Feedback on Malaysia Airlines' J product?

[wafliron]

Looking for some feedback on the quality of Malaysia Airlines' J product please.

I'm trying to book a decent J award MEL-CDG-MEL in August, and apart from being one of the only airlines with availabaility (Award Nexus is showing nothing around my dates for either OW or *A), MH also only appears to be asking for c.120k Enrich points for the trip . Assuming I make a redemption before 31 Mar to take advantage of current Amex bonuses that is only 96k MR points, which seems to be pretty amazing value in terms of burn rate (ignoring quality of product, etc).

The proposed MH flights appear to be on A330-300s MEL-KUL (and vv) and 777-200ERs KUL-CDG (and vv). From MH's Wikipedia page it appears they have some new-config and some old-config A330-300s, but I've got no idea how to tell which config applies to the flights I'm looking at.

Thanks!

 

[xt_20]

MEL-KUL would be on their new A330-300 (a.k.a. 333). They don't use the old A330 (a.k.a. 330) for Aussie flights (except Perth a while back).

 

[Isochronous]

I've heard good things about MH J, but haven't tried it myself personally.

 

[richie9x]

In general you get very good service. The crew genuinely seem to enjoy the jobs, which can't be said for all airlines. The FAs are friendly and provide a very professional service. And some are absolutely stunning. I have noticed the boeings seem to have a slightly older crew than the air buses.

The meals are excellent. With a good selection of asian and western meals available. You'll get a starter of satay beef or chicken, which is always tasty. Also a good selection of drinks available.

To/from Melbourne will be on one of the new config A330s. You will have pretty new seats. With a very good selection of IFE available. I find the seats are ok to sleep in.

I quite like the 777s, but they are starting to show their age with signs of wear. For example once I had a broken seat that did not recline when I pressed the button. So I had to call an FA when I wanted to extend to recline. Quite often I have found the seat power point not working. The seat in a sloped flat sleeper, I think the 777s are closer to horizontal than the A330s. I usually get a very good sleep overnight. The IFE is alright for a plane of that age, but not as good as whats on the A330s.

Pity your not going a few months later as you could go on the A380 from Sydney. They have some cheap award seats in first on the 747s, hopefully they'll have the same on the A380s.

 

[turneeri]

I've flown MEL-LHR-MEL with MH J a couple of times and have found the level of service and enjoyment of the flights to be exceptional. Admittedly I've only ever experienced business on MH but it definitely ticked all the boxes for me. Comfortable seating - ability to get a couple of good solid blocks of sleep - superb food & not stingy with the drinks cart either - great lounge at KL - quick service through check-in etc. All for what I still believe is a very competitive product - I would choose MH J first before looking at other airlines. In fact I would be looking at doing MEL-CDG-MEL sometime in late August/early September so would love to know if you come across any good deals!

 

[Travel Guru]

Based on feedback from clients they have a good product and service, on par with Thai business class I'd suggest with 170 degree lie flat seats.

I wouldn't hesitate to fly them in J.

TG

 

[Harpoon]

I've flown MH J once MEL-KUL-MEL and enjoyed the service and food. The seat is not lie flat on the 777 (dunno about 333) so I couldn't sleep very easily but hey I was enjoying the endless supply of satays anyway. FA's were delightful as well which does make a difference. On the 777 - heaps of space. I could have played a game of tennis in my foot well, huge amount of space!

KUL is also a nice airport to transit in I've found if that counts...

 

[wafliron]

Thanks very much for all the feedback everyone - overwhelmingly positive too, which is great. Glad to hear that only the new A330-300 product is used on MEL-KUL too.

The one thing that still concerns me a little bit is the seats - quite a lot of complaints about them online, plus the A333 lacks lie-flat and the 772 lacks completely-flat from what I've read. (Very much a first world problem! )

After a bit of thinking I reckon I'll take an each way bet - if all goes according to plan (i.e. the points arrive in my FF accounts before the seats disappear) then I think I'll go SQ on the way over and MH on the way back. SQ does "cost" quite a bit more but I want to try their J product, and I would prefer to stop in SIN on the way over for other reasons.

That does leave me with a decision about the return trip though: should I go CDG-KUL-MEL direct, or instead take CDG-KUL-SYD and then a separate domestic flight SYD-MEL? CDG-KUL-SYD is more hassle / scope for things to go wrong with the connection but it's on a 772 the whole way, whereas CDG-KUL-MEL is more convenient but means A333 KUL-MEL. Any insight as to the "best" choice here from those who've experienced both the A333 and 772 MH product?

