The parent company of Malaysia Airlines, Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG), has signed a sales and purchase agreement to acquire Sepang Aircraft Engineering (SAE), an aerospace maintenance specialist owned by Airbus. The exact price of the transaction has not been revealed, and the deal is pending regulatory approvals, with a planned completion date of 2027. SAE operates from Kuala Lumpur International Airport and provides maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for aircraft. SAE’s facilities include two hangars covering 50,000 square meters, which can accommodate up to eight single-aisle A320 aircraft at the same time. The site also has a closed painting facility and workshops for repairing aircraft components. MAG plans to integrate SAE's capabilities in A320 aircraft maintenance, painting, and component repairs with its existing MAB Engineering branch. Nasaruddin A. Bakar, MAG’s chief executive officer, stated that SAE’s expertise complements MAB Engineering’s current operations. This acquisition is part of MAG’s 2026-2030 strategic plan, known as LTBP 3.0, which aims to boost revenue from third-party clients in aerospace services by more than 60%. The move reflects MAG’s strategy to diversify its business beyond operating Malaysia Airlines itself. SAE already serves clients outside the Malaysian group, such as Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, and Maldivian Airlines. According to the New Straits Times, SAE recently signed a contract with Cebu Pacific to perform maintenance on seven A320 aircraft, with work scheduled for 2027 and 2028 at its Kuala Lumpur site. Founded in 2007, SAE was partially owned by Airbus since 2011 and became its fully owned subsidiary in October 2017. Airbus incorporated SAE into its customer service network in the Asia-Pacific region. The acquisition of SAE by MAG is still subject to approval from the Malaysian Civil Aviation Authority (CAAM). Until then, SAE will remain an Airbus subsidiary.