“No public funds are involved,” he said when asked about the purchases today.
He said MAS had a panel of technical experts that evaluated deals made by the company besides ensuring that the airline was efficient in providing its services.
“They need new planes, whether Airbus or Boeing. There is an investment panel and they have made an evaluation on the medium-term and long-term plans for MAS,” he told reporters here.
“There are planes that will be purchased. There is nothing extraordinary about it,” he added.
Irwan was commenting on the planned purchase of 25 Boeing 737 jets and eight 787 Dreamliners, with another 25 737s slated for purchase in the near future.
Najib announced the purchases during his meeting with Trump on Sept 12 at the White House. The PM said the deal would be worth more than US$10 billion (RM42 billion) within five years.
On Sept 13, Deputy Transport Minister Aziz Kaprawi told FMT that the Malaysian aviation industry was experiencing growth and the purchases from the US would give it a boost by allowing it to tap new opportunities along profitable routes, particularly to China and Europe.
He said among the ways MAS could finance the purchase, was by leasing it from Penerbangan Malaysia Berhad (PMB), which was established in 2002 to provide aviation services in the country.
PMB is involved in the acquisition, sale and lease of aircraft and aircraft engines, investment holdings and ownership of domestic airlines.
Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan said Malaysia Airlines’ purchase of the Boeing planes was nothing new.
“In July 2016, it was already widely reported that MAS had signed a deal to purchase up to 50 Boeing 737 MAX jets, with orders for 25, and rights to purchase 25 more in a deal valued at US$5.5 billion at list prices,” he said.
“Similarly, in August 2017, the media also reported that due to the success of MAS’ restructuring and its current growth, it was already deep in negotiations to purchase 30 more new Boeing 786 or Airbus jets to allow MAS to continue growing its routes and business,” he added.
Trump thanks Najib as Malaysia looks to buy US$10 billion jets