A fact check would show that MAS isn’t the only one grappling with the issues in the post-Covid period as demand for travel has shot up.
THE celebrations at Malaysia Airlines following the announcement in March that the airline had made a net profit for the first time since 2015 seemed to have hit turbulence too fast.
The parent company had reported a net profit of RM766mil for 2023 and certainly it was a momentous milestone for the airline.
It was the airline’s first net profit since it was taken over and relaunched by the government in 2015. Last year was also MAG’s (Malaysia Aviation Group) second consecutive year of operating profit.
But the company’s profits could be under threat now as MAS has announced that the necessary flight cancellations for August and September have been completed although MAG assured that all other flights for the two months remain unaffected and would continue as scheduled.
It’s bad news because planes are supposed to fly and not remain stuck in the hangars although it is commendable that MAS has placed passenger and crew safety, long-term fleet reliability and operations robustness as its priority.
On Aug 24, MAG announced it would reduce some routes served by Malaysia Airlines, Firefly and Amal until December as it looked to address some recent “operational difficulties”.
MAG group managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail said the group was working closely with its aircraft and engine manufacturers and, a wide range of suppliers to “comprehensively address supply chain and technical issues’’ but it may be something beyond his control.
Izham also apologised for the disruptions that took place this week involving Malaysia Airlines, Firefly and Amal services.According to AeroRoute, Malaysia Airlines would temporarily cut the frequency of flights to 13 international destinations within its route network.
The affected services are said to included flights to Bangkok, Denpasar, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Jeddah, Medan, Mumbai, Osaka, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo and Yangon
According to informed aviation specialists, a total of 6,388 flights involving at least a million passengers, are expected to be cancelled, with the majority occurring in December, where 2,073 flights will be affected.
It’s certainly bad news as this is regarded as a peak and holiday season, where many would be travelling.
It would also affect Firefly as the grounding will result in the cancellation of 2,352 flights, with the ATR fleet being the most affected, accounting for 2,144 of those cancellations.
This writer has learnt that for MAS, at least seven aircraft are currently grounded: five B737s and two A330s, due to engine unavailability or engine-related issues while for Firefly, two aircraft have been grounded since August with another three next month. Three more will be added to the list in October.
The question on everyone’s mind would be how MAG can afford to have so many planes grounded?
Really, MAS has little choice as the decision not to fly these planes is driven by operational constraints contributed at the original equipment manufacturer level.
In simple language, the aircraft part makers and suppliers, which will decide who gets the parts as well as how to keep MH’s maintenance engineers, which are also head-hunted by other airlines.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said 63 of the 411 skilled workers at the airlines’ engineering department had left the department since January.
Former Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong also said allowing Singapore Airlines Engineering Company to expand its regional base network here with a 15-year lease of hangars in Subang last December was a critical mistake as home grown talent were lost.
Informed sources said MAS had faced material shortages which limited spare parts production, impacting turnaround time to engine shop visits for all fleets.
The slow delivery of essential spare parts from the United States and around the world where the raw materials mostly sourced from various countries, including war-torn Ukraine and Russia, which is facing global sanctions.
In technical aviation jargon, “the inability of PBTH (power by the hour) provider to give right coverage of On-Site Stock (OSS) which leads to longer ground time required for any AOG (airplane on ground) recovery.”
In layman’s language, it simply means the spare parts failed to arrive and the result is that the planes cannot take off.
Aircraft wear and tear are typically caused by operational stress, mechanical load and environmental conditions. However, airlines face challenges with scarce spare parts that are not readily available.
A fact check would show that MAS isn’t the only one grappling with the issues in the post-Covid period as demand for travel has shot up.
On May 24, the Straits Times reported Singapore’s budget airlines Scoot attributed its recent spate of flight disruptions to a shortage of spare parts arising from supply chain issues, with the airline, in its statement, saying “the shortage is affecting the aviation industry as a whole.’’
Business Insider, in a 2022 report, said “spare parts shortages are forcing airlines to ground planes’’ citing Lufthansa, Qatar and Silver Airways, as among those suffering a shortage of spare parts and the airlines are “asking suppliers to ramp up production.’’
Another portal, livemint.com said on Jan 7 that “airlines have hit fresh turbulence and it’s not going away anytime soon’’ which has been ‘’stymied by supply chain issues globally, airlines are increasingly calling for localisation of maintenance, repair and overhaul operations.’’
On Feb 23, Reuters reported it could “take up to two years to resolve’’ the problems of parts shortages while delivery delays ‘’are plaguing global aviation’’ which will add pressure to a post-pandemic recovery in travel demand.
As for MAS, like other airlines, some had faced the same problems since 2022. MAS would just need to work harder with aircraft and engine manufacturers, and a wide range of suppliers to comprehensively address supply chain and technical issues.
It doesn’t help MAS that even its delivery of new aircraft has been delayed resulting in fewer aircraft being available for operations than planned.
MAS is supposed to be getting three A330 from September, but it looks like it will be delayed with another 11 Boeing 737-8 scheduled to arrive this year but only two have arrived.
It is important we understand the issues facing MAS and other airlines as many of us are fond of kicking and blaming many Malaysian institutions.
All of us have grappled with flight delays and worse, cancellations, but what is MAS’ track record for on-time performance and handling of delays?
I did some checking, and the statistics showed on-time performance for year-to-date Q2 2024 is 73%.
Out of 44,539 total departures from January to June 2024, 32,649 flights were on time which concludes that 11,890 flights were delayed.
Of course, it’s not good enough but perception is probably worse, and MAS must buck up by setting a better on time target.
I will still choose MAS because it’s simply Malaysian Hospitality and nothing beats a genuine Malaysian welcome after a long trip overseas.
MAS has placed passenger and crew safety first, which is the right thing to do, at the expense of the bottom line, but the general passengers may not be so forgiving or even bother with the explanation of global spare parts shortage.
Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai, who has been a journalist for over 40 years, is the Star Media Group advisor.
