KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 17 — Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) has completed a mandatory drug screening for all Malaysia Airlines pilots, with every test returning negative, the company said in a statement today.

MAG said the exercise, concluded on August 15, covered all operationally active pilots. 

The group will now begin screening approximately 2,840 Malaysia Airlines cabin crew, starting August 18 and targeted for completion by September 3.

Screening is also underway at sister airline Firefly.

As of August 15, more than half of its 158 pilots and 163 cabin crew had been tested, all with negative results. Firefly is expected to finish by August 25, ahead of the September 5 deadline set by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM).

“The completion of this first phase is an important milestone in the measures we committed to implementing, but work does not stop here,” said Captain Nasaruddin A. Bakar, president and group chief executive officer of MAG. 

“We are moving ahead with screening across other operational groups to ensure the same rigorous standards are applied consistently across our airlines.”

MAG also noted that it will maintain continuous random testing led by its Safety and Health team, alongside collaboration with the authorities.