KUALA LUMPUR: Khazanah Nasional Bhd has been requested to review its purchase of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft by Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAS).
Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said the request for a review follows the second Boeing 737 MAX plane that crashed less than six months after the first incident in Indonesia involving a Lion Air flight.
An Ethiopian Airlines flight, operating the 737 Max crashed yesterday en route to Nairobi from Addis Ababa, killing everyone on board.
“This matter must be looked into. I will get more explanation from the management of Khazanah.
"Because there was another incident, the management of Khazanah must evaluate the matter urgently to ensure airlines’ safety.
"They have to study the agreement they made in the past,” Mohamed Azmin told reporters after the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah's opening speech at the Dewan Rakyat, here, today.
In 2017, Boeing and MAS signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to acquire 16 airplanes where eight of it were 787 Dreamliners and eight 737 MAXs.
Meanwhile, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said no immediate decision will be made on 737 Max aircraft.
He said the said aircraft would only be sent to MAS by next year, while currently no local airlines are operating the 737 MAX.
“We cannot make any decision right now because the airline (MAS) is yet to use the model.
“MAS is studying various options (on suspension of the plane model delivery),” he told reporters at the Dewan Rakyat, here, today.
It is learnt that China aviation regulator has issued an order to Chinese airlines to suspend their Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations since the crash.