04 May, 2009

Malaysia Airlines

Malaysia Airlines is the government owned flag carrier airline of Malaysia, it’s main hub is Kuala Lumpur, with a secondary hub at Kota Kinabalu.
It’s recently been financially restructured and looks in good shape to face the future. It’s has a reputation of providing great service at fares more reasonable than many other airlines. It often wins awards for service, both in the air and one the ground.
Our rating  4.5 stars
  • Reservations
  • UK +44 (0) 871 4239 090
  • USA +1 800 552 9264
  • Within Malaysia: 1 300 88 3000
    Outside Malaysia: +6 03 7843 3000

Safety record is good – details below of accidents and incidents that have effected the airline,  it’s on-time record is reasonably good,  in the first three months of 2011, 78 per cent of flights left on time.


The story of Malaysia Airlines starts in the golden age of travel. A joint initiative of the Ocean Steamship Company of Liverpool, the Straits Steamship of Singapore and Imperial Airways led to a proposal to the Colonial Straits Settlement government to run an air service between Penang and Singapore. The result was the incorporation of Malayan Airways Limited (MAL) on 12 October 1937.


On 2 April 1947, MAL took to the skies with its first commercial flight as the national airline. Fuelled by a young and dynamic team of visionaries, the domestic carrier turned into an international airline in less than a decade.


With the formation of Malaysia in 1963, the airline changed its name to Malaysian Airlines Limited. Soon after, Borneo Airways was incorporated into MAL. Within 20 years, MAL grew from a single aircraft operator into a company with 2,400 employees and a fleet operator using the then latest Comet IV jet aircraft, six F27s, eight DCs and two Pioneers.


In 1965, with the separation of Singapore from Malaysia, MAL became a bi-national airline and was renamed Malaysia-Singapore Airlines (MSA). A new logo was introduced and the airline grew exponentially with new services to Perth, Taipei, Rome and London. However, in 1973, the partners went separate ways. Malaysia introduced Malaysian Airline Limited, which was subsequently renamed Malaysian Airline System or in short, Malaysia Airlines. Today, Malaysia Airlines flies around 50,000 passengers daily to some 100 destinations worldwide.


The airline holds a lengthy record of service and best practices excellence, having received more than 100 awards in the last 10 years – the more notable ones are listed below.
Awarded by Skytrax UK
  • World's Best Cabin Crew (2001–2004, 2007, 2009)
  • 5-star Airline (2005–2007, 2009)
  • Economy Class Onboard Excellence (2006)
  • World’s Best Economy Class Award (2010)
  • Staff Service Excellence for Asia Award (2010)

Awarded by World Travel Awards
  • World’s Leading Airline to Asia (2010)
  • Asia’s Leading Airline (2010)
  • Asia’s Leading Business Class Airline (2010)
Malaysia Airlines

Key on-board service facts

 

Keeping you entertained in the skies


The Select In-flight Entertainment system offers a world of high quality, highly engaging entertainment onboard. From the latest blockbusters to popular TV shows, to multi-player games and critically acclaimed album releases, enjoy your MH Experience with a specially curated selection designed to delight your senses.
Entertainment systems available onboard
  • Audio Video on Demand (AVOD): A330-300, B747-400, B777-200, B737-800
  • In-seat Video: A330-200
  • Overhead screens: A330-300, B737-800
  • Portable Media Player: A330-300 Business Class
An extra inch goes a long way

With a seat pitch of 86.3 cm (34"), our Economy Class seats are one of the roomiest around. Stretch out or snuggle in with a pillow and blanket for comfort on long-haul flights.


Shop with Temptations, our duty-free in-flight shopping service. Choose from fine liquors to quality branded goods. Our cabin crew are ready to assist you with local duty-free allowances.
Fancy a particular spot? If you purchased a basic Economy Class ticket, you may now select preferred seats for a small fee – perfect for keeping good company together.
Business Class
From checking in via the telephone to receiving personalised service at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), take advantage of our exclusive check-in privileges for Business Class.
Freshen up with a quick shower, grab a hot drink, squeeze in some work thanks to free Wi-Fi, or sit back and relax before your next flight at our exclusive Golden Lounges worldwide.
Our Business Class seats are designed with ample leg-room and the ability to lie flat or recline freely so you can rest and enjoy unparalleled privacy throughout the journey.
Take your pick from our wide selection of palate-pleasing gourmet cuisine, produced from farm-fresh ingredients and created to provide a lofty dining experience.
Communicate with loved ones or workmates via calls or text messages using your seat entertainment controller that also works as an air-to-ground phone. You can even send and receive emails mid-flight.



Accidents, Incidents and crashes.
Listed here are incidents since relaunch of operations of Alitalia on 13 January 2009.
There have been two accidents involving passenger fatalities on Malaysia Airlines, with a total of 134 fatalities:
4 December 1977 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 653, a Boeing 737-200 (9M-MBD) was hijacked and crashed in Tanjung Kupang, Johor, killing all 100 people aboard.
15 September 1995 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 2133, a Fokker 50 (9M-MGH) crashed during approach in Tawau, Sabah due to pilot error. 34 people were killed.
Other, non-fatal incidents
18 December 1983 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 684, an Airbus A300B4 (OY-KAA) leased from Scandinavian Airlines crashed 2 km short of the runway in Subang on a flight from Singapore. There were no fatalities, but the aircraft was written-off.

15 March 2000 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 85, an Airbus A330-300 (9M-MKB) was damaged by a chemical called oxalyl chloride, which leaked from canisters when unloading, causing damage to the fuselage when arrived at KLIA from Beijing. The 5-year-old Airbus was sufficiently damaged to be written-off.
30 November 2003 - A cable in a Boeing 777-200ER that allows pilots to turn the plane on the ground had snapped before the Bombay-bound jet was to take off. The incident came just months (2004) after several wires on an Airbus A330-300 bound for Australia were found to have been cut shortly before take-off. Three of the airline's staff were arrested and later released over what a spokesman described as an act of vandalism, not sabotage. The government and police regarded both incidents as sabotage.
1 August 2005 - A Boeing 777-200ER as Malaysia Airlines flight 124 departed Perth for Kuala Lumpur. Climbing through 38,000 feet a faulty accelerometer caused the aircraft's Air Data Inertial Reference Unit (ADIRU) to command changes of altitude. The flight crew overrode the ADIRU and manually returned to land the aircraft at Perth. Subsequent NTSB investigation led the US FAA to issue emergency airworthiness directive 2005-18-51 on the fly-by-wire software.
2 October 2009 - Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737-400 (9M-MMR) was substantially damaged when the port main undercarriage collapsed while the aircraft was parked at the gate at Kuching Airport.

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