Malaysia’s new budget airline terminal, previously plagued by delays and ballooning cost overruns, is allegedly sinking into the ground, making operations difficult and dangerous for the planes that take off and land there.
AirAsia, KLIA2’s biggest user, has accused the airport of having cracked taxiways and water pools on its runways that could damage aircraft and pose safety risks to flights.
Speaking to Bloomberg‘s Pooi Koon Chong on the matter, AirAsia CEO Aireen Omar reiterated her company’s past objections to the airport before the airline even moved there.
“The airport is still sinking,” she said.
Aireen conceded that Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB), which operates KLIA2, had done some partial resurfacing work, but wanted permanent solutions to the problem.
The Ministry of Transportation has set up an independent audit committee to look into the matter, which will submit a report on the issue of ponding – water pooling on uneven and sunken sections of taxiway – “in due course”.
MAHB for its part said the settling or slight sinking of the tarmac “has been anticipated from the start of construction”, and is addressing the issue by patching and resurfacing problematic sections, and injecting polyurethane under the ground. A concrete slab due to be completed by next April is also expected to permanently address the problem.
Photo: Bloomberg
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