A corporate leader with diverse experience, he is harnessing the latest technological advances to spur Malaysia Airports to greater heights as a smart aviation regional hub.
This month, Dato’ Mohd Shukrie Mohd Salleh shares how the airport operator is ever prepared to deal with all eventualities, including the annual Northeast monsoon alongside its efforts to upgrade the facilities at and around the KL International Airport (KLIA) amidst the ongoing coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
As a responsible airport operator and caring host, we have been doing extensive preparation in 
terms of flood mitigation measures at our seven airports in Kuala Terengganu, Kota Bharu, Kuantan, Ipoh, Alor Setar, Penang and Kota Kinabalu, which are likely to be affected by the monsoon season that falls between November and March.
We recently completed the installation of a portable submersible water pump and generator at the Sultan Mahmud Airport in Terengganu to complement its two existing pump houses and to steer excess water into the sea. Although this airport has not been affected by floods before, we believe in taking extra precautions to ensure that its essential services for our valued guests are not compromised.
These efforts are part of our airport customised Flood Emergency Response Plan, where we have also ensured that our airports’ drainage system is clear of debris and blockage for excess water to easily flow out from its premise.
Meanwhile, we have also made sure that t he drive to KL International Airport (KLIA) is brighter and safer as part of our ongoing enhancement of street lights within its vicinity and to ensure our guests have a seamless journey to and from the airport. This exercise, which started since last October, is almost near completion.
So far, 2,000 street light poles and railing light fittings along the main roads around our flagship airport have been rectified. Working closely with the Public Works Department, we will also be rectifying the wire and guard rails, resurfacing the roads and repainting line markings along these roads.
KLIA is also undergoing a major upgrading of its baggage handling system (BHS) using ultra-violet (UV) technology as it readies itself to serve a larger capacity more efficiently and when travel resumes to normalcy. Exploring new technologies and the latest global practices is part of our commitment to ensure a safe and smooth passenger journey.
The UV bulbs, installed in an enclosed tunnel within the BHS, disinfect the baggage automatically as it passes through the conveyor system to the reclaim area. Using UV short wavelength, this technology has been proven to effectively eliminate surface contaminants such as mould, bacteria and other microbial biofilms. We are installing four UV tunnels to help mitigate the risk from infectious airborne microbial contaminants for both our passengers and staff responsible for baggage handling.
The latest statistics on our passenger movement last December for our Malaysia operations is a cause for celebration with seven new local flight routes boosting domestic traffic by three-fold compared to the month before, where we saw over a million passengers travelling domestically.
The spike in Covid-19 cases in the country and the recently announced imposition of tighter travel restrictions are expected to impact our passenger movements in the coming months. Nevertheless, I would like to reassure that we, at Malaysia Airports, are always ready and committed to maintain the highest levels of safety at our airports.