MALAYSIA Airports Holdings (MAB) has given its assurance that klia2’s terminal, apron and taxiways are safe for operations, in light of differential settlement issues affecting the airport’s foundation.
“Safety is of utmost priority for us at MAB and we adhere to a very stringent regulatory regime by the Department of Civil Aviation, in accordance to the ICAO standards and recommended practices,” Malaysia Airports said in a statement yesterday.
According to the release, klia2’s apron and taxiway is experiencing differential settlement, which can cause ponding and depression issues. However, of the airport’s total 1,480,000m2 space, only 2.3 per cent of it is affected, said the statement.
MAB was responding to Tony Fernandes, AirAsia’s group CEO’s earlier remarks that the airport needed to be fixed.
“We should have let the ground settle, fix it and then moved,” said Fernandes in a report by New Straits Times on July 28.
In the same report, Aireen Omar, CEO of AirAsia, had said: “It is a struggle to operate from klia2. The best thing is really to find a permanent solution that will address all the issues that we are facing. From what we understand, the issues will continue to be there for the next few years…maybe another 10 years or so.”
But MAB said it had received all required safety certifications prior to the opening of klia2, and that “a Joint Inspection Committee is the proper platform for the airport stakeholders to raise and resolve any operational issues including the update on the rectification works”.
