PENANG’s tourism sector is expected to see a boost as more airlines look to establish direct flights to the state, upping tourist arrivals and spending, said outgoing tourism and creative economy exco Yeoh Soon Hin.

Yeoh said the caretaker state government is laying the foundation in hopes of connecting Penang with major cities globally.

“We hope to be able to establish direct flights to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha, Chennai, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing, Chengdu, Tokyo, Seoul, Istanbul and Sydney by year-end.

“I hope my successor … completes the mission to bring direct flights to Penang International Airport (PIA),” he told a press conference in George Town after announcing AirAsia’s newly resumed Hong Kong-Penang route today.

He said linking Penang by air with key global destinations presents the state with immense potential in terms of developing tourism and trade.

Tourism Malaysia senior international promotion director Manoharan Periasamy said: “Having another city as another point of entry to Malaysia is always good because this will automatically increase the length of tourists’ stay, translating to additional revenue for us in terms of tourist spending.”

Also present was Deputy Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan and Capital A non-executive director Abdul Aziz Bakar.

AirAsia flight AK2280 from Hong Kong arrived at PIA at 2.55pm with a 96% load. Passengers were welcomed with a water cannon salute and treated to exclusive AirAsia merchandise. – Bernama, August 10, 2023.