carriers can be slightly lower than us, but it may not be all-in fare. They may just be a base fare, but they haven’t included airport tax, baggage, food or seat selection.”
Megat Ardian said surveys consistently identified high airfares between Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia as one of travellers’ biggest concerns, prompting the airline to make fare stabilisation one of its priorities.
“One of the main things is the high fare price between Semenanjung as well as the Sarawak region. Those are the things that we want to stabilise going forward. So that’s why we introduced this fare.”
Asked whether competing airlines lowering their fares signalled the start of a price war, he said AirBorneo expected the market to respond.
“If the local carriers did not react to our price, then we are irrelevant in a way. But it’s good that we made an impact.”
Mohamad Abu Bakar said the airline had already begun seeing the impact of its pricing strategy.
“After we announced the price, it seems that the other airlines’ pricing is more or less the same. It means that we managed to stabilise the price.”
Strengthening Rural Air Services
AirBorneo currently operates 14 turboprop aircraft comprising eight ATR 72-500s and six Twin Otters serving 21 airports across Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan. The network has been carrying between 60,000 and 70,000 passengers each month since January and is targeting about 850,000 passengers annually.
Megat Ardian acknowledged recent disruptions, saying improving operational resilience had been one of the airline’s priorities over the past six months.
AirBorneo is improving reliability through faster spare-parts transfers, quicker deployment of maintenance personnel, shorter repair turnaround times and additional suppliers to improve aircraft availability. It is also rationalising lower-demand services to create more maintenance time while retaining connectivity.
Additionally, eight new ATR 72-600 aircraft scheduled for delivery between 2027 and 2029 will progressively replace the existing ATR 72-500 fleet.
“RAS is a social obligation. It’s not just about tourism. It’s not just about investment, but it’s also essential services.”
