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Mohd Azizul Ramli

MAS New 15 A330-300X + 4 A330-200 Freighter

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Ignoring the ottoman seat & colours, MH's new A330 C class seats are definitely not the same. In fact, quite a fairly long list of differences.

 

I stand corrected. TK manufacturer is Sogerma and Weber while MH is Recaro. Thanks for the correction! :sorry:

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TK seat pockets are between the screens, MH's is just under the screen.

I thought it was the same as well, because the design looks similar, but the details are different.

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Removing a row in Business/ Club is A GOOD idea worth looking into ; and maybe another row out in EYCL as well.

 

I thought one reason the seats are not full flat is because it would need more space, i.e., with lie flat at angle, your feet go below the passenger in front's head.

 

So if you remove a row from C class, you would have enough space for full flat beds.

 

This is why I thought MH 777 C class is very silly. They got the lie flat at angle seats. Then they didn't like the cramped space so they removed one row and created a huge legroom. But with the huge legroom, they could have gotten full flat seats!!

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Malaysia Airlines To Continuously Upgrade Products And Services

 

SEPANG, May 12 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airlines will continuously upgrade its products and services across the board to enhance customer experience, said its chairman, Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid.

 

"We acknowledged this when embarking on the transformation in 2006 in the quest to increase premium travellers on flights, whilst setting the goal to become the number one airline in Asia," he added.

 

He was speaking to reporters after the launch of an upgraded and exclusive premium check-in facility at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) for first and business class passengers of MAS as well as Enrich Platinum Loyalty and Frequent Flyer members.

 

He said providing value-added services and products is part and parcel of a full service carrier as these in turn, would improve yield and profitability.

 

"We are focused on the premium market and are raising the bar to do even better. We are already recognised as the best in terms of a selected product range," he added.

 

On the launch, Munir said the transformed environment would enable the airline's personnel and passengers to interact in a classier, friendlier and cosier atmosphere, while the new check-in technologies introduced in the facility would help further automate processes and improve workforce productivity.

 

The airline also officially announced its "Chef-on-Call First" service, introduced earlier this year.

 

It is a special enhanced dining experience currently offered to first class passengers on Malaysia Airlines flights between Kuala Lumpur and the cities of London, Amsterdam and Sydney.

 

Munir said the service would allow passengers to pre-order their preferred choice of main course from a wider range of menu selection and can avail of this service 24 hours before travel, with just a call or by logging their request online through a designated website.

 

On jet fuel price, Malaysia Airlines managing director/chief executive officer, Tengku Datuk Seri Azmil Zahruddin said it remained high and would be monitored.

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I believe fellow member Lemuel Tay has flown in it in Business Class from BNE but he does not make any TR.

 

Not quite yet, coming up on 15-May, BNE-KUL. Wait for it, my pretties, you don't want to experience "premature elucidation" do you???

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A short travel report, in the style of the news.com.au reviews that we see syndicated here in Australia.

 

 

 

Aircraft Malaysia Airlines Airbus A330-300 (A333)

 

Route: Brisbane to Kuala Lumpur, MH134

 

Class: Business seat 2H

 

Seat pitch and width: 60 inches between seats (seat pitch) and 20 inches between armrests, with a bed that reclines to a 12-degree angle.

 

Seat Configuration: 2-2-2, for a total of 36 business-class seats. Every seat is either a window or aisle seat.

 

Luggage Allowance: Checked-in luggage up to 30 kilograms and one carry-on piece up to seven kilograms.

 

Scheduled flight time: Eight hours, twenty minutes.

 

On-time performance: Spot-on for take-off, push-back exactly as scheduled. Landed in KLIA ten minutes early.

 

Aircraft condition: Immaculate as the aircraft has only been in service for less than three weeks. The quietness of the aircraft makes for a much more pleasant flight.

 

Lounge Access: As Malaysia Airlines has no lounge of its own in Brisbane, it uses the Qantas International lounge. Today, the lounge was very crowded until the call was made for the QF flight to Hong Kong.

 

Comfort: The Recaro Comfort Line 6510 seats are reasonably comfortable. There are a number of pre-set positions for landing, lounging, dining and sleeping. Additional adjustments are available under the panel in the centre arm console. Drop-down armrest in recline mode extends bed width from 20 inches to 25 inches.

 

Service: Warm and attentive, service is always with a smile, nod and "You're welcome". It's no wonder this airline has been awarded "Best Cabin Crew" numerous times in the past decade.

 

Console/Entertainment: The 15.4 inch touch-screen high-definition screen and handset makes navigating the entertainment options easy. There is a USB port for listening to own music or browsing photos, a great way to review those holiday snaps.

