Flight Review | Singapore to Kuala Lumpur on Jetstar & Scoot

10 June 2022

Recently, I went on a trip from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on two different airlines- Jetstar (to Kuala Lumpur) and Scoot (Back to Singapore). Through this article, I will go in depth and share with you about my experience.

On 1 June, I headed to the airport in the morning for Jetstar Asia flight 3K685, which was set to depart for 12.05pm later in the day. The check in process was troublesome as the automatic check-in machines were facing several issues- it kept on saying that my name was not registered with the booking. This led to a 30-minute long and frustrating wait to get checked in manually at the counter.

Nonetheless, the self check-in counter was rather fascinating and once the technologies improve and errors are eliminated, it would be great to see it installed in airports worldwide.

After checking in, I headed to immigration, and was selected for a random enhanced security check. It was extra thorough with a bag check there itself (prior to the bag check at the gate). Following that, I headed to passport control before being led into the transit area. There were lots of shopping options, resting areas and recreational areas such as a swimming pool, gardens and many more!

As there was a while to kill, I decided to grab a meal at the Burger King and go planespotting in the areas nearby, such as the cactus garden. I managed to get breathtaking photos and videos of aircraft there!

Not long after, our flight’s gate opened, so we headed to queue. Prior to entering the holding area, a bag check and security scan was performed. After a short while of waiting, boarding had begun, based on the rows sat at.

Our aircraft was an 11.7-year-old Jetstar Asia Airbus A320 with a registration of 9V-JSI.

Upon entering, the cabin seemed to look decent, with black leather seats for all passengers. The aircraft was rather clean, but not at its best. The safety instructions were thorough and understandable.

We later departed on time from Changi Airport's new runway (previously used for military operations only) and headed towards Kuala Lumpur. The takeoff was smooth and went well. No food/ refreshments were served onboard, but could be purchased for a rather expensive price. For instance, a bottle of water costed S$4. However, these prices are expected for a budget airline.

The flight was uneventful, except for some rough patches of air while approaching Kuala Lumpur. We landed at KLIA2, which is Kuala Lumpur’s budget terminal. The landing was a bit rough, but not too bad.

Upon landing, I immediately noticed something intriguing-every single plane around the terminal was an airasia aircraft! I expected a greater diversity of airlines, but it was understandable considering I landed at the budget terminal (which airasia is based in)

The queue for passport control was never-ending and took up close to 40 minutes! I was also instructed to fill up a travel declaration on Malaysia’s contact tracing app- MySejahtera.

The terminal was a bit drab and deserted, but had lots of shopping and dining options. There was also a direct train (KLIA transit) which heads to the City Centre for a feasible price.

I returned the next day for my flight back to Singapore. However, this flight was different as I flew on a Scoot Boeing 787-9 instead. I flew on flight TR467 to Singapore.

The check-in process was way better than back in Singapore, with a manual check-in process. The queue was surprisingly short, so I got checked-in pretty quickly.

The passport control process was uneventful and shortly after, I proceeded to the gate. I immediately noticed that many shops were closed and that the terminal was partially ‘dead’, even the Mcdonald’s was closed! Nonetheless, there were still quite a bit of shopping and dining options.

Before reaching our gate’s ‘zone’, there was a baggage check. It was slightly confusing but quite thorough. I then headed to our gate to board our aircraft. There was a conveniently placed snack booth in the gate’s area for travellers to munch on while waiting.

The boarding process was quite chaotic, with passengers confused and forming long queues. However, it was sorted out after listening to the staff’s instructions. Also, our flight was slightly delayed (by 20 minutes) as it reached late from its previous route.

Our aircraft was 9V-OJH, a 4-year-old Scoot Boeing 787-9. Upon boarding, the staff were very friendly and handed us antibacterial wipes to clean up the seats (even though the crew already cleaned them).

The aircraft was very spacious and featured dimmable windows, instead of the conventional window shades. As usual, no food or drink were served onboard.

The landing and passport control was smooth. With that, the journey had came to an end.

Here is my final review:

Jetstar- 6.5/10

Relatively decent service, the troubling check-in process and onboard meal prices could be improved

Scoot- 9/10

Very good for a budget airline. However, it would have been nice if some refreshments (such as water) were served.

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Written by: Sohail Sawlani
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