Just days after Malaysia Airlines operated the inaugural flight of its new Airbus A330neo from Kuala Lumpur to Melbourne, the latest addition to the Malaysian flag carrier's fleet was grounded due to technical issues.
Just days after Malaysia Airlines operated the inaugural flight of its new Airbus A330neo from Kuala Lumpur to Melbourne, the latest addition to the Malaysian flag carrier's fleet was grounded due to technical issues.
Reported by the New Straits Times, the A330neo – registration 9M-MNG – encountered “a series of technical issues since its inaugural flight to Melbourne on December 19.” In the report, Malaysia Airlines' parent company Malaysia Aviation Group's (MAG) managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail said the airline has identified three technical issues due to the “quality level of factory production and delivery level.”
"Malaysia Airlines has suffered a series of technical issues arising from poor quality work from the factory and this has impacted Malaysia Airlines' inaugural flight,” Ismail said.
Ismail called on Airbus and Rolls-Royce – the supplier of the aircraft's Trent 7000 engines – to investigate the root cause of the technical problems, and emphasized the airline's priority of safety for its passengers.
"The root cause is coming from the factory and it is affecting the reputation and brand of Malaysia Airlines. It's unfair for the brand. Safety is paramount. I will not risk anything on safety," further stated.
After taking delivery of the A330neo before the end of November, Malaysia Airlines operated the inaugural flight of the A330neo on December 19 from Kuala Lumpur to Melbourne. The airline expects to take delivery of 19 more of the 20 ordered A330neos by 2028.
According to Flightradar24, MH149 scheduled to use the A330neo between Kuala Lumpur and Melbourne on December 21 was cancelled.
Airbus and Rolls-Royce Pledge to Support Malaysia Airlines
In separate email replies to New Straits Times, the reported technical issues with Malaysia Airlines' A330neo, spokespersons from Airbus and Rolls-Royce pledged technical support for the Malaysian flag carrier.
"Airbus is ready to support Malaysia Airlines with any technical issues around their new A330neo," the Airbus spokesperson was quoted writing for the European aircraft manufacturer's response.
Rolls-Royces' spokesperson wrote: "We're working closely with Malaysia Airlines to resolve the technical issues; our initial troubleshooting has identified a faulty component, and replacement of that part is in progress.”
The newly reported technical issues is the latest to affect Malaysia Airlines' fleet. The airline has had to deal with flight cancellations due to fleet reliability issues since September, and the airline has experienced delays of deliveries of Boeing 737 MAX jets it has on order.
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