The flight, served by Airbus A320s, began its inaugural flight last May 28 after an agreement was signed between Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) and Hong Kong Airlines.

The twice-weekly flights are on Wednesday and Saturday, but have since been suspended.

The airline has not specified a reason for the suspension.

“The root cause of the problem must be made known to the public,” said DAP Padungan assemblyman Wong King Wei in a statement.

Wong said the suspension would deal a “blow” to Sarawak’s hopes of becoming an international transport hub.

“Compare this to Sabah. Sabah has at least 18 international routes, some of which are served by more than one airline,” he said.

Wong said Kuching had the potential to be an international hub, connecting the northern and southern hemispheres.

“Kuching is nearer to many cities in New Zealand and Australia compared with Kuala Lumpur or Kota Kinabalu.”

Wong said the government should also reveal what measures it was taking to attract more airline companies to open new international routes to Sarawak.

Assistant Tourism Minister Lee Kim Shin was reported to have expressed disappointment at the suspension of the flight.

“I am very disappointed because the initial plan agreed to by the two parties was to give it a try for three years,” Lee told The Borneo Post on Tuesday.

“STB and the tourism ministry will liaise with the management (of Hong Kong Airlines) and look into the matter. We will see how best to make the flights sustainable,” he said.

The route was the idea by Chief Minister Abang Johari Abang Openg, who was the tourism minister in 2015.