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IF ministers can travel in good aircraft, healthcare workers flying into remote areas should be afforded the same standard of safety, says the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA).
Its president, Datuk Dr R Thirunavukarasu, said the government must ensure the safety of doctors, medical assistants, nurses, support staff and pilots involved in the Flying Doctor Service (FDS), particularly as they are sent into difficult terrain to provide care to others.
“If ministers can travel in good aircraft, why can’t this sector have good aircraft too?
“Is there a double standard?” he told reporters after the opening of the MMA National Convention and Scientific Congress 2026 today.
Thirunavukarasu said MMA supported the continuation of the FDS, which provides an important lifeline to communities with limited access to healthcare and is especially crucial in emergencies.
But he said the safety of those delivering the service could not be treated as secondary.
He said the government should ensure that all transport used to carry healthcare personnel — including aircraft, ambulances, boats and other vehicles — had been independently certified as safe and was suitable for the operations involved.
“No aircraft, ambulance, boat or other vehicle should be used simply because it is available or because a contract has already been awarded,” he said.
MMA also wants the government to review the welfare of healthcare workers involved in such operations, including providing allowances that better reflect the demands of their duties.
The call follows Tuesday’s crash of an FDS helicopter operated by the Health Ministry in Long Lellang, Ulu Baram, Sarawak, which killed all five people on board.
The victims were Layang-Layang Aerospace pilot Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 30; Health Ministry medical officer Dr Ainul Baroah Kamarudin, 33; medical assistant Alexson Adit anak Henry, 31; and Health Ministry nurses Deborah anak Moset, 40, and Jessie Paya Jo, 44. – September 10, 2026
