Here are the business class 'thrones' on Malaysia Airlines' A350

Flying solo on Malaysia Airlines' new Airbus A350? Here are perhaps the best business class seats to book – because they're not just single seats, they boast a wide shelf on both sides.

Malaysia Airlines' business class 'throne' seat

Dubbed 'throne' seats, they're ideal for a business traveller with plenty of work to get though during the flight because the dual shelves afford ample room to spread out your stuff.

And of course, there are no neighbours to bother you. Isn't that a recipe for inflight bliss?

Malaysia Airlines' business class 'throne' seat

For its six Airbus A350s – the first of which will arrive into Kuala Lumpur on Thursday November 30, with five more to follow through to July 2018 – the Oneworld member has chosen the same business class seat as on its Airbus A330 fleet.(The 'seat savvy' will recognise this as the classic Vantage model supplied by Thompson Aero.)

It's the seat we've featured in photos on this page, because there are only a few subtle differences between this and the Airbus A350.

The A350 seats are slightly wider (at 22" or 56cm, up by 2") and convert into a slightly longer (78" or 198cm, up by 3") lie-flat bed.

And there's now a 'touchpad' controller for the inflight entertainment system and 16 inch high-def video screen, with that controller concealed behind a panel on the armrest instead of being mounted behind your shoulder as on the A330.

Winning the A350's game of thrones

Of the 35 business class seats on Malaysia Airlines' Airbus A350, there are just four 'thrones' – those are seats 2K, 5K, 9K and 11K (all are located on the right side of the aircraft).

Malaysia Airlines' business class 'throne' seat

A throne seat isn't for everybody – some travellers feel a little confined when sleeping, while others (especially 'plus-sized passengers') would prefer to be sitting directly adjacent to the aisle rather than having to squeeze past the throne's aisle-side shelf.

In that case – or if the thrones have already been snapped up – consider the nine single seats ranked along the left side of the A350 (2A through to 11A, noting that in common with several other Asian airlines there's no row 4).

Seats 2A, 5A, 7A, 9A and 11A are right next to the aisle with the shelf between you and the window; seats 3A, 6A, 8A and 10A switch that around, with you seated next to the window and the shelf between you and the aisle.

Malaysia Airlines will be taking delivery of six Airbus A350s from December 2017 through to July 2018, and fly them to London from January 2018 (in place of its Airbus A380s) and potentially one other European destination.

Also read: Malaysia Airlines gets inflight Internet with new Airbus A350

David Flynn

David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.