Anyone recently fly Envoy across the pond? I'm finally taking my trip to Munich next week and am confirmed in Envoy. Just trying to figure out what to expect. I know the service went downhill for a while, but it seems there's a positive trend from what I've gathered in other threads.

Also, any seat suggestions for the 767? seatguru says avoid row 1. I'm in 3G on the outbound and 4g on the return as of now.

Thanks in advance!

[This message has been edited by kreeft (edited Jan 23, 2004).]

I always enjoy 2A/G -- closer to the front and when the meal orders are taken you sometimes have a better shot at your first choice (it depends on what order they go in.. sometimes status matters, sometimes they start on the left eastbound and right westbound...).

I flew Envoy in December on a 767 and found it to be a pleasurable experience but not luxury by any stretch. The crew was good, the food was decent, and although the seat was falling apart, it was far supperior to sitting in Y.

Enjoy it.

Flew CLT-LGW, LGW-PHL in Envoy for the New Years. Both operated by the A-330. I was pretty happy with the service both ways - Envoy has always been a good transatlantic product IMHO. I like rows 2 and 3 on the 767 the most. Unless you are tall, there is nothing wrong with row 1. I flew row 1 on the 767 CDG-PIT back when that route still flew and had plenty of room as a 6'er.

Also glad to see they upped the ante on the champers to Piper Heidseck from the no-name brand they had last yaer. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif

Flew in Envoy PHL-LGW over Xmas week. Got row 1 on the way over. Due to a screw-up, was in Row 6 on the way back.

Row 1 (A330) features full 180 degree reclining seats. The rest of Envoy has 160 degtree (?) seats. Either are fine for a transatlantic hop.

IFE worked fine. Can't comment on the champers, didn't see the bottle.

In general service was very good - meal over was top-notch. Return meal was OK, just stuff I'm not all that thrilled with. Cabin crew seemed lively and attentive.

All in all, a very pleasant experience.

Sorry I can't comment on the 767, but the service is much more dependent on the personnel than the metal, and USAir's are still right up there.

Here's hoping they're around for a while.

PHL-FRA-PHL over x-mas and new year, the noise cancelling headsets are now gone from the A330s. I don't think they were ever on the 767s. How much do they think they can save by doing that? So cheap.

Flew with family over Xmas on the 330. Great crews both ways, great service, good food. I do miss the ice cream though. IFE worked fine and we had the noise cancelling headsets on our flights both ways. Row 1 was the way to go going over and row 3 on the way back was a good choice too. The one complaint would be the ammenity kit wrapped in plastic. Now that was cheap.

After flying the 330 a couple of times, I hope I never have to fly the 767 going over again. The 767 is no where close in terms of comfort.

IMHO, it was worth the 480,000 miles it took to get the seats.

After ten years and at least 60 return transatlantic crossings on US I can only emphasize that the Airbus is far superior to the B767.
Better seats, better entertainment less noise and the chance for row 1 which is the old First class seat.
Food service and amenity kids have gone downhill. But overall the FA are still doing a good job on both planes and it is a pleasent ride with more space than other carriers especially on the A330.
Unfortunately I live in Munich now and they still have the old B767.

We did PHL-LGW / LGW-PHL in Envoy two weeks ago. What a difference it makes to have a comfortable reclining seat for the night flight over. You're not nearly so worn out when you arrive in London.

Food was very good & the service top notch coming & going. The 330 certainly affords one a good experience in Envoy.

We've also flown the 767s to SNN but have not yet flown Envoy on those planes. Anything is probably better than a Y seat on a 767, but I'd agree that the 330 is a better experience.

Have a nice flight,

Barry

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by jerseyfinn:
Anything is probably better than a Y seat on a 767...</font>


Close but not quite accurate. In my earlier years I was flying LHR-MIA on BA and barely made the flight after a VERY long night in the pubs and after-hours gatherings. It was one of the top 5 hangovers of my life. I was seated in the waaaaaaaaaaaay back on the 747-400 and had a window seat in the 3x4x3 config. I thought I would have the whole row to myself which was surprising because every other seat was taken, when all of a sudden, in come Mr. and Mrs. Octoberfest with both clocking in at over 250 lbs. Aaaaaaargh. It was HELL! If I'd had a cyanide pill I would have taken it. Right as they sat down, there was an announcement that an aisle passenger wanted a window seat. I waved and made immediate contact with the FA and was moved to an aisle knowing fully that I had just screwed a fellow traveller. Still de-hydrated and still hungover I made it (barely) back to MIA. But I digress, you are correct. The US 767 in coach is not so good... http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by geo1005:
The US 767 in coach is not so good... http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif
</font>

