Cathay Pacific Asia Miles - Sacrilege Thread: AA J is Better in Many Respects

All,

Just flew LAX-HKG in J on CX. This is my fourth round-trip in the last two years on this segment in J.

Also in the last two years I have flown J on AA DFW-LGW about 5 times.

CX has a nice product. However, AA has some very strong points in its favor and I think that it is arguable that AA is better in many respects.

Food: I personally think that AA J has better food. I was quite dissapointed in the food served in CX on the LAX-HKG segment. For comparison's sake on AA I get the following:

Warm Nuts
Nice, fresh tossed salad with Lobster (I think that was J, although I flew a couple of F segments too)
Bigger, better portions of the main course
Fresh made Ice cream sundae
Cheese
Fruits
Port


In CX, the menu was essentially the same but not as well done. The salad arrived in a small bowl. No lobster. Main course was small and iffy. No ice-cream Sundae. Poorer (by comparison) selection of fruit

Now I realize that this is like comparing a Jaguar and a Mercedes. Each product is very good. But this is my opinion.

IFE

I actually prefer the DVD players that AA hands out. The movie selection tends to be better and if you have a laptop, then you get to see it on a 15" screen.

Seats:

Of course CX wins. But lets face it. BA rules over everyone here

Service:

Well this one is going to sound odd. I know CX service is considered world class. Perhaps par with SQ. But you know what: AA service in J is not bad. In fact I have felt for sometime that CX J staff is a bit robotic with fixed smiles and such. However, when you have good AA J staff (60% of the time), the service is done with heart and charm.

I realize that what I have posted is sacrilege and a heretic opinion. But I would love to find out if any other FT'ers agree with my opinion.

Keep in mind: This is my opinion. Not a fact. Just an opinion.

Thanks

Panjabi

Let us not forget AA has better headsets!

I think what you say about CX foods is true.

CX used to offer a la cart style dining in J, where u can choose whatever u like on a cart, which had everything written on the menu. So u really didn't have to choose what u want to have. But this was pre-SARS days and they no longer do this. What a pity.

I really wish CX reinstate this a la cart thing.

One thing I still like about CX food options is noodle and congee.

And out of HKG, if u have access to the first class lounge, then i think u just finish dining there at least for the first meal. fresh salad and fairly substantial stuffs are there for u to pick up.

Does AA offer DVDs on transpacific flights?

You are absolutely right about the Bose headsets. How come I forgot that? I use them all the time for noise cancelling.

Thanks for the reminder.

Dont know about DVDs on Transpacific. It has been years since I flew the NRT-DFW route.

Thanks,

Panjabi

Well firstly, the AA DVD's won't play in your laptop unless you've cracked the firmware, their region is set to some weird one that only matches with AA's DVD players (I guess this is to discourage stealing).

Secondly, the DVD players, nice lobster salads and larger main courses are all limited to the AA's 763s, J on the 777 is a lower class affair with less seat pitch, cheaper wines, and downgraded menus.

Finally, the food on AA J, be it a 763 or 777 has been pretty foul recently IMHO. I flew J to and from DUB on a 763 last week and the main course both there and back was disgusting (nasty cod and translucently watery mash there, overcooked barbeque chicken on the way back).

All,

Just flew LAX-HKG in J on CX. This is my fourth round-trip in the last two years on this segment in J.

Also in the last two years I have flown J on AA DFW-LGW about 5 times.

CX has a nice product. However, AA has some very strong points in its favor and I think that it is arguable that AA is better in many respects.

Food: I personally think that AA J has better food. I was quite dissapointed in the food served in CX on the LAX-HKG segment. For comparison's sake on AA I get the following:

Warm Nuts
Nice, fresh tossed salad with Lobster (I think that was J, although I flew a couple of F segments too)
Bigger, better portions of the main course
Fresh made Ice cream sundae
Cheese
Fruits
Port


In CX, the menu was essentially the same but not as well done. The salad arrived in a small bowl. No lobster. Main course was small and iffy. No ice-cream Sundae. Poorer (by comparison) selection of fruit

Now I realize that this is like comparing a Jaguar and a Mercedes. Each product is very good. But this is my opinion.

IFE

I actually prefer the DVD players that AA hands out. The movie selection tends to be better and if you have a laptop, then you get to see it on a 15" screen.

