AirAsia includes ‘Under Protest’ in receipts as its starts collecting extra RM23 for PSC

AirAsia has resisted collecting an additional RM23 in PSC.

PETALING JAYA: AirAsia says it will start collecting the additional RM23 in passenger service charge (PSC) following the High Court’s ruling last month ordering the low-cost airline to pay RM40.6 million to Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) for failing to collect the tax.

But the airline said it was doing so “under strong protest”, adding that the charge is unfair to passengers who use klia2, which it said was inferior in facilities compared to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

“I believe many will agree with us that they’re not getting their money’s worth, especially when compared to the far superior facilities at KLIA,” said Riad.

AirAsia customers will be charged the PSC from midnight, with the words “PSC (Under Protest)” included in the bill.

In July, the High Court ordered AirAsia to pay RM40.6 million to Malaysia Airports (Sepang) Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of MAHB, in unpaid PSC for six months last year.

AirAsia had refused to collect the full RM73 in PSC from passengers departing from klia2 to non-Asean destinations, after the tax was increased by RM23 from the previous RM50.

AirAsia X Malaysia CEO Benyamin Ismail said the airline would exhaust all legal avenues to challenge the imposition of the additional amount.

“However, we are forced to collect the additional RM23 as we cannot afford to continue subsidising our guests in the event our appeal falls through,” said Benyamin. - FMT