Review of Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to New Delhi in Business

My flight from Bangkok arrived at the main terminal which allowed me to visit the regional Golden lounge first before proceeding for my next flight to Delhi which departs from the satellite terminal. I had a layover in Kuala Lumpur on the day I left India for Thailand and visited the main Golden Lounge at the satellite terminal. The regional Golden Lounge was certainly smaller but I thought it was slightly nicer due to the segmentation of the lounge and the views of the tarmac. In the satellite Golden Lounge, the tarmac views are limited to First Class passengers and Malaysia Airlines top-tier frequent flyers.

Entrance to the lounge
The food offered during lunch was somewhat different from breakfast but the spread in the satellite terminal Golden Lounge was as good. The regional Golden Lounge also has a pretty neat bar area that seems empty during the afternoon.

Regional Golden lounge at the main terminal
However the smaller regional lounge did not have showers and this meant I left earlier to the satellite terminal where my next flight departs from. On leaving the lounge I also checked about adding my Marco Polo membership number to the next flight since I forgot to present them while checking in for my flight in Bangkok. Once I got that I head to the Golden Lounge at the satellite terminal and having been there before, I knew where to go.

Entrance foyer to the lounge
Upon entering the lounge I checked if the showers were ready and indeed it was. I was told to proceed to the end of the lounge. Though there was no shower attendants and just a large restroom with shower stalls. The whole place reminded me of the communal showers in my university dorm room. It was also difficult to find space to store my hand carry. Inside the shower stalls, I did find towels, some bath amenities though they were generic brands and seems to be of low quality so I just used what I brought with me. However the bad part was the soap holder was spoilt which meant there was no space at all to place the small shampoo bottles. This was definitely the worst shower experience in a lounge ever. Not sure if I would want to take a shower here again.

Shower room
Since I did not really do a separate coverage of the Golden Lounge in my last visit, I shall post more photos of the lounge here. The lounge here is large and there are lots of space for passengers to get seated. But the problem is there is no partition at all and it feels like a vast hall with chairs, and not a lounge. In the centre of this hall lies a buffet counter with the same hot food offerings, coffee machines and bar fridge on both sides.

Buffet counter in the lounge
There was also a magazine stand at the central section of this counter. As mentioned before, there is also a noodle bar where one can order freshly made noodles though they open from 9am onwards so it is not possible when your flights leave early in the morning. The lounge also has a proper dining area with a smaller dining area with more food options closer to the entrance. There is also an ice cream fridge and the ice cream seems to be supplied by Kapiti, a New Zealand based creamery. The ice cream is perhaps also one of the best reasons to visit the lounge.

Kapiti ice cream
Again I stress that the open layout of the lounge is not the most comfortable since it is no different than being in the gate area except perhaps for the food. Furthermore they do cordon off the area by the windows for top-tier frequent flyer members of Malaysia Airlines Enrich program or First Class passengers.

Open layout of the lounge

Seating inside the Golden Lounge
Some of the other facilities in the lounge include a business centre and TV lounge at the entrance foyer as well as an area resembling a sports bar with flatscreen TV showing sports programs along with a bar counter. This area is perhaps my favourite part to lounge in compared to the main lounge itself but the seating area is very small and it seems separated from the whole lounge.

Reading lounge and workstation

Sports bar in the Golden lounge
Generally due to the open layout of the lounge, it is easy for the staff to see you and you to observe the staff. They do offer you with some food and beverage on entering but most of the time they are just happy to mingle and chit chat with each other. Generally they did not exude the professionalism of other airline lounge staff but they did their job fine in clearing up the tables and stuff. The experience with the so-called 'flagship' lounge at the impressive Kuala Lumpur airport falls a bit short though. To be truly world-class, an airline should have a great airport lounge as well and Malaysia Airlines did not deliver in this regard.

KLIA satellite terminal
MH190 Kuala Lumpur International KUL - Delhi Indira Gandhi DEL
STD-STA: 1705-2005
Actual: 1723-2009
Airbus A330-300 9M-MTG
Gate C1 Seat 2A
After having a shower at the lounge in the satellite terminal, I got myself a cup of ice cream and walked over to the boarding gate since it was time to board the flight. I was one of the last few passengers to board the flight since the waiting area was empty already by the time my boarding pass was scanned.

