Malaysian Airlines struggles with possible bankruptcy

[george]

Malaysian Air Rules Out Bankruptcy as Jet Still Missing

Malaysian Airline System Bhd. (MAS), the carrier reeling from the disappearance of Flight 370 more than two months ago, won’t seek bankruptcy and will instead speed up an overhaul to help it break even next year. The stock rose.

“Our turnaround story was moving along -- MH370 certainly didn’t encourage that,” Hugh Dunleavy, the airline’s director of commercial operations, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television’s Haslinda Amin yesterday. “That certainly has been a major hiccup in the road. So now we have to go back and fix that.”

The stock, which plunged the most since 1998 this month amid investor concern the government may let the company fail, rose to the highest level in 11 days in Kuala Lumpur trading today after Dunleavy’s comments on bankruptcy. The carrier has said the jet’s disappearance put additional stress on operations, forcing it to review its business plan after reporting the biggest loss since 2011.

“Retail investors, traders, are banking on any good news,” said Daniel Wong, an analyst at Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. “The company should have enough funds for them to maneuver till the end of the year but if losses prolong till mid-2015, they will need to reconsider their options.”

Reviewing Operations

A review of operations may take about three months, and implementing the changes may require another six to nine months, Dunleavy said. Bankruptcy is not an “option at this stage,” he said.

Bookings from China dropped 50 percent to 60 percent after MH370, carrying mostly Chinese passengers, vanished March 8, he said. To date, no debris from the Boeing (BA) wide-body airliner has been retrieved.

The Malaysian government today released raw satellite data that was used to conclude that Flight 370 was lost in the Indian Ocean. Flight 370 with 239 passengers and crew vanished from civilian radar on March 8 while headed north over the Gulf of Thailand. It then doubled back over Peninsular Malaysia and flew south into some of the world’s most remote waters. The hunt for the aircraft has become the longest in modern aviation history.

Close Look

“Now is the time to take a close, hard look at all aspects of our business model and find out those that are core to us, let’s enhance those, make them as efficient as possible,” Dunleavy said in the interview at the airline’s training academy near Kuala Lumpur. “Those that are less core, or where we think another group can do it more efficiently, we should start looking at it.”

The Subang Jaya, Malaysia-based company last reported an annual profit in 2010. The flag carrier missed its target to be profitable last year as rising prices for fuel, maintenance and financing wiped out revenue gains.

“Most buying are from retailers now, and funds are unlikely to invest in MAS, as it is difficult to answer to stakeholders if they lose money investing in MAS now,” Ang Kok Heng, who helps manage $428m as chief investment officer of Phillip Capital Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur, said in a phone interview. Investors buying now “stand to gain if the government decides to privatize MAS” or if there is a takeover from other parties, he said.

Longest Search

The company lost a total 4.57 billion ringgit ($1.4 billion) since the start of 2011. Analysts project losses through 2016 for the airline, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“Obviously, MH370 has put a rather significant hurdle to that objective,” Dunleavy said of a plan to return to profit. “I don’t believe we will achieve that for this year, but I believe what we will be doing, what we are doing is looking at our current business plans, revamping those, looking at all opportunities to escalate the rate of the changes we are putting in so that 2015 will be the break even year.”

The airline pointed to unfavorable foreign exchange rates as an additional challenge. Winning back customers and a “relentless cost focus” will be part of the recovery, it said earlier this month.

The vanishing of MH370 put the carrier under global scrutiny, jeopardizing its reputation and prompting boycotts in China. It has also hurt the country as a travel destination, with Chinese tourists canceling their visits to the Southeast Asian nation, according to Malaysia’s tourism promotion agency.

The disappearance triggered a “major short-term reaction in consumer behavior,” with the airline observing high cancellation of existing bookings and a reduction in long-haul bookings in favor of short-haul ones, the company said May 15.

Listing Malaysian Air’s profitable divisions and selling stakes in two aviation businesses could raise 4.15 billion ringgit, Malayan Banking Bhd. analyst Mohshin Aziz said in an April 16 report. Government investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd. owns a 69.4 percent stake in the airline, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

-- Bloomberg 2014-05-27

[TVGerry]

One of Mahatir's pet companies so it's safe. It will just be bailed out by the government with taxpayer dollars.

