Experts respond to Malaysia Airlines' child-free flight offer

MAS recently announced that its first Airbus A380, which will take off on 1 July from Kuala Lumpur to London, will have a child-free upper-level economy deck. Families traveling with children under age 12 will be assigned seats in the main lower deck, and the seats will be refurbished to be more child-friendly.

The airline was the first to introduce a regulation to ban babies in the first-class section of its Boeing 747-700 jets.

Jarek Ziebinski, president of Leo Burnett Asia-Pacific said the move is an example of an airline keeping its promise for business-class passengers, who need comfort and peace on flights to rest and get ready for business when they land.

“This could well be a distinct differentiation over the other airlines because the truth is, nobody can say they look forward to a screaming infant or child on a flight they are on, even if they are parents themselves,” he said.

Nevertheless, he told Campaign Asia-Pacific that while it is a good decision and MAS is making real adjustments to the design of its economy cabins to make them conducive to families, the brand could be a winner if it could also find a solution for families who prefer to fly first or business class.

David Ko, executive vice-president for Asia Pacific at Waggener Edstrom Worldwide, said this offering is no different from a hotel that caters to female travelers, and it is refreshing to see an airline come up with such creative ways to retain and attract audiences.

Nevertheless, he noted that with such offering, positioning is important for MAS, and that it should take into consideration that many of its customers comprise families.

“As a frequent traveller, I can relate to and see the benefit of such an offering," he said. "[But] to avoid [families] feeling singled-out, the airline could reinforce their services that are family-friendly. At the end of the day, listening to customers and providing options are critical, especially in a consumer-driven industry like travel.”

The child-free flight initiative is part of MAS’ move to establish itself as a premium airline, following a reported net loss of US$814 million in its last fiscal year. It quietly launched its new logo during the unveiling of its A380-800 Airbus aircraft last month in another move that seems calculated for premium positioning.