Malaysia Airlines is a carrier I am very familiar with, having flown dozens of flights with them prior to the pandemic. Following three odd travel years, this became my first time flying the airline post-Covid. In particular, I was excited to finally get the opportunity to try the Malaysian flag carrier’s latest regional product, which had been introduced in 2022. While Malaysia Airlines’ reputation has slipped in years past, I was keen to see how the airline’s renowned Malaysian Hospitality has morphed and evolved following the pandemic.

Booking Malaysia Airlines Business Class

Before going on this trip, I already had my heart set on visiting Changi Airport’s many oneworld lounges. Among those, I was keenly looking forward to check out the Qantas First Class Lounge and the Qatar Airways Premier Lounge – both of which I have not yet visited in the past.

With that, I quickly realised that the easiest way to do this was by flying Malaysia Airlines Business Class on the short hop to Kuala Lumpur. While my oneworld Emerald status with Cathay would admit me to the Qantas Lounge, the Qatar Airways Lounge is open to Business Class passengers only. Hence, I decided to redeem 12,500 British Airways Avios and pay 42 GBP (53 USD) in taxes to book this flight. While this isn’t the greatest deal for a flight this short, this got what I wanted!

Check-in

After checking out of the Carlton City Hotel, I made my way to Changi Airport by Singapore’s excellent MRT system. I arrived at Terminal 2 shy of nine hours before my flight, allowing me plenty of time to hop around the oneworld lounges I had access to in three terminals!

This was my first time visiting Terminal 2 after it reopened back in 2022 and goodness was I impressed! Following extensive refurbishments, the departure hall is clad in colour carpet flooring and features a massive animated waterfall in the background. Gone are most check-in counters, replaced with smart check-in kiosks for most passengers. These changes effectively leaped Terminal 2 from being Changi’s most outdated to its most modern.

As I was flying in Business Class, however, I opted to check in at the Priority Counter, which is handled by an agent. While the desk was unmanned when I arrived, an agent did show up after several minutes. Interestingly, the agent didn’t bat an eyelid when I told her I was flying on the 21.20 departure. I reckon I wasn’t the first peson that week to partake in some lounge-hopping! Soon enough, my bags were tagged and I was on my way to the automated immigration checkpoint with my boarding pass in hand.

Sadly, somewhere along the lines, my baggage was damaged by the airline’s ground handling. Despite numerous contact attempts over several months, I have failed to yield any meaningful response.

Lounge

Being based in Terminal 2, Malaysia Airlines uses the SATS Premier Lounge as its contract lounge, as do most non-Star Alliance airlines. However, being a oneworld carrier, eligible Malaysia Airlines passengers can access Changi Airport’s many oneworld lounges, including the Cathay Pacific Lounge (Terminal 4), Qantas First Lounge* (Terminal 1), Qantas International Business Lounge (Terminal 1), British Airways Lounge (Terminal 1), and the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge (Terminal 1). In fact, visiting these lounges were one of the primary reasons for me to take this trip, as you’d know by now! 😉

*oneworld Emerald status holders only

Boarding

Having satisfied my lounge hopping spree, I left the miserable SATS Premier Lounge an hour in advance of my flight’s departure time of 21.20. The boarding gate opened at exactly this time, which annoyingly was the printed boarding time for the flight. The gate was deserted when I arrived, meaning that there were no queues for the security check at its entrance.

Once I had my boarding pass scanned, I leaped straight to the window, glueing myself at the panorama outside. While our Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737-800 was already at the gate, it soon became clear that the flight had just arrived. In fact, it was only after 15 minutes did the inbound passengers had only started to disembark. The aircraft was turned around about 25 minutes later, paving the way for us to board.

At 21.00, the gate agent finally invited Business Class and oneworld Elite members to board the aircraft – though notably the boarding groups didn’t look strictly enforced. Anyway, our flight today is operated by 9M-MXY, a Boeing 737-800 delivered new to Malaysia Airlines in December 2014.

Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737-800 Cabin

Malaysia Airlines’ Boeing 737-800 fleet has a total of 174 seats, featuring 12 recliner seats in Business Class and 162 seats in Economy Class in standard configurations. As mentioned earlier, the cabin was refreshed in 2022 with new and slimmer seats. This allowed the airline to cram in 18 extra seats in Economy Class over the previous configuration at the expense of four Business Class seats.

Business Class

At the pointy end, you’ll find 12 recliner chairs arranged in a standard 2-2 configuration, totalling three rows. Each seat features a pitch of 39 inches, along with an advertised 8-inch recline. Much like its predecessor, the cabin retains a vividly blue theme, only with the addition of indigenous Batik patterns debossed onto the leather seat covers.

Countering industry trends in Asia, absent are in-seat inflight entertainment monitors. In its place are personal electronic device (PED) holders suitable for phones and tablets. This refurbishment of the cabin also coincided with the introduction of Malaysia Airlines’ MHStudio streaming entertainment system – connecting instructions for which are clearly marked on the seatback.

Waiting on each seat is a medium-sized pillow and a blanket, both appropriately in the same shade of blue as the seats. I noticed that the seat padding was a lot less thick than the previous generation seat. While still comfortable for a short flight, it made me appreciate the pillow a lot more.

Seat details

As I settled down, I found the legroom to be fine, with a distance of around 21 cm (~8.3 inches) from my knee to the seatback. While nice enough, this pales in comparison to the space you’d get on Garuda Indonesia or even Vietnam Airlines. If anything, the bulkhead row expectedly offers even more space, although I avoided it due to the lack of under-seat storage.

Prominently fitted across from you is the PED holder, which was easy enough to use. On top of a small shelf to latch your device, the holder also swivels out to ensure a better watching position. Next to that is a self-explanatory coat hook, which I reckon doesn’t get much use on these flights. As the airline makes the switch to bring-your-own entertainment devices, I was happy to see that each seat has several charging ports; this includes both a USB-A and USB-C port in addition to a universal power outlet.

The sturdy tray table pulls out of the centre armrest; this is complemented by a small and precarious-looking cocktail table – also stored in the armrest. Furthermore, apart from the seatback pockets, the seat does not have much in terms of storage. There is a shallow cutout under the armrest big enough for a tablet or a book but not much more. In addition, there are also small bottle holders under the front armrest.

While inconsequential for this short flight, I was also happy to see that overhead air vents remain installed in the cabin.

Economy Class

As I was the first to board, I also managed to get a peek at the Economy Class cabin. Gone are the old brown and red seats, instead replaced by a smart-looking three-tone monochromatic seat design. Despite the addition of 18 extra seats, the airline has impressively kept a 30-inch seat pitch in Economy. Less impressive, however are the slimline seats, which do not look very comfortable.

As is the case in Business Class, the airline has replaced the in-seat entertainment monitors with personal electronic device holders on each seatback. Each seat has also been fitted with both USB-A and USB-C ports, which at least is a step in the right direction.

Departure from Singapore

Malaysia Airlines’ boarding music was played in the background as boarding went underway. During the gaps between passengers embarking, Emelia came over to offer a choice of pre-departure beverages. Noticeably absent is the airline’s signature guava juice, with only orange juice, apple juice, and still water in its place. After settling with a glass of water, I was soon also offered a steaming hot towel. Definitely a nice touch for a short evening flight!

As we reached the final stages of boarding, Captain Azman went on the intercom to welcome us on board. In particular, he detailed our short flight time of 55 minutes, which would guarantee us an on-time arrival to the Malaysian capital. The front door closed shortly after at 21.17, three minutes before our scheduled departure time. Although it took another seven minutes for us to be pushed back, this allowed the cabin crew to present the manual safety demonstration.

We had a long and steady taxi to our runway near Terminal 4, passing by a myriad of Changi’s late-night traffic – including a United Boeing 787-9 bound for San Francisco and the gorgeous Lufthansa Boeing 747-8 bound for Frankfurt.