Seats:

Of course CX wins. But lets face it. BA rules over everyone here

Service:

Well this one is going to sound odd. I know CX service is considered world class. Perhaps par with SQ. But you know what: AA service in J is not bad. In fact I have felt for sometime that CX J staff is a bit robotic with fixed smiles and such. However, when you have good AA J staff (60% of the time), the service is done with heart and charm.

I realize that what I have posted is sacrilege and a heretic opinion. But I would love to find out if any other FT'ers agree with my opinion.

Keep in mind: This is my opinion. Not a fact. Just an opinion.

Thanks

Panjabi

Personally, I prefer CX J way over AA!!!

When you're comparing the meal service in CX J vs AA J, you're comparing AA 763 2 class service as opposed to CX 3 class service. The meals served on the 763 two class service is better than the meals on the 777. So in that regards, I agree that AA 763 meals have a slight edge over CX J, but NOT on flights to the Pacific.

As far as IFE, CX wins hands down. It's really annoying to have the DVD player. It's just more clutter!! Plus, even with the DVD player on AA, Studio CX offers way more! There are over 30 movies/tv shows to choose from. I don't recall the portable DVD player offering that much. Heck, CX Y class entertainment has more to choose from than AA J.

The seats between CX and AA isn't even a comparison.

Here are other things that I like about CX J

Espresso drinks.
Well maintained lavatories.
Bags that are tagged Priority that actually come out first. With AA, they're bagged Priority but come out last.
Better amenity kits.

CX has a nice product. However, AA has some very strong points in its favor and I think that it is arguable that AA is better in many respects.


Are you quite mad???

Gemini,

Thanks for your reply. Agree totally on the lavs. CX is meticulous.

I actually prefer the DVDs as I am a movie watcher and AA has a huge selection of English movies. CX has movies but the collection is not as large.

Believe it or not, I actually like the AA Amenity kits.

Thanks,

Panjabi

PS: The NUMBER ONE best thing about CX: Cathay Delight. I can easily drink two gallons of it. However, despite my repeated requests, I have never been served those two gallons.

Give me a "T", give me an "R", given me an "O", give me a "LL"! What does that spell?

Are you quite mad???

:) Quite Passionate about CX!! Cool! I like that!

Please note: The original post is strictly my opinion. Not a fact just a personal choice.

I have flown in AA J on three round trips this year from BOS-EZE. I've been on both the 767 and the 777. The J class food is decent - the only highlights for me are the cold seafood plate (shrimp, smoked salmon) and the ice cream sundae. The main course is always dried out and tastes quite poor. The IFE is ok on the 777 and actually better on the 767 because of the DVD player. The biggest problem I have with the DVD player is that it does not have the map showing the aircraft location (obviously) like other IFE systems.

The seats are poor on the 777 and passable on the 767. They are often somehow broken due to years of use. I'm looking forward to the new J seats when they come out.

Give me a "T", give me an "R", given me an "O", give me a "LL"! What does that spell?

We are all FT'ers. I post in all the boards of the airlines I fly in. I dont think we should limit ourselves to one board only. If you see my post history, it is in AA, SQ, CX, BA and some other boards.

Sorry if I offended you. I just was not super satisfied with my last LAX-HKG flight. It was not bad, not by any means. In fact I would classify it as Good. It is just that for some reason, I felt a bit let down. So I decided to put pen to paper (or keyboard to screen) and put my thoughts down. Just my thoughts.

Thanks,

Panjabi

The seats are poor on the 777 and passable on the 767. They are often somehow broken due to years of use. I'm looking forward to the new J seats when they come out.

Yeah, the AA J Seats are BAA...AD! Gosh, I cannot wait for the seat upgrade. But I was dissapointed to hear that it will not be a full 180 like BA. I hear it will be more like CX etc.

Yeah, the AA J Seats are BAA...AD! Gosh, I cannot wait for the seat upgrade. But I was dissapointed to hear that it will not be a full 180 like BA. I hear it will be more like CX etc.

Heck, LAN has better seats than AA......for now.

As much as the OP sounds like he is trolling, I'll bite.

I can't think of one respect where AA is better than CX on a generalized basis. Sure, there are small execptions where AA can be better than CX. I've had some really great FA's on AA that make the flight really pleasant - but unfortunately, that is an exception, not a rule. CX rules on IFE (compared to AA's 777, I admit I like the DVD players on the AA763). CX rules on wine, food, seating, cabin cleanliness, and lounges.

