The resulting move has seen the parent company reduce the number of aircraft as well introduce a new schedule for Firefly with fewer flights.

MAB is facing stiff competition from the Lion Group’s Malaysian JV, Malindo Air, which operates from Subang airport in direct competition to all of Firefly’s domestic Subang routes.

And while Malindo has expanded, adding another five ATR 72 turboprop aircrafts to its fleet to meet demand, Firefly recently reduced its fleet to 12 ATR 72s, down from 18 earlier this year, according to CAPA.

In terms of domestic capacity, MAB has cut down Firefly’s load by approximately 40% in an effort to turn its regional subsidiary around.

Another move to support Firefly, is to enhance integration with codeshares and frequent flier tie-ups. Rumours are also rife that the regional airline could undergo a rebranding exercise.

Aside from the domestic market, Firefly also flies the KL-Singapore route but that too is under threat from 2018, according to CAPA, which is the leading provider of independent aviation market intelligence, analysis, reports and data services.

This is due to the Singapore civil aviation authority ceasing turboprop flights from landing at Changi Airport from 2018. Such flights would however, be allowed at a new passenger terminal being constructed at Seletar Airport.

Firefly has been operating out of Subang for almost 10 years, and had an almost exclusive stronghold of the domestic market until Malindo entered the picture in 2013.

With the restructuring of Firefly, Malindo has now become the largest airline to operate from Subang.

Though opportunity for further growth out of Subang is limited, Malindo has been instrumental in increasing the demand from passengers from what used to be the main Kuala Lumpur international airport before the KLIA opened in the 1990s.