Malaysia Airlines joins oneworld – with a Paris and Amsterdam loophole
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Malaysia Airlines System joins the oneworld alliance today. And this means that you can redeem your Avios for their flights, as well as earning them by flying on Malaysia.
Let’s start by looking at redemption options.
To give BA credit, Malaysia Airlines flights are already showing on ba.com. As usual, when an airline first joins an alliance, there is HUGE amounts of availability. I saw up to 5 business class seats available, for example.
There are three great bits of news for anyone planning to visit Kuala Lumpur (or indeed Singapore, which is only 185 miles away, airport to airport):
1. Malaysia Airlines is flying the A380 out of Heathrow (above)
with the London route being the first to receive the A380. This page shows the very impressive First Class and business class product available, which looks like it could be better than the BA offering.
2. They are also flying them out of Paris (and 777’s from Amsterdam)
Now, why does that matter?
Well, Paris to Kuala Lumpur is 6,492 miles. Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur is 6,363 miles. London to Kuala Lumpur is 6,593 miles. And 6,500 miles is the cut-off between two Avios pricing zones.
Flying out of Charles de Gaulle or Schiphol will cost you 60,000 Avios return in Economy, 120,000 in Business and 180,000 in First. From London, you need more Avios – 70,000 for Economy, 140,000 for Business and 210,000 for First.
And if that wasn’t enough, you also save on the taxes flying out of Paris or Amsterdam because there is no Air Passenger Duty. Business Class, return, is £481 of tax from London but just £337 from Paris and £288 from Amsterdam. And you save 20,000 Avios!
These numbers mean that using a 241 to get Singapore becomes less interesting. On BA, you’re looking at 140,000 Avios plus £1,000 of taxes for 2 Club World seats with a 241. On Malaysian, if you start in Amsterdam, you’d pay 240,000 Avios and £576 in taxes, get potentially a better seat and get to save your 241 for another trip.
The A380 will be flying from Paris from March 1st.
3. Malaysia has a decent route network to Australasia and other parts of Asia
Have a look at the route map and try out prices at ba.com. Taxes are high – higher than Cathay Pacific, for example – but availability should be OK.
Earning on Malaysia
British Airways has also published its earning chart for flights taken on Malaysia.
All in all, this is a great addition to oneworld. Whilst you can’t use an Amex 2-4-1 voucher for a redemption on Malaysia, they add a lot of extra flexibility for trips eastwards from London.
And if you do head out to Kuala Lumpur, I can recommend the Four Seasons Langkawi if you’re looking for an excellent beach resort. Some people, if staying for a week, mix in a few days at The Datai down the road.
How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review
Run your own business?
We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.
Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa
Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review
You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.
British Airways Accelerating Business American Express
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.
American Express Business Platinum
40,000 points sign-up bonus and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
DS 
Raffles 
Chun Kuo 
Colin 
Andrew Grant 
World Traveller 
Alan 
paul longstone 
GG 
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