Put it this way, if AA and CX competed on the same route, I would choose CX any day of the week.

Now, if you said AA F was better than CX F, that would have really started some interesting discussion.

What route did you flly where you got lobster in J on AA? I have never seen that.

:) Quite Passionate about CX!! Cool! I like that!

Please note: The original post is strictly my opinion. Not a fact just a personal choice.No he's just quite "passionate" (for want of a better word) about BA but also seems to get upset when people praise AA. ;)

Ignore the personal comments aimed at you and feel free to post your opinion of the airlines' respective services. I haven't had the chance to fly CX in J so I appreciate your comparison of the two products.

Being DM with CX and ExecPlat with AA, I feel there is no comparison when you have to factor in the FA's attitude in dealing with PAX. Actually it starts at checkin and the quality of airside services that each airline offers. Now I feel that our friend Me Panjabi is allowed to share his opinions with us.... no matter how wrong he may be. AA has kept that attitude for many years when stating that "no body is perfect" when responding to unhappy flyers.

One last matter.... Does CX subsitute, at the last minute, the seating plans for F class when claiming every 777 is a suite when infact almost half the fleet is fitted with coffin style seats. That must be part of the flying expericence to book a premium top top shelve seat only to be baited and switched to a 2nd class F seat at the same price.

What route did you flly where you got lobster in J on AA? I have never seen that.
AA servers lobster tail "slivers" on 763s, international

AA servers lobster tail "slivers" on 763s, international

Ex-USA only and not in the salad as the OP indicated, but as part of a seafood appetizer plate (usually along with smoked salmon and a grilled shrimp). Unlike in F on the 777 (or F on the 762 AFS transcons), there is not a la carte salad service in J on the 763 (they did this for a few months after the service started, but have since abandoned it), but the salad is bigger and contains more vegetables than the 777 J salad.

J on the 777 is a total let down food, service and entertainment wise. I happily go out of my way to avoid it. About the only thing J on the 777 has going for it vis-a-vis the 763 is that the seat is 1.5 inches wider on the 777. Of course, this is offset by the chance you might get stuck in a middle seat (as could one seated in J on the main deck of a CX 744 or on the 772 or 773).

I might add that the FAs on CX are AMAZING!!!! They are professional, friendly, and generally on top of it!! I had a recent experience in Y class from BKK to HKG. I was seated towards the back of the plane on the A340. The head purser came by, greeted me (its one of the little things for being oneworld elite), and said, "Mr. Gemini, thank you for flying CX.....blah, blah, blah." The meals service was about to commence and she made sure that I was served first before others were. Simply fantastic.

Contrast to my flight 2 months ago on AA J class from ZRH to JFK. I'm reading the USA Today. The flight attendent comes by and asks me "can I borrow the paper when you're done?" I was a bit surprised. Of course I let her borrow it, but still. It's a bit unprofessional.

As another poster stated, I'll take CX every time.

One last matter.... Does CX subsitute, at the last minute, the seating plans for F class when claiming every 777 is a suite when infact almost half the fleet is fitted with coffin style seats. That must be part of the flying expericence to book a premium top top shelve seat only to be baited and switched to a 2nd class F seat at the same price.

That would be premium top shelve sit within AA. While the flagship suite seat is good, the lack of duvet, PJ, slippers (non NRT routes) and ancient tape-based IFE truely puts it on shelf below what a large number of other carriers would dare categorize as intl. first class. Just thought the clarification was in order since we comparing CX and AA here anyway. :)

I've had many good flights on AA and good (occasionally great) cabin crew, but CX has totally won me over, on an emotional level just as much as on product merits. Except for the Exp.desk, Bose headsets and AAvantage program, I would rate my support of and enthusiasm towards AA close to that of the IRS.

I agree with all who say that the AA J Cabin Crew can be a mixed bag. I myself raised that point and said that in my experience only 60% or so of the J Cabin Crews were world class. CX, on the other hand is fairly consistent. They, like SQ, do not tolerate slackers.

The thing is that though when the AA J or F crew is great (usually on LHR or LGW routes), they (again ONLY in my opinion) outshine the CX cabin crew. They have a warm personality, wit and charm. The CX crew and the SQ cabin crews are somewhat robotic.

Once again, no one doubts that CX is world class. It is perhaps with SQ and BA on the top tier. But for some things and on some days travelling on a AA J (in 763 I admit) is a lot of fun.