KUL is also a nice airport to transit in I've found if that counts...

How does KUL compare to SIN for transit? Haven't been through KUL in aaaaages.

Thanks again all!

 

[richie9x]

The 'new' A330s definitely have angled lie-flat with a 12 degree angle seats that you will get MEL-KUL see MH Experience - Fleet - Airbus A330-300 (New) | Malaysia Airlines . The 777s are also angled lie-flat seats I believe they have less of an angle than the 'new' A330s. Unfortunately they don't have fully flat seats in business. I would give a slight preference to the 777 but personally I am happy with either.

The 'old' regional A330s are recliners and are not lie-flat. It is possible some of the reviews you are seeing are for those.

Transiting at KLIA is very easy. All long haul flights leave and depart from the satellite terminal which is basically in a big X shape. You should be issued your boarding passes for both legs of the journey when you check in so it is just a matter of going to gate of your flight. The Malaysian Golden lounge is upstairs near the centre of the X. There are a variety of shops and restaurants around the terminal. And a rain forest thing in the centre of the X. It is well signed, you should not have any issue.

Regional and domestic flight leave from the main terminal which you can get to via the aerotain.

 

[amaroo]

Flown a few times for work - apart from the angle bed it was fine.

However, when spending my money I avoid any airline that has J angle beds....this day in age you just don't need to put up with it.

 

[wafliron]

The 'new' A330s definitely have angled lie-flat with a 12 degree angle seats that you will get MEL-KUL see MH Experience - Fleet - Airbus A330-300 (New) | Malaysia Airlines .

Thanks for correcting me on that - dunno how I ended up thinking the new A333 didn't have lie-flat seats, it's pretty clear from their websites! 12 degrees is a reasonably steep angle though.

The 777s are also angled lie-flat seats I believe they have less of an angle than the 'new' A330s. Unfortunately they don't have fully flat seats in business. I would give a slight preference to the 777 but personally I am happy with either.

Thanks for the feedback. I doubt the inconvenience of flying back via SYD is worth it to get the 772 over the A333 - I was only thinking it might be worth it whilst under the mistaken impression that the A333 didn't have lie-flat seats.

The 'old' regional A330s are recliners and are not lie-flat. It is possible some of the reviews you are seeing are for those.

Possibly some, but there's a lot of peopel complaining about slipping down the 772 seats in flat mode, and also complaining about the seats being very hard.

Transiting at KLIA is very easy. All long haul flights leave and depart from the satellite terminal which is basically in a big X shape. You should be issued your boarding passes for both legs of the journey when you check in so it is just a matter of going to gate of your flight. The Malaysian Golden lounge is upstairs near the centre of the X. There are a variety of shops and restaurants around the terminal. And a rain forest thing in the centre of the X. It is well signed, you should not have any issue.

Thanks, sounds quite nice. I hear good things about the Golden Lounge there as well.

However, when spending my money I avoid any airline that has J angle beds....this day in age you just don't need to put up with it.

I would typically agree, but the value here is hard to ignore. With current Amex bonuses it's only 49,280 MR points for a CDG-KUL-MEL in J, which is fewer MR points than an equivilant Y ticket with QF, and ~40% fewer MR points than SQ J Saver (which also isn't available).

 

[SeatBackForward]

I've flown MH J once MEL-KUL-MEL and enjoyed the service and food. The seat is not lie flat on the 777 (dunno about 333) so I couldn't sleep very easily but hey I was enjoying the endless supply of satays anyway. FA's were delightful as well which does make a difference. On the 777 - heaps of space. I could have played a game of tennis in my foot well, huge amount of space!

KUL is also a nice airport to transit in I've found if that counts...

Thats what I thought when I was onboard in J too, sooo much legroom, I dont think I came into contact with the seat in front the whole flight.

 

[spudseamus]

12 deg of pitch hhhmmm ! what angle does the plane fly at ? and is the bed angled opposite to it ?

 

[wafliron]

All booked 61,650 Enrich miles + ~300 EUR for CDG-KUL-MEL in J. As I noted above I'm gong to fly SQ J on the way over.

