By: The Living MH Blog Team

In an extremely tough and challenging business environment, the recognition anointed by Aviation Week is encouraging for all of us in Malaysia Airlines. Aviation Week, the largest information and services provider to aviation players, has named Malaysia Airlines as one of the top three carriers to perform in 2009.  32 major airlines were evaluated in this study, and we were ranked after Singapore Airlines and Lufthansa.  The annual Top-Performing Companies (TPC) identifies relative strengths and weaknesses in companies' operational performance and evaluates how well they are executing business strategies.

This study’s airline analysis shows the effects of the recession on the industry – few airline business models are immune!  And we at Malaysia Airlines still remain in the eye of the storm.  While we have done many things in the past 3 months to change things around, we are definitely not out of the woods.

We will remain resilient!

AVIATION WEEK Announces Leading Airline Industry Rankings: 2009 Top-Performing Companies

 Top Ten Major Legacy Airlines:

1. Singapore Airlines
2. Deutsche Lufthansa AG
3. Malaysian Airline System Berhad
4. Turk Hava Yollari AO
5. Qantas Airways Ltd.
6. LAN Airlines S.A.
7. Air New Zealand Ltd.
8. Aer Lingus Group PLC
9. Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana S.A.
10. Finnair Oyj

Note: Launched in 1996, AVIATION WEEK's TPC Study identifies relative strengths and weaknesses in companies' operational performance and evaluates how well they are executing business strategies. For the second year in a row, separate studies were conducted on the A&D and airline sectors. Proprietary metrics have been refined over the past 13 years with input from industry leaders to include scores in five performance categories: Liquidity, Financial Health, Earnings Performance, Fuel Cost Management, and Asset Utilization. The benchmarking tool and microsite  AviationWeek.com/TPC are produced in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

A love for travel is the one passion that bonds these three individuals together. “I went to Disneyland, California for the very first time after I joined Malaysia Airlines, in 1985, Mazliwati Hazim, Secretary to the Assistant General Manager of Network Planning, recalls. “That was my first trip to the USA and my most memorable travel experience. She went again two years later, this time with her equally travel mad brother, Abu Bakar Sadiqin Hazim, who was so inspired by his sister’s job; he decided to join the airline upon graduating. I have been to places I never dreamed I’d be able to go such as Bucharest, Kiev and Sarejevo, to name a few, before working here, Abu Bakar says, a former Area Manager for Austria and Central Europe who is now based at KLIA as a RAMP Services Manager.

For Mazliwati, Malaysia Airlines holds a very special place in her heart as it’s where she met the man who would be her husband, in 1987. He too, has wanderlust coursing through his blood, which is not surprising considering his father, Haji Mat Sah Talip travelled extensively during his tenure with the airline. Retired for 18 years now, Haji Mat Sah was our very first Malaysian staff sent to set up branch offices for the airline in Medan and Jakarta, back in the 1960s and 70s. Coincidentally, Haji Mat Sah, his son (Mazliwati’s husband) and Abu Bakar have all previously held the same position: District Manager Alor Setar, based in Kedah. Haji Mat Sah now heads our Malaysia Airlines Retirees Association as its President, a position he took up 14 years ago. The association regularly organizes activities such as mountain climbing. I have attempted to climb all the mountains in Malaysia, he says proudly. He may have yet to reach the top of Mount Kinabalu, but with the passion for exploring new territories burning within the family, it’s just a matter of time before he does.

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

When they were wee lads, Raphael (top) and Romuald Michael (middle) would follow their uncle Susai Anthony Muthu (bottom) to his work place, which happens to be at the Sultan Aziz Shah Airport in Subang.  Little did they know that they would end up as colleagues, working at that very airport that was the brothers’ childhood playground? “I remember seeing the planes taking off and thinking how fun it would be to work where Uncle’s working, says Romuald.  Today, Romuald is an Airport Operations Officer while older brother Raphael is a Senior Officer at our Service Recovery Unit. In fact, both attended their job interviews on the same day and in the same room. Susai currently is acting Line Management Officer for Europe and South Asian destinations, and Executive in Airport Operations (Quality Assurance).

