KUALA LUMPUR (REUTERS) - The newly appointed chief executive of loss-making Malaysia Airlines (MAS) said on Monday that the carrier is "technically bankrupt", as he announced plans for a restructuring that will cut the company's workforce by a third.
"We are technically bankrupt...the decline of performance started long before the tragic events of 2014," Christoph Mueller said at a news conference.
Already squeezed into years of losses by stiff regional competition, the carrier was seriously affected last year by the loss of two jets in separate disasters.
Mueller was making his first public appearance as CEO since being hired last month by the carrier's owner, Malaysian state fund Khazanah, to lead the restructuring.
Restructure.Buy A350-800/900 and B787-800/900 first
Open a low cost carrier that flies around Asian countries using the existing B737-800 first,Then upgrade to B777-200 for Australian/New Zealand routes