KUALA LUMPUR -- Pak Ali, a durian peddler in the Mont Kiara suburb of Kuala Lumpur, has an affection for Malaysia Airlines. It's one of his country's treasures, he feels. When the national flag carrier in May 2016 announced a plan to change cabin crew uniforms as part of a rebranding strategy, Uncle Ali was displeased.
He was not alone. The uniform debate was heating up a month later when Peter Bellew became the airline's CEO. Soon thereafter, Bellew happened to drop by Pak Ali's roadside kiosk.