Malaysia Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines are letting passengers engage in 'social-seating' programs where they can share their social-network profiles or photos and pick seatmates before the flight.

The social-seating plans, initiated by KLM in January and by Malaysia Airlines last year, are seen as the ultimate social-networking dream by some and an invitation to stalkers and a privacy nightmare by others.

The options however, are voluntary.

But if you're open-minded, somewhat adventurous and, well, social, then social seating can be fun, beneficial and worthwhile. But there are indeed cautions.

Malaysia Airlines' MHbuddy is a Facebook application launched early last year. Travelers can book their flights using MHbuddy. As they check in on Facebook, they can view the photos and seat selections of any of their Facebook friends on the flight and can choose seats next to them, if available.

MHbuddy also tells passengers if any of their Facebook friends are planning on traveling to the destination in case they want to meet during the trip.

The social-seating trend has captured the attention of JetBlue, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, although officials indicate none plan to adopt it right now.

"We haven't ruled out social seating or similar concepts, but it's not something we're actively pursuing," says Allison Steinberg, a JetBlue spokeswoman. "We're conscious of some of the privacy concerns it might raise and are careful to listen to cues from our customers on what they want."

Malaysian Airlines is leading the way social-media wave with moves like the MH Buddy, rendering the web-based functionality to their Facebook page.

Developed with Malaysia Airlines by SITA Lab, the research group of air transport IT provider SITA, MHbuddy is an application on Facebook Platform that allows passengers to book and check-in for a flight while sharing their trip details with their friends.

Malaysia Airlines Executive VP Commercial Strategy, Datuk Dr Amin Khan said, "Our customers are spending more and more time on social networks and Malaysia Airlines is one of the most active airlines using social media to drive revenue. We have over 380,000 fans who actively engage with us on our existing social media channels."

In addition, MHbuddy users can check in via Facebook and select their seats. During seat selection, they will also be able to view the seats of their friends who are travelling on the same flight. This gives MHbuddy users a really easy and convenient way to connect with their friends when they travel on Malaysia Airlines, wherever they are.

In addition, MHbuddy users can check in via Facebook and select their seats. During seat selection, they will also be able to view the seats of their friends who are travelling on the same flight. This gives MHbuddy users a really easy and convenient way to connect with their friends when they travel on Malaysia Airlines, wherever they are.

Bloggers and analysts posit that Malaysia Airlines will now know when someone purchases through Facebook, how much they spent, what their social graph looks like, where to connect with that person through social channels, and how to market/reach out to that person at a later date (and perhaps their friends). In essence, the experience of booking a flight is now becoming "social" and is being translated from online to offline.

MHbuddy was launched in early 2011.