Malindo Air will grow its Australian route network this year with the launch of flights from Kuala Lumpur to Sydney and Adelaide, which will run via Denpasar (Bali) in each direction: catering to travellers jetting to both Indonesia and Malaysia.
Using a Boeing 737-800 aircraft to Sydney and a mix of Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-900ER jets to Adelaide, these all feature 12 reclining business class seats in a typical 2-2 configuration…
… offering a generous 45-inch pitch, along with a leg rest and adjustable footrest, an 11.1-inch touchscreen inflight entertainment monitor, and AC and dual USB charging ports.
AusBT review: Malindo Air Boeing 737 business class, Brisbane-Denpasar-Kuala Lumpur
For Sydneysiders, outbound flights begin June 22 (June 21 from Kuala Lumpur), as follows:
| Route | Flight # | Departure time (local) | Arrival time (local) | Schedule |
| Sydney-Denpasar | OD172 | 12:35pm | 5:20pm | Daily from June 22 |
| Denpasar-Kuala Kumpur | OD172 | 6:20pm | 9:30pm | Daily from June 22 |
| Kuala Lumpur-Denpasar | OD171 | 10:10pm | 1:20am (+1) | Daily from June 21 |
| Denpasar-Sydney | OD171 | 3:10am | 11:05am | Daily from June 22 |
Travellers from Adelaide will see Malindo Air a little sooner, with flights from April 1 (March 31 from KL), as below:
| Route | Flight # | Departure time (local) | Arrival time (local) | Schedule |
| Adelaide-Denpasar | OD174 | 7:40am | 11:45am | Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri from April 1 |
| Denpasar-KL | OD174 | 12:45pm | 3:50pm | Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri from April 1 |
| KL-Denpasar | OD173 | 7:55pm | 11:05pm | Sun, Tues, Thurs, Sat from Mar 31 |
| Denpasar-Adelaide | OD173 | 12:05am (+1) | 6:40am | Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri from April 1 |
Passengers can choose to fly return between Australia and Indonesia only – without connecting onward to Malaysia – or can take the full Australia-Indonesia-Malaysia route, by remaining on board the aircraft while in transit.
Malindo Air’s sister airline Batik Air also provides flights from Denpasar onwards to Chennai, Jakarta and Surabaya, on which passengers from Australia can also connect, although for business travellers, the absence of a bed in business class becomes most noticeable on the final leg home from Bali, which will run overnight to both Sydney and Adelaide.
Malindo Air currently flies from Melbourne and Brisbane to Denpasar and onwards to Kuala Lumpur, and from Perth non-stop to Kuala Lumpur, while Batik Air offers direct Perth-Denpasar flights.
With fierce competition on overlapping Australian routes from the likes of Qantas, Virgin Australia, Garuda, Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia X and Jetstar, Malindo Air’s business class airfares tend to be competitively priced, and closer to the premium economy rates of other airlines.
For instance, it’s not uncommon to find return business class airfares from Australia to Kuala Lumpur for $2,200 with Malindo Air – and even less just from Australia to Bali – whereas business class on other airlines can cost up to twice that.
Malindo Air’s Sydney and Adelaide flights are currently loaded into booking systems, although have not yet been opened for sale:
The airline has no Australian frequent flyer partnerships, although its Malindo Miles scheme is free to join.
Source: Australian Business Traveller
