Mahathir: Govt seeks solutions to keep MAS flying
KUALA LUMPUR: The government is seeking solutions to keep Malaysia Airlines Bhd’s (MAS) flying as the national carrier, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said.
“It’s a serious matter to shut down the national airline,” he told reporters at the parliament lobby today. “We will nevertheless study as to whether we should shut it down or sell it off or refinance it. All these options are open to the government.”
Aviation analysts have said the carrier’s failure to meet its three-year target for profitability has made it unsustainable.
The airline was privatised in 2014 as part of a revival bid but continued its trend of heavy losses.
The national carrier suffered a massive blow after flight MH370 disappeared in March 2014, with all 239 people on board.
In July the same year, it lost another plane, MH17, with 298 people on board, when it was shot down over eastern Ukraine.
