Bahrain’s national carrier Gulf Air returned to Changi in April 2021 after a 13-year absence, and back then its Boeing 787-9 service continued on to Bangkok, with the airline later obtaining “fifth freedom” rights to sell tickets between Singapore and the Thai capital.
That Bangkok tag ended in October 2024, when the airline switched to a daily non-stop Singapore – Bahrain operation. Now intra-Asia flying is making a comeback on Gulf Air’s Changi schedule, this time to Kuala Lumpur.
Singapore – Kuala Lumpur “fifth freedom” flights
From 26th October 2026, Gulf Air’s daily GF165 service from Bahrain will continue beyond Singapore to Kuala Lumpur. It will then return to Changi as GF166 before heading back to Bahrain.
The airline has “fifth freedom” traffic rights on this short hop, so you can buy a ticket solely between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, without travelling to or from Bahrain at all.
The flights are operated by the carrier’s Boeing 787-9s, with a scheduled block time of 1 hour 10 minutes in each direction.
Here’s how the new schedule looks.
Bahrain Singapore
From 25 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
 |
GF165 787-9 |
||||||||
| BAH 23:55 |
SIN 12:50* |
||||||||
| Duration: 07:55 | |||||||||
* Next day
Singapore Kuala Lumpur
From 26 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
|
GF165 787-9 |
||||||||
| SIN 14:20 |
KUL 15:30 |
||||||||
| Duration: 01:10 | |||||||||
|
GF166 787-9 |
||||||||
| KUL 17:35 |
SIN 18:45 |
||||||||
| Duration: 01:10 | |||||||||
– New fifth freedom flights
Singapore Bahrain
From 26 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
|
GF166 787-9 |
||||||||
| SIN 20:00 |
BAH 23:25 |
||||||||
| Duration: 08:25 | |||||||||
GF165 will continue to arrive from Bahrain at 12.50pm, then depart at 2.20pm for a 3.30pm arrival into KLIA. Heading south, GF166 leaves Kuala Lumpur at 5.35pm and lands at Changi at 6.45pm, before continuing to Bahrain at 8pm.
That’s a convenient mid-afternoon departure and an early evening return, which works well for a long weekend in KL. You can fly up after lunch on a Thursday or Friday and be back in Singapore in time for dinner on Sunday.
What it won’t allow is a day trip, since the aircraft spends just over two hours on the ground in Kuala Lumpur before heading back to Changi.
For the airline, the extension puts the Boeing 787 to work during what is currently a long layover at Changi, between its arrival from Bahrain and its evening departure back to the Gulf.
It also gives passengers in Kuala Lumpur a daily one-stop link to Bahrain and Gulf Air’s onward network, under the same flight number.
The Singapore – Bahrain service itself remains daily, and the 11.25pm arrival into Bahrain remains well placed for the airline’s late-night connections to Europe.
Gulf Air has loaded these flights through to 1st September 2027. That’s as far ahead as the airline sells, since it only loads flights 330 days in advance, so this is set to be a year-round operation.
Back in Kuala Lumpur after 14 years
Gulf Air last served Kuala Lumpur in March 2012. It planned a comeback with daily Boeing 787-9 flights from July 2020, only for the pandemic to put paid to that idea.
The airline finally returned to KLIA on 30th September 2026, with non-stop Bahrain – Kuala Lumpur flights timed around the Formula 1 race weekend. Because of the regional conflict, this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix was moved to Malaysia’s Sepang circuit and branded the “Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia”, running from 2nd to 4th October.
(Photo: James Kerwin)
Those non-stop Bahrain – KL flights run up to five times weekly, dropping to three per week from 8th October, until 23rd October.
From late October, the daily routing via Singapore takes over as the permanent arrangement.
Fares
Seats are already on sale for this route, with round-trip fares for travel in November 2026 starting from S$246 in Economy Class and S$1,025 in Business Class (Falcon Gold).
In our sample week in mid-November, the cheapest outbound fares were on weekday departures. The outbound portion was priced at S$143 from Monday to Thursday, rising to S$238 from Friday to Sunday.
Even the cheapest Economy Light fare includes a 25kg checked baggage allowance plus 6kg of carry-on. That compares well with the low-cost carriers on the route, once you add bags.
Seat selection is chargeable, date changes cost US$100 and cancellations cost US$170. You’ll also earn 50% of the usual Falconflyer miles on this fare.
A 35th daily Kuala Lumpur option
Singapore – Kuala Lumpur is one of the world’s busiest air corridors, with up to 34 daily flights in each direction operated between Changi and KLIA by the following airlines:
- AirAsia
- Batik Air Malaysia
- Ethiopian Airlines
- Malaysia Airlines
- Scoot
- Singapore Airlines
Gulf Air will add a 35th daily flight option. It will be only the second carrier on the route operating under “fifth freedom” rights, joining Ethiopian Airlines.
Separately, Scoot and Batik Air Malaysia also offer a pair of daily flights between Changi and Subang, Kuala Lumpur’s smaller airport, which sits closer to the city centre. On top of that, Firefly operates six daily flights between Seletar and Subang.
Gulf Air Boeing 787 cabins
On a 70-minute flight you won’t have long to enjoy it, but Gulf Air’s 787-9 Business Class is a full long-haul product.
