Scoot Flight TR492 receives a water cannon salute at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport, on Friday.
KOTA KINABALU (April 30): Singapore’s low-cost carrier Scoot has resumed service to Sabah, making it the first international airline to do so.
The Scoot Flight TR492 touched down at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport at about 9pm on Friday, carrying 150 passengers most of whom were westerners.
While the aircraft was saluted with a water cannon, the passengers were greeted with a warm welcome by a group dressed in traditional cultural attire as they entered the arrival gate.
State Tourism, Culture, and Environment Assistant Minister cum Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai was on hand to greet Scoot passengers and hand out goodie bags.
Sabah Tourism Board chief executive officer Noredah Othman and chief marketing officer Tay Shu Lan were also present to welcome the passengers.
Scoot launched its first direct flight from Singapore to Kota Kinabalu on December 3, 2019, but its operations were halted when the global Covid-19 pandemic struck the following year, affecting the tourism and airline industries.
Prior to the pandemic, Kota Kinabalu was Scoot’s eighth destination in Malaysia after Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Kota Bharu, Kuantan, Kuching, Langkawi and Penang.
“We are encouraged to see that international airlines continue to make Sabah their preferred destination and operational hub.
“For us, having flights coming from Singapore is important because Changi Airport receives hundreds of flights from cities all over the world and the Singapore-Kota Kinabalu route offers connectivity to potential international visitors to Sabah,” said Joniston.
The Sabah Tourism Board has planned several promotional initiatives to entice Singaporeans to return to Sabah.
From April 22-28, he said the Board and Sabah Tourism industry players attended the Travel Malaysia Digital Fair.
Through the Fair, Singaporean consumers were presented…