More than 50 Malaysian pilot trainees and their families have been financially devastated after allegedly being defrauded by a Shah Alam-based aviation training company.

The now-defunct Bumiputera company is accused of mishandling over RM21 million meant for aviation training programs in the Czech Republic from 2020 to 2022, according to Bernama’s first report in a three-part series.

The company, whose owner had previously been featured in TV interviews and talk shows, marketed itself through local media as a successful, internationally recognized Bumiputera business.

It had a partnership with Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA), which provided scholarships to Bumiputera students for pilot training at the Czech Aviation Training Centre (CATC) in Prague. MARA sponsored about 25 students, contributing RM441,000 per trainee for tuition and accommodation, according to Bernama.

However, the company — set to be named in Bernama’s second report — failed to pay the required fees, leaving the students stranded in Prague without accommodation or living expenses.

Some students were reportedly evicted from their accommodations in the middle of the night.

Several batches of cadet pilots were enrolled under the company from 2019 to 2022, paying between RM400,000 and RM700,000 each.

One parent of a former trainee, who wished to remain anonymous, shared that his son was among the MARA-sponsored students sent to Prague in November 2020 as part of the company's aviation program.

Worried parents formed a WhatsApp group to share updates and filed police reports in February 2022. However, authorities informed them that only MARA could lodge a criminal breach of trust (CBT) report since the funds came from the agency, not the parents.

According to Bernama, MARA’s relationship with the company deteriorated during the COVID-19 pandemic when the agency withheld RM9 million in funds due to unresolved issues with the company.

MARA eventually transferred affected students to local flight schools and covered the costs for those already in Prague, but many self-funded students were left on their own.

The company is also facing legal action from other families.

Among those still seeking justice is Azlira Bosra, a 58-year-old commercial airline pilot with 34 years of experience, who began legal proceedings after his daughter, Sofea, lost RM230,000.

Azlira, who has been pursuing the case since May 2022, stated that despite court summonses, the company’s representatives have failed to appear in any proceedings, Bernama reported.

"The court summoned them, but no one appeared, not even a representative. I even used a substitute service to place an ad in the local newspaper, but it had no effect. They simply don’t care," he told the national news agency.

Azlira and other affected parents are now working together to expose those responsible for the alleged mismanagement of funds.