I flew on 2 back-to-back Malaysia Airlines flights, and now I'm rooting for the struggling airline to survive

Kate Taylor

Feb 27, 2020, 23:30 IST

I flew on 2 back-to-back Malaysia Airlines flights, and now I'm rooting for the struggling airline to survive

Kate Taylor/Business Insider

Malaysian Airlines is struggling to survive.

Malaysia Airlines is bleeding money, as it struggles to compete with low-cost airlines and recover from a disastrous 2014 when one flight was shot down and another disappeared.
I recently flew on two Malaysia Airlines flights, one international and one domestic.
While they weren't the perfect flight experiences, Malaysia Airlines' battle to compete with both budget and full-service rivals means that you get a great deal when booking a flight in Southeast Asia.
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Malaysia Airlines has been fighting a battle on many fronts for years.

The Malaysian state-owned airline has struggled to recover since 2014, when one fight was shot down, killing 2798 people and another disappeared, carrying 238 passengers and crew members. The rise of budget airlines such as VietJet and AirAsia have further cut into the airline's business. It is bleeding money, losing roughly $1 billion Malaysian ringgit annually ($237 million) in recent years.

"The airline is sinking faster than the Titanic and the life raft is only the size of a dinghy," a Malaysian Reserve op-ed stated in late 2019.

I recently flew on two Malaysia Airlines flights in three days, flying from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and then a domestic flight from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi.

I was impressed on both flights by the quality of service compared to budget airlines and the price compared to non-budget options. Malaysia Airlines might be stuck in an uncomfortable position, but its struggle to win over customers means passengers are benefiting.

Despite arriving early for my flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Kuala Lumpur, I ended up sprinting to catch my flight after missing an announcement for a last-minute gate change.

Fortunately, the Ho Chi Minh City airport has a lot of electronic signs indicating what flights are taking off from what gates, even if they do not always announce changes in English.

As I waited to board, a flight attendant circulated the area, asking passengers if they had recently visited China, Hong Kong, or Cambodia.

I had canceled a trip to Cambodia 36 hours earlier, due to concerns that the country had neglected proper coronavirus screening before allowing cruise-ship passengers to disembark. I only had to pay $96 for a flight to Kuala Lumpur on Malaysia Airlines, so I decided to reroute the trip.

The $98 ticket included a checked bag and a meal. While a few budget airlines had slightly cheaper options, they would have quickly become more expensive with my 15 kg bag and other fees.

With my bag checked and a relatively speedy boarding process, I quickly made it on the airplane. I was flying on a Boeing 737-800, which make up the bulk of Malaysia Airlines' fleet. It was a fine seat, with reasonable legroom.

The plane had a prune and maroon color scheme — not my favorite combination of colors, but not bad. The melodic tones of an acoustic version of Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up" filled the cabin.

After traveling on VietJet, where the pages of the in-flight catalog were stuck together with an unknown substance, I was impressed by "Going Places," Malaysian Airline's in-flight magazine.

Flipping through, I realized it was produced by Ink, which also publishes American Airlines' American Way, United Airlines' Hemispheres, and Amtrak's The National.

Malaysia Airlines was heavily promoting its in-flight WiFi. However, when I tried to join, I realized it was apparently only available on Airbus A350 planes. It was only a 2 hour and 15 minutes flight, but it felt rude to promote something so aggressively and then not offer it.

On the plus side, the airline did offer free headphones to every passenger for the duration of the flight.

Soon, everyone had to remove their earphones for the safety briefing.

Flight attendants forced everyone to not only take off their headphones but also turn off all phones. Mere airplane mode would apparently not suffice. With no music or phone games for takeoff, this seemed like a bit of an overreaction to me.

I busied myself with "Temptations," but found it to be basically the same as any other in-flight duty-free catalog.

We weren't in the air for long when it was time to eat — right around noon, following a slightly delayed takeoff a bit after 11 a.m. from Ho Chi Minh City. Offered a choice between chicken and fish, I went with chicken.

The meal was unmistakably airplane food but still managed to pack in some flavor and avoid egregious sogginess. I ate the entire dish, which I would grade as a solid B+.

The packaged peanuts were a nice treat.

So was the cookie, even if it wasn't particularly memorable.

I struggled to open the cup of water, eventually stabbing the plastic cover with a fork to hydrate myself. Frankly, this was not the best or most eco-friendly way to transport water.

After the meal, the flight attendants came around with more drinks. In my case, that meant some coffee.

After the coffee, I turned my attention back to in-flight entertainment. Malaysia Airlines featured back-of-seat screens and a wide selection of movies, including recent hits like 2019's "Joker."

I decided to watch 2019's "Pokémon Detective Pikachu" instead. Did you know Diplo has a cameo in this movie? I did not until this flight!

My only issue with the in-flight entertainment was that my remote control seemed to be on an exceptionally short wire that I could not figure out how to extend further.

But, that wasn't going to be a concern for long. Before Detective Pikachu could even discover the truth about his former partner, flight attendants announced we were beginning the descent.

The movie was interrupted by a Malaysia Airlines ad in which a flight attendant and passenger appear to fall in love, as the flight attendant gives the passenger and her son a tour of Malaysia.

I would have preferred to see more Detective Pikachu. But, I guess Malaysia Airlines is doing whatever it takes to market itself at this point.

With a meal, drink service, and movie packed into a flight that was only a bit longer than two hours, the trip had passed by quickly.

I took a second look at the sizable over-head storage as I exited the flight with other surgical mask-clad passengers.

Full from my meal and impressed by how quickly the flight had gone, I decided I would pick Malaysia Airlines over a budget airline the next time the opportunity presented itself.

As a bonus, it was an easy journey from the airport to my hostel in Kuala Lumpur's Bukit Bingtang neighborhood.

It was a comfortable 28-minute trip from the airport on the KLIA Ekspres to Kuala Lumpur Sentral. Then, I just had a sweaty and crowded quick two-stop ride on the subway to my hostel.

Less than 48 hours later, I was back at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, heading on another Malaysia Airlines flight. I paid $50 for a one hour and 10-minute flight to Langkawi, where I would take a ferry to the tiny Thai island of Koh Lipe.

Worried about the Kuala Lumpur traffic, I took a taxi and arrived at the airport two hours before my 9 a.m. flight. That gave me time to grab breakfast and read the fascinating bathroom signs.

I was flying on another 737. Unfortunately, I was not set to board this plane with a brightly decorated tail.

Malaysia Airlines boards planes back to front, starting with Zone D. As a result, I was one of the first people to get on the flight, which boarded quickly.

Foot room was the same, as were the acoustic covers of pop hits. All passengers were instructed to turn off their phones and take off headphones.

The plane was only in the air for about 45 minutes, but flight attendants still found time to distribute peanuts and juice. The orange juice was much easier to open than the water on my previous flight.

Almost as soon as the peanut wrappers were swept away, we were preparing for landing. Juice, peanuts, a checked bag, and an on-time flight for $50 — I'll take it.

When I was booking flights, Malaysia Airlines tickets were only slightly more expensive than reservations for budget airlines like AirAsia and VietJet. And, economy tickets included add-ons such as meals and checked bags that would cost extra on budget flights.

Certain aspects of Malaysia Airlines' flights hint at the airline's uncertain future, such as the aggressive safety talk and intrusive advertising. Malaysia Airlines feels like it is trying to compete both with budget and full-service airlines. But, right now, that competition means that you can get more for your money than you'd likely get from other airlines.

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