KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 13): Delays in aircraft deliveries could disrupt Malaysia Airlines’ expansion plans and weigh on its future earnings, said its president and group chief executive officer Captain Nasaruddin A Bakar.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines event on Friday, Nasaruddin said deliveries of both Airbus and Boeing aircraft had been affected, partly due to supply chain issues faced by the manufacturers.
“We are experiencing these delays now. If we have to make significant cuts to flight capacity, it will affect our earnings as well,” he said, without disclosing the number of aircraft affected.
“As an airline, we have forward bookings. This means we sell tickets approximately three to six months in advance, based on the assumption that the aircraft will be available."
Nasaruddin, however, did not specify how long the delivery delays were expected to persist or when the affected aircraft would arrive.
“When an aircraft delivery is delayed, we may not be able to operate the flights as planned. So we need to manage the disruption by transferring some passengers to other aircraft,” said Nasaruddin, who also heads the airline’s parent company, Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAG).
For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2025 (FY2025), MAG’s net profit more than doubled to RM137 million from RM54 million in the same period a year earlier, marking its third consecutive year of profitability.
Revenue for FY2025 grew 6% to RM14.55 billion from RM13.68 billion a year earlier.