Run of bad luck for MAS continues

PETALING JAYA: Even as a multinational effort is ongoing to locate MH370 which went missing over the Gulf of Thailand on March 8 with 239 people aboard, Malaysia Airlines’ (MAS) run of bad luck continues.

While the search efforts, now concentrated south of the Indian Ocean, has turned up nothing conclusive as to what happened to the Boeing 777-200ER, another two MAS aircrafts ran into problems within the last week.

A MAS aircraft on a flight from Kuala Lumpur with 180 passengers and crew members on board had a close call while landing at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu, Nepal.

A flock of ducks struck the aircraft as it touched down on the runway at 10.45pm on Friday, leaving the southern tip of Runway 02 strewn with broken glass, airport authorities said. There were no injuries.

The airline’s cockpit crew, however, did not immediately inform the air traffic controller (ATC) about the incident.

The flight captain later confirmed the ‘suspected bird-hit’ but only after a Jet Airways crew reported it to the airport authority. Officials found at least 10 dead ducks and some glass on the runway.

The debris was cleared and the airport resumed normal operations after half an hour. MAS confirmed the incident, adding that the aircraft was inspected by the engineer on duty upon landing.

“It was found that the aircraft’s landing light lens cover was broken. The aircraft was grounded for the night and the lens later replaced,” it said, adding that the windshield was not broken.

Passengers transferred to other carriers

The Nepali Airport Traffic Controller’s office notified the airport’s general manager about the incident, recommending action be taken against the MAS pilot for failing to report it in quick time.

And today, MAS said flight MH066 from Kuala Lumpur to Incheon, Korea on March 23 was diverted to Hong Kong because of an inoperative aircraft generator which supplies normal electrical power.

“However, power continued to be supplied by the Auxiliary Power Unit. The aircraft was then diverted to Hong Kong for rectification and landed uneventfully,” MAS said in a statement today.

The flight, an A330-300 aircraft, departed from Kuala Lumpur at 11.37pm and was scheduled to arrive at Incheon at 6.50am local time. According to MAS, all 271 passengers from MH066 have been transferred on to other carriers.

MAS’ run of ‘bad luck’ began in February this year when it posted net losses amounting to RM343.44 million in the fourth quarter ending Dec 31, 2013 compared to a net profit of RM51.37 million for the corresponding period a year ago.

The airline, more than a month, ago acknowledged that it was impacted by higher operating expenditure and financial costs. MAS’ revenue rose only by 0.8% to RM3.896 billion from RM3.866 billion a year ago while loss per share was RM2.06 sen compared to earning per share of 0.72 sen.

Its earning before interest tax, depreciation and amortisation level stood at a negative RM56.3 million.