Coincidentally, Raphael is attached to the department that his uncle pioneered back in 1979: Service Recovery, whose main task is to take care of passengers when flights are inadvertently delayed.                                  

"Some passengers can look like the Incredible Hulk when they’re angry!  But most of them calm down after some time and thank us for taking care of them, says Raphael, and goes on to say that to an irate customer, it doesn’t t matter whose fault it is, they just want quick action and effective solutions. Every single person in the organization is like a small piece of a big jigsaw puzzle,” Susai comments. “Each of us needs to play our respective roles in order to complete the puzzle.”

Each of the trio has his distinctive features, but there was a time when they couldhave pass off as triplets. “The roti canai man at the airport cafeteria got terribly confused because there was a day when all three of us bought food from him, separately, and he thought we were the same person!” Raphael recalls with amusement. “It wasn’t until two weeks later that he finally figured out there’s actually three of us!”  Maybe someone should let the roti canai man know that at one point, there were actually eight members of the Muthu/Michael family working at Malaysia Airlines.

2 Responses to “Men at Work”
 

• henry says:

hi== i want take some about work at airport detail…hope u give me some detail
thanks You .

March 1st, 2009 at 1:48 pm

• henry says:

hi i about work at KLIA . i need some detail

March 1st, 2009 at 1:49 pm

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

“I’m the happiest man when I’m at work,” says a beaming Shahrani Mohd Bakri of his job as an Engineering Training Executive, running Aircraft Type Courses specializing in engines. Besides lecturing at the Engineering Training Department at the MAS Complex in Subang, Shahrani travels frequently to provide training courses and whenever he does, he takes it upon himself to play the role of an ambassador for Malaysia Airlines. Once, I was telling two young girls from America and Japan about my company so passionately that they asked me if I was from the Public Relations department!”

So it’s providence that his daughter, Shahidatul Hazreen would be born on the day Shahrani celebrated his tenth year of working at the airline 9 June 1985.

As soon as she left school, he encouraged her to apply for a position with the airline and today, Shahidatul is a clerk at our Heavy Maintenance Department in Subang. Shahrani is clearly the live wire between the two of them, whereas Shahidatul’s talents prove to be on the sports tracks: At the recent Malaysia Airlines Sports Championships, Shahidatul won four gold medals in four different disciplines. There probably wasn’t a more proud dad in our staff force that day.

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

Although he saw her everyday as she walked in and out of the security checkpoint where he was stationed, in KLIA, it was only after some time that Mohamad Hassan Othman plucked up the courage to ask Nilam Abdul Karim out. “I was the security officer in charge of checking staff passes before allowing them through,” says Hassan. “I had the opportunity to view her photo on the pass and also the real person, almost everyday.” They went out together for about a year and got married in 2006. “He’s very strict and professional when he’s at his job,” Nilam, who joined Malaysia Airlines 18 years ago and is now a Senior Officer at our Planning & Scheduling Department, recalls. “Luckily, I always remember to bring my pass, otherwise he wouldn’t have let me through even though I’m his wife!” Hassan explains: “In my line of work, I have to be very strict – no exceptions. When we’re in our uniforms, we have to be careful of our conduct, even during our break time.”

This stern and firm side of Hassan, who has been with the airline for eight years now, has never gotten in the way of their relationship, whether professionally or personally. “I fully understand and accept the nature and needs of his job,” Nilam says with a smile. Away from work, says Nilam, another side of Hassan emerges. “Hassan is a very loving father to our one year-old son,” she reveals. “Weekends are always family time and we make sure to do things together, even simple activities like taking our son to the playground.” Thankfully, one doesn’t need a security pass for that!

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

The fact that brothers Captain Rajkumar (Raj) Henry, left, and Captain Jaykumar (Jake) Henry both joined the national airline as pilots is not mere coincidence.  “Which little boy doesn’t like trains, cars and most of all, planes?”  asks Captain Jake.  The siblings are not just living their childhood dreams; they are literally flying high in them too.  It was Captain Raj who first joined the national airline, 33 years ago, as a Flight Engineer apprentice before training as a pilot 15 years ago.  Captain Jake, on the other hand, took up a pilot’s course right from the start.  “I like to say I took the scenic route,” says Captain Raj with a smile.

