MAS: Unclaimed planes not ours

epa05059973 One of three Boeing 747 aircraft that have been abandoned at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, is parked at a section of the airport in Sepang, Malaysia, 08 December 2015. An advertisement has been placed in local newspapers in Malaysia seeking the owners of three Boeing jets left unclaimed at the country's main airport, authorities said 08 December. The Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) in a statement cited civil aviation law in justifying its threats to sell the aircrafts, adding that the publication of the advertisements 'is a common and reasonable step in the process of debt recovery.' EPA/YUS RIN

PETALING JAYA: Both Malaysia Airlines and Air Atlanta Icelandic have denied that they own the three aircraft left unclaimed at the KL International Airport (KLIA).

Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has dispelled talk that it owned the aircraft, which were featured in newspaper advertisements on Dec 7.

“If they were ours, we would have claimed them,” said a MAS official.

Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) had published newspaper advertisements on Dec 7 to serve as notice to the owners of three aircraft, saying that the planes may be sold or disposed of if not collected within 14 days.

Aviation enthusiasts linked two of the three aircraft to MAS after a search on Airfleets.net found that MASKargo had leased two of the planes from Air Atlanta Icelandic.

They claimed the third plane was from Air Atlanta Icelandic, which specialises in leasing aircraft to airlines around the world.

Air Atlanta Icelandic senior vice-president Baldvin M. Hermann­sson said in an e-mail that the aircraft bearing the registration mark TF-ARM, TF-ARN and TF-ARH, which are currently parked in Malaysia, were operated by the company until 2010 when they were returned to its owner.

“Air Atlanta Icelandic does not have any knowledge of who the current owner of these aircraft is and has nothing to do with these aircraft today,” he said.

Hermannsson added that the three aircraft had been deregistered from the Registry of Icelandic Civil Aviation Authority in June 2011 and January 2012.

MAHB said funds raised in the sale would be used to offset any expenses and debts owed by the owner to Malaysia Airports.

“The giving of such notice by way of advertisement is a common and reasonable step in the process of debt recovery, especially in cases where the company concerned has ceased operations and is a foreign entity,” said MAHB in a statement yesterday.

It said “exhaustive steps” were taken to find a contact person but its efforts had not been successful.

“This step is also a common process undertaken by airport operators all over the world when faced with such a situation,” it added.