Paella747

What y'all think of Malindo's safety?
They don't seem to have as many incidents (or accidents) as Lion, but they haven't been around as long either.... And since they are a subsidiary of Lion, I'm wondering how people feel about the difference.
Much like AirAsia in Thailand is a bit different from AirAsia in Indonesia (yet under the same umbrella), I'm wondering what the comparisons are here with Malindo & Lion (in regards to safety, not service)....

I don't usually worry about flying on any particular carrier, and i want to try out Malindo next month (and as a avgeek, I love their drinking glasses ).
Appreciate any input....

Sam Bee

You're kind of comparing apples and pears.

Malindo has 69 aircraft and has been in existence since 2013.
Lion Air has 117 (?) aircraft and started flying in 2000.

I'm not saying anymore!

Paella747

Yes, I realize they are different and one has been around longer.....
I stated that.
I guess I'm not following your post (if you're implying something).

I know some people who won't fly AirAsia Indonesia, but they're fine with Air Asia in Thailand & Malaysia.
They said different maintenance bases, different corporate culture, etc. etc. etc.
I was just wondering if there were any FTers who felt that way (or didn't) in regards to Lion and Malindo.
Sorry if I missed something in your post.

Sam Bee

Perhaps a bit vague - Malindo have a good safety record so far - just one overshoot and no fatalities (I believe) so from that point of view you could say no worries, go ahead. But statistically that could be due to luck, or being relatively new. If they had operated the same number of flights as Lion Air - who knows!

But I will fly Garuda wherever possible (i.e. if they have a route that i'm flying) then assess backwards from there. If Garuda were not an option I would consider Malindo.

Lion Air are at the bottom of my list and have been for years. However, if my only option was flying Medan to Jakarta on Lionair or taking a 20 hour overnight bus on the transsumatran highway, i'd still reckon Lion Air would be safer! Likewise i'd fly Lion Air / Wings from Bali to Lombok over the speedboats. Flying in Indonesia is still safe, safer than it every has been, just slightly less safe than flying in other countries!

Paella747

Thanks so much for that! I'm planning on flying them (Malindo) from Bangkok (DMK) to Kuala Lumpur. I've never really worried about flying a particular airline too much, but I also remember all the problems back in the day with Garuda (and Korean in the 90's). Would have no problem flying with either now.
Appreciate your input! ^

Sam Bee

Ah cool. You've got loads of option on the route. Check out RJ who flies the route 3 times weekly on a 787 - sometimes have great prices and empty planes!

Paella747

Yep.... ^ I love the RJ fifth freedom. Done it between HKG and BKK. Unfortunately it's not too cheap on my date (well... in biz anyway)..... Malindo's biz pricing is hard to beat.... decisions, decisions....

clubeurope

Personally, I've never flown Malindo, but I have flown on Batik (Malindo's Indonesian cousin). For what its worth Batik felt pretty safe to me, until I took that last flight I had with them. With Batik (who shares the same interiors, amenities, services with Malindo), I last flew them between Jakarta and Singapore last year. There happened to be a certain Indonesian businessman type who decided it to make a call during our taxi, and still was on the call on takeoff. The FAs clearly knew of his loud call but didn't seem to dare to stop him (he appeared quite important given how they delayed our departure to waited for him and his family). We had a very long takeoff roll for an A320, and as our luck would have it, we were flying into a full blown thunderstorm. We struggled to gain altitude for a good 20 mins and it felt like it was just about to stall, and only after the plane started shaking did the man end his call. I for one did not know how he still got phone reception, but that aside, the fact that the crew knew of his call and never bothered to stop him was very concerning. I didn't know what happened in the flight deck either, but that flight experience definitely deterred me from flying with them again given other options.

YVR Cockroach

I've flown OD DMK-KUL twice. All's fine other than a small delay the second time due to late arrival of the incoming flight. Also flown the BC product to HKG.

Nice pluses are (even for the back)

• complimentary food and beverage
• generous checked baggage allowance
• Check-in rather quick and you're not at the AirASia end of DMK which can be bit of a ... zoo for passport control and security.
• Not squished together (even in the back)
• Arrives into KLIA rather than KLIA2 (not sure if there's any advantage)

What fare are you seeing? Seems DMK-KUL is priced a lot higher than the other way. I can get BC northbound for the price of EC southbound.

Paella747

I'm seeing US$137.00 for business (one-way). Pretty good considering the other flights are all in the $300-$400 range.
Not a bad deal at all..... I'm connecting to MH First Class on the A380 to Seoul. Just wanted to have a comfortable ride down to KUL then hang out in the First lounge for a few hours....
Thanks so much for the information!

Philodemus

Paella747

......and I am.......
^