New regional carrier Athena Air Services today launched flights from Senai Airport in Johor to Jakarta and Surabaya, the airport's operator said.

The carrier, jointly operated by Malaysian firm Athena (M) Sdn. Bhd. and PT Indonesian Airlines Avipatria, is the third airline to use Senai Airport after Malaysia Airlines and budget carrier AirAsia.

Athena Air will fly passengers three times weekly to Jakarta and Surabaya on board its Boeing 727-232 aircraft, which can seat 149 people, Senai Airport Terminal Services (Sats) said in a statement.

Athena Air chief executive Jamaluddin Abdullah was quoted as saying the carrier picked Senai Airport due to its growing potential as an international hub.

"We are providing travellers from Indonesia direct access to Malaysias southern region and the option to visit Singapore via Senai at a competitive price," he said.

"There is a huge business potential operating out of Senai Airport and we are confident of doubling our flight capacity within six months."

Good progress

Sats director Mohamad Sidik Shaik Osman said the entry of Athena Air was a boost to Senai Airport's ambition to be a "hub and spoke network for both passengers and cargo" in the southern region.

"It has long been our contention that Johor has been underserved in aviation services and we are making good progress in filling this gap," he said.

Sats, controlled by tycoon Syed Mokhtar Albukhary, recently acquired the airport for RM80 million from Malaysia Airports Holdings and is the only independent airport operator in the country.

Last week, it said it expected passenger numbers to grow by 50 percent to 1.5 million by June next year.

Under an ambitious one-billion-ringgit expansion program, it plans to build a new terminal to raise capacity to 15 million passengers a year to develop Senai into Asia's air and cargo hub to complement the nearby Port of Tanjung Pelepas, which the businessman also controls. - AFP