KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 28): The Ministry of Transport has ordered an investigation into Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) over 21 incidents involving the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1 aerotrain since its July 1 launch. The latest incident occurred Tuesday morning (Oct 28).
Transport Minister Anthony Loke in a statement on Tuesday said MAHB was initially given time to adjust but will face strict action for future failures, with fines of up to RM250,000 per breach under the Land Public Transport Act 2010.
MAHB in a separate statement said the disruption earlier today and the Oct 15 incident were linked to the aerotrain’s power system, managed by the joint venture between IJM Corp Bhd (KL:IJM) and Pestec International Bhd (KL:PESTEC) (IPJV). It is awaiting detailed contractor reports. An independent assessor will also review the system’s power design and installation.
MAHB is holding its contractors Alstom and IPJV accountable for at least three incidents which halted the aerotrain. It said the July 12 and Sept 3 incidents were caused by a dislodged current collector affecting Alstom’s train power system, while Oct 15’s incident was a power trip under IPJV’s responsibility. All incidents occurred during the defect liability period, making the contractors responsible for fixes.
MAHB described the incident as “disappointing” since the aerotrain underwent extensive testing and certification before launch. The aerotrain cost the government RM456 million to upgrade.