30 November 2017, KLIA: Malaysia Airlines today received its first A350-900 at a welcome ceremony held at its Hangar in Sepang. MH5025, bearing the registration number 9M-MAB, departed Airbus’ facilities center in Toulouse at 13.30pm (local time) on 29 November 2017 and arrived in KL International Airport (KLIA) at 10am today. With its unrivalled passenger flying experience and operational efficiency, the A350 XWB will form the backbone of Malaysia Airlines’ future widebody fleet.

The A350 XWB was received by Yang Berhormat Datuk Seri Haji Johari Abdul Ghani, Second Finance Minister of Malaysia, Tan Sri Md Nor Yusof, Malaysia Aviation Group Chairman and Captain Izham Ismail, Malaysia Airlines Group CEO. Also present at the event were His Excellency Frédéric Laplanche, Ambassador of France to Malaysia, Mr. Paul Rennie, Deputy British High Commissioner to Malaysia as well as representatives from Airbus, AirLease Corporation (ALC) and government agencies.

Speaking at the event, Captain Izham Ismail said, “We are very excited to welcome this new addition to our family. The A350 XWB is a symbol of a new journey that sees all of us at Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) sprinting towards the completion of the Malaysia Airlines Recovery Plan (MRP) which essentially is to re-establish the Group as a sustainably profitable and financially self-sufficient entity. With its technological advancements, the A350 XWB will help boost our competitiveness on our long haul flights and underlines our commitment to operate a young and modern fleet.”

“We wish to be known as an efficient and reliable company, a trusted, respected and preferred brand. Malaysia Airlines is not just as a national icon, but also as an economic enabler, domestic bond, and link to the world the success of the national airline is imperative for the Government and citizens of Malaysia,” he said.

Malaysia Airlines has six A350-900s on order and will be receiving them in stages by the second quarter of 2018. The A350-900 will operate the Kuala Lumpur-London service beginning 15 January 2018. Prior to that, the airline will be flying a series of endorsement flights to Bangkok, Penang and Singapore.

Configured in a three-class layout with a total of 286 seats, Malaysia Airlines’ A350-900 is the first in Asia to feature a First Class cabin. The aircraft comprises of four seats in First, 35 in Business Class and 247 in Economy Class and is equipped with Malaysia Airlines’ latest cabin products including more spacious seats even in Economy Class, all-new inflight entertainment experience and, for the first time, inflight connectivity. The aircraft also introduces exciting new features such as higher ceilings, larger windows and special ambient LED lighting that is designed to reduce jetlag which all combines to give new levels of comfort to the passenger experience.

The A350 XWB is the world’s latest generation airliner featuring the latest aerodynamic design, carbon fiber fuselage and wings, plus new fuel efficient Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines. With the latest in technology, the aircraft provides unrivalled levels of operational efficiency, with a 25 percent reduction in fuel burn and emissions and lower maintenance costs.

All six A350-900 are on lease from Air Lease Corporation (ALC).