Malaysia Airlines Now Charges Preferred Seat Selection

 

Malaysia Airlines will be charging for preferred seat selection in Economy Class at the time of booking or anytime before check-in opens. This fee is waived if you are flying in First Class or Business Class and if you are an Enrich Platinum member.

The fee charged is based on departing and arrival zones and ranges from RM11 to RM50 for standard seats and from RM22 to RM150 for emergency exit seats. For extra legroom seat selection onboard the Airbus A330s the fee ranges from RM50 to RM200 while Upper Deck seat selection onboard Malaysia Airline’s A380 aircraft costs RM100.

Malaysia Airlines – Pre-Select Seats and fee (SIN – KUL)

While this may be a great ancillary revenue stream for the airline, it sure puts off the customer experience. In my opinion, it is perfectly fine for airlines to charge for premium seats such as for bulkhead and emergency exit seats. But to charge for seat selection for all seats, that does not look so attractive. Is the national flag carrier of Malaysia going down the low-cost carrier route to stay afloat?

Malaysia Airlines is not the only full-service airline that charges for pre-selection of seats. Skyteam member KLM also charges customers for pre-selecting seats. Emirates has started charging for advance seat reservations since 3 October 2016 if you are travelling in Economy Class on a special or saver flight costing between USD15 and USD40. For flights between Singapore and Australia or Dubai, each seat reserved would cost you USD25. And if you are flying to the United States from Dubai, add another USD40.