Dozens of passengers were left stranded at Malaysia’s budget airport terminal in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday morning, after the sudden suspension of operations by budget carrier MYAirline on the same day.

The airline, whose first flight was in December 2022, announced at 5.30am on Facebook and subsequently other social media platforms that operations had been “temporarily suspended” with immediate effect because of “significant financial pressures”.

Passengers due to board morning flights to various locations – including Bangkok, Kuching and Penang – at the budget terminal at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA2) were greeted with closed service counters.

In images circulated online, a crowd of people with their luggage were seen gathering at check-in counters while airport employees attended to them.

Some passengers wrote on social media that they had been told by KLIA2 airport authorities to contact MYAirline or the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) for assistance, with dozens writing that they had learnt of their flight cancellations only after arriving at the airport.

Many complained about the short notice given before the airline suspended flight operations, with one user of X, formerly known as Twitter, saying passengers were made to “wait like idiots” for hours for a counter that would never open.

Discussions online revolved around alternative flight options, especially for many who had been booked on flights on Thursday.

Passengers who were scheduled to fly with MYAirline were advised to seek assistance from its customer care team through e-mail.

Those who were affected by the cancelled flights were reportedly told to avoid going to the airport unless they had secured alternative travel plans.

MYAirline made no mention of refunds, but Mavcom said on Thursday that the airline was still liable for compensating customers.

The aviation commission said it had ordered MYAirline to stop the booking and sales of its flights on all platforms.

It added that it was investigating the airline’s operator over complaints of “unpaid statutory payments” to its employees.

The airline’s various social media platforms were still promoting flights on Wednesday.

Rival local airlines, including AirAsia and Batik Air, on Thursday offered alternatives to passengers affected by MYAirline’s suspension.

Budget carrier Batik Air, formerly Malindo Air, is offering promotional fares to those who had been booked on MYAirline flights to destinations such as Penang and Langkawi.

AirAsia, another low-cost carrier, is giving a 50 per cent discount on its base fares to affected travellers booked on routes connecting Kuala Lumpur and cities such as Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and Bangkok.

National carrier Malaysia Airlines invited MYAirline management to re-allocate passengers to its flights.

MYAirline is owned by Malaysian entrepreneur Goh Hwan Hua, who holds a 98 per cent majority share through two private companies, Zillion Wealth (88 per cent) and Trillion Cove Holdings (10 per cent), the Malaysian media has reported.

The budget carrier was struggling financially and described as “bleeding losses” by Malaysia’s Business Times, with payments to its service providers delayed, while employees’ salaries were not paid on time.

The airline started showing signs of trouble on Sunday after announcing that its chief executive Rayner Teo, a former executive with AirAsia, resigned over “health considerations”.

MYAirline then appeared to have been given a temporary reprieve, after announcing on Monday that it had received an extension of its air operator certificate until 2025 by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia.

But a “white knight” investor who was meant to acquire a controlling stake pulled out at the last minute, prompting the suspension of operations, Malaysian daily New Straits Times reported. 

The airline said on Thursday that it had explored various partnership and capital raising options but was forced into suspension due to time constraints, adding that it was working to resume operations “as quickly as possible”.

Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke said on Wednesday that the airline should approach Mavcom to discuss its reported financial difficulties.

The carrier, which mainly offers domestic flights within Malaysia, started flying to Bangkok – its first international destination – in June.

That month, then CEO Teo said the carrier had set its sights on adding Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam to its network by end-2023. However, those plans appeared to have gone in the opposite direction over reported “slot constraints” at the receiving airports.