KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 — Transport Minister Anthony Loke has reportedly advised consumers who encountered problems related to airline services to file complaints directly with the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom).

Following the global IT outage that affected airports worldwide, Loke was reported by Bernama saying that travellers must also understand that airlines have to ensure the safety of everyone.

"I understand that customers are indeed dissatisfied with delays, but at the same time, we must also see the need for a balance.

“Airlines need to consider safety, and if they do not comply, the situation will become worse,” he said at an event in Mantin, Negeri Sembilan.

"Passenger safety is a priority, and we cannot compromise. If an incident occurs, who will be responsible? It is better to be criticised than to compromise safety. I hope everyone understands this," he added.

Loke was also quoted saying certain procedures and communication systems at airports can be improved to tackle unforeseen incidents like the system outage.

However, he noted that the disruptions experienced by travellers last week were inevitable, as the IT system failure was a global problem affecting airlines and many other sectors.

"Over the weekend, many flights were delayed or rescheduled. We need to understand that airline operations use the same aircraft for multiple flights, so if one flight is delayed, it takes a long time.

"Airports had to check in manually, which takes time. When one flight is delayed, it impacts many flights. I believe this can be improved in terms of procedures and communication systems," he said.

Microsoft said the global tech outage caused by a faulty CrowdStrike security update had affected nearly 8.5 million Microsoft devices.

The outage caused thousands of flights to be cancelled, leaving passengers stranded or grappling with hours of delays as airports and airlines were caught up in the IT outage.
 

https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2024/07/23/customers-affected-by-airline-troubles-can-complain-with-mavcom-loke-says-after-crowdstrike-mayhem/144747