 

Food and beverages: There is a light supper featuring the signature dish of satay; whilst it is a little messy to eat, a wet washer is available to clean up. A full hot breakfast with a choice of three hot mains makes waking up that much easier.

 

Amenties: A Clarins toiletries bag is provided. The toilets on-board are in sparkling clean condition, the wood panelling and LED lights make it a pleasant experience.

 

Flight frequency: Malaysia Airlines flies from Brisbane to Kuala Lumpur five times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat & Sun). The Airbus A333 is the newest fleet addition for Malaysia Airlines, and is currently exclusively assigned to Brisbane.

 

Arrival: KLIA is one of the leading airports of South-East Asia; passengers on Malaysia Airlines Business Class can use the airlines' Golden Lounge at the Satellite Building to freshen up, useful if dashing off to a meeting or there is a connecting flight ahead.

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Great! Maybe you can submit your report to Australian Business Traveller. A couple of questions:

was the headphone noise-cancelling?

was the dishware similar to the one currently used?

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Great! Maybe you can submit your report to Australian Business Traveller. A couple of questions:

was the headphone noise-cancelling?

was the dishware similar to the one currently used?

 

The headphones resembled a Philips noise-cancelling design. I did try it just to see what they were like... definitely an improvement over the old cheapie ones with foam pads. These cupped around your ears and did block out noise better. However, I ended up using my own QC2s, which have served me very well over the years. You still need the "F" shaped plug on your headphones to use the sound system.

 

The dishware looked the same, the design launched as part of "an experience redefined". The mug in particular is very plain, no insignia or logo, it looks awfully bland. At least the dishes have some contour lines on the edges and look better. The only piece that looked very different was the wet towel dish for the satay course - the old ones were stainless steel dishes looking like a scallop shell; this has changed to a square glass dish with footed legs, with the airline's name etched on the clear glass. Honestly, don't know how these will stand up to wear, I heard more than one clang of a tray being dropped in the galley!

 

OK folks, here's the lowdown on the airline, after the flight on 15-May.

 

Pluses:

* New plane, so as expected, very quiet especially during take-off and landing. The B777s are getting quite noisy, and the rattling, juddering and vibrating can be quite startling at times.

* LED lights are very soothing; I liked the use of the pink colour scheme during the (night) take-off and landing, giving it a warm, cozy and reassuring atmosphere.

* Toilets with the wood panelling, moulded counter-top and LED lights made it more welcoming and less stark and clinical. Don't know how long the shiny counter-top will remain so, it would probably show scratches very soon.

* Headphones given were of higher quality than before, with noise-cancelling effect. Not bad, but not comparable to say, the Bose noise-cancelling QC range, which combined with the quieter plane, made for a good sound reproduction.

 

Minuses:

* The Recaro seating as expected is very firm. Good for safety though - prevents the "submarining" effect of passengers that could result in slipping under the seatbelt. Perhaps a compromise in seat comfort could be made... it had almost too much of a no-nonsense feel about it.

* The standard take-off/landing preset position was very strange, a peculiar angle indeed. The B777's position is more a "bolt upright", where all your joints are at a 90-degree angle, seat in its lowest position, intended for a "quick getaway". The A333's instead slightly leans back, neither upright nor reclining, with a strange "thrust your tummy out" position. Warning: do not let anyone take photos of you in this position, they say photos add on 10 pounds, with this, you'll definitely look like a fatty-bom-bom! It could be my imagination, but it felt like there was something sticking in the small of my back, so I couldn't wait to alter this position as soon as the seat-belt sign went off.

* Recline bed mode. Uhm, definitely not as comfortable as a full-flat. Despite others not liking the herringbone design, I would have liked to see this onboard, as it means a full-flat with more privacy. It would depend on passengers whether they can sleep on an angle, lucky for me, it's no big problem, I got a decent sleep and was fine the next morning. With the reduced seat pitch, you need to be careful where you stack your shoes, otherwise they'll be crushed by the footrest.

* Privacy factor. With the low seat back shells, it gave a more open feeling, but loses out on privacy. You can definitely study the hairstyles of your fellow passengers (!).

* Secondary control panel. This is located under the centre armrest console - so if you have a magazine or reading material or whatnot on the armrest, you have to remove it to access this. Ditto for the traytable. I still prefer the quick-deploy system of the B777, where a separate side panel conceals the tray table, so it's quicker to deploy and store.

* No flight mode information?? Select that option and it's still "under development". Very strange. Also, the IFE only reads jpg, png, mp3, pdf formats (from what I can remember), no own video playback option (e.g. your own divx, avi etc.)

* The screens are high-definition / wide-screen, but material is still low-definition? I hope MH will make it a priority to update its material, espcially their own ad (short trailer) when selecting each option. The graininess and poor quality makes it feel as if one were trying to watch VHS on a modern display panel!

