Malaysia Airlines is set to undergo the most radical restructuring in its history, with a quarter of its staff axed and routes to Europe and China slashed as the tragedy-struck carrier fights for its survival.
The airline has been flying near-empty planes after four disastrous months - a time whenthe disappearance of flight MH370, which went missing en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur in March, was followed by flight MH17 being shot down over Ukraine in July. A total of 537 passengers and 29 Malaysia Airlines staff lost their lives in the two tragedies.
Now Malaysia's sovereign-wealth fund, Khazanah - which is chaired by the country's Prime Minister, Najib Razak, and is the biggest shareholder in the carrier - has won backing for a restructuring plan that will also see the airline delist from the stock market and be nationalised.
Malaysia Airlines will sack about a quarter of its 19,500 staff as it focuses on core Asian routes and retains only some of its existing long-haul schedule to help feed traffic.
The MH17 and MH370 tragedies have not only hit demand for seats on the airline: almost 200 cabin crew have resigned this year, with many citing "family pressure" or fear of flying.