Which is why I'm worried about my upgrade chances on this upcoming flight:

US 43 AMS-PHL 2/13
C3 D1 Z0 Y7 B7 M7 H7 V7 Q7 W7 S7 L7 T7

Oh well, hope for the best!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by noah:
US 43 AMS-PHL 2/13 </font>


A US Gold on a Friday PHL-AMS really should clear. I give you a 75% chance of clearing.... but probably the day of at the gate.... not in advance. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif

What I want to know is have they brought back the nice salad service from the cart in Envoy? I always found the US Envoy salad to be extremely generous and a highlight of the food service. The bowl was very large (for an airline meal) and they had great toppings on the cart and those small bottles of olive oil, etc. I know they stopped the salad cart so I'm curious if it has returned.

I hope to travel back to either FCO or CDG in the near future and I sure will be disappointed if the salad is not the same as on my past flights to Europe on US.

------------------
US CP; UA Prem; AA Gold; Hilton Honors Diamond

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by US1@ORF:

I hope to travel back to either FCO or CDG in the near future and I sure will be disappointed if the salad is not the same as on my past flights to Europe on US.
</font>
Get ready for disapointment http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

No salad cart on my recent flights. Too bad, because I really liked it.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by noah:
No salad cart on my recent flights. Too bad, because I really liked it.</font>

Not on mine either. I liked it as well - it was a nice touch. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

I flew to FRA last November and Salad cart/Dessert cart/Amenity kits are gone (items were given individually). Hot towel service is inconsistent. The meal service has sunk to an all time low. It is comparable to a F/C transcon domestic on other carriers.

Best thing about Envoy these days are the seats (except row 2) and Passport system.

What I don't like is they now give you a little tart and cheese and crackers on a plate for dessert.

I'd be mad if i ever paid full J fare for such a piddly dessert.

Flew FRA-PIT on the A330 and honestly, that was the most pleaseant ride home that i've ever had. Maybe it was because I was on the road for 17 weeks in Europe, but the food was great, IFE worked fine, great champers, and the worlds finest fa's. If you have to fly envoy, fly into FRA and connect. The PIW fa's absolutely rock!

i just used a DMUTA3 to upgrade from dca-clt-lgw. Scored Row 1, food was great, IFE ran smoothly and the seat reclines 180 degrees. FA's were overly pleasant . . the whole experience was wonderful.

I hope they stay around for a bit :-)

I just did PHL- CDG and back. All in all, pdisapointing. The FA were great, especially on the way back. The food was ok- no dessert at all on the way back. Having flown Delta's business class and Singapore's, US was sort of sad. I just don't see them around much longer. Altough, they certainly aren't going broke on the amenity kits. They were just cheap!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by njvj:
they certainly aren't going broke on the amenity kits. They were just cheap!</font>

You mean, they actually gave you an amenity kit vs individual items separately?

Maybe kit is a stretch. They were in this really cheap plastic wrapper. A ziploc would have been nicer http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif


As I said, the flight attendants were great and it makes me feel a bit guilty about complaining.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by njvj:
As I said, the flight attendants were great and it makes me feel a bit guilty about complaining.</font>

You shouldn't feel guilty, US Airways management should. Those pennies they save cost them dollars in terms of customer impact. That plastic wrapped piecemeal amenity thing is just beyond tacky.

in my last envoy's experiences staff was mostly really good.

you people complain about the amenity kits that are a shame, yes maybe they are not that great as to what we had before, but honestly i still prefer the plastic packaging to having to pick each item separately in the basket!

The only thing I could complain off is not being able to redeem any trip from CDG to SFO in Envoy, or on UA, avaibility is none until july-august, on the savers award. but i guess everybody is trying to redeem their miles nowadays! two weeks ago called Gold reservations, to redeem award and the wait was over 40 minutes!!!!

Synd

Currently fly Envoy about 1X/mo and sad to say the experience has really gone down hill, especially out of PHL. Catering well below what it was 6mo ago, tired and frustrated FCs, disgusting breakfast "snack" services, no noise-reducing headphones, extremely dirts 767's and even dirty 330s.

As for the 767's, try to get row 2 or 3--better chance at first choice meal. Row 1 is ok but can get noisy from the galley. If Dave S. only heard what was said about him in those galleys he would die...