* Poor design of the drink-bottle holder. MH provides their own bottled water (500ml) when settling down at bed-time. It's meant to go in the strange "stubby cooler" holder near the leg rest, but this holder seems so small and tight, after struggling with it for a minute, I gave up. So, the only place is on the centre console, which creates its own problems.

 

So, overall, not a great improvement on the previous B777, I think a bigger stride forward would have been good, "must try harder".

Edited by Lemuel Tay

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:clapping: Well done Mr.Tay...

 

Great insight into MH's new 330, if I hadn't known better I would have thought you were a teacher filling a school boy's report card!

 

Great read...can't wait to try it myself...

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Thanks for the "assessment"! It might be a while before I get to try out the new A330s, since I'm based in SYD and those birds won't be flying here. But I can't complain because I'll probably get to sample the A380 since these birds will be flying to SYD and LHR! :good:

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ThaiA345 of A.Net posted this TR yesterday http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/trip_reports/read.main/190357/ but it is about MH's new J on the B738 (he flew on MH's latest B738 9M-MXD for his CGK-KUL sector). He has promised to write a full blown TR on MH's new J on the new A333 when he flies to BNE next week and he wanted all of us here in MalaysianWings to be on high alert about it.

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According to this, 9M-MTB did KUL-KIX first flight on new A330.

 

Latest flights by 9M-MTB

MAS52 seen @ 2011-05-20 18:15 CET on route from KUL to KIX

MAS5433 seen @ 2011-05-05 07:11 CET

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With the transformation of MH's aircraft equipped with latest technology and experience, I believe MH can be more competitive among the Regional Airlines.

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With the transformation of MH's aircraft equipped with latest technology and experience, I believe MH can be more competitive among the Regional Airlines.

 

With the arrivals of 787 in 2-3 years to come, MH really needs to step up their game and offer competitive products.

Please bring back hot towels, menu cards and all other amenities for Y passengers.

I wonder if cost-cutting measures really contributes to their profits.

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For once, they offer haagen daaz or baskin robbins on domestic routes, but now they strip it off from the menu again. It's all too volatile!

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For once, they offer haagen daaz or baskin robbins on domestic routes, but now they strip it off from the menu again. It's all too volatile!

 

I agree. If Haagen Daz and Baskin Robbins are really burning a hole in MH's pocket, any Walls or Paddle Pop ice cream will do as long as there is dessert...... :yahoo: :yahoo:

 

However, given the current operating environment, Y class will always remain as whYYYYYY class. :sorry: :blink:

Edited by JuliusWong

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For once, they offer haagen daaz or baskin robbins on domestic routes, but now they strip it off from the menu again. It's all too volatile!

 

If I remember correctly, they serve it during school holidays. Not an everyday thing.

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If I remember correctly, they serve it during school holidays. Not an everyday thing.

Then lucky are those who fly MH next week, and the one after !

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A little spotlight on the 4 A332 freighters that are also part of this purchase deal. 2 of the A332F will be delivered this year.

 

MASkargo to spend RM1 billion to improvise products, cost structure for the next three years

Posted on May 22, 2011, Sunday

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=131981

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Airlines Cargo Sdn Bhd (MASkargo) will spend more than RM1 billion over the next three years to improve its products, efficiency and cost structure, said its managing director, Shahari Sulaiman.

 

He said the company would be upgrading its Advanced Cargo Centre (ACC) at the KL International Airport (KLIA) and introduce four Airbus A330 freighters.

 

The refurbishment and upgrading of the material handling control system at the ACC would increase the current capacity by more than 40 per cent to one million tonnes, Shahari said at the 15th MASkargo Megatonners Award event here Friday night.

 

He said it would incorporate the state of the art technology and processes to allow dynamic tracking and faster movement of the consignments within the warehouse.

 

“The introduction of the Airbus A330 freighters will be a game changer where we would be able to match the right capacity to the right markets,” he said.

 

Shahari said the cost benefit of operating a fuel efficient twin engine aircraft would allow it to grow into new markets within Asia.

 

The primary network will be to serve the intra Asia trade lanes which is also the region with the highest growth rate, he said.

 

“With the phasing out of the classic freighters from our fleet at the end of the year, MASkargo will have one of the youngest freighter fleets.

 

“This will certainly help improve our on-time performance and augur well in reducing our carbon footprint,” he said.

 

MASkargo ended last year with total cargo revenues of RM2.39 billion, a 29.2 per cent increase over 2009, thanks to improvements in yield and load factors and an increase in freighter capacity.

 

It recorded a pre-tax profit of RM141.7 million.

 

Meanwhile, Deputy Transport Minister Jelaing Mersat said the government will continue to facilitate the growth of the air cargo industry in Malaysia to benefit all cargo operators. — Bernama

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