Thanks for listening.

Panjabi

I agree with all who say that the AA J Cabin Crew can be a mixed bag. I myself raised that point and said that in my experience only 60% or so of the J Cabin Crews were world class.

While I want to commend you on standing up for your opinion, the above statement just makes me think you are trolling. 60% AA J = world class?

My AA breakdown would be 5% world class, 80% acceptable and 15% horrible. 50% hate their job. On CX you will probably find 75% world class, and 25% acceptable, and most of them either take serious pride in providing the best possible service.

In F, and I've only been on CX F a few times this year so risky to generalize, CX completely outshines AA. AA puts their most senior dragons upfront, so both world-class and horrible groups double compared to J, wheras CX are in the nineties of world-class.

Seriously, I'm not posting this to take a stab at heretic who spoketh blasfemy in the holy church of CX, I think your assessment (or terminology) is so far off the scale, it's equivalent to stating Motel-6 is just as good as Four Seasons 60% of the time. But if you enjoy AA, good for you! I wish I did.

Ever had a CX FA give you a long confusing stare close up only to mutter you remind her of one her friends, and then laugh, and wander off without giving you your drink after all? Ever had a whole CX crew of idle FAs chatting in the galley for 15 minutes instead of offering pre-departure drinks to an almost empty F cabin? Ever had a CX FA yell "Whatcha want to eat?" Ever had a CX FA start talking to you while you're watching a movie, and when you take of your headseat to hear what she's saying, she rolls her eyes and speaks slowly to you like you're a retard? Ever had a CX FA give you a "what the f... are YOU doing here"-look when entering the galley in search of a snack? I would think not, these are all patented AA experiences.

Ever found yourself in that special state between awake and sleep and vaguely experience a beautiful AA FA gently tuck you in in the duvet that fell off the side while whispering "sweet dreams"? Ever had a AA FA blush in embarrassment for not anticipating your need when you sneak into the galley for a snack? Ever had a AA FA profusely apologize together with the purser for misunderstanding your request for a power-adapter for your laptop? (she brought me the internet thingie instead). Don't think so, because that's the CX style service. And the list goes on....

We can agree to disagree here, but you are still clearly wrong! ;)

Looks to me, these guys got it mainly right: http://www.airlinequality.com/StarRanking/5star.htm even though I'm not sure about MH (not flown in a few years, and never flown Qatar).

Fete,

Thank you for your comments. I do agree that CX is quite uniform (and I said it above too) and AA is hit and miss.

I think that the reason I may have had a better rate of satisfaction than you on AA is perhaps because my experience on AA is exclusively on LHR and LGW routes. I am getting the feeling from reading a lot of the responses that their trans-pacific and S. America services are not as nice.

FWIW, the 40% of the time I have not received good service on AA J, I had all those bad things that you mentioned happen to me. :)

I thought I was the only one who had been through that!

Thanks,

Panjabi

CX is better, without a doubt.

I think that the reason I may have had a better rate of satisfaction than you on AA is perhaps because my experience on AA is exclusively on LHR and LGW routes. I am getting the feeling from reading a lot of the responses that their trans-pacific and S. America services are not as nice.


Don't bet the family farm on that! On the pacific routes, regardless of destination, I do my best to justify routing through HKG... Take a wild guess why? :D

To Europe, I usually have no choice but AA.. And I personally have had the worst AA experiences on LHR-ORD, not NRT. :(

Everyone is definitely entitled to their opinion. Having just returned from AA F (suite), other than the seat, I would pick CX J over AA F. Lobster doesn't do it for me.

.. But I would love to find out if any other FT'ers agree with my opinion.
I think no one will-- AA's current J-class doesn't compare to CX's current J-class in any way, shape or form IEHO (in everyone's humble opinion.)

LA's J class, maybe. BA's maybe. QF's, sure, maybe. LX's-- I like it very much. IB-- well, the seats are very nice.
AA's J-class just isn't in the league of any of those.

Food: CX is better for Chinese food.

Guy,

You may be absolutely correct on that. I normally eat Western food but I dont think I have ever seen Chinese food on AA. I believe they have Japanese food on NRT and Osaka flights but I would not want to hazard a guess as to it's quality as I am not an expert in Japanese cuisine.

I guess they will hire some celebrity Chinese chefs to join their Chef Council when they inaugurate the Chicago - Shanghai flight. But I doubt that they will have the depth of experience that CX can tap into in HK.

