High-security transit

Arrival

We landed a few minutes after our arrival time of 0840. I have 5h25 of connecting time before flying home to see family in Kuching. I had read reports of lengthy waits in the arrival/transfer processing.

Seated in the front of Economy I was amongst the first off the plane. I walked briskly towards the core of the airport and checked if I would go through the International to Domestic Transfer lane as usual, or go through to Arrivals.

Covid-19 Testing

I had to do the latter, with Covid-19 health screening being applied here. I had to fill in some forms, and within 30 mins from landing I had a swab up one nostril.

Two kinds of tests are offered here. I wasn’t given a choice. Passengers entering and quarantining here in Kuala Lumpur are given the more reliable PCR test and will receive their results a few days later. For me, transiting to East Malaysia, I’m given a cheaper/faster RTK Antigen test because the state government will give me a PCR test tomorrow.

The longest wait I experienced so far was the payment queue. There was a bit of a wait to pay by card while there was no queue to pay by cash. I then waited an hour before my RTK Antigen test came back as negative.

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Forms & Immigration

There were more forms to fill at the LOU (Letter of Undertaking and Indemnity, promising to pay the government for the quarantine) counter afterwards. Transiting to Sarawak, I didn’t need the LOU but there was something else to fill.

I cleared immigration manually rather than through the Autogate kiosks, which have been closed off. There are more checks than usual in the current situation.

Once through immigration, I had to fill in a form for the Disaster Agency. Overall, it was a form-filled morning, writing many of the same things. But they rewarded me with a pack of snacks, drinks and water. For some, it would be a long wait to be batched up into buses to the quarantine hotels. Passengers from different flights were segregated in their seating.

Complimentary snack bag.

Connecting to Domestic

For me, I waited to be batched up, to be escorted to the Domestic departure area. With the Domestic to International Transfer lane closed for the moment, I would have to exit into the public area and I guess they have to take every precaution that I do not escape into the city and start a new Covid-19 cluster.

After about 15 mins waiting, or 2h after landing, I was given a personal escort to the Domestic departures. I was escorted airside but wasn’t allowed to roam freely and go to the gate. With about 2h left till boarding time, I was escorted to a bus gate which had been converted to a holding room for International to Domestic connecting passengers.

Again, the authorities have taken a precaution the possibility of people just walking out of the Domestic area through Arrivals and into the city. The process had been well thought out but is very labour intensive. All staff from medical and security were polite and helpful. The latter may not have spoken much English but they were kind.

That holding room was large and had toilets. The seats were suitable for lying down and sleeping if one had more time. There was a vending machine but if one wanted food, it is possible to leave the room to patronise the limited outlets that are open, by surrendering one’s passport and boarding pass to the security guard. I spent about two hours here from 1100 to 1300.

About an hour before my 1405 departure time to Kuching, I was escorted to my boarding gate where my temperature was taken. It was a Malaysia Airlines flight like any other except that everyone wore masks. And there was an announcement to remove the mask before using the oxygen mask (an announcement that appeared to have been missed on my longhaul flight earlier).

Holding room for International to Domestic passengers.

Edit:  Insight into Overnight connections

I had been impressed by how the various government agencies and the airport authority had analysed the international to domestic connection flow and plugged the points where people could escape into the city.  The controls are labour-intensive but are necessary to prevent the start of a new imported cluster.

A couple of days later, a friend’s sister had arrive on Turkish Airlines with an overnight self-connect to Malindo Air domestically.  I queried her on her experience with how her checked-in baggage as she went into the holding room overnight.

Well, she had to take her checked-in baggage to domestic airside and into the holding room.  Next morning, Malindo Air staff came to the holding room.  They checked-her in there and took her baggage to the plane for her. 

It was a small inconvenience for her but a big inconvenience for the airline, especially if there were many connecting passengers.  

Now I’m even more impressed by how the authorities have also engaged with the airlines to make the process as water-tight as possible.