KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 17): Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAG), the parent company of national carrier Malaysia Airlines Bhd, has resolved the technical issues affecting its Airbus A330neo recently and will take delivery of the remaining 19 aircraft progressively from this month until 2026, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Hasbi Habibollah told the Dewan Rakyat on Monday.
MAG had replaced the faulty components on the new wide-body aircraft, which was grounded for 48 hours after it was unveiled on Dec 19 last year, due to technical issues attributed to the aircraft manufacturer Airbus and its engine supplier Rolls-Royce, Hasbi said during the oral question-and-answer session.
The aircraft has since resumed operations, completing 101 flights as of Feb 12, without further complications, he noted.
“Three additional spare engines are expected to arrive in the third quarter of this year,” Hasbi said, adding that this will allow immediate replacements to ensure smooth operations.
MAG is also scheduled to receive the remaining 19 A330neos between now and 2026, adding to the single unit already in service, he added.
The deputy minister was responding to a question from Mohd Nazri Abu Hassan (PN-Merbok) who asked the ministry to clarify the actions taken following Malaysia Airlines’ decision to temporarily ground the A330neo for at least 48 hours after its inaugural flight to Melbourne on Dec 19, 2024, due to technical issues and concerns over production quality and delivery processes.
Hasbi said MAG has also implemented mitigation measures to identify and address the technical issues in collaboration with Airbus and Rolls-Royce by replacing the affected components.
“For the A330neo technical issues involving Malaysia Airlines, both Airbus and Rolls-Royce are responsible for ensuring the aircraft is safe for operations."
He added that Malaysia Airlines has requested Airbus and Rolls-Royce to enforce stricter quality control measures on future aircraft deliveries.
On the regulatory front, the deputy minister said the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) will ensure that Malaysia Airlines implements appropriate quality control measures to safeguard the safety and reliability of its operations, Hasbi said.
MAG group managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail was previously reported as saying that three technical issues had been identified, stemming from factory production quality and delivery processes.
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