Berjaya Hotels & Resorts announced that it has acquired two pre-owned ATR 42-500 aircraft to run twice-daily flights between Kuala Lumpur’s Subang Airport and Redang Island starting in June.
The new service will enable the Malaysia-based hotel operator to fill its rooms in Redang Island, where it operates Taaras Beach & Spa and Redang Island Resort.
Operated by the group’s sister company Berjaya Air, the flights reduce travelling time between Subang and Redang from five hours to one hour. The aircraft will be refurbished with new interior and offers 36 passenger seats each.
The company believes that there is strong demand for Redang holidays, but the island currently does not enjoy as much connectivity as other Berjaya locations such as Langkawi. Berjaya is now running flights solely to fill their resorts, rather than competing with full-fledged airlines as they previously did with flights to Penang, Langkawi and Koh Samui.
Flight tickets will be sold with all-inclusive resort packages, which include a three-day, two-night stay in a twin-sharing suite and will cost upwards of RM 3,500 (USD 897). Guests can check into their rooms in the Subang lounge before boarding the plane.
Berjaya is also now “in talks” to establish connections between Redang and Seletar Airport in Singapore. This route is expected to be introduced around end-2018 to early-2019 with a new aircraft.