Alif A. F.

The 727 that landed here in BKI is N800AK.

Really like those panning shots!

I bet you must be very excited despite the delay. Good to know MH still send this aircraft to BKI as promised although I guess the airline could hv swapped it with any usual aircraft types...

Like to see a trip report from you! Regional 2 hours plus flight on new aircraft like this would be good enough warranting a trip report esp. on F...hehe

Oh, no tail mounted camera? Thought that is standard across all A350s...

Any reason why?

Shopping and eating amenities at klia2 is great although the general layout and design aspect of the terminal can be confusing for travellers... I personally prefer J pier than K pier (why on earth you need to go up and down just to reach your gate?) so, confusing...

Overall, I still hv reservation about the aircraft's mice-y nose although Airbus claims such design helps with aerodynamics... but the design could hv been sleeker in my opinion. Anyway, great coverage from our dedicated MWingers!

New midmarket plane - Boeing 797? Supposedly replace 757 and A310...

Is that 9M-MRA on the ground? How ironic that a little over 20 years ago -MRA received the same grand welcome after its record breaking non-stop flight.

Sometimes I forgot that this airplane is actually leased, not owned by MAB. Although, this is quite normal in commercial aviation business. Anyhow, looking forward to welcoming this big bird in MAB fleet!

https://www.nst.com.my/node/304740/amp

Perhaps MF can use the plane to fly somewhere else in between those long layover rather than parked on hot and humid BKI tarmac. BKI-SIN BKI-DPS BKI-???

Last minute deal?

I think the era of RAS in Sabah is now over. All the small towns which used to be served with Otters are now connected by roads - example, Ranau, Kota Belud and Keningau are now within 2 hours drive from KK, even people prefer to travel to Kudat by land although Otter is still flying there albeit with mediocre schedule and exorbitant price (~RM500++ return - absurd price). Sadly, the airfields are now abandoned even though these are still government owned.

What will happen to ATR crews? What is the future direction of MASWings?

I know some of my colleagues have general dislike for ATR planes because they are not jetplanes. I am not sure if because of the slower speed or because of smaller cabin width. Went to Tawau few weeks ago by road - The journey from KK to Nabawan was quite OK, if not because of the trucks, any passenger car can travel up to 100km/h as the road condition is generally quite good. But as soon as you cross the deeply forested areas at the vicinity of Maliau all the way to Kalabakan, the road condition becomes so bad that you wish that you are go to Tawau on an airplane instead.

Honestly I prefer and like the soothing and immaculate accents and colours of SQ cabin products, unlike EK's rather bling bling theme.

In one way or another, the missiles and neighbour displeasure does affect how common people react: 'South Korean tourists sanction China, opt for Japan' https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Trends/South-Korean-tourists-sanction-China-opt-for-Japan 'Tourism industry to continue to suffer as THAAD issue remains unresolved' http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20170709000210

A bit off topic, can numbers be used in place of alphabets when registering aircrafts in Malaysia, for example 9M-MA1? I know some airlines does that especially in China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan. Back to topic, what is the seat pitch for Y in MH A350?

Agree. From what I understand EK is now grappling with the challenge of overcapacity on some routes as its smallest aircraft is B777 and is now teaming up with FlyDubai to address that challenge. Last year was a positive tourists arrivals growth to Sabah from the UK (increase of 7%). BI clearly wants to leverage on that growth. KA will pull out of BKI early next year..and MH has only one European destination at the moment. Perhaps QR can test the water by doing DOH-BKK-BKI? Oh wait, but Thai Smile tried this route briefly this year but failed to make it work in the long term.

DOH-KBV (Krabi) was downgraded to A319 for one month according to routesonline.

Exactly my point. I hope QR can grow traffic in PEN significantly through QR's transit hub in DOH. With current flight bans by several Mideast countries for QR..I guess traffic will mostly be sourced from Europe.

Well, I think its a fact that there is no efficient way to get out of Borneo unless you fly...that is why pax figures is high... So, what im trying to say is that perhaps most pax travel in and out of BKI are travelling domestic apart from North Asia. Pax from Middle East and beyond might not be that much compared with Penang.

Yay! Congrats Penang! Perhaps can stopover in Penang after this for travel to Europe or beyond.. And, dont think KK will hv that market at the moment...