KL to spend US$263.8m on airports

KL to spend US$263.8m on airports

Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur

The government is planning to spend some 1 billion ringgit
(US$263.8 million) this year on airport development in East
Malaysia, Bernama news agency reported, citing Transport
Minister Ling Liong Sik.

"The government is planning to widen the runway for the new
Bintulu airport to enable it to handle bigger aircraft ... while
the Miri and Sibu airports will also be upgraded to handle," Ling
said at the opening the new Labuan Airport Terminal.

He said that the government has earmarked Labuan airport as
one of the destinations within the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-
Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

Ling also said that the government is considering placing sky
marshalls in aircraft to prevent possible hijacks and ensure the
safety of passengers and cabin crew.

"Nowadays, aircraft are hijacked and used as missiles and this
is very dangerous," he said, adding that using sky marshals has
been enforced in India, with several countries following suit
soon.

The government is also looking into the possibility of
equipping aircraft cockpits with more security features, Ling
added. (AFX ASIA)