Chennai could be the first Indian city to have a direct flight to Penang, a Malaysian state. “Talks are on for a direct flight between Chennai and Penang. Currently, people visiting Penang have to take a flight from Kuala Lumpur,” said Wong Hon Wai, Penang State Minister for Tourism and Creative Economy at the 7th edition of the Penang Roadshow to India 2024 that was held in Chennai.
Talks are also on with few airlines to connect tier-2 towns of Tamil Nadu to Kuala Lumpur. “There are plans to have one more flight from Chennai. And a direct flight from Madurai and Tiruchi to Kuala Lumpur,” said Razaidi Abdul Rahim-Director of Tourism Malaysia (South India and SriLanka)
At present, AirAsia operates 14 flights per week from Chennai to Kuala Lumpur, Batik Air (7/week), Malaysia Airlines (14/week) and Indigo (7/week). And from January to November 2023, total tourist arrivals to Malaysia from India stood at 587,703.
