AIRASIA should have anticipated its own shortage of aircraft and not sell tickets only to reschedule flights later, Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii said. 

“If it knows it cannot meet the demand, it should not have allowed the tickets to be sold and end up causing so much inconvenience, delay and even economic loss to the public,” he said in a statement today.

The DAP Youth chief also called this a form of “misrepresentation” by allowing customers to buy tickets for a certain flight at a certain time, only to reschedule it.

He said AirAsia’s statement, which said it had insufficient aircraft due to repairs and maintenance required after a long period of lying idle during Covid-19 lockdowns, is inexcusable.

“While safety and security of the planes and passengers are of utmost importance, the company should have anticipated this and if it was aware that it had insufficient planes, it should not have opened up all those tickets to be sold to the public.”

Dr Yii called on the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) to hold AirAsia accountable and to protect consumers’ rights, noting that such mishaps had been happening with the airline since April.

Dr Yii yesterday said Mavcom should have a long-term policy in place to ensure airlines do not unreasonably reschedule flights.

This follows consumer outcry over rescheduled flight bookings during the Hari Raya festive season, leaving some stranded for up to 10 hours, and difficulty in claiming compensation.

It led to Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong yesterday urging airlines to be more proactive in dealing with customers’ complaints about rescheduled flights.

Mavcom last night said it would be investigating problematic airlines that have made “indiscriminate changes” to flight schedules without adequate notice to passengers. 

Dr Yii cited a complaint he received from a customer whose flight was changed just a few hours after he had bought a ticket online.

“Mind you, the flight is in two weeks’ time and it (AirAsia) already knew it would be delayed. 

“If it can foresee the problem, why sell those tickets in the first place?” – May 11, 2022.