Newsroom / News Releases / MAVCOM Indicates Strong Recovery for Domestic Aviation Sector

The Commission Supports Increase in Flights With 96 Per Cent Approval Rate in Q4 2021

KUALA LUMPUR, 19 January 2022 – The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) today released its fourth quarterly Air Traffic Rights (ATR) report for 2021. The report details the Commission’s ATR allocations for the Malaysian civil aviation sector for the period of 1 October 2021 to 31 December 2021. 

For the fourth quarter of 2021 (Q4 2021), the Commission approved 27 of the 28 ATR applications submitted by airlines. This represents an increase of 33.3 per cent in applications and a 28.6 per cent increase in approvals compared to the third quarter of 2021 (Q3 2021).

Of the 28 ATR applications, 17 applications were for domestic routes, which have more than doubled compared to the 7 applications submitted in Q3 2021. The Commission reports that the increase was primarily due to the reopening of interstate borders in October 2021 and a rise in demand for domestic holiday-related travel, with the additional flights mainly to Langkawi followed by Johor Bahru, Penang, and Kota Bharu.

MAVCOM’s Executive Chairman, Datuk Seri Hj. Saripuddin Hj. Kasim said, “Despite the ongoing pandemic, we are seeing encouraging signs of recovery within the domestic segment, as indicated by the increase in ATR applications for domestic routes in Q4 2021. This promising development illustrates the sector’s resilience and its ability to bounce back post-pandemic. We hope that this continues as air travellers are highly encouraged to pre-plan their flights for festive periods well in advance to avoid crowds and high-ticket prices.”

The Commission also received 13 ATR applications from the air cargo segment, which signals continued and sustained growth. The increase in ATR approvals is also attributed to new cargo Air Service Licence (ASL) holders, namely World Cargo Airline Sdn. Bhd. and M Jets International Sdn. Bhd., which received 9 ATRs from the Commission for Q4 2021. The Commission expects the segment to grow by between 3.9 per cent and 6.7 per cent Year-on-Year (YoY) in 2022, translating to between 20.8 and 21.6 billion in Freight Tonne Kilometres (FTK).

In terms of the breakdown of ATR allocations for Q4 2021, Malaysia Airlines Berhad and World Cargo Airline Sdn. Bhd. received the highest number of approvals with 6 ATRs each. AirAsia Berhad received an allocation of 5 ATRs and M Jets International Sdn. Bhd. was awarded 3 ATR allocations. Additionally, AirAsia X Berhad, FlyFirefly Sdn. Bhd. and Malindo Airways Sdn. Bhd. received 2 ATR allocations each, whereas MyJet Express Airlines Sdn. Bhd. was awarded 1 ATR allocation.

In summary, for the year 2021, MAVCOM approved a total of 82 ATR applications, representing a 98.8 per cent approval rate.

MAVCOM’s ATR Report is released on a regular basis and more information can be found on MAVCOM’s website at www.mavcom.my.