Malaysia Airlines is using a brand new plane on its Auckland-Kuala Lumpur route and has a simple message to the trade: ‘We’re back.’
New Zealand sales manager Ian Herald says A330neos will soon operate all eight services a week.
“‘We’re back.’ The product on our A333-200 was dated especially in business class. We’ve got the product here that we can go out and sell with confidence,’’ he said speaking at a launch function at Auckland Airport.
MH has 20 of the neo (new engine option) planes on order and the early deployment of one to AKL is a sign of a commitment to this market.
The airline has been flying here for 35 years. It has aspirations to fly double daily and Herald says the new aircraft would allow it to broaden its appeal beyond VFR to Kiwi leisure travellers. It is about to start Kuala Lumpur-Paris services which it promoted with sharp pricing last year in addition to London flights; and there are good connections to Thailand, Vietnam and Japan.
MH has 12 destinations in India, making VFR critical, but there are signs Air India may begin non-stop services to this country.
‘’We want to spread the load away from VFR which has also been good but if you’re going to have non-stop carriers coming in next year you don’t want to be totally reliant on VFR.’’
. . . Layout
The A330neo features business class seats with fully flat beds. The Elevation seat has unique comfort technology, with privacy doors and direct aisle access. There are similarities to some earlier suites in Qatar Airways—a fellow oneworld alliance carrier.
MH offers complimentary Wi-Fi with unlimited data for all passengers.
The business class suites have 17.3- inch 4K screens with Bluetooth pairing, built-in wireless chargers and a selection of power outlets. In economy, the screen size of 13.3-inches takes up a fair chunk of seatbacks and the overhead bins are noticeably bigger. MH doesn’t have premium economy, but extra legroom seats behind bulkheads in economy have similar space to premium economy on other carriers.
. . . Agent Fares
Herald says MH will soon launch some incentives for agents and agent fares. Promoting Europe was key. “We’re not seen as a European carrier but we want to get out there and say we’ve got new product and new connections. We want to really fly the flag.’’
The delivery schedule for MH neos has been bumpy but a third plane is about to enter the fleet. The new aircraft offer fuel and emissions reductions of up to 25% and are powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines.
