Qantas' series of mechanical problems, bad luck, MAS

Malaysia Airlines' E&M division, which has done maintenance work for Qantas, said the recent spate of safety incidents to plague the Australian carrier could happen to any airline.

They were not related to Qantas increasing its offshore maintenance work, Malaysia Airlines E&M senior general manager Mohd Roslan Ismali said.

"It can happen to anybody," Ismali said.

"It is just pure bad luck, nothing more."

Qantas uses its own facilities in Australia as well as a variety of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) organisations in Asia to maintain its planes.

It has come under fire recently from Australian union leaders who believe "corners are getting cut" to reduce costs at the nation's flagship airline.

A recent survey of Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) members found 80 per cent of Qantas maintenance workers did not believe contracting work out had improved productivity or efficiency.

Only 29 per cent said they had faith in Qantas management to understand issues relating to safety and staffing.

However, Ismali said Malaysia Airlines' E&M offered maintenance work that was among the best quality in the world, at the most competitive rates.

"Number one is the competitive rate, very competitive ... and quality," he said.

"Quality is the key, it is the constant in the equation that never changes."

He said "manpower" was 50 per cent cheaper in Malaysia compared to a "Western workshop".

Malaysia Airlines' E&M division has sought to defend its quality of work since the only aircraft it has performed heavy maintenance on for Qantas, a B737-400, was involved in an incident in Melbourne in May.

That plane was grounded because of noise from an air-conditioning fault.

But unsubstantiated media reports claimed the grounded jet also had 95 defects after it had been maintained in Malaysia.

Malaysia Airlines said the claims were baseless and that the repairs on the aircraft had been overseen by 12 Qantas engineers and all problems had been rectified to the Qantas team's satisfaction before it was delivered to Australia.

Malaysia Airlines' E&M has over 80 customers including Lufthansa, Saudi Arabian Airlines and GECAS, one of the world's largest fleet owners and lessors.

Malaysian Airlines said its E&M was a certified approved MRO organisation by 31 national aviation authorities including the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The latest incident to plague Qantas was flight QF72 from Singapore to Perth on October 7, which resulted in more than 70 people being injured when the Airbus A330-300 suddenly dropped in altitude.