Malaysia Airlines and China Southern Airlines will expand their codeshare routes between Malaysia and mainland China from October 25.
The expansion will cover the Kuala Lumpur–Shenzhen, Changsha, Xiamen, and Chengdu/Tianfu routes operated by Malaysia Airlines, as well as the Shenzhen, Changsha, and Zhengzhou–Kuala Lumpur routes operated by China Southern Airlines.
The two airlines began codesharing on the Kuala Lumpur–Guangzhou route in July 2023, before expanding the partnership in July 2024 to the Kuala Lumpur–Beijing/Daxing, Kuala Lumpur–Shanghai/Pudong, and Penang–Guangzhou routes. With this latest expansion, all China routes operated by both airlines to and from Kuala Lumpur will be covered by the codeshare agreement.
Malaysia Airlines launched new routes from Kuala Lumpur to Chengdu, Shenzhen, and Changsha this year. China Southern Airlines has also increased capacity on its Kuala Lumpur–Guangzhou and Kuala Lumpur–Shenzhen routes.
Izham Ismail, Group Managing Director and Group CEO of Malaysia Aviation Group, commented, “China remains an important strategic market for Malaysia Airlines, and the expansion of our network in the country demonstrates our commitment to strengthening connectivity with the region.” Han Wensheng, President of China Southern Airlines, said, “Through close cooperation with Malaysia Airlines, we will increase the number of flights between China and Malaysia and make the most of the opportunities created by the mutual visa-exemption policy.”
According to Malaysia Airlines, demand for its mainland China routes remains strong, with more than 600,000 passengers carried in the first half of 2026. This represented a 27% increase year on year, with an average load factor of 84%. Its subsidiary Firefly is also expected to launch daily round-trip service between Kuala Lumpur and Kunming.
