- Joined
- Dec 7, 2011
- Posts
- 711
I'd like to give a short report on my recently completed J Class journey on AC 38/37, the 787-900 flight between MEL and YVR return and the onward AC548/549 pairing to/from EWR. I chose these flights as they provide an excellent same airline journey to NY with the added attraction of not having to deal with US Immigration and Customs in LAX or SFO. The total trip was about as easy and convenient as possible, leaving MEL at 0920 and having only a 90 min stopover in YVR before continuing on the same (or same type) aircraft to NY, arriving at a civil time of 1650 the same day.
All flights were on time and not affected by the weather in Melbourne on 9 August. However, the route did come in over BRI and SYD, in case we needed to divert. The new aircraft were all comfortable although I did find the seats very hard and quite narrow for a J Class cabin with a 1-2-1 configuration. The window seats do face the windows so you do get a good view if the crew do not automatically close all the electronic shades. Not much to see though over the Pacific and in total darkness on the return. I had seat 1K throughout the journey and did not find it noisy despite it being near the galley (but not near either of the two toilets in business class). The seats lie flat with your feet on an ottoman under the seat in front but the 'mattress' was so thin as to be useless and the cabin so hot (on my flights) that the doona was unnecessary. The length was adequate for me at 1.80m.
There was plenty of storage space and desk space around the seat and the overhead bins on the 787 are so large that rollers can be stowed vertically - Row 1 does have less overhead storage as the cabin crew use the space for headsets and amenity bags. The IFE was easy to use on the touchscreen or separate controller. I did not use the paid WiFi and only watched a couple shows during the entire itinerary, preferring my downloaded music and Netflix programmes thru my own Bluetooth headset.
The crew were professional, if not particularly proactive, throughout the long and shorter sectors although the MEL flight was obviously popular for the more experienced crew as it gave them a 2 day layover rather than the 24 hours in SYD (as the flight is not daily as yet). Given the load though, I think AC will need to go to a daily flight soon. The YVR-EWR sectors were packed as the crew pointed out that this was one of the few trans-continental wide-bodied daylight flights and so was very popular.
The main disappointment was the food, especially on the 15 hour sector from YVR to MEL. Being a late evening departure, they might have expected J class pax to have eaten in the lounge but there was not much choice their either. The first service was a one tray offering (salad, roll and cheese) with the main course delivered soon after. There was also a dessert run (a tiny portion), tea/coffee and a couple of offerings of wine. There was plenty of cheese but, unfortunately, only two small biscuits to eat it with.
You were then left alone for 12 hours before a breakfast 75 mins before landing that was not much better - I have had more attractive main courses on Australian domestic services. You were able to order a few hot snacks mid flight and most passengers did this so the service got slower and slower and the choices more limited. I do need to add though that a couple of the meals on other sectors were better presented and tasted wholesome but you will never get fat on the portion sizes.
So, overall, a mixed bag as far as a Business Class long haul flight is concerned. A convenient, well timed, way to get to the US East Coast with a quick transfer in the one terminal, a new aircraft and a reasonable seat. The crew were not as good as Virgin or Air New Zealand across the Pacific and the food definitely did not meet the standard expected on a flight of this length.
(I paid for my own ticket).
All flights were on time and not affected by the weather in Melbourne on 9 August. However, the route did come in over BRI and SYD, in case we needed to divert. The new aircraft were all comfortable although I did find the seats very hard and quite narrow for a J Class cabin with a 1-2-1 configuration. The window seats do face the windows so you do get a good view if the crew do not automatically close all the electronic shades. Not much to see though over the Pacific and in total darkness on the return. I had seat 1K throughout the journey and did not find it noisy despite it being near the galley (but not near either of the two toilets in business class). The seats lie flat with your feet on an ottoman under the seat in front but the 'mattress' was so thin as to be useless and the cabin so hot (on my flights) that the doona was unnecessary. The length was adequate for me at 1.80m.
There was plenty of storage space and desk space around the seat and the overhead bins on the 787 are so large that rollers can be stowed vertically - Row 1 does have less overhead storage as the cabin crew use the space for headsets and amenity bags. The IFE was easy to use on the touchscreen or separate controller. I did not use the paid WiFi and only watched a couple shows during the entire itinerary, preferring my downloaded music and Netflix programmes thru my own Bluetooth headset.
The crew were professional, if not particularly proactive, throughout the long and shorter sectors although the MEL flight was obviously popular for the more experienced crew as it gave them a 2 day layover rather than the 24 hours in SYD (as the flight is not daily as yet). Given the load though, I think AC will need to go to a daily flight soon. The YVR-EWR sectors were packed as the crew pointed out that this was one of the few trans-continental wide-bodied daylight flights and so was very popular.
The main disappointment was the food, especially on the 15 hour sector from YVR to MEL. Being a late evening departure, they might have expected J class pax to have eaten in the lounge but there was not much choice their either. The first service was a one tray offering (salad, roll and cheese) with the main course delivered soon after. There was also a dessert run (a tiny portion), tea/coffee and a couple of offerings of wine. There was plenty of cheese but, unfortunately, only two small biscuits to eat it with.
You were then left alone for 12 hours before a breakfast 75 mins before landing that was not much better - I have had more attractive main courses on Australian domestic services. You were able to order a few hot snacks mid flight and most passengers did this so the service got slower and slower and the choices more limited. I do need to add though that a couple of the meals on other sectors were better presented and tasted wholesome but you will never get fat on the portion sizes.
So, overall, a mixed bag as far as a Business Class long haul flight is concerned. A convenient, well timed, way to get to the US East Coast with a quick transfer in the one terminal, a new aircraft and a reasonable seat. The crew were not as good as Virgin or Air New Zealand across the Pacific and the food definitely did not meet the standard expected on a flight of this length.
(I paid for my own ticket).
