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Insider info is that the Dugong is officially leaving the fleet for good. While local Haj Umrah capacity will not be affected as the A330 could supply, substantial indonesian pilgrims transiting would have to source other means as the feeder service is likely gone for good. 

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26 minutes ago, jahur said:

Insider info is that the Dugong is officially leaving the fleet for good. While local Haj Umrah capacity will not be affected as the A330 could supply, substantial indonesian pilgrims transiting would have to source other means as the feeder service is likely gone for good. 

Have they found buyers for the Dugongs or will they just be sold for scrap? The writing is on the wall for Project Amal. Both Garuda and Lion Air are taking deliveries of the A339 and they will fly their pilgrims direct from CGK (the third runway is operational) from now on. I think that MH knows - lately I see that the dugongs were flying some air tests up the Straits of Melaka, So they may be departing soon... 

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56 minutes ago, flee said:

Have they found buyers for the Dugongs or will they just be sold for scrap? The writing is on the wall for Project Amal. Both Garuda and Lion Air are taking deliveries of the A339 and they will fly their pilgrims direct from CGK (the third runway is operational) from now on. I think that MH knows - lately I see that the dugongs were flying some air tests up the Straits of Melaka, So they may be departing soon... 

Heard the planes will no longer leased by mab and will be put on long term storage until another buyer or leaser comes(highly unlikely as the spec mab configured is too low spec interested party like Emirates and BA have turned away due to this).  

As for Indonesia even with a large bulk of 330s it wont he able to suffice Saudi's strict slot timing restriction. Unless Garuda sends 400++ seaters and reduce the frequency. A big margin of Indonesians have also used Thai airways but now thai is also not keen on doing feeder umrah and haj. Friends in indonesia have complained the haj umrah fares by lion and garuda to be very pricey when compared to flying with Saudia and other Carriers.

 

 

 

 

Edited by jahur

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6 hours ago, jahur said:

Heard the planes will no longer leased by mab and will be put on long term storage until another buyer or leaser comes(highly unlikely as the spec mab configured is too low spec interested party like Emirates and BA have turned away due to this).  

As for Indonesia even with a large bulk of 330s it wont he able to suffice Saudi's strict slot timing restriction. Unless Garuda sends 400++ seaters and reduce the frequency. A big margin of Indonesians have also used Thai airways but now thai is also not keen on doing feeder umrah and haj. Friends in indonesia have complained the haj umrah fares by lion and garuda to be very pricey when compared to flying with Saudia and other Carriers.

 

As haj umrah is seasonal, wet lease 773, 744, A380 is an option.

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7 hours ago, KK Lee said:

As haj umrah is seasonal, wet lease 773, 744, A380 is an option.

Umrah is all year round only Haj is seasonal. Indonesia does occasionally lease a few European based charter like wamos air though its for Haj only. Jakarta 3 runways is still not rated for 340 tonne above weight aircrafts lol. So high density 748s 77w and a380 still cant land there.

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2 hours ago, jahur said:

Umrah is all year round only Haj is seasonal. Indonesia does occasionally lease a few European based charter like wamos air though its for Haj only. Jakarta 3 runways is still not rated for 340 tonne above weight aircrafts lol. So high density 748s 77w and a380 still cant land there.

744, 77w and a380 could refuel at sin or kul.

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5 minutes ago, KK Lee said:

744, 77w and a380 could refuel at sin or kul.

Might not be as feasible. Infact Saudi Arabian Airlines is the best choice for Indonesians now its direct and cheaper than Garuda and they are allowed multiple frequency into Jeddah compared to other carriers. Might expect them to expand with mab and thai pulling out.

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13 hours ago, jahur said:

Might not be as feasible. Infact Saudi Arabian Airlines is the best choice for Indonesians now its direct and cheaper than Garuda and they are allowed multiple frequency into Jeddah compared to other carriers. Might expect them to expand with mab and thai pulling out.

Saudi airlines will face same weight limit.

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9 hours ago, KK Lee said:

Saudi airlines will face same weight limit.

They can and are allowed to send multiple frequency and their 77w are not high density either with not much cargo. Garuda which retrofitted their 777-300ER thrice is still too heavy.

Edited by jahur

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Give it a year once the world reaches herd immunity and the A380s will be active again doing Umrah/Hajj runs like before. Umrah is actually a very big business and I remember pre-covid days MAB was  approached by a number of agencies from PRC to operate direct to Saudi Arabia carrying mainland Chinese Muslim Pilgrims for Umrah. It was suppose to kick off this year, however Covid happened. All they need to do is to hang on another 12 months and things will start changing gear back to normal. Lets not be too negative about MH, this time its not their fault. The whole world aviation industry is suffering. 