When Gulf Air first returned to Singapore in 2021, we noted the Apex Suite would be a great option on the short Bangkok hop if the airline ever secured fifth freedom rights. The same now applies to Kuala Lumpur.
The Gulf Air Boeing 787-9 is configured to seat 282 passengers in the following configuration:
- 26 Business Class
- 256 Economy Class
The airline uses the (excellent) Apex Suite in its Business Class (Falcon Gold) cabin, a product also found on Oman Air and Japan Airlines.
On paper, with a 2-2-2 layout, it seems strange that the design wins such praise, but the key to this one is a clever ‘staggered’ arrangement at the window seats.
(Photo: Gulf Air)
This allows direct aisle access for the window passenger (and no one climbing over the aisle passenger at the window pairs), the primary drawback for older 2-2-2 configurations.
(Photo: Gulf Air)
Gulf Air Boeing 787 flights also include a ‘Sky Chef’, dedicated to the F&B service.
(Photo: Gulf Air)
While Japan Airlines occasionally substitutes its Apex Suite-fitted aircraft on Singapore – Tokyo flights, Gulf Air was the first carrier to consistently offer the product to and from Changi.
We’ve got a comprehensive review of our experience in the Apex Suite on board Oman Air between Muscat and Jakarta, in a very similar configuration used by Gulf Air.
You can read a review of Gulf Air’s Boeing 787-9 Business Class here.
In Economy Class, Gulf Air has a standard 3-3-3 layout, with a 32″ seat pitch and on-demand entertainment via 11.6″ seat-back IFE screens.
All Boeing 787 aircraft are Wi-Fi equipped, as are the carrier’s Airbus A320neo and Airbus A321neo aircraft.
Lounges
Business Class passengers departing Changi will use the SATS Premier Lounge in Terminal 3.
Gulf Air doesn’t currently list which lounge it uses at KLIA Terminal 1.
Miles and points
Gulf Air has its own frequent flyer programme, Falconflyer, but it isn’t part of any major airline alliance, so options for earning and redeeming miles through more common programmes are limited.
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles was previously the most useful option for many of our readers, but it dropped Gulf Air as a partner from 31st December 2024.
That leaves two partner programmes for earning and redeeming miles on Gulf Air flights, both of which Singapore credit card points can be transferred to:
- Air Canada Aeroplan (from HSBC)
- Etihad Guest (from Citi, HSBC and OCBC)
Redemption rates on Gulf Air
(one-way)
| Route |  |
 |
||
| Eco | Biz | Eco | Biz | |
| Singapore – Bahrain | 40,000 | 75,000 | 45,000 | 80,000 |
| Singapore – Frankfurt (via Bahrain) |
60,000 | 92,500 | 75,000 | 140,000 |
| Singapore – Kuala Lumpur | 8,000 | 20,000 | 6,000 | 20,000 |
On the Singapore – Kuala Lumpur sector, a one-way Business Class award costs 20,000 miles through either programme. Aeroplan charges CA$112 (around S$100) in taxes and fees, and Etihad Guest charges S$125.
In Economy Class, Etihad Guest is cheaper at 6,000 miles plus S$78, against 8,000 Aeroplan points plus CA$112 (S$100).
The difference in cash costs comes down to surcharges. Etihad Guest passes on Gulf Air’s carrier-imposed charges, so you’ll pay S$125 on GF165 in Business Class against S$65 on Malaysia Airlines for the same journey. Aeroplan charges the same on Gulf Air as it does on Singapore Airlines.
Against the S$526 cash fare, a Business Class award values your miles at around 2 cents each through either programme. Economy is a different story. With cash fares from S$143, an Etihad Guest award values your miles at around 1 cent each, and Aeroplan at around 0.5 cents, so paying cash makes more sense.
Both programmes show Gulf Air award space online, so you can search for seats without calling.
We haven’t included Gulf Air’s Falconflyer award rates for redemptions and upgrades, given that most of our readers aren’t members of the programme, but you can check the applicable rates at the airline’s Mileage Calculator.
Bahrain Airport revamp
Most of our readers probably haven’t experienced an aircraft transit in Bahrain before, but take it from us – in the past it was never anything to particularly look forward to!
However, that’s all changed in recent years, with the opening of a brand new terminal in late January 2021.
(Photo: Gulf Air)
This also includes a brand new Falcon Lounge for those flying from Bahrain in Business Class, including transit passengers. Among the usual facilities, the new lounge features live cooking stations and a pool table!
(Photo: Gulf Air)
You can read a review of the lounge here.
Summary
Exactly two years after Gulf Air flew its last Singapore – Bangkok “fifth freedom” service, the airline is returning to intra-Asia flying from Changi. From 26th October 2026, its daily Bahrain – Singapore flights will extend to Kuala Lumpur.
It becomes only the second carrier, after Ethiopian Airlines, to use fifth freedom rights on one of the world’s busiest air routes. Round-trip fares start from S$246 in Economy, including a 25kg bag, and S$1,025 in Business Class.
The afternoon departure and early evening return suit a short break in KL, and on a 70-minute hop, a 787 Apex Suite is a very comfortable way to cover the short distance.
(Cover Photo: Plane’s Portrait Aviation Media / Malcolm Lu)