Missing Flight MH370: Malaysia Airlines Needs Solution Within a Year or Could Go Bust

Malaysia Airlines has said that it needs a solution within a year or it could go bust.Reuters

Malaysia Airlines has said that it will have a plan in place within half a year to 12 months to revitalise the struggling business.

The state-owned carrier has had a torrid time financially since flight MH370 tragically went missing on 8 March.

Its losses reached £82.2m ($138m, €101m) in the quarter ending 31 March, almost £30m more than the same period last year and its worst loss since the quarter ending 31 December, 2011.

In wake of this, Azman Mokhtar, head of state investment company Khazanah Nasional, has said that all possibilities are being discussed at the moment, including the prospect of selling the airline.

Mokhtar hinted that the airline probably has enough money in reserve to sustain itself for a year, but there is real danger that it could go out of business in the future if a solution isn't found.

"Obviously over the medium and longer term, this has to be solved on a sustainable basis," he said in Kuala Lumpur.

"As a national carrier, clearly MAS plays a very important role in terms of economic development of the country, but at the same time we, as the custodian of taxpayers' money, have to balance that role very carefully."

Commuters in Asia have taken their custom elsewhere following the unfortunate event; passenger numbers were down 60% for the airline in the first quarter of 2014.

The airline blames the "dramatic impact" of flight MH370, but in actuality, it has made losses for the last three quarters and a total of $1.3bn in losses over the last three years amid rising fuel costs and fierce competition.