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1 hour ago, Pall said:

Give it a year once the world reaches herd immunity and the A380s will be active again doing Umrah/Hajj runs like before. Umrah is actually a very big business and I remember pre-covid days MAB was  approached by a number of agencies from PRC to operate direct to Saudi Arabia carrying mainland Chinese Muslim Pilgrims for Umrah. It was suppose to kick off this year, however Covid happened. All they need to do is to hang on another 12 months and things will start changing gear back to normal. Lets not be too negative about MH, this time its not their fault. The whole world aviation industry is suffering. 

Problem now with majority of the crew in that fleet gone and no simulator as its sold. To reactivate and rehire and retrain everyone overseas whislt leasing back the plane it would take more than a year to get things sorted out. 

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On 12/4/2020 at 10:55 AM, Pall said:

Give it a year once the world reaches herd immunity and the A380s will be active again doing Umrah/Hajj runs like before. Umrah is actually a very big business and I remember pre-covid days MAB was  approached by a number of agencies from PRC to operate direct to Saudi Arabia carrying mainland Chinese Muslim Pilgrims for Umrah. It was suppose to kick off this year, however Covid happened. All they need to do is to hang on another 12 months and things will start changing gear back to normal. Lets not be too negative about MH, this time its not their fault. The whole world aviation industry is suffering. 

The problem is MAB does not even have cashflow for day to day bread and butter operations. The A380 was a vanity project and has already burnt more than its fair share of MAB's resources. We can see that even at airlines where the A380 was profitable (e.g. QF, BA, SQ, EK), they are still not bringing the A380 back anytime soon. If MAB wishes to re-enter the Umrah/Haj market, it would be easy for it just to lease some of the stored widebody fleet (most probably A330s). Another option is to take up the D7 A339 NTUs. MAB is fighting for survival, the A380 is a luxury it cannot afford. 

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MAG should have done this long ago. QF have pretty much perfected the strategy of the upmarket/low-cost model with QF and JQ in Australia and with international leisure markets. 

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12 hours ago, Josh T said:

MAG should have done this long ago. QF have pretty much perfected the strategy of the upmarket/low-cost model with QF and JQ in Australia and with international leisure markets. 

MAG did do this not too long ago.

 

Until it was killed by vested interests who saw the threat to their own empire...

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20 hours ago, KK Lee said:

Either plan a or b, creditors will loss and the management remain unchanged. old wine in new bottle.

I think you are 100% correct. It will be business as usual - there will be no major changes. Same old inefficient, incompetent and overpaid management. Wait for the next "turnaround" plan in 2 or 3 years.

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Khazanah Nasional to inject RM3.6b in Malaysia Airlines after UK Court approves the airline's RM16b restructuring plan

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 22): Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the sole shareholder of Malaysia Airlines Bhd, has committed to inject RM3.6 billion in new capital into the national carrier's holding company Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAG), to fund the group's business until 2025.

Malaysia Airlines’ RM16 billon debt restructuring plan has been given the green light by the UK High Court today, with the deal set to complete by early next month.

In a statement this evening, MAG said the UK High Court has sanctioned a scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the UK Companies Act 2006 between MAG’s leasing entity MAB Leasing Ltd and the majority of MAG’s aircraft operating lessors today.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/khazanah-nasional-inject-rm36bil-malaysia-airlines-after-uk-court-approves-airlines-rm16bil

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Bloomberg report: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-22/malaysia-airlines-parent-firm-gets-green-light-for-restructuring

 

Khazanah did not have a choice - they have to keep MAG going and bail them out again!

With Covid-19 vaccinations progressing now, there should be some hopes that travel will resume by 2H 2021. MAB should be looking at what routes they will begin to operate in that period. It is likely that more weight will be given to routes where cargo traffic is highest.

They need to evaluate what their fleet requirements are and drop aircraft if they are surplus to requirements. With lease rates lower these days, there is no real need to replace their relatively young aircraft fleet. They may only want to look at receiving new aircraft after 2025. Boeing will surely push them to take delivery of their Max 8 on schedule. Good thing that the Max 10 is delayed. 

As for widebodies, the A380 looks like it is gone. The A350 is good for the LHR service (and maybe to Japan and Australia). MAB should also consider using the A350 to reintroduce pax service to AMS. It is likely that Europe will open up to travellers sooner than Asia Pacific. Many A333s will see their leases expire - MAB should negotiate aggressively to extend these at a much lower rate because the A333 were used for cargo flights and will continue to be a useful aircraft to have, especially at lower lease rates. The PW4170 engines are still young and should still be good - but MAB must inspect the blades closely.

