SUBANG JAYA, Aug 15 — An aviation maintenance company today denied any connection to the Kamov Ka-32 helicopter that caught fire at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport here, saying the aircraft was not its customer and the incident did not occur at its facility.
The clarification by KarbonMRO came after the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department said the helicopter caught fire during an engine test following maintenance work at the airport, with four people escaping, one who was injured by debris.
“The incident did not take place at KarbonMRO’s facility, and the helicopter involved is not a KarbonMRO customer,” the company’s head of marketing Trixie Guantero was quoted by news outlet Free Malaysia Today as saying in a statement.
Guantero said safety, accuracy and professional integrity were fundamental to the company’s operations.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) said the incident occurred at Taxiway Victor, temporarily disrupting airport operations before the runway reopened at 2.57pm.
CAAM chief executive officer Norazman Mahmud said eight inbound flights were diverted to other airports while three departing flights were delayed during the temporary closure.
The Selangor Fire and Rescue Department earlier said it received an emergency call at 12.30pm and found the helicopter fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.
The aircraft, registered UR-CIT in Ukraine, had four Ukrainians on board who managed to escape, while one person outside the helicopter was reported to have been struck by debris.
The circumstances surrounding the incident remain under investigation.
