Airlines have experimented with child-free seating for years. However, one of the earliest examples quietly disappeared during the pandemic.
Many people think that Corendon Airlines was the first airline to offer “adults-only” cabin sections when they began that service in 2023.
But while Corendon’s policy made headlines in 2023, Malaysia Airlines had already been experimenting with child-free seating for more than a decade.
Malaysia Airlines “Quiet Zone”
Malaysia Airlines was founded in 1947 as Malayan Airways, but has operated under its current name since 2015. They’re a member of the oneworld Alliance.
The airline attracted both praise and criticism for its 2012 decision to not allow children to travel in certain classes or cabins of its aircraft.
- Infants weren’t permitted in First Class on Malaysia Airlines’ Airbus A380s due to the non-availability of baby bassinets in the cabin.
- Children under the age of 12 weren’t allowed to travel in the 70-seat upper deck economy section of the airline’s A380s.
What made the policy unusual was why it existed in the first place.
Why the quiet zone existed
When Malaysia Airlines introduced the A380 in 2012, the aircraft had a problem the airline didn’t initially expect:
Business travelers were avoiding it.
Why?
Because at the time, the A380 had gained a reputation for being:
- popular with families
- popular with tour groups
- noisier in economy
Routes like Kuala Lumpur–London attracted a lot of families and leisure travelers, and corporate passengers complained about the noise level in economy.
So Malaysia Airlines created the upper-deck 70-seat economy cabin and banned children under 12 there to make it feel more like a “premium economy lite” quiet cabin.
In other words, the policy wasn’t really about children — it was about keeping high-value business travelers happy.
Another quirky detail
The upper deck already had several features that made it quieter:
- a smaller cabin
- a 2-4-2 seating layout instead of 3-4-3
- more overhead storage
- less foot traffic
So the child restriction was the final step to turn it into a “quiet space.”
Anyway, the system continued for years, much to the delight, or chagrin, of its passengers.
How COVID ended the experiment
When COVID began, the airline industry cut its number of flights by nearly 90%. Malaysia Airlines wound up grounding its entire fleet of A380s.
When the pandemic began to wane and more people were flying again, Malaysia Airlines, in a business move, switched most of its long-haul flights – those previously operated by its A380s – to its A350-900s and A330s. Neither of those had quiet zones.
When the A380s began flying again
Malaysia Airlines eventually did begin flying some of its A380s again, but
(A) they’re only used for Hajj/Umrah charter operations, not regular scheduled service. (Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that millions of Muslims perform each year. Umrah is a “lesser” or “minor” pilgrimage to Mecca.
(B) the aircraft were reconfigured to be able to hold more people. In the process, the old upper-deck economy layout that allowed the quiet-zone concept no longer existed.
What Malaysia Airlines does today
The airline’s “Quiet Zone” policy disappeared when the airline retired that configuration during the pandemic. Today, the carrier no longer offers any adults-only cabin areas.
Infants still aren’t allowed in first class because Malaysia Airlines doesn’t offer bassinets for them. But other than that, children are again allowed in any part of any plane Malaysia Airlines flies.
FAQ
Do other airlines offer child-free or quiet zones?
Malaysia Airlines no longer offers quiet zones. However, Corendon Airlines and these four other airlines still offer child-free cabins, quiet zones, and more.
The case for, and against, quiet zones on airplanes
Surveys have been done to determine if Americans would like quiet zones on flights and the results are overwhelmingly “yes”. However, virtually all U.S.-based airlines have said they have no interest in implementing quiet zones on their aircraft.
It’s also noted that since Corendon Airlines introduced “adults only” sections on flights, no other commercial airline in the world has followed suit.
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