Thanks for the help everyone. In the space of a couple of months I'm lucky enough to be able to sample J on QF A380, QF 747-400ER (new config), SQ 777-300ER, SQ A380, MH 777-200ER and MH A330-300, so I'll have a good basis to compare what MH's product is like compared to some others. I'll post my thoughts in here for the benefit of others once I return from the MH flight.

One final thing: any seat selection tips for the MH 777-200ER or A330-300 (new config)? Seems to be very little out there on the interwebs, and SeatGuru / SeatExpert / etc don't say much (and don't show the A330-300 new config at all!). I'm a window seat kinda guy so I've put myself in 2A on both flights for now.

12 deg of pitch hhhmmm ! what angle does the plane fly at ? and is the bed angled opposite to it ?

Don't quote me on this, but I think a couple of degrees nose-up is normal? Which would mean the bed is angled against the plane's angle, reducing the relative pitch when in bed mode somewhat?

 

[KLN]

have just come back this week from Syd - KUL - Syd. both in J
MH121 and return on MH123. both excellent planes, can't remember which one was which though. sat downstairs on the way over, it was a bit tired, but service is excellent. food, drinks etc all excellent (steak was overcooked though).
returning on the overnight flight, we sat upstairs and it was great. must've been a newer plane i think.
always addressed by FA"s by name, even as a party of 3 which 2 different surnames, they were spot on each time.
(have flown J with a gluten free diet before too, won't do that again. it's better to pick and choose your food)
IFE was great all the way.
MH Golden Lounge at Terminal C is excellent. happy to hang out there for hours at a time. (private smoking room too for those with a filty habit....me..., so you can get a drink from the bar and trot off to the smokers corner). Showers available and a Massage chair room. KLN Junior likes to spend time there.
all so good that Mr. KLN is on tonite's flight in J all the way to Delhi on points. he has a 4 hour stopover in KUL, and can now remember where the Lounge is after being there last monday night. also managed to sneak Y friend into Lounge easy too.
spoke to staff on plane on the way home if our Y friend could come up and visit, and they said no probs at all. after the dinner service, i went downstairs and found her, and she was able to come up and have a couple of glasses of cold beverages with us, but then had to go home. J wasn't full either.

someone once asked me the difference between Y and J, and i said that at least in J the wine was cold, it's not in Y.

hehehehe

 

[wafliron]

have just come back this week from Syd - KUL - Syd. both in J

Thanks for the feedback KLN, sounds promising I'm looking forward to it... bring on August!

 

[Cruiser Elite]

I actually flew MH PEK-KUL-MEL on Mar 29 - I flew MEL-SIN-PEK on SQ on Mar 22 and had J Saver booked return on Mar 28 - had to stay 1 day longer and could not re-book SQ - so bought 1 way on MH on BF for $2,200. KUL-MEL leg was quite ok - amazing how much MH product looks so much like SQ new reg product. Service was fine - seats ok but it was daytime flt - not great to sleep on.

Endless supply of Jacquart Champ - plenty satay - main meal just ok I thought - certainly not SQ standard overall but I would readily fly them again.

Quck check of BF shows MEL-PEK on MH $3.8K and SQ $5K - I think that accurate reflection of MH quality.

Did not think too much of KUL lounge but I was only in there 1 hr.

Wafliron at mileage burn rate you are talking I think that is pretty competitive.

 

[wafliron]

Wafliron at mileage burn rate you are talking I think that is pretty competitive.

Thanks for the feedback - sounds something like what I'm expecting. Will report back in once I take the flights in a couple of months.

 

[Solid]

Did BNE-KUL-CMB return in J in February. BNE-KUL on A333, KUL-CMB on 738. In relation to the A333 plenty of room (won't talk about 738 since you won't be flying on one), set up 2-2-2. I'm reasonably tall (195cm) and fit in seat no issues, even when in bed mode. The angle didnt bother me but my wife slipped down a few times during the night. The seat is quite firm, but I found by putting a bit more padding in by asking for another blanket and putting that underneath it removed that issue when sleeping. Food was plentiful (maybe a little too much?) and quality of food was so so. Service excellent, would fly again in it for the satays alone. Given priority customs which worked out great, even coming back to oz.

 

[Cruiser Elite]

wafliron you asked about KUL v SIN for transit - chalk and cheese my friend - KUL ok but SIN head and shoulders above - no comparison.