KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia’s state investment company said Friday it plans to make ***************** fully government owned, removing it from the country’s stock exchange before carrying out a far-reaching overhaul of the carrier that is reeling from double disasters.

Khazanah Nasional, which owns 69 per cent of *****************, said it has proposed to the carrier’s board of directors that it buy out minority shareholders at 27 sen (8 cents) a share, which is 29 per cent higher than the *******’s average share price over the previous three months. The takeover would cost 1.38 billion ringgit ($429 million).

Khazanah said the state takeover will represent the first stage of a “complete overhaul” of the loss-making *******, and that detailed plans will be announced by the end of this month.

“The proposed restructuring will critically require all parties to work closely together to undertake what will be a complete overhaul of the national carrier,” it said in a statement. “Nothing less will be required in order to revive our national ******* to be profitable as a commercial entity and to serve its function as a critical national development entity.”

***************** has been hit by two major disasters this year, which added to its longstanding financial woes.

In March, Flight 370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared with 239 people on board after flying far of course. The plane has still not been found, with a search in the southern Indian Ocean underway.

In July, 298 people were ****** when ********* was shot down over *******. It was heading to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam and was shot out of the sky over an area of eastern ******* controlled by pro-Russian separatists.

Before the disasters, the carrier’s financial performance was among the ***** in the industry, putting a question mark over its future even before its brand was tied to two almost unfathomable tragedies.

Some analysts last month said the ******* would not survive a year without a substantial cash injection from the Malaysian government.

****** and risk management experts have said ***************** must take dramatic steps such as replacing its top executives and changing its name.

Khazanah’s offer to minority shareholders gives them more than what their shares were worth before each of the passenger *** disasters. Even so, the *******’s share price has been in a long-term decline due to several years of ****** that partly stemmed from increased competition from discount carriers.

The day before Flight 370 vanished, the *******’s share price was 25 sen. It was 23 sen the day before ********* was downed.

As a state-owned flag carrier, ***************** required to fly unprofitable domestic routes, and its strong union has resisted operational changes. Nimbler discount rivals such as Air Asia have expanded rapidly, while ***************** has been like a supertanker, slow to change direction.

Khazanah said its plan requires approvals from regulators and Malaysia’s finance minister.