CREDIT WHERE CREDIT’ S DUE

As an NFP environmentalist and frequent traveller around Southeast Asia, I am continually amazed at the nitpicking and backstabbing from hard-done-by business travellers in the Inbox pages.

Being a long-term sufferer of reading about other travellers’ discomfort and strife, I wish to lighten the tone of your normally combative offerings. So here goes.

For the last five years, my first choice of airline, for a safe, reliable, inexpensive and friendly service from Melbourne to Europe, has been the little-mentioned Royal Brunei Airlines out of Bandar Seri Begawan.

I don’t know why more Australian business travellers don’t use this service. The 787 Dreamliner provides adequate seating in economy class with great pitch, 3-3-3 configuration and very clean and accessible toilets. And if you book the back row (which I regularly do) the 2-3-2 configuration offers more than adequate space.

The fact that I can take 30kg of checked baggage on top of the cabin allowance is fantastic – I can transport plenty of samples, flyers and management giveaways, especially if I travel with a compliant partner willing to cut back on make-up and products!

I also like the fact that, being a Muslim airline, flights start with a reassuring and meaningful prayer for Allah to cherish and protect. Even as a Christian, this makes me feel relaxed and look forward to the long flight ahead.

Cabin crew are the best ever, with genuine smiles and perfectly spoken English. The staff are only too happy to cater to your every need with none of the sullen “You’re economy class, what do you expect” attitude that seems to occur elsewhere far too often.

Lastly, no alcohol means that the rowdy and unpleasant yobbos often encountered on long-haul flights are absent. Plus, arriving at your destination without a hangover leaves a clear head able to step into a hire car and conduct level-headed business!

May the force be with you Royal Brunei Airlines.

Ian Morrison, Australia