Malaysia Airlines Airbus A330 at Kuala Lumpur International Airport

Seat onboard Malaysia Airlines A330
Onboard, this was not a full flight unlike the journey to KL from Delhi and only 15 out of 36 seats were occupied in Business class. That was less than 50% occupancy! Service started with a pink guava juice for welcome drinks along with cold towels. Unlike my last flight though, I did not remember them offering newspapers or magazines.

Pink guava juice
On the seat itself was a pillow and blanket while the menu was placed in the magazine compartment. Menu was similar to the one on my flight to KL and I noticed I had the same plane servicing the flight as well. Menu for the flight was already in the magazine holder in the seat back, and it read as follow:

Dinner menu

Supper menu and beverage selection

Cocktail menu

Wine list
I noticed the menu was similar to my flight to KL and I had the same plane servicing the flight as well. There was still a slight wait before the plane closed its doors so I took this chance to take photos of the cabin since the flight was relatively empty.

Business class seats by Recaro

The Business class cabin
After take-off, which did not take long, passengers were served an Indian snack pack that was made in Malaysia and orders were taken for a post take-off drink. I had a 'Teh Tarik' or a specialty tea drink and it was just like those you could get in the hawker centres of Singapore and Malaysia.

Flying past Klang

Snack before the meal

Teh Tarik after take-off
Meal service started with satay, then an appetizer with chicken or lamb choices; it ended up with me picking an all chicken meal. Since I enjoyed the TV drama ‘Golden Boy’ in my previous flight, that was what I continued watching during this flight. It was good that Malaysia’s IFE has several episodes of this drama serial.

Malaysian satay
I still have to say I rather have Singapore’s version of satay any time! I still don’t like the beans in the peanut sauce.

Salad plate
The salad was normal and I am neutral towards it. The portion of the salad served was pretty good and it came with a packet of yogurt and a fruit bowl. Next came the main course which some sort of chicken curry. It was delicious and again another good portion of meal. Papadums and assorted breads were also offered with the main course.

Main course of Narial chicken
Coffee was served while crew returned to serve dessert after clearing tray. Dessert on the flight was an Indian dessert, and it just was not something I fancy. Generally I find Indian desserts overly sweet for my taste.

Nawabi tukda
Cabin lights were dimmed after dinner service and the ambient lighting made for a nice flight environment. Service by the staff was average at best though even with a relatively empty flight as the crew was nowhere to be seen at all during the remainder of the flight.

Seat in 'lounge' or relaxing mode
Since it was a day flight and I was not that tired, I took more photos of the cabin and roamed the business class cabin. I am not a big fan of the Recaro seats since I find them slightly narrow compared to what Thai Airways and Singapore Airlines uses for their regional business class seats. The padding on the seat is also on the firm side which works best when seated upright but not really built for comfortable sleeping or relaxing.

Seat in angled flat mode
Malaysia Airlines business class cabin has 2 lavatories in the cabin and the front and rear lavatory has different amenities. Better ones upfront as they are outfitted with Aigner-branded amenities.

Aigner amenities in the lavatory

Flowers in the lavatory
When I returned to my seat, I requested for playing cards or postcards and crew returned with a bag that was stuffed with shaving kits, pens, memo pads and toothbrush sets. I had only wanted the memo pads as a memento and left the rest behind.

Sunset in the Indian ocean
About 25 minutes before landing, the crew prepped the cabin and handed out hot towels and pre-arrival drinks. During the flight, I watched Golden Boy until episode 5 and that last episode was the best so far!

Ambient lighting
Smooth landing at Delhi meant we arrived on time even with the slightly late pullback and I was definitely going to make it for my continuing flight to Singapore onboard SQ! This flight definitely was better due to the timing and the fact that the flight was not as full. The service by the crew was more or less the same as my last flight though and it seems impersonal. For what it is worth, I would only pick Malaysia Airlines based on convenience or price and would try to avoid these A330s on red-eye flights as they can get uncomfortable for sleeping.