LANGKAWI: Malaysia hopes to bid to host the Routes World event as part of the country's efforts to becoming a hub for global aviation discussions.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said Malaysia is committed to advancing the aviation industry and championing better connections with the region, which is important to deepening the country's economic and cultural ties with the world.
He added that Malaysia takes great pride in hosting this year's Routes Asia apart from becoming the first country to host the same event in Kuala Lumpur from 2003 to 2005.
"Today, we're proud to return as the host of this prestigious event, reaffirming our commitment to fostering collaboration and innovation within the aviation community," Loke said at the opening of the Routes Asia here today.
Loke also said the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) had forecasted the country's air passenger traffic is expected to reach between 93.9 million and 107.1 million passengers in 2024, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 10 per cent to 25 per cent.
"This puts us on a trajectory towards full recovery this year based on the pre-pandemic levels in 2019," he added.
Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) acting group chief executive officer (CEO) Mohamed Rastam Shahrom said the airport operator has identified 17 potential airlines from seven regions to operate in the country.
"Together with the support of Malaysia's tourism bodies and government, we hope to continually foster international connections, stimulate tourism, and promote economic development in regions that we serve," he said.
Mohamed added that MAHB has registered 119.5 million passenger movements in 2023 and has expanded its network with the introduction of new routes including Chengdu, Dayong, Kertajati and Siem Reap-Angkor.
This year, MAHB also welcomed five new airlines to Malaysia including Air Macau, Loong Air, flydubai, AirAsia Indonesia and Turkmenistan Airlines.
Routes director Steven Small said this year's Routes Asia has over 110 airlines represented including 10 largest Chinese carriers including China Eastern Airlines, Air China and China Southern Airlines.
He also said the event presents as a platform for MAHB and Tourism Malaysia to demonstrate the significant growth opportunities to the route development community.
MAHB and Tourism Malaysia are hosts of the Routes Asia this year that features keynote speakers including Malaysia Aviation Group's group managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail, Riyadh Air chief operating officer Peter Bellew and Airports Council International Asia and Middle East director general Stefano Baronci.