KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 – Despite a thriving operation in major ASEAN countries, AirAsia’s persistent difficulty in obtaining an operating licence in Singapore highlights a key challenge in the aviation sector—the conflict between national protectionism and the need for open competition.
Besides Malaysia, AirAsia operates in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
However, the low-cost airline has faced rejection three times from the island state.
Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Institute of Aviation Technology economist (aviation and aerospace) Associate Professor Mohd Harridon Mohamed Suffian advocates for establishing AirAsia Singapore and procuring aviation entities in Singapore by AirAsia.
“The open market concept should be embraced by countries in ASEAN, where myriad flight options would be available to consumers, and the subsequent price battle would be regulated by market forces, which would benefit the consumers,” he told Bernama recently.
He said aviation is a dynamic ecosystem where evolution in technology, methods, regulations, prices, and other factors occurs every 10 to 15 years or less.
For judicial and economic fairness, and to promote an open and free market in the ASEAN region, he emphasised that it is favourable and within the spirit of ASEAN for Singapore to cater to international companies, thereby creating a competitive aviation ecosystem in the region.
“I support the notion by (AirAsia’s group chief executive officer Tan Sri) Tony Fernandes that it is imperative for consumers to have numerous options for flight services,” he said.
Currently, Singapore is home to four air operator certificate (AOC) holders: Singapore Airlines Ltd, Jetstar Asia Airways Pte Ltd, Scoot Pte Ltd and ST Engineering Defence Aviation Services Pte Ltd.
