Malaysia Airlines to ground fleet of Boeing 777s
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines is grounding its remaining fleet of Boeing 777 aircrafts, reported The Independent today.
Not only that, the Malaysian carrier will also stop flying the Kuala Lumpur-Amsterdam, route, beginning today, said the daily.
According to the report, Malaysia Airline’s “last” Boeing 777 will arrive at Kuala Lumpur from Guangzhou, China, today.
“While the route will continue, the plane is being downsized to a Boeing 737-800 – a predominantly short-haul jet with about half the capacity (of the 777),” said the report.
The move comes following the airline’s twin tragedies involving the 777 in 2014. Flight MH370 vanished enroute to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur in March that year while flight MH17 was shot down over a conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, while it was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, in July.
All 239 people on board MH370 remain missing while 298 people were killed in the downing of MH17.
Although the twin tragedies were unrelated, it shook public confidence in the airline, which was already in the red for years prior.
The national carrier then opted to undergo a massive restructuring exercise, which saw jobs cut and routes lost.
The report quoted aviation consultant John Strickland saying that the airlines is now “in the hands of a very well respected CEO, Christoph Mueller, known for successful turnarounds.”
“It’s in a very buoyant market with room for growth at its Kuala Lumpur hub.”
Malcolm Ginsberg, Editor of Business Travel News, said: “People have short memories. If the management can be allowed to manage, then AirAsia and Singapore Airlines might quickly find they have real competition on their hands.
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