For Captain Jake, the cockpit is not only his workplace; it’s also where he proposed to his wife.  “A few years back, cockpit visits were allowed.  She was travelling on a flight that I was piloting, so I planned the whole thing with my co-pilot, who arranged for her to visit me in the cockpit while we were up in the air,” he reveals.  “Somewhere along the KL-Kota Kinabalu route and at 10,000 meters above the ground, she agreed to be my wife.”

3 Responses to “Flying High”

• NaS says:

Bravo on jumping to twitterspace - twitter.com/malaysiaair is yours, right?? (or fake?)

maybe u can really lead this time?

February 17th, 2009 at 4:35 pm

• John Low says:

Hi NaS,

Yes, @MalaysiaAir is us!

However, at the suggestion of another Twitter user, we are looking into using a shorter but still identifiable username on twitterspace.

Thanks for the comment!

February 18th, 2009 at 5:54 am

• Jeremy Tan says:

Hello,

Ever since I was a kid, I always dream of flying a plane. But the dream was turned down by my dad during my primary 6 “chatting confession”. After graduated from University and has been working for 6months since, I’ve been thinking of giving a try to MAS Cadet Pilot program. But because my education background is from Commerce stream, i did not take any Physic separately and also, i graduated in business stream. Do you think I have the chance to?

Also, my Bahasa Malaysia is not that good because I grew up in neighbouring country, Brunei.

March 3rd, 2009 at 11:14 am

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

At one glance, it’s hard to tell brothers Hisyam Nasirun, 24, and Hanafi Nasirun, 22, apart.

“When we first started working at Malaysia Airlines, many people were confused as to who’s who,” reveals Hisyam, currently training as a Junior Technician at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah airport in Subang.  “Now that we’re based at different airports, it’s not so bad,” says Hanafi, an Aircraft Maintenance trainee at KL International Airport.  Besides looks and a fun-loving nature, the brothers have two other things in common: A passion for airplanes and the aim to become aircraft engineers, something both are working toward, albeit via different paths.  “Hanafi will probably graduate earlier than me, because he took a more direct course route,” explains Hisyam. “When that happens, he may even become my boss!”

What do they hope to achieve after realizing their first goal?  “Malaysia Airlines is a huge company, and there are so many divisions.  Whatever your chosen path, it doesn’t just stop there as there’s always room to ‘expand’ and upgrade yourself,” the pair concurs.

Featured in Going Places, Malaysia Airlines Inflight Magazine

Cupid can appear at the most unexpected places, including thousands of feet up in the air, as is the case for Lee Han Kie and Hoo Siaw Yee.  Twelve years ago, both were working as cabin crew when they met for the first time while on flight duty from KL to Canton, China. According to Siaw Yee, it was also one of the rare times when all of the cabin crew was Malaysian Chinese. “Usually before a flight, we introduce ourselves to each other – it’s part of the cabin crew culture,” Siaw Yee explains. “That’s when we found out we were of the same age, and had similar interests. We got talking and the rest is history,” she added.  A year later, Siaw Yee was transferred to the Planning and Scheduling Department, where she remains till now, but that one flight was all it took for love to blossom between the handsome couple, who have now been happily married for four years.

Apart from their relationship, the couple says that working at Malaysia Airlines has also contributed to their individual growth. “If there’s a course you’d like to study, you can request for off days to ‘upgrade’ yourself or improve your skills at Malaysia Airlines Academy (MAA),” enthuses Siaw Yee.  Han Kie, on the other hand, is an active member of our volleyball team and has represented the airline several times. “Malaysia Airlines emphasizes not only work but play as well. Whether as an air steward or a volleyball player, whenever I fly to a foreign country, I feel a certain sense of pride because I am representing both my company and my country.”

By: Dinesh Rudra (Commercial)

My wife and I moved recently. Our old home was lovely, but we felt it was time for a change - because we weren't able to do a lot of things where we were staying. We lived in a place that was far away from everything - both our parents lived at least 25 km away, my drive to the office was 52km long, and everything else - including the nearest malls and city was at least 30km away.

