KUALA LUMPUR: flydubai has made its mark as the first airline to operate direct daily flights from Dubai to Malaysia's popular islands, Langkawi and Penang since Feb 10.
The airline's senior vice president of commercial operations (UAE, GCC, Africa and the Indian subcontinent) Sudhir Sreedharan said flydubai is committed to opening up underserved markets and offer opportunities for its passengers to explore the two Malaysian destinations.
"We're pleased to see our presence grow in Southeast Asia with the addition of Penang and Langkawi to our growing network," he said in a statement.
The daily flights operate from Terminal 3, Dubai International Airport to Penang International Airport and Langkawi International Airport.
The Boeing B737 MAX aircraft that are used to service the Penang and Langkawi routes features lie-flat seats in business class and the added comfort and enjoyable travel experience in economy class.
The return business class fares from Dubai to Penang start from RM14,312 and economy class lite fares start from RM3,513.
The return business class prices from Dubai to Langkawi start from RM14,312 and economy class lite fares start from RM4,554.
flydubai also expanded its European operations by adding four new destinations in its network. These destinations include Basel, Riga, Talinn and Vilnius.
The addition of the four new routes grows the carrier's network in Europe to 43 destinations in 21 countries.
flydubai chief executive officer, Ghaith Al Ghaith said the airline has created a diverse network of 126 destinations, 60 per cent of which previously had very limited or no connections to Dubai.
"Our new services to the Baltic region and Basel will enable more people to travel conveniently through Dubai's aviation hub, whether they're visiting Dubai or connecting conveniently onto the flydubai network or further afield with our codeshare partner Emirates," he said.
The airline had also recently launched three new routes from Dubai to Cairo, Poznan and Mombasa between the fourth quarter of 2023 to January 2024.
flydubai operates a single fleet type of 85 B737 aircraft, which includes 28 B737-800 NG (next generation), 54 B737 MAX 8 and 3 B737 MAX 9 airplanes.
The airline had ordered its first widebody fleet of 30 B787-9 Dreamliners that would be delivered from 2026.