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MAS has shelved plans to introduce premium economy class seats on its upcoming fleet of six new Airbus A350-900s, the first of which will be delivered by the end of December this year. The premium economy class is a small area between economy class and business class. They offer extra legroom and wider seats than economy class, but are cheaper than business class. A Malaysia Airlines spokesman said the airline had initially planned to introduce premium economy seating on its A350-900s but decided against it to accommodate more business travellers. The airline has also reduced the number of its first-class seats on the planes. “The 288-seat A350-900s will now comprise four first-class seats, 35 business-class seats and 249 economy-class seats,” the spokesman said last week. The airline is replacing its six A380 superjumbos with the fuel-efficient A350s on the twice-daily Kuala Lumpur-London route starting in late 2017.<br/>

Qantas' dominance of the local market and its profitable loyalty program have earned the airline a credit ratings upgrade from Moody's. Moody's upped its score for Qantas on Monday morning by one notch from Baa3 to Baa2, after taking "greater focus on qualitative factors". "This includes the unique traits of the Australian continent and airline market, Qantas Group's strong domestic position, and diversification provided by the loyalty program," Ian Chitterer, a Moody's vice president said. "We also factor in the reduction in credit risk through its hedging policy and financial framework. Working in tandem, they help to reduce earnings volatility and increase the predictability of managements response to market conditions." Moody's expected Qantas credit metrics to be fairly stable for the next 12 to 18 months, Chitterer said. <br/>