Malaysia Airlines launches kid-free economy zone

Malaysia Airlines' first A380 service, nonstop between Kuala Lumpur and London

Looking for a child-free flight? Malaysia's flag carrier plans to reserve the upper economy deck on its new A380 service for adults only

If you want to stir up a fiery debate -- or maybe even a fist fight -- start talking about air travel and children. Inevitably, someone will declare that airlines should offer “kid-free flights.”

While that’s yet to happen, Malaysia Airlines might have come up with the next best thing. A kid-free economy upper deck aboard its first A380 service, nonstop between Kuala Lumpur and London, which takes off July 1.

Families traveling with under-12s –- including babes-in-arms -- will be automatically allocated seats in the main all-economy lower deck, says a Malaysia Airlines spokesperson.

But before we all jump to brand the decision makers at the flag carrier as a bunch of child-hating monsters, the airline is quick to point out that the 350 economy seats on the main deck of its new A380s will be enhanced and designated as a family and children-friendly inflight zone.

And if there’s overwhelming demand for seats in economy class from families with children and infants, resulting in full load in the main deck, “we will still accommodate such demand in the 70-seat upper deck economy class zone of our A380.“

This isn’t the first time Malaysia Airlines brought in a controversial policy relating to kids in the sky. Last year, the airline decided to ban infants from first class on its 747-400 routes. The decision won cheers from some -- and words you’d never say in front of your kids from others.

Given their penchant for boldly going where no airline has dared before, here's hoping Malaysia Airlines' next move will be to designate a special zone for drunks and passengers who forgot to take a shower before their flight. 
Sky nannies and 'Kargo Kids'

While Malaysia Airlines is the first to ban or segregate the little ones on flights, other airlines do recognize that traveling with young kids on long-haul flights isn't easy.

Several airlines, such as Gulf Air and Emirates, offer passengers free in-flight nanny services that range from helping with meals to entertaining the kids while mom watches a movie. 

In the United States, a new website hooks up fliers with nannies looking to make a few extra bucks. Called "Nanny in the Clouds," passengers can sign up for free and search for potential babysitters scheduled to take the same flight.

Canadian low-cost airline WestJet, meanwhile, doesn't offer nanny services but it did attract a lot of attention earlier this month with a hilarious April Fool's Day joke.

On April 1, the airline launched a video advertising a new service dubbed “Kargo Kids” in which parents check their kids in with their luggage. The parents enjoy the flight, the kids are sent down to their own special club in the cargo hold.  

Not a bad idea, really.

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Powerful 8.6-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Coast of Indonesia

The epicenter of the 8.7 magnitude earthquake that struck just off the coast of Indonesia

A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia, triggering a tsunami watch for countries across the Indian Ocean. The 8.6-magnitude quake was centered 20 miles beneath the ocean floor about 270 miles from Aceh's provincial capital.

The tremor was so powerful it was felt in Singapore, Thailand, Bangladesh, India and Malaysia, where tall office buildings shook for more than a minute, according to the Associated Press.

An 8.2-magnitude aftershock was reported off the coast of northern Sumatra with an epicenter 382 miles from Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia, around 6:43 a.m., according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

Acehnese people run shortly after a powerfull earthquake hit western coast of Sumatera in Banda Aceh

Workers at the Hermes Palace Hotel in Banda Aceh described a scene of panic, near the coast, as people fled to higher ground. Employee Cut Arlista said the shaking was so strong that water from the hotel pool spilled out, although the 70 guests at the hotel were not evacuated.

"People were crying, and everybody was running inland as fast as they can," Arlista told ABC News.

The nature of the quake made it less likely a tsunami was generated because the earth moved horizontally, rather than vertically, and therefore had not displaced large volumes of water, Bruce Presgrave of the USGS told the BBC.

"We can't rule out the possibility, but horizontal motion is less likely to produce a destructive tsunami," he said.

Still, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect for Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa and Singapore, according to the AP.

The tsunami warning was extended until 9 a.m. E.T.

The latest quake struck off the west coast of Sumatra, the same region devastated by a magnitude-9.1 earthquake in December 2004. That tremor triggered a catastrophic tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230,000 people.

"I think a lot of people learned from the past," Arlista said. "Everybody knew to run as soon as the earthquake hit."

Gary Peart, an Australian worker at the Lumba Lumba Diving Center on the beach in Banda Aceh in the province of Aceh, Indonesia, said the quake lasted quite a while.

"It was long for an earthquake," he said. "Maybe a minute and a half, and then it got slowly, slowly stronger, and then it faded away."

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5 dead, dozens injured in Thailand hotel fire

Thai firemen spray water to extenguish a fire at the Lee Gardens Hotel in downtown Hat Ya

Bangkok—Five people were killed and dozens injured in a fire Saturday at a hotel in Hat Yai, the largest city in southern Thailand, officials said.

The blaze broke out at the Lee Gardens Hotel in downtown Hat Yai, which is a popular destination with tourists from neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.

Four men and one woman died in the fire, Songkhla provincial governor Grisada Boorach told AFP. He said 336 were injured, of whom 28 were in hospital.

Firemen carrying out dead bodies from the hotel

The cause of the fire was being investigated, the governor said.

City mayor Prai Pattano earlier said the fire was apparently caused by a gas explosion in the basement of the building.

Prai also said more than 300 were injured but most were not seriously hurt and had been discharged.

Most of those injured suffered from smoke inhalation, many in the hotel’s large shopping arcade.

Police Lieutenant Phuvadol Viriyanarangkul said foreign tourists were among those injured but there were no details on them so far.

Two Russian tourists were killed in a fire at a hotel in Bangkok earlier this month.

Thailand is a tourist magnet but its image as the “Land of Smiles” has been tested in recent years by deadly political unrest, devastating floods and more recently a bungled bomb plot involving Iranian suspects.

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