After a lengthy 13-minute taxi, and having passed by Terminal 4, we finally made it to Runway 02C at 21.37. With the runway clear, we promptly took off and banked to the Northwest towards Kuala Lumpur.

Inflight Service

Five minutes after takeoff, Captain Azman turned off the seatbelt signs, prompting the crew to start the inflight refreshment service. As I waited for the light meal, I decided to check out the airline’s new entertainment streaming system. Sadly, it quickly became apparent that the system was not turned on for this short hop. As such, I decided to flip through the Going Places magazine in the seat pocket instead.

As we reached our cruising altitude, the mood lighting system was turned on, giving the cabin an even more intense blue hue. Emelia soon showed up to offer a choice of snacks, tonight being either chicken shumai or focaccia bread. I opted for the former, which was the only warm option between the two. As is customary, I ordered a warm mug of traditional teh tarik (pulled tea) to go with the meal, which Emelia happily prepared.

I was soon also brought my humble meal tray, which consists of a warm dish of dim sum, along with a tablet of Beryl’s Chocolate and Malaysia Airlines’ classic kacang masin (salted peanuts). Unexpectedly, the chicken shumai dish also came with a little bao bun and a side of chili sauce, all of which were tasty. This light hot meal ended up being very satisfying, especially compared to the cold focaccia.

For reference, the following is the focaccia option, which is served on a plate with its paper baking lining still in place. Not as appetising, don’t you reckon?

Lavatory

After finishing my small tray of refreshments, I made a quick visit to the lavatory up front to freshen up. Expectedly, the lavatory was just like any other regular Boeing 737 washroom, though I was happy to see that it was clean. Furthermore, various Malaysia Airlines-branded toiletries like spray disinfectant, lotion, and an Eau de Toilette were provided alongside some toothpicks.

Seat Function

With little time to spare before the cabin was prepared for arrival, I quickly checked out the recline function of the seat, which is manually operated by the buttons on the armrest. I was impressed by the advertised 8-inch recline of the seat, which was reasonably comfortable for a nap. Furthermore, the seat cradles and moves forward, so as not to intrude on the space of the passenger behind.

The provided pillow was also of a good size, although the woven blanket reminded me of something you’d get on a long-haul Economy Class flight. While I wouldn’t voluntarily elect to fly this product on a redeye flight, this is comfortable enough for a short hop around Southeast Asia.

Arrival in Kuala Lumpur

About 30 minutes before arriving in Kuala Lumpur (which coincidentally is less than 30 minutes into our flight), Captain Azman announced the commencement of descent. He followed this announcement 10 minutes later, thanking us for choosing Malaysia Airlines before instructing the flight attendants to prepare the cabin for landing. The seatbelt signs were turned on 20 minutes before landing, by which time the crew switched back on the airline’s boarding music and turned off the cabin lights.

With Kuala Lumpur International Airport being located in the midst of a massive palm plantation, there was nothing visible out the window on our approach. It was only minutes before touch down did I see a few buildings, moments before my eyes were fully shimmered by the airport’s myriad of lights. We landed smoothly at 22.22 on Runway 32L, eight minutes before our scheduled arrival time of 22.30.

Having briefly taxied past the Satellite Terminal, we finally settled into our parking stand at the Terminal 1 Contact Pier. As the jetbridge was connected and seatbelt signs extinguished, I thanked the crew for the pleasant service before disembarking the aircraft.

Verdict

Overall, I found Malaysia Airlines’ latest regional product to be devolutionary more than anything. While not objectively bad, the product did seem less comfortable compared to the airline’s previous cabins. In particular, the thinner padding and removal of in-seat entertainment monitors made the cabin look less premium. Still, I was happy with the ergonomics of the seat, along with the friendly Malaysian Hospitality service. While I wouldn’t avoid this product, I still find it interesting that Malaysia Airlines now has an inferior regional Business Class offering compared to its rival – Batik Air Malaysia (Malindo Air).

Read more from An Emerald Farewell here!