[maprao]

Pan Am Disappeared after Lockerbie and they found that jet.!

Ii is doomed by virtue of the bad publicity.

[Torrens54]

Think you'll find the name of the Malaysian carrier is: "MALAYSIA AIRLINES." The name was changed MANY Years ago.

Just thought you might like to know.

[outsider]

One of Mahatir's pet companies so it's safe. It will just be bailed out by the government with taxpayer dollars.

You're quite right. Just like Proton. Sickening levels of corruption and cronysm, to say the least.

[mrdome]

All in the other airlines in the region should say a prayer, as MH 370 could have happened to most SE Asian carriers and at most airports in the region (meaning the non-checking of the stolen passport database).

[Carmine6]

All in the other airlines in the region should say a prayer, as MH 370 could have happened to most SE Asian carriers and at most airports in the region (meaning the non-checking of the stolen passport database).

Do you have anything to support the claim about failure to check the stolen passport database for other SE Asian countries? I don't think it was an accident that they left out of there instead of another country. That guy who bought the tickets in Thailand buys tickets for others fairly frequently so he must have known to buy from Malaysia to Europe versus other countries to Europe. Plus there is zero indication that had anything to do with the plane disappearing.

The real issue is the incompetence of the handling of it afterwards. The airline is interwoven with the government and they've been basically along for the ride as the government has withheld significant information along the way. The unidentified radar contact that was going west, which delayed satellite searching in the right areas for a week or so. Time the aircraft was first lost. The sign off message was completely wrong for weeks, which only was known after they released a full transcript. Cargo manifest sat on for a month.

Even today, when they released the satellite data, it turns out the airline tried to call the plane twice, which reset the hourly cycle on the satellite pings. So it wasn't just hourly pings, but a few other satellite connections along they way.

[stevecm]

The Malaysian government today released raw satellite data

-- Bloomberg 2014-05-27

Sure it did.

Sent from my HUAWEI G510-0251 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[stevecm]

Even today, when they released the satellite data, it turns out the airline tried to call the plane twice, which reset the hourly cycle on the satellite pings. So it wasn't just hourly pings, but a few other satellite connections along they way.

Pings would only happen at set times unless the hardware reset. It does bring into question ATM frames and encapsulation. In other words, the call cannot change the ping handshake and space between them. They would just have a longer latency.

Sent from my HUAWEI G510-0251 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Carmine6]

Even today, when they released the satellite data, it turns out the airline tried to call the plane twice, which reset the hourly cycle on the satellite pings. So it wasn't just hourly pings, but a few other satellite connections along they way.

Pings would only happen at set times unless the hardware reset. It does bring into question ATM frames and encapsulation. In other words, the call cannot change the ping handshake and space between them. They would just have a longer latency.

Sent from my HUAWEI G510-0251 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Not sure what you're trying to say. If you go through the released log, the system seems to be intelligent enough to do an hourly handshake only after there has been no contact for an hour. As in the timer seems to start after a message, so if there's any communication in between, the timer resets. There a string of communication for the first 2 hours and 40 minutes of the log (takes up 40 pages of the 47 page log) so there's no hour long gap.

Then the first handshake is 3 hours 40 minutes in. Then 3 more, until a call attempt about 45 minutes into the cycle. Then the next handshake is not 15 minutes after the call attempt, but an hour after the call attempt.

[Chao Lao Beach]

People tend to forget, Air France lost an A330 for 2 years.

[neverdie]

People tend to forget, Air France lost an A330 for 2 years.

Yes and when they found it and realised what caused the crash they wished they'd never found it.

The plane is out there, it's just they are looking in the wrong place for it. Now whether there's a reason for looking in the wrong place is an entirely different matter

[DamienG]

This was sent to me 31/03/2014. Makes for some interesting reading. What do you think?

Another theory.. one my work colleague sent through this morning as this happened to her friend last night … interesting

So, my friend was reading this on facebook last night and apparently just after she copied it, it was deleted before her eyes after it got about 100 likes in 10 minutes!!

The comment that was deleted....

If it wasn’t such a tragic event we could all freely laugh with great gusto at the mainstream media regarding the disappearance of Malaysian flight 370. Every single source, substantiated or not, was taken as a great revelation. It was and continues to be a sad circus of events.

