Malaysia Airlines says planes from Jakarta full

Malaysia Airlines says planes from Jakarta full

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Malaysia Airlines (MAS) said yesterday that its planes from Jakarta were full, but it did not know if the strong demand for seats was due to riots in the Indonesian capital or the return of Malaysians from holiday.

A spokeswoman for the state carrier, a unit of Malaysian Airline System Bhd., said there had been no change in flight schedules.

"Out of Indonesia, it is full," she told Reuters by telephone.

"Whether it is because of rioting, we are not able to define. Normally this is our peak period because of school holidays and flights are full.

"Whether the flights are full because of the holidays or the current situation (in Indonesia), we cannot tell."

Jakarta is being hit by its worst riots in more than three decades, triggered by protests against price hikes imposed by the government in an effort to resolve its economic crisis and demands for President Soeharto to step down.

Mobs rampaged through sections of Jakarta yesterday, with no apparent slackening of rampant violence a day after 12 people were killed in anti-government protests, riots, arson and looting.