MYAirline opts for slim seats to save on fuel cost
Published on: Monday, January 16, 2023
By: David Thien
MYAirline planes have slim, unadjustable cushioned lightweight seats that enable the company to lessen the weight of their aircraft fleet to economise on fuel cost.
Kota Kinabalu: First time passengers on Malaysia’s newest low cost airline – MYAirline – found their seats to be much thinner than those on Air Asia, Malaysia airlines and other foreign carriers.Such lighter or slimline airline seats like those combining titanium and carbon fibre construction can really save a literal ton of weight on an airline and this translates to some impressive fuel savings, if from 6kg less per passenger, that’s 948 kilos, just from installing lighter seats.
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Airline seats that are slimmer, besides being lighter, also come with better seat pitch, which is how much room or the distance between one point in your seat and the same point in the seat in front.
However, some passengers disagreed. “It’s taxing on my buttocks,” remarked a passenger on the thinner cushion in comparison to other airline seats, an hour or so into the flight from Sepang klia2 to Kota Kinabalu.
What does being nearly a metric ton lighter per aircraft really mean? It means burning at least 25 Kg less fuel per hour, every hour.
Some airlines also claimed savings of 30-40 kilos, thanks to new paint that requires one less layer, lighter paper in in-flight magazines, and smaller serving of food ingredients.
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MYAirline introduced a red colour scheme with grey stripes progressing towards the aircraft’s front fuselage, while its logo is painted on the vertical stabiliser.
Initially, the company has experimented with various other alternative colours, with the emphasis to avoid red, blue, orange and purple. However, it finally concluded that red is the most attractive palate to be donned on the aircraft as is the case for its airline in-service crew’s uniform.
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The airline was first rumoured to positioned itself as the nation’s first ultra low cost carrier. However, on Oct 5, 2022, it was clarified by the airline’s CEO, Rayner Teo that the carrier will perform as a low cost carrier that uses airport aerobridges in comparison with other low cost airlines that prefer not to, where possible.
MYAirline is currently having its ‘My Great Sale’ promotion until Jan 19, 2023 with all-in one-way fares from RM49 for the travel period between March 26 to July 31, 2023, after recently having achieved its 100,000th passenger milestone on Jan 5 after operating more than 600 flights since starting its commercial operations in December 2022. with domestic flights within Malaysia from Sepang to Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Kota Bharu, Langkawi, Penang, and Sibu.
MYAirline flights to and from some East Malaysia airports will use aerobridges.
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