Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) said on Tuesday (Dec 23) that a global passenger processing system used by multiple airlines worldwide has been fully restored following a temporary disruption that affected check-in and boarding operations at airports across the country.
In a statement posted on its official Facebook page, the airport operator confirmed that normal operations had resumed after the system provider resolved the issue. “The system provider has fully restored the global passenger processing system at our airports, and check-in and boarding operations across our airports have resumed normal operations,” Malaysia Airports said.
The company added that both airport and airline teams would continue to closely monitor the situation to ensure passenger processing remains smooth. “Airport and airline teams will continue to monitor the situation to ensure smooth processing. We thank travellers for their patience and cooperation during the incident,” the statement said.
The confirmation came about two hours after Malaysia Airports first warned that the disruption could impact check-in and boarding processes for departing passengers. In an earlier update, the operator said that airlines had activated contingency procedures to minimise delays while airport staff were deployed to assist passengers manually where necessary.
“Airlines in Malaysia Airports have activated contingency procedures, and airport teams are on hand to assist with passenger processing where needed,” the company said, noting that self-service kiosks remained fully operational throughout the disruption.
While Malaysia Airports did not disclose the name of the system provider or the exact cause of the outage, the passenger processing system involved is understood to be a shared global platform widely used by airlines for essential functions such as check-in, seat allocation, baggage tagging, and boarding pass issuance. Such systems are typically hosted centrally and relied upon by airlines operating across multiple countries, making them vulnerable to widespread operational disruptions if technical issues arise.
Passengers at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and several regional airports reported longer queues at check-in counters during the disruption, particularly for international departures. Some travellers said airline staff resorted to manual verification processes and handwritten boarding passes in certain cases, though flights continued to operate with limited delays.
Industry observers said the incident underscores the aviation sector’s growing dependence on integrated digital systems and the cascading effects that even short outages can have on airport operations. Over the past year, airlines and airports globally have faced several high-profile IT disruptions, ranging from reservation system failures to cybersecurity incidents, often resulting in delays, cancellations, and passenger congestion.
Malaysia Airports manages and operates 39 airports nationwide, including KLIA and klia2, which together handle tens of millions of passengers annually. During peak travel periods, even brief system disruptions can strain airport operations due to high passenger volumes and tight flight schedules.
Aviation analysts noted that the quick restoration of services and the activation of contingency measures helped limit the overall impact of Tuesday’s disruption. “Having manual backup procedures and keeping self-service kiosks operational are critical in situations like this,” said one regional aviation consultant. “It allows airports to maintain a basic level of throughput while technical teams resolve the underlying issue.”
Malaysia Airports did not report any flight cancellations linked directly to the system disruption and said operations across its network had stabilised by mid-afternoon. Passengers scheduled to travel later in the day were advised to arrive early at airports as a precaution, particularly for international flights.
