KUALA TERENGGANU, Fri.
-Berjaya Air's new route from Seletar Airport in Singapore to Pulau Redang has cut what was once an 11-hour journey to just 90 minutes.

Tourists no longer have endure a 10-hour overland coach and an hour-long ferry ride to the island.

Berjaya Group Berhad executive director Azlan Meah said the new flight would also attract tourists from Europe with connecting flight out of Singapore.

"We are expecting more than 25,000 visitors to use this new route," he said.

Azlan was speaking at a Press conference after welcoming 33 passengers from the inaugural Berjaya Air flight at the Berjaya Redang Beach and Spa Resort mini-airport on Pulau Redang yesterday.

He said many Singaporeans had requested for the flight to Pulau Redang.

" Pulau Redang is one of the most marketable islands in Malaysia and most Singaporeans love holidaying there.

"We took almost a year conducting a study on whether it was feasible to have direct flights between the two destinations," he added.

Berjaya Air also offers daily flights from the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Selangor, to the island.

Meanwhile, State Industrial Development and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Mohamed Awang Tera said the latest development would generate economic activities on the island.

"We hope that by 2008, the tourism sector will contribute 10 per cent to the State's Gross Domestic Product (GDP)," he said
On another development, Mohamed said Berjaya Air may soon offer direct flights from the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport to Kertih in Kemaman.

"This route will mainly cater to Petronas employees in Kertih to travel back and forth daily."

He said the State Government was also in discussions with Berjaya Air to fly between Kuala Lumpur and Kuala Terengganu once the new Sultan Mahmud airport here is completed.