Travellers flying out of Malaysia’s airports to other Asean countries will have to pay more in passenger service charges from June 1.

The announcement by the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) lifted the share price of Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAHB) to a 52-week high at RM8.69 briefly on March 13, but it also sent many frustrated passengers to social media demanding an explanation for the fee hike.

Mavcom said on March 12 that all travellers departing from Kuala Lumpur International Airport 1 (KLIA1) will have to pay RM73 (S$21) from June 1.

Currently, those leaving for other Asean countries are charged RM35, while those going to non-Asean countries pay RM73.

Passengers travelling from Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 and other airports to all destinations will have to pay RM50.

This marks an increase of RM15 for those travelling within Asean, but a drop of RM23 for those flying to places outside Asean.

“The introduction of the revised rates is designed to support the aviation sector’s recovery and adaptability in the post-Covid-19 pandemic environment,” Mavcom said in its statement.

To spur local travel and ensure affordability, domestic travellers will pay the same fee of RM11 at all airports except for Johor’s Senai International Airport, which will raise the fee to RM16, said Mavcom.

All airports will also introduce a transfer fee ranging between RM7 and RM42 for all transit passengers, as they should “contribute towards the costs of airport infrastructure”, Mavcom said.

Netizens, however, were miffed about the price hike.

A user on social media platform X asked: “Is this money going towards repairing or upgrading the sh**** airport?”

Another user said: “Charges for what? KLIA can’t even provide a train to connect passengers to its own satellite building.”

Some said that since their experiences at KLIA1 were poor, there was no reason for the commission to “commit daylight robbery”.

Analysts from Hong Leong Investment Bank said in a research note on March 13 that the revised rates will help MAHB achieve higher earnings, adding that the fee hike is unlikely to have “material impact” on air travel demand.