With the recent crazy hike in petrol prices - we felt the timing was perfect. So we rolled up our sleeves and began packing. Yet, what began like a fun exercise, soon began to take its toll on the both of us. Although we lived in a really small place, We began to find so much stuff that we didn't really need, but had kept over the years anyway. At first we though 8 boxes would be enough for our barang-barang. We were wrong, so we sourced another 5 boxes. Still not enough - so we got another 5. Uh uh. Finally our grand total was 23 boxes (thanks to the folks from Golden Boutique!).

The location of our new house was perfect - less than 20 minutes drive to anywhere we wanted to go to. The neighbourhood was new - the people were friendly. Yet, the first few weeks were crazy. With the new place, my old time-tested routines and habits were being challenged. One good example –finding the utensils or the spices to cook a meal was a nightmare! In our old home, everything was where I wanted them to be - always ready to be found and used. The seeragam, ulunthu and, shombu (indian spices) were nicely arranged on the spice trolley. The pots hung next to the sink. The oil! The oil was always next to the grinding bowl. Now? I had to spend 20 minutes just looking for a kuali and 5 minutes trying to figure out how to turn on the new “hi-tech” stove we installed!!

But slowly, I've begun to create new routines - and things are beginning to work better for me here. I started forming new work habits, and have found that these new routines save me lots of time (and energy even!). Now, I can even whip up my house specialty - Po Pumpkin Noodles in less than 20 minutes. Ha! But there's still at lot of getting used to, and that needs a lot of effort. But that’s alright though – I’m not alone – my wife and I are on this journey of change together.

Now that I think back, the *PSS programme that we went through last year was just like us moving house. Firstly, we were so used to the way we were doing things on our old systems that we didn't really feel comfortable moving to a new system. Why fix it if it ain't broken? Then there was the pressure caused by the IATA deadline for all airlines to move to E-Ticketing (in my case of moving houses - it was the pressure from the petrol price hike). Next, we had to transition from our old processes to the new processes (packing and unpacking - realising that there were so many things that we didn't need any longer). Most people were frustrated with the fact that everything was different (my cooking example).

By: Khairul Syahar Khalid (Communications)

Welcome To Our Home

As the host of IATA AGM 2009, we (MAS) had an opportunity to showcase the beautiful sights and sounds of Malaysia during the official closing ceremony of IATA AGM 2008 held recently in Istanbul. To leverage on this opportunity, a group of my colleagues and I set out to produce an MAS Malaysia destination video entitled 'Welcome To Our Home'.

With a very tight budget and timeline, we had to work quick and wise whilst maintaining the quality of the MH brand.

I found that the hardest challenge was to select as much of our existing footages (shot for previous videos, TV commercials etc) as possible to ensure minimal filming (cost containment) but at the same time, making sure that it fits the approved storyboard.

In less then 2 months, 'Welcome To Our Home' was produced and the beauty of Malaysia that is filled with diverse ethnicity, colours and experience was presented by our Managing Director, Dato' Sri Idris Jala at the 64th AGM held in June 2008.

I was really pleased to find out that we received a standing ovation from the 900 airlines and aviation delegates who attended this meeting. All the hard work did not go in vain. It was worth every effort and challenges. Now back to the drawing board!

Our many thanks to Tourism Malaysia for allowing us to use existing footages on Malaysia as well the signature One Golden Celebration and Malaysia Truly Asia songs as part of this video.

By: Johanna Ezreen Othman (Commercial)

IATA 64th Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit

I captured this video of Idris announcing that Malaysia Airlines is going to be the host airline for the 65th IATA AGM in Kuala Lumpur next year.Check out his witty speech, especially about taking your credit card to the limits, as he addressed some 900 airlines and aviation delegates at the close of the 64th IATA AGM in Istanbul.
He also presented a 2 minute Malaysia Airlines specially produced video "Welcome To Our Home" which showcased the beauty of Malaysia, filled with diverse ethnicity, colours and experience.

Some 900 visitors and over 140 international journalists are expected to congregate in Kuala Lumpur next year.

Please click here to watch "Welcome To Our Home".