Swiss International Airlines - Need help re intra-Europe connection time, plane choices via ZUR

I may be flying LHR-ZUR-BUD round trip early July in J. A few questions:

1. The main choice for the ZUR-BUD legs is the Fokker on Contact Air. I've seen some posts from two or three years ago indicating that both the plane and the airline are lousy. Is that still people's impression?
2. In a related vein, I'm unclear on the Fokker seat lay-out. Is it 2 x 3?
3. On a J ticket, is the seat next to you blocked? The old threads indicate that it is not.
4. The alternative once per day for these legs is the Avro RJ100 Avroliner. Am I correct in assuming that it's nicer and includes seat blocking in J?
5. For either of these planes/flights, any advice re what the carry-on limit is and if my bag is too big (though it would be fairly small) whether I could gate check it and pick it up in the jetway?
6. Finally, my connection times on the outbound would be 45-50 minutes and on the return (which is the leg I'd more likely have to fly Contact) 40 minutes. FWIW, I have a USA passport. Do those times sound sufficient?

Thanks for any help!

- The Fokker 100 and Avros both have the same 2-3 (AB||DEF) layout. On both aircraft, when travelling in J class, the middle seat (seat E) is blocked.

- Both aircraft, especially when full, will see capacity problems due to them having smaller overhead bins than those usually found on Boeing and Airbus aircraft. Especially on very full flights, the agents will gate check most if not all rollaboard bags due to the lack of space on board. If your bag ends up being gate checked, it will be delivered back to you at baggage claim and NOT in the jetway. Since you will be travelling in J, it shouldn't be that big of a concern unless your bag is larger than the allowed dimensions (LX carry-on rules: http://www.swiss.com/web/EN/services/baggage/carryon_baggage/Pages/carryon_baggage.aspx)

- 40-50 minutes connections at ZRH are entirely possible, but be aware that it might not be sufficient if a delay occurs on your inbound flight.

Thanks very much for this useful information.

If in J on the two-seat side of the cabin (A/B), is the seat next to you blocked?

If in J on the two-seat side of the cabin (A/B), is the seat next to you blocked?
No, they only block E. Choose a seat on that side.

You may also want to check the ZRH transfer guide (http://www.miles-and-more.com/mediapool/pdf/40/media_1059940.pdf). You will have to go through passport control in each direction between Schengen/non-Schengen.

I've done ZRH-WAW-ZRH two months ago on the Contact Air F100 in C, and can confirm SR116's info regarding seat blockings and overhead space.

In addition, yes I did find the aircraft old and the service / crew very uninspired. But the flights are short and I would not go out of my way to fly a different aircraft type.

No, they only block E. Choose a seat on that side.

You may also want to check the ZRH transfer guide (http://www.miles-and-more.com/mediapool/pdf/40/media_1059940.pdf). You will have to go through passport control in each direction between Schengen/non-Schengen.

They usually block E, it won't stop them jamming someone in there if they feel like it. Seen it twice this year so far. In fact, they quite impressively got 9 in C in two rows the other week on the BHX.

Flew ZRH-BUD some weeks ago with Contact Air/Fokker. Service was ok, nothing to complain about. Plane is kinda old but surprisingly quite if you sit in one of the first rows.

They usually block E, it won't stop them jamming someone in there if they feel like it. Seen it twice this year so far. In fact, they quite impressively got 9 in C in two rows the other week on the BHX.
My record is 8 in C in two rows on ZRH-MAN and I was in 1A. :(

Thanks again for the useful info, folks. Much appreciated.