Malaysia Airlines

traces its origins to Malayan Airways Limited, established in 1937 and beginning scheduled operations in 1947, founded with backing from the Straits Steamship Company and British aviation interests. Following the formation of Malaysia, the carrier was renamed Malaysian Airways and then, as a joint venture between Malaysia and Singapore, Malaysia-Singapore Airlines (MSA). In 1972 the partnership was dissolved and its assets divided, creating two separate national carriers: Malaysian Airline System (MAS), later renamed Malaysia Airlines, and Singapore Airlines.

Based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Airlines developed into a respected international carrier serving Asia, Europe, and Australasia, and joined the oneworld global alliance in 2013. The airline suffered two catastrophic incidents in 2014: the disappearance of Flight MH370 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, which remains one of aviation's greatest mysteries, and the loss of Flight MH17, shot down over eastern Ukraine. These tragedies, combined with financial losses, led to a major restructuring under which the airline was taken fully into state ownership and reorganized as Malaysia's flag carrier.