12 October 2023
Passengers were left stunned by budget carrier MYAirline Sdn Bhd’s shock announcement that it had suspended operations effective immediately because of “severe financial challenges”.
On X (formerly Twitter), netizen @puteriibalqiis complained that she had been waiting at Kuala Lumpur International Airport since 4am to check in for her 7.30am flight, but all the MYAirline counters were closed with not one staffer to be seen.
“They were all empty. The passengers were all waiting like idiots,” she said.
“Please refund me. I was forced to buy a ticket to return to Kota Kinabalu urgently. Many others have been affected like me, even (the elderly).
“I rarely tweet in anger, but I was speechless, because they didn’t inform us of anything. There were no staffers, and their offices were empty. Imagine how the passengers were looking around like fools early in the morning asking about their flight.”
User @anisazzwa responded: “Crazy, shutting down operations like shutting down a grocery store.”
MYAirline had said in an internal email sighted by FMT this morning it had “explored all avenues for potential partnerships and capital-raising exercises” to rescue the airline.
“Sadly, time constraints have left us with no alternative but to take this decision,” it said.
Netizens have largely responded to the news in shock and disappointment, some comparing the airline’s suspension to the shuttering of the short-lived shariah-compliant airline Rayani Air in 2016.
X user @abd_jabbar said with MYAirline’s suspension, he now had bad experiences with two airlines, having lost money to flights that never materialised.
“I was already betrayed by Rayani Air in 2016. Nobody ever got a refund despite sending emails and making calls.
“I still remember the trauma to this day, but never mind, it’s already been seven years. But now in 2023 I’ve been affected again by MYAirline. It seems I’ve lost RM229. Total loss (including with Rayani Air): RM1,189,” he said, under screenshots of his receipts with the airlines.
“I should have known better. If you want to try a new airline, do it early on and don’t wait, because after a while, they’ll definitely meet trouble.”
Facebook users have taken their comments to several posts announcing the suspension, after MYAirline limited comments under their own post on the matter.
Netizen Chris Ludaescher called MYAirline a “stillbirth from the beginning”, saying that it was optimistic to think that “there is a market for two to three low-cost carriers, depending on where you put Batik Air”.
Some also lamented the suspension, with one Shahruzaman Hashim saying he had taken a flight from KLIA to Sibu last month, and a return flight from Kuching, and found the cheaper rates and service excellent.
Source: www.msn.com
Site Search
Did you find what you are looking for? Try out the enhanced Google Search: