Malaysia’s First Sharia-Compliant Airline

Malaysia’s first Sharia-compliant airline (and only the fourth in the world), Rayani Air took to the skies over the weekend. Acting in accordance with Sharia law, female crewmembers who identify as Muslim must wear a traditional hijabwhile non-Muslim crew are required to be “decently dressed.”
All food and beverages served in flight will be halal-certified and a strict no-alcohol policy will be enforced as well. Additionally, prayers will be recited before the departure of each flight. “We are the first Malaysian airline to be Sharia-compliant, based on guidelines by relevant authorities,” recently named Rayani Air managing director Jaafar Zamhari said in a statement. “We are proud of this.”

Halal—foods that are permissible for Muslims to eat or drink under Sharia law—excludes pork and its by-products, alcohol, and animals not slaughtered according to Islamic practices.

While Rayani Airlines isn’t the first carrier to abide by Sharia law, Malaysia is officially billed as a secular state with a more moderate temperament. Other Sharia carriers operate in the more fundamentalist communities of Saudi Arabia and Iran. However reports of increasingly conservative attitudes have been on the rise over recent months in Malaysia, according to reports.

Based in the Island resort town of Langkawi in the Andaman Sea, Rayani Air was granted their Air Service License and Air Operator’s Certificate from the Department of Civil Aviation on Friday and has since launched its inaugural flight from Kuala Lumpur.

For now, the carrier plans to operate domestic flights within Malaysia using Boeing 737s before expanding internationally to Asia Pacific routes including South-east Asia, China, Australia, and the Middle East.

Rayani air

Posted by Staffreporter on December 23, 2015. Filed under World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

5 Responses to Malaysia’s First Sharia-Compliant Airline

Neutral Observer Reply

December 23, 2015 at 9:51 am

And a ISL sucide bomber will be on board also
Air Mukwai_ Reply

December 23, 2015 at 10:15 am

Time has come to remove bad seeds from good seeds,
Time has come to choose discard some religion doctrines that sideline ladies/women from doing what others can do.
Time has come to appreciate what the working government is doing for its people during these hard times the country is going through.
Scott Reply

December 23, 2015 at 4:46 pm

what, no gin and tonic?
That would make for a terribly boring flight
New Educated Zambia©❤√ Reply

December 23, 2015 at 7:16 pm

You have a choice as whether or not to fly with them. So this should not be an issue. However as things stand in zambia most of you do not have a choice but to live under the abusive government of pf which is restricting your freedoms by abusing the POA and police force to cause havoc and fear in you. In 2016 it is your chance zambians to do away with the pf-sharia type of governance. we thank you and vote upnd
virgin angel Reply

December 24, 2015 at 11:50 am

In 2016, Zambians have another chance to continue aligning the country to men and women of known faith, governance experience, infrastructure development that benefits the country and vote for a party that does not thrive on whims of ethnicity- a party with a national character-PABWATOO!!!