Yoursay: Can MAS be saved or should it close shop?

YOURSAY | If AirAsia and SIA can be the best of the best, why not MAS?

Hat-trick of bailouts failed to see MAS soar, notes Plus boss

Anonymous_9465aabe: I’m sure we have capable Malaysians to turn our national airline around.

Since MSA (Malaysia-Singapore Airlines) split to become MAS (Malaysia Airlines) and SIA (Singapore Airlines), the question that needs to be asked is why is SIA so successful while MAS is perpetually in the doldrums?

It’s not rocket science - hire on merit.

Anti-Corruption: Yes, the solution is no rocket science. I am a Malaysian working in Singapore Airlines. I have been there for 40 plus years.

Appointments here are based on true meritocracy, regardless of race or religion. This has made SIA the best airline in the world. Do that in MAS and it will be profitable.

David Dass: The problems in MAS are an object lesson for the nation. How does one run a profitable airline in the face of intense competition and soaring oil costs?

In the years that MAS struggled and struggled to stay afloat - or perhaps more appropriately, aloft - SIA become one the world's most profitable airline. And in recent times a former advertising executive made AirAsia one of the most successful budget airlines in the world.

So, today we ponder the fate of MAS. Some say close the airline down. It is bleeding money and we do not seem able to turn it around.

A closure would be a sad prospect as many Malaysians have enjoyed the wonderful cabin service of MAS. Passengers say that the quality of food has gone down in recent times and there have been concerns about safety.

What do we do? Can we make MAS profitable? What do we have to do to make the airline profitable? Can we get some turnaround specialist to do a study and tell us what we should do?

Anecdotally, we all know of exorbitant prices for nasi lemak, its huge staff and the airline being forced to take on unprofitable routes. Is it a dead horse that we flog or has the critter more life yet? Many of us would love to see MAS continue to soar.

Middle Path: All the years, we have seen so many such attempts to rescue MAS, but all failed due to many reasons.

Political interference, race-based appointments, using MAS as a cash cow to enrich some, lopsided contracts to supply food, etc, overstaffed and lazy workers.

These are only naming a few. If the right person is appointed and with no political interference and a free hand to turn the airline around, surely it is not impossible.

Even I am confident of doing a good job if given a chance.

AnotherKomentar: MAS was not operated as a serious international airline because it has an anti-competitive business model, where it is a gravy train of cronyism and corrupt business practices.

It’s a crying shame that a good national brand has to die because of the entrenched systemic failure of mixing politics with business, which has infected our economy.

Abasir: By the time the true history of MAS is written exposing its systematic and serial abuse over the years by the connected class belonging to the past and present regimes who saw it as their entitlement, it will be too late to salvage anything.

MAS insiders have first-hand accounts of what really went on there - the wasteful vanity projects to please the BoD (board of directors) and CEO, the pilfering that went unnoticed by those paid to detect them, the rampant and widespread use of connections to get free upgrades, shoddy business deals and outlandish contracts, the constant interference by parasitic political warlords in supreme councils... the list goes on and on.

What was at first aberrant wasteful behaviour and questionable decision-making by those entrusted with the keys, soon became ‘korporat kulture’ fuelled by rank incompetence buttressed by a potent mix of political trespassing and ‘ketuananism’.

As both the parachuted German and the Irishman discovered to their chagrin, the rot ran so deep and wide that it was not amenable to any treatment using known management tools and processes.

But it has not been all bad news - at least for some. In one instance, one fellow made his name as a turnaround artiste before becoming a PowerPoint specialist driving civil servants up the wall with his alphabet-soup artistry.

Before him, another fellow transformed himself from an ordinary bank executive to high-flying businessman and connectivity vendor with many cables.

MAS has indeed been a golden goose, though just not laying any eggs now.

TehTarik: Billions wasted on MAS bailouts. Money that could have been used to build hospitals, schools and low-cost flats.

We all know that MAS is a bottomless pit, only good at swallowing taxpayer's money. We already have AirAsia and Malindo which connect to most cities in Asia and Australia.

If another national champion Proton could be sold to the Chinese, why not MAS be similarly sold to a foreign buyer?

Gov't to consider shutting down MAS among other options: PM

Anonymous 770241447347646: MAS must be privatised officially. Not sold to a GLC (government-linked company) but a private company.

The second option is to allow AirAsia to run it without any interference from any other sources.

Before such an action is taken, MAS must be investigated completely. It has been a cash cow for the many leeches who had sucked it dry.

Does Pakatan Harapan have the guts to allow a thorough investigation? Do they fear the amount of woodworms that will creep out of it?

At the moment, until all the leakages are plugged, there is no point pumping good money into the airline. It is like a well that has no bottom.

It is time to seriously make a decision for the future of MAS.

Vgeorgemy: We strongly believe that the time has come for those who are critical of shutting down the national carrier to take it over at RM1 from Khazanah.

No one, even the association representing its staff, will put their own hard monies on the airline. So shut it down and let good entrepreneurs take over the business.

This has happened for Proton, so why not do it for MAS?

Anonymous_1543918786: Our neighbour's airline can make a handsome profit year after year. Ours is losing like there is no tomorrow. Why is there such vast discrepancy?

There is no need to have a rocket scientist to find the cause. Performance and efficiency by qualified personnel ensure success. Deadwood and cronies are not going to change anything soon.

Dizzer: The economic multiplier effect (tourism and ancillary services) of a national carrier is immense, which is why it comes under Khazanah's 'strategic' rather than its 'commercial' portfolio.

The political interference and sweetheart deals (take a look at who got the contracts for upgrades, food and beverage, uniforms, etc) have not really helped.

I gather there was something fishy about the purchase of the six A380s, now being used for the haj.

Perhaps former PM and finance minister Najib Abdul Razak has some thoughts on this, along with his promise to buy eight Dreamliners and 25 B737s from Boeing to keep US President Donald Trump sweet. 

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.

These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.