Following a meeting with the Japanese Transport Ministry, it was announced on Friday that an arrangement has been reached to allow airlines to freely decide on the number of flights and routes they operate between the Narita International Airport in Tokyo and Malaysia from the summer of 2013.
Malaysia will then intensify efforts to promote the Kota Kinabalu International Airport in Sabah as its second aviation hub, especially after Japan agreed to open skies arrangement with the country.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha said more flights to and from Tokyo to Malaysia through Kota Kinabalu were expected as many Japanese wanted to visit Sabah.
"We are currently working towards promoting Kota Kinabalu as a second hub. By this arrangement, it will allow more flights and airlines from Malaysia flying to Tokyo, and this is good for air travelling between the two countries," he said.
Kong said that his officials met with counterparts from Japan's Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry here last Wednesday to finalise the arrangement.
This will take place when the maximum quota of landings and take-offs at Narita are raised to 270,000 per year.
Kong said that with the arrangement, Malaysian carriers would also be able to fly more frequently to Narita, if slots for landings and departures at the airport increased gradually before summer of 2013.
Earlier, the two countries agreed on air service liberalisation, except services in Narita due to the airport�s lack of available slots for landings and departures.
Currently, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has daily flights to Narita from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport while Air Asia X operates three times a week to Haneda.
Last year, MAS announced that it was making Kota Kinabalu as its eastern hub to tap into major international destinations from the Far East to Australia, with development over three stages, beginning Nov 15, last year to June 3, this year.
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