Lets hope that MAB can be more transparent and let us know what their plans are for the coming years.

 

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On 2/22/2021 at 7:34 PM, flee said:

They need to evaluate what their fleet requirements are and drop aircraft if they are surplus to requirements. With lease rates lower these days, there is no real need to replace their relatively young aircraft fleet. They may only want to look at receiving new aircraft after 2025. Boeing will surely push them to take delivery of their Max 8 on schedule. Good thing that the Max 10 is delayed. 

As for widebodies, the A380 looks like it is gone. The A350 is good for the LHR service (and maybe to Japan and Australia). MAB should also consider using the A350 to reintroduce pax service to AMS. It is likely that Europe will open up to travellers sooner than Asia Pacific. Many A333s will see their leases expire - MAB should negotiate aggressively to extend these at a much lower rate because the A333 were used for cargo flights and will continue to be a useful aircraft to have, especially at lower lease rates. The PW4170 engines are still young and should still be good - but MAB must inspect the blades closely.

Lets hope that MAB can be more transparent and let us know what their plans are for the coming years.

I can imagine the experts bashing MH in the not-so-distant future for its short sighted fleet renewal plans -- why didn't MH take advantage of lower rates to renew their fleet, the average age in 2021 was almost 9 years old, why wait till 2025, SQ/CX/VN/TG/GA/everyone else already have shiny new planes, how can they serve so many destinations with only 6 A350s, etc etc.

Anyway, I hope they'll keep the experts fully informed of their decision making. The experts are the ones who'll determine the direction of our beloved MH.

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1 hour ago, Chris Tan said:

I can imagine the experts bashing MH in the not-so-distant future for its short sighted fleet renewal plans -- why didn't MH take advantage of lower rates to renew their fleet, the average age in 2021 was almost 9 years old, why wait till 2025, SQ/CX/VN/TG/GA/everyone else already have shiny new planes, how can they serve so many destinations with only 6 A350s, etc etc.

Anyway, I hope they'll keep the experts fully informed of their decision making. The experts are the ones who'll determine the direction of our beloved MH.

While Thai airways has retired all old 772s, 744s, and 15 a333s downsizing to just 34 widebody aircrafts. They have already secured financing for 3 new b777-300ER, 2 B787-9, 2 a350-900 at least keeping overall product new. 

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On 2/26/2021 at 4:30 PM, jahur said:

While Thai airways has retired all old 772s, 744s, and 15 a333s downsizing to just 34 widebody aircrafts. They have already secured financing for 3 new b777-300ER, 2 B787-9, 2 a350-900 at least keeping overall product new. 

Apart from that they took quite aggressive steps to reduce loss, raising capital.

  • Reduce total number of employees from 19,000- 21,000 to about 9,000-11,000 by the end of this year. However, they will start recruiting again to reach the target of 13,000-15,000 in 2025.
  • Travel privilege for current employees will be getting cut down. No more ticket offer for former employees and family member of deceased employees(!) (except those who participated in their MSS program)
  • Merging some divisions and downgrading management level for employees from 8 to 5 layers.
  • Reducing the number of executives from 740 to 500. This initiatives has been completed.
  • Selling off staff training center building and various office space including Headquarter to shore up capital.
  • Holding warehouse sales to sell off Dom Perignon, Veuve Cliquot, salt and pepper shakers, and every inflight amenities, past and present generations.
  • Reduction of pilot from 1,400 to 905. 495 pilots to be made redundant. All remaining 905 pilot will receive new contract with new salary and benefits schedule on 18th February 2021.
  • Leasing or buying another 13 new widebodies and 10 narrowbodies, if the plan is approved by restructuring governing board. This include 10 B787 aircraft, bringing total to 18. Another 3 B77W which are now fully built and ready for delivery. 10 A320neo narrowbodies would be for Thai Smile replace current older A320ceo. 
  • Selling off 42 surplus aircraft, as noted above: 
    • 10 x Boeing 747-400s
    • 2 x Airbus A380-800s
    • 12 x Boeing 777-200s
    • 6 x Boeing 777-300s
    • 3 x Airbus A340-500s
    • 6 x Airbus A340-600s
    • 1 x Airbus A300-600
    • 2 x Boeing 737-400s

While Thai Airways International Group has been quite upfront with their restructuring plan, Malaysia Airlines Group has been quiet..........like very quiet.

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Thai Airways lost a lot of money in 2020 - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-25/thai-airways-posts-record-4-7-billion-loss-as-debt-revamp-looms#:~:text=The net loss widened to,the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

MAG does not publish any numbers but a good guess is that 2020 losses will be more than RM 1bn. Airasia X lost RM 1.4bn, so billion RM losses should be the norm for 2020.

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