See photos in close up detail by clicking on the attachment at end of this article

If those following the serious clues left available there is only one question to ask. Why does no one mention the Indian Oceans most advanced and secure air base, the stationary Aircraft Carrier located south of the southern tip of India called Diego Garcia?

Not a peep. Not even an indication of a US managed military installation that monitors everything in this war region. In fact the best old metaphor regarding the lack of reference to this location is “The Silence Is Deafening.”

So here it is. As CNN, Fox, MSNBC, CBC, BBC, CTV and all the rest are prepared to spout off theories without any solid confirmation, here is one from a source who wishes to remain unidentified from Northwest BC Canada. This individual comes from a three decade long background of exposing the secrets the one percent and the military forces would rather have remained secret. He has recently revealed what happened to flight 370. ‘Film at Eleven’.

Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah prepared and practised with his home flight simulator and had determined the maximum speed and angle of decent the Boeing 777 could withstand.

As soon as the flight reached the extent of the Malaysian radar capability, when he knew they would no longer expect to see his radar signal, he wished the ground crews good night. He then turned off one tracking device, waited to see if anyone responded or raised alarm for 15 minutes, then turned off all communication devices. He locked the cabin door to prevent anyone from entering after asking his co-pilot to get him a drink or check on a system outside of the cockpit.

The Captain then immediately turned the plane southwest into a know flight path and climbed to over 40,000 ft. the maximum structural capability of the Boeing 777. He put on the pilot supplied air mask and kept the plane at over 40,000 ft until he was certain all the passengers and crew, including his co-pilot, were asphyxiated.

From his flight simulator experimentation he had already determined the precise coordinates where he would initiate his next action. To bring the plane down at the maximum speed and maximum angle of decent to make a direct hit on the fuel storage tanks at Diego Garcia.

As he initiated this direct course of action the American Military had not been concerned with the radar blip of this flight at 40,000 plus feet. They monitor vessels and flights which appear to be a threat or are invading their space. However they were suddenly brought into complete attention as their warning systems set off alarms.
The base at Diego Garcia attempted to make radio contact and immediately dispatching interceptors. Knowing full well this was an imminent threat, having no time to debate the issue and recognizing the aircraft was operating in what was basically ‘stealth’ mode, uncommunicative, the plane was shot out of the sky.

Becoming aware of which flight it was with the political and potential military repercussions, the US military ordered a complete lock down on all communications regarding the event and began dispatching crews to locate and pick up all the debris.

When the rest of the world became aware the flight was missing the US Navy offered all their resource to help them look for it in the South China Sea, then the Gulf of Thailand, Bay of Bengal and the Strait of Malacca. This kept the worlds attention focused away from the location they were cleaning up.

US 7th Fleet Commander William Marks told CNN “We wait for the Malaysians to tell us where to search and we go there.”

This is the most telling statement of all. Since when does the US take directions from Malaysia unless they are simply providing the rope to let them hang themselves.

The most powerful radar systems in the region are at Diego Garcia. A perfect target for such an attack, one the USA stopped and one they simply cannot reveal to the world due to the nationality of the passengers on board. They will continue to assist in the search while doing everything to ensure no one even mentions Diego Garcia in the mainstream media.

[ABCer]

If this OP is an invitation to " Fly Malaysian Airlines" - SORRY!

[slipperylobster]

I would avoid that airlines...

Maybe if and when the truth is known, I could possible forgive.

Until then..it is a gambit.

[outsider]

People tend to forget, Air France lost an A330 for 2 years.

Actually, the tail section of that Air France A330 was found within days. Five days, if I'm not mistaken. It was intact enough so everyone could see the Air France logo on it. The REST of the plane... yeah, that took them two years or so. Point is, no parallels here. In the case of MH370, not a speck of dust was found. Months after it was missing. Lots of documentaries on YouTube on Air France flight 447.

[boomerangutang]

The Diego Garcia scenario would make a good Bruce Willis movie, but it's not plausible.

The scenario up until the pilot was the only one alive, and steering the plane west, is plausible. After that, I think the plane ditched at sea. If the pilot wanted as small a footprint as possible (as little debris as possible) then he was successful.

My conclusion: Pilot suicide and mass murder. not shot down.