Malaysia Aviation Group chief executive officer of airlines Ahmad Luqman Mohd Azmi.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAG), the parent company of national carrier Malaysia Airlines Bhd, is likely to take delivery of six new aircraft this year after experiencing much delay from aircraft manufacturers.
MAG chief executive officer of airlines Ahmad Luqman Mohd Azmi told StarBiz that it expects to receive three wide-body Airbus A330neo by the third quarter of the year, while it will be getting three narrow-body Boeing 737-MAX 8 aircraft sometime this year.
“We have an order of 25 737-MAX 8 aircraft and we are expecting three deliveries this year.
“The rest, which is 22 of these aircraft, will be delivered in stages until 2026,” he said.
Similarly, for the A330neo, Luqman said MAG has an order of 20 planes, which are expected to be delivered over the next two years (until 2026).
MAG had previously said it was on track to integrate 12 new aircraft into its fleet in 2024, in line with its fleet modernisation and growth strategy. It planned to operate a fleet consisting of 50 narrow-body and 50 wide-body aircraft by 2033.
It was reported that aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing have been pushing back some deliveries amid ongoing supply problems, while Boeing’s woes have been further aggravated by quality issues.
Many airlines are desperate to secure aircraft as air travel demand picks up.
“Our passenger loads are very good. We are really strong.
“We have already surpassed the pre-Covid stage.
“In terms of year-on-year growth, it is all double-digit growth.
“Our passenger numbers are 6% up compared to how the numbers were in 2019,” MAG chief commercial officer of airlines Dersenish Aresandiran said.
Luqman and Aresandiran were at a signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tourism Malaysia yesterday.
This was for a three-year partnership aimed at supporting the country’s tourist arrivals targets.
“We look forward to working with Tourism Malaysia, leveraging our strengths as a national carrier and aviation hub to pursue sustainable traffic growth in an increasingly competitive landscape.
“With our strong network and track record of working with partners through trade and consumer initiatives, we’re well-placed to support the nation’s tourism ambitions.
“This partnership reinforces MAG’s commitment to supporting the goals of Visit Malaysia Year 2026 (VMY2026) through positioning Malaysia as the gateway for Asia and beyond,” Luqman said at the event.
He added that the MoU will lead to the development and implementation of a three-year partnership programme in key international markets, not just in the leisure passenger segment but also in meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions and transit passengers.
The partnership will also anchor Malaysia Airlines’ Bonus Side Trip offering, which provides passengers with a complimentary flight to a domestic destination on the Malaysia Airlines network.
Meanwhile, Tourism Malaysia director general Manoharan Periasamy said the country aims to welcome 35.6 million tourists, generating target receipts of RM147.1bil under its VMY2026 programme.
This year alone, Malaysia hopes to attract 27.3 million arrivals with RM102.7bil in tourism revenue.
“More joint activities are planned, including familiarisation trips to Malaysia, marketing promotional activities and advertising campaigns to feature Malaysia as a preferred holiday destination on the global stage,” he said.
