KOTA KINABALU: Malaysia Airline System has never, and will continue not to compromise on the safety of passengers, hence, it is safe to fly MAS for both domestic and international destinations.

This was disclosed yesterday by MAS regional manager for Sabah and Brunei, George A. Skadiang.

Speaking to reporters here, he said it has always been the policy of the airline to ensure optimum safety of its passengers at all times.

According to him, any scheduled MAS flight will be cancelled immediately if the safety of the passengers is doubtful.

"Such measures are very important because we are dealing with life here," he said adding that the ongoing US-led attacks on Afghanistan has seen a drop in passenger loads, particularly in its long-haul routes like Europe and USA.

However, George said domestic flights, like the Kuala Lumpur-Kota Kinabalu routes, have not been affected.

"We are experiencing roughly between a 10 per cent to 20 per cent drop in passenger loads, but depending on the routes," he said.

As a result of the drop in passenger loads, George said MAS has taken steps to reduce and even temporarily suspend operations in certain international destinations for obvious reasons.

He said among the affected international routes include Karachi and New York among others.

Touching on the domestic flights, George said MAS will be mounting additional flights between peninsula and Sabah in the later stages of the year.

"We are going to have 100 per cent additional flights this year compared to last year for this particular route," he said adding that additional flights will only be considered as and when the need arises.

On the suspension of the Singapore-Kota Kinabalu route by Singapore Airlines, George said the seat factor is not full, and MAS will only come in if there is a demand and necessity to cater for such additional flights.