Come March 23, Malaysia will become the first country in Asia to own and operate a low-cost terminal known as LCC Terminal KLIA (LCC-T) that can handle up to 10 million passengers a year. Three days later, Asia's second low-cost terminal, known as Budget Terminal, will open for business in Singapore.
The LCC-T is a dedicated terminal for low-cost carriers and on that day, only flights of AirAsia and that of its units, Thai AirAsia and AirAsia Indonesia, will take off and land at the terminal. The opening of the LCC-T will be a significant milestone in Malaysia's aviation industry as just half a decade ago, no-frills or low-cost travel was unheard of in the country.
Today, Malaysians have a choice of either flying premium class or no-frills class. And it was Datuk Tony Fernandes and his group of friends from the entertainment industry who decided to take on the challenge to introduce low-cost travel in Malaysia.
The government has also been supportive, otherwise, this terminal, located near the KL International Airport (KLIA), would not have been built in less than nine months to cater to growth in demand for low-cost travel.
"The LCC-T would benefit airlines, passengers and handlers as it is custom-made to meet the low-cost carrier business model," said Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) managing director Datuk Seri Bashir Ahmad.
MAHB is the operator of both LCC-T and KLIA. The government funded the development of the LCC-T that had cost RM108 million (US$28.5 million).
"To a large extent, the decision to build the LCC-T was in response to AirAsia's rapid growth and future expansion and to cater to low-cost carriers from other countries. The concept for the LCC-T was to develop a temporary terminal for short-term requirements and build another bigger terminal should the need arise. This terminal can then be converted into a cargo terminal if is not needed," Bashir said.
