I hadn’t flown Malaysia Airlines in a long while. I did this year. I wanted a direct flight from Kuala Lumpur to Brisbane. Most other airlines had stopovers.  I honestly prefer to fly on my national carrier. But, it threw a few spanners in the works not to endear itself to me. Even before we were scheduled to fly, we were notified of a change to our flight dates and times. It scuppered a few arrangements but it wouldn’t have mattered much if my mum wasn’t travelling with me. 

Why? My 86 year old mum was making a special effort to fly eight hours to her grandson’s wedding in Brisbane. She is no longer physically strong nor is she interested in travelling, short or long haul. Quite honestly, donning a sari to leave her condo for a meal or to shop is a huge endeavour. So, this was a big deal trip that had to be just right.

First, the changed scheduled required us to fly on Monday night and not Wednesday morning. My mum is vegetarian on Mondays, and prefers to perform her prayers and eat her meals at home. In order to get my mum enthused, I incorrectly, talked up the Malaysia Airlines experience. A flat bed with adjustable controls, plenty of leg room and comfort.  And, an almost guarantee of a good night sleep. I also sold her on the free flowing food and drinks. All available at her beck and call. 

It didn’t quite happen like that. The flat-bed, once reclined, narrowed at the feet. My mum was uncomfortable despite being a smallish lady. She didn’t sleep well. She felt claustrophobic and a little frightened. Plus, the noodles she ordered wasn’t tasty. Hmmm…I am worried as she will be flying back from Brisbane to Kuala Lumpur soon.

Personally, I found a few things not quite right with Malaysia Airlines’ Business Class. The Airbus A330-300 had an inequitable seating configuration. There were six rows of seats in total. It was 1-2-1. But on the right, which is called the starboard side, it was 1-2-1 and 1-2-2. Three solo seats alternated with three paired seats on the right. The solo seat or seat K occupied the same area as the paired seats (H, K). Passengers seating on the solo seat enjoyed huge side and leg rooms. While, my mum and sister, who were in row 7 H and K, were almost squashed together with barely any place to keep their personal belongings.

On my return leg and this is true. My sister and I were in the middle seats on row 5. I had one small compartment to store my handbag, bottled water and book. In the same compartment sat the airlines’ brochures. My headset and toiletries bag were on the floor. Two men sat on the same row as us. When one was asleep, the other climbed over him to get out and back in. Seriously. Is this what we paid to fly business on Malaysia Airlines? Unequal facilities = unsatisfactory comfort.

The A330-300 also required double bolting us to our seats. The lap belt was supplemented with a ‘car style’ belt for take-off and landing. Why? Apparently, the lap belt was not enough to keep passengers securely in their seats.

The other beguiling thing was the number of times and duration the seatbelt sign was switched on. During one of these protracted lit safety signs, I stood near the front of the aircraft, stretched, waited to use the toilet and watched the cabin crew prepare two salmon and egg sandwiches. I wasn’t asked to go back to my seat at any point. But, the crew repeatedly declined any request for hot beverages.

The Inflight Entertainment did not perform for us. It had movies but not the two, ‘The Art of Racing in the Rain’ and ‘Thadam’ that my sister had wanted to watch. After fiddling with the remote and screen, I sought help from a cabin crew. Masking incredulity at my inaptness, he did exactly what I had attempted earlier, to no avail. He checked something, somewhere, and returned to say the two movies had not been uploaded.  He apologised and empathized with me, not only for the missing movies but the seating configuration and extra seat belts. Hmmm…

The upside, the cabin crew were generally friendly and helpful. I was given a pillow, base sheet to cover my seat, a blanket and an amenity kit. My barramundi was well cooked and I did enjoy the English Toffee Crunch ice-cream. Not one but two.

I do want to fly Malaysia Airlines but …