As part of its ongoing fleet modernisation plan, oneworld member Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) is set to induct 12 new aircraft in 2024, including its first Airbus A330-900 (A330 neo) which is scheduled to arrive in the third quarter of 2024.
The Malaysia Airlines parent is looking to receive four of the new A330 neos this year, alongside eight Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, to support its network growth requirements.
In August 2022, MAG signed Memorandum of Understandings (MOU) with Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Avolon for the acquisition of 20 A330 neo aircraft which are scheduled to be delivered through to 2028.
Ten of the A330 neo aircraft will be directly purchased from Airbus with a back-to-back sale and leaseback arrangement with leasing company Avolon, while the remaining 10 are leased directly from Avolon.
Malaysia Airlines will configure the A330 neos with 28 suites in business class in a 1-2-1 layout, including individual privacy doors.
Economy class on the A330 neo will have 269 seats, including 24 with extra legroom.
Malaysia Airlines this week said that it would also retrofit six of its A350-900s beginning 2026 to ensure consistent cabin standardisation in alignment with the new A330 neo cabin.
MAG currently owns a fleet size of 104 through its subsidiaries Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, MASwings and MASkargo.
“We are excited to induct the first of 20 Airbus A330neo’s in Q3 of this year, which will gradually replace our A330ceo fleet and operate to our network across Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East. This expansion is not just about increasing our inventory in numbers but also introducing the first-of-its-kind cabin class, new seats and experiences that prioritises customer safety, comfort and overall satisfaction,” said MAG managing director, Datuk Captain Izham Ismail.
“We will continue to channel our investments into endeavours that strategically align with the key pillars driving our customer value proposition, namely cabin comfort, in-flight dining, and service delivery of our esteemed cabin crew. We aspire to curate an overall passenger experience that not only meets premium standards but exceeds them, underpinned by our inimitable Malaysian Hospitality,” Ismail added.
