KUALA LUMPUR (July 20): Malaysia Airlines is doubling its capacity between Kuala Lumpur and Doha with a second daily non-stop flight starting Aug 10, 2022, on the back of high passenger demand on the route.

In a statement on Wednesday (July 20), Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) said the additional daily service will depart from Kuala Lumpur at 2:55am via MH164 and from Doha at 8:05am via MH165.

The carrier said this is in addition to the existing daily services, MH160 departing Kuala Lumpur at 9:20pm and MH161 departing Doha at 1:30am, bringing the number of Malaysia Airlines flights to Doha to 14 flights weekly.

The twice-daily flights will be operated by the A330-300 aircraft with 27 state-of-the-art seats in Business Class, 16 seats in Economy with extra legroom, and 247 seats in Economy Class.

MAB said the additional daily service will be opened for sale from July 25 and will include Qatar Airways codeshare in both directions.

Malaysia Airlines group chief executive officer Captain Izham Ismail said the carrier recognises the importance of collaborating with partners such as Qatar Airways, more so with travel demand picking up steeply for this route following the easing of border restrictions.

“This latest addition of strategic collaboration with Qatar Airways will allow Malaysia Airlines to achieve passenger capacity of more than 70% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year.

“As a national airline, we will continuously play a significant role in facilitating safe travel through #FlyConfidently initiatives for passengers to travel with peace of mind,” he said.

Meanwhile, Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker said the airline welcomes the decision by Malaysia Airlines to add a second daily non-stop flight to Doha, just a few weeks after the start of the operations between Kuala Lumpur and Doha.

“We are committed to further expanding our strategic cooperation with Malaysia Airlines and to jointly develop Kuala Lumpur International Airport, KLIA, as a leading hub in the South East Asia region in view of the strong rebound in global air travel demand,” he said.