KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 — Malaysia Airlines (MAS) announced today it will allow passengers to change their travel plans and even get ticket refunds, following the MH17 crash in strife-torn Ukraine.
Looking to fix its dented reputation, the flag carrier said it will forego the usual fees imposed for flight changes to any passenger who wanted to switch their travel to any destination.
“Passengers who wish to postpone or cancel their travel plans can obtain a refund, including for non-refundable tickets,” it said in a brief statement today.
Passengers on MAS’s frequent flyer programme Enrich “will also receive fee waivers for any changes to their travel itinerary” it added.
If Enrich passengers choose to cancel flight tickets that were redeemed through the accumulation of loyalty points or miles, they will receive “refunds” of the miles, the airline said.
The waivers are only for those who have made changes during the July 18-July 24 period this year and only applies to the travel period from this July 18 to this December 31.
“Malaysia Airlines deeply regrets the loss of MH17, and is very much appreciative of the support from our passengers,” it added.
Barely recovering from the mysterious disappearance of Beijing-bound MH370 flight and the 239 people on board on March 8, MAS received another blow when its Kuala Lumpur-bound flight MH17 plane carrying 298 people crashed in eastern Ukraine Thursday.
Flight MH17 was believed to have been shot down over eastern Ukraine by pro-Russian militants, killing all 298 people aboard, according to a Ukrainian interior ministry official.
Ukraine said it had found as many as 181 dead bodies at the crash site yesterday.
