KUALA LUMPUR: Penang International Airport (PIA) welcomed its first passengers travelling under the new Singapore-Penang Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) By Air Programme on Wednesday.
In a statement yesterday, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd said flight AK1730 by AirAsia was the first VTL flight to touch down at 6.40pm carrying about 60 passengers under the programme.
MAHB said the aircraft received water cannon salute while passengers were greeted with mementos to mark the special occasion.
Penang is the second Malaysian destination introduced after Kuala Lumpur under the Singapore-Malaysia VTL programme.
There are four airlines operating under this programme - Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, Singapore Airlines and Scoot.
MAHB managing director Datuk Iskandar Mizal Mahmood said this was a positive move by the government to stimulate international traffic and tourism leading to economic growth.
He added that the airport operator was expecting between 1,000 and 2,000 VTL passenger movements during the first week of operations.
"PIA has always been the second busiest airport after Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in terms of international passenger traffic so expanding the programme to include Penang will contribute to the revitalisation of our tourism industry.
"Penang is also a gateway to the northern states therefore this can benefit neighbouring states such as Kedah, Perak and Perlis as well," he said.