(Nov 12): Any financial aid given to struggling carriers such as AirAsia Group Bhd (KL:AAGB) should be made available to other airlines to keep competition fair, the head of Malaysia Airlines Bhd said. 

“It has to be a fair playing field,” group chief executive officer Captain Nasaruddin A Bakar said in an interview on the sidelines of the Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines’ annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur. “If it’s given to one airline, it should be given to all other airlines as well.”

Nasaruddin also said his airline is willing to step in to grow aggressively if its low-cost rival faces deeper operational problems, citing the need to maintain connectivity across the country as the national carrier.

AirAsia’s shares tumbled in September on a report the government had sounded out rival local carriers, including Malaysia Airlines, about stepping up in case AirAsia had to stop flying routes if its financial challenges worsened.

In late October, state news agency Bernama reported that the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Finance were reviewing proposals to assist AirAsia. However, the government hasn’t yet agreed to any commitment for financial aid for the struggling airline. 

Malaysia Airlines “had a duty” to maintain connectivity across the country, Nasaruddin said. The airline would need to ensure it had additional aircraft and crew, he said, adding it would only increase capacity if it was sustainable to do so safely and financially.

AirAsia shares were trading around 2% lower during Thursday trading.

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