Malaysia Airlines’ Employees Called The Pride Of The Nation

By M.Saraswathi HYDERABAD (India), April 10 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airlines (MAS), since its inception in 1972, has contributed immensely in generating competent talent throughout the aviation industry. Though the airline is now going through a rough patch, the company's employees are much sought after in the aviation sector throughout the world. And retired employees of Malaysia Airlines, like Suppiah Subramanian, 70, can vouch for this. "MAS employees can be found in every country where the aviation industry is thriving, a testimony to the airlines’ strength," he told Bernama in an interview. Suppiah joined Malaysia Airlines in 1973 as a technical cost accountant and retired in March 2000 as executive vice president for group finance. He described MAS as an organisation that never failed to invest in its talent through various training programmes and courses. For Suppiah, retirement was not the end of his career; he, in fact, has become even busier by providing aviation consulting services in Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal and India. "I was doing freelance services and whenever I saw opportunities in the aviation field in other nations, I just roped in my friends," said Suppiah. Suppiah said he was also involved in some of the major changes that took place at MAS, even after his retirement. MAS-INDIA VENTURE "Hence, that is how I got involved in MAS’ Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul (MRO) business in India," he said. Suppiah said he was among those who were instrumental in setting up the MAS-GMR joint venture, which resulted in MAS spreading its MRO business in the lucrative Indian market. "When the joint venture took place I was offered a position, and I was more than willing to do it," said Suppiah, who is the chief financial officer in MAS-GMR Aero Technic Ltd (MGAT). MGAT is a 100 per cent owned subsidiary of MAS and the MRO Operating Unit of MAS GMR Aerospace Engineering Co Ltd (MGAE). Further, MGAE is a joint venture between MAS’ Malaysian Aerospace Engineering (MAE) unit and GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL). Meanwhile, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd has an 11 per cent stake in GHIAL. Also, Suppiah is not the only MAS retiree involved in the project. Indeed, there are another 21 former Malaysia Airlines employees, all employed on a two-year contract basis. Shamsudin Haron, 63, is one of the MAS retirees who is currently attached to MAS GMR as the Workshop Manager. "I am one of the pioneers here in Hyderabad," he said, adding that this is a different experience than his past position. SHARING OF KNOWLEDGE "I really appreciate MAS for what I am now. I joined the company with little knowledge, but now I'm able to share my knowledge with others," said Tony Low Hong Ghee, 65. "It provides deep satisfaction in passing the baton to others," said Suppiah, adding that he felt good in sharing knowledge and enabling a transfer of technology. "And having worked in a multiracial environment in Malaysia makes it easier to adopt ourselves here. Besides, in MAS itself we have been given international exposure," he said. Munusamy Muniady, 57, who is here as a lead technical officer, echoed Tony and Suppiah. The expertise that Munusamy gathered throughout his 38 years of service with MAS has proven invaluable. "I am happy to be able to share my knowledge. I have to thank MAS for the opportunity," he said. Suppiah said MAS made a strategic move by taking advantage of its own talents. ASPIRATION FOR MAS Meanwhile, Suppiah and the other MAS employees here are confident that MAS would return to its glory days, despite their current problems. The airline recorded a US$815.04 million (RM2.5 billion) loss in the last financial year and faces stiff competition from low cost carriers. "I’m proud to have worked with MAS, since the airline is the pride of the nation. So, we want the airline to do better," said Suppiah, adding that the company has done a tremendous job in developing the aviation sector in the country. "I miss my family, but I enjoy doing this, to enable MAS to expand its presence and grow further in the industry," said sexagenarian M.Segaran. Robert Nah, 60, who is here as General Manager MRO Planning & Stores Management, said MAS has great leaders and it would definitely succeed. "With the current leadership, I am very confident that the airline will reach greater heights," he said. THE MGAT FACILITY Located at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, the MGAT is just two hours by air from all major Indian metropolitan areas and less than four hours from all South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations - Sri Lanka, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The facility also has the capacity to service an estimated 60-80 aircraft annually and is the first third-party aircraft MRO facility of its scale in India. He said the current India-wide fleet is estimated at 410 aircraft, and this number is expected to triple in the next 10 years, making India a huge market for MRO business. It is estimated that Asia Pacific, China and India combined already account for 23 per cent of total MRO expenditures, valued at US$9.64 billion (RM29.6 billion). "So, it is a timely move by MAS," said Suppiah. -- BERNAMA