“Sir, would you be willing to assist the crew by sitting in the emergency exit row?” Yes I would, was my reply.

A few weeks prior to my flight I had been sent an email from Malaysia Airlines announcing my flight was eligible for an upgrade. I could bid using point (although I am not a member of Malaysia Airlines Enrich frequent flyer program) or I could bid with cash. I thought about it, minimum bid was around $110) so I didn’t bother, it was only a 50 minute flight and as much as I like to turn left in the the business class cabin, I didn’t expect much difference other than seat size and being addressed by name. So I declined but when I got to the airport, I did ask if there was still space in the forward cabin.

Unfortunately there wasn’t, but that was where the offer of the exit row came in, to which I gladly excepted.

The legroom was pretty amazing, however, you trade off that extra legroom for a non reclining seat, but thats ok on a 50 minute fight.

Malaysia Airlines operates 53 Boeing 737-800, the workhorse of their fleet, as usual, the 737-800 is in 3-3 configuration with around 30″ seat pitch. This particular aircraft, registered 9M-MSG, was delivered to the airline in August 2013 making it just under 4 years old at the time of my flight.

Each seat has AVOD (Audio Visual on Demand) with a variety of movies, western and foreign and several TV show and a selection of music.  Being such a short flight they didn’t hand out headphones, but i did have my own set which allowed me to watch an episode of The Big Bang Theory I’d not sen before .

There was a small quick snack service of juice and peanuts and tea or coffee, sufficent for the flight time.

The service was impeccable, the aircraft clean and well kept and flight on time.  My main reason for choosing Malaysia airlines on this sector was the fare, they came in lower than rival and low cost carrier, Air Asia, along with 30kgs of baggage, compared to a slightly higher price on the rival with only 20kgs baggage allowance. I also, being a QANTAS Frequent Flyer member and Malaysia Airlines being part of OneWorld Alliance, earned points – although bare minimum – but more importantly status credits.

FreakyFlier paid for the flight independently.

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