Malaysia Airlines is owned by the Malaysian government via its sovereign wealth fund, Khazanah Nasional, although it has been publicly traded in the past. The Malaysian national flag carrier's home is in Kuala Lumpur, where it has a hub at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. In addition to that main hub, the company has smaller operating bases at Kuching International Airport and Kota Kinabalu International Airport. There are over 70 aircraft in the carrier's fleet, made up of Boeing 737s along with other models of Boeing and Airbus planes.

Malaysia Airlines flights land at more than 50 different airports around the world, although it has a particular focus on Southeast Asian locations. Some of its most popular destinations include London Heathrow, Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Shanghai, Siem Reap, Jakarta and Delhi. The airline also operates codeshare flights with many other carriers, including Jet Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Royal Brunei Airways, Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways.

Online check-in

Malaysia Airlines check-in is available online for passengers, and opens 48 hours prior to a flight's departure then closes 1 hour and a half prior to takeoff. Passengers can check in with their reference and flight number. During this process, they can also choose or change their seat on the flight. Malaysia Airlines check-in cannot be performed online for flights departing Xiamen or Brunei. Passengers can also check in at the airport. For international flights, the airline's check-in desks open 2 hours prior to takeoff, while for domestic flights they're open 1 hour before takeoff.

Hand luggage allowance

Items of hand luggage on the airline's flights are subject to a weight limit of 7 kg. Passengers booking Malaysia Airlines Economy tickets may carry 1 item of hand luggage on board their flight, while passengers with a Business class ticket may carry 2. Infants are allowed to carry a stroller in addition to 1 item of hand luggage on board a flight. The airline also allows passengers to bring certain personal items onto their flight on top of the hand luggage allowance. Acceptable personal items include laptops, reading material, walking sticks and handbags, however only 1 of these personal items will be accepted onto the flight per passenger. Hand luggage must fit either in the storage lockers or under the plane's seats.

Checked baggage allowance

All passengers in Malaysia Airlines flights are entitled to bring 2 items of checked luggage on their flight, although weight allowances differ depending on the ticket type. For their 2 items combined, Economy passengers have a total weight limit of 30 kg, while for Business class passengers that weight limit is 40 kg. First class passengers are permitted to bring up to 50 kg in weight on board the flight. The maximum size for checked baggage is a combined length, width and height of 158 cm. Passengers' free luggage will also cover sporting goods, as long as they are within the prescribed weight limits. If passengers have luggage that is greater than their allowance in any way (dimensions, weight, number of pieces) they will have to pay excess baggage fees.