Correct me if I am wrong, but isnt' Cantonese cuisine considered the finest of the five Chinese cuisines?

Thanks,

Panjabi

Guy,

You may be absolutely correct on that. I normally eat Western food but I dont think I have ever seen Chinese food on AA. I believe they have Japanese food on NRT and Osaka flights but I would not want to hazard a guess as to it's quality as I am not an expert in Japanese cuisine.

I guess they will hire some celebrity Chinese chefs to join their Chef Council when they inaugurate the Chicago - Shanghai flight. But I doubt that they will have the depth of experience that CX can tap into in HK.

Correct me if I am wrong, but isnt' Cantonese cuisine considered the finest of the five Chinese cuisines?

Thanks,

Panjabi

Not to be offensive or racist here, but a couple of East Indian (assuming you are as well based on your nick) friends have told me that they find Cantonese food rather bland and tasteless (like hospital food) compared to the "Chinese dishes" such as Chicken Manchurian, Spicy Chili Chicken etc. they find at Chinese restaurants in India (it is nearly impossible for them to eat dim sum without using large amounts of chili sauce). Assuming you are used to more heavily speced foods, even if CX hired the best Chinese chefs, you will probably find the food bland and "worse" compared to AA.

Some Chinese people I know have told me that they find AA's food to be "too salty".

Some Chinese people I know have told me that they find AA's food to be "too salty".

Many people, of all races, have told me they find AA's food to be "too inedible".

Not to be offensive or racist here, but a couple of East Indian (assuming you are as well based on your nick) friends have told me that they find Cantonese food rather bland and tasteless (like hospital food) compared to the "Chinese dishes" such as Chicken Manchurian, Spicy Chili Chicken etc. they find at Chinese restaurants in India (it is nearly impossible for them to eat dim sum without using large amounts of chili sauce). Assuming you are used to more heavily speced foods, even if CX hired the best Chinese chefs, you will probably find the food bland and "worse" compared to AA.

Some Chinese people I know have told me that they find AA's food to be "too salty".

Hi Daniel,

Actually if you read my post, I never commented about CX's Chinese food. I am sure it is the finest in any airline. In fact my post said that EVEN if AA hired the best Chinese chef, CX's Chinese food would be better because Hong Kong is the center of World Excellence in Chinese Cuisine.

So, maybe you misunderstood my post. I totally agree that CX has the best Chinese food.

Thanks,

Panjabi (More West Asian than East Asian :) )

Like I have mentioned before... Everyone is allowed their own opinions. I think the numbers have spoken and everyone one is allowed to fly thier choice of carriers that they feel provides a better quality of service. My only wish is that more people would have agreed with Mr Panjabi so I more seats would be open when I chose to fly CX. :D

Give me a "T", give me an "R", given me an "O", give me a "LL"! What does that spell?

Give me a "Moderator Wanabe", what does that spell? Yeah, that's you pickle.

In the air, I would actually preferred AA J for their seat over the almost horizontal non-continuous thing that CX called a flat bed.

On the ground, CX is miles ahead of AA with a business tickets.

Ok guys... let's try and get this back on track and refrain from the name callings please.

:)

Counting the minutes until Smidgen the cat is mentioned. ;)

In fairness to the OP 120 or so posts in 4.5 years on FT does not fit the profile of a troll and he has remained polite despite some strong and negative comments about his opinion. Just my $0.02. :)

Counting the minutes until Smidgen the cat is mentioned. ;)


Randy asked Smidgen to be a moderator in the CX forum, but he declined. He was too busy overseeing the early stages of the Katrina relief effort. But he's done with that now.

Randy asked Smidgen to be a moderator in the CX forum, but he declined. He was too busy overseeing the early stages of the Katrina relief effort. But he's done with that now. :cool: It only took 7 mins. It seems a cat's work is never done though I'd have thought a beaver would be more useful in NOLA right now. ;) I take it Smidgen's involved more at a managerial level.

Counting the minutes until Smidgen the cat is mentioned. ;)

In fairness to the OP 120 or so posts in 4.5 years on FT does not fit the profile of a troll and he has remained polite despite some strong and negative comments about his opinion. Just my $0.02. :)

Mr. Rio,

Many thanks for your kind words! I try not to post unless I feel it is something that is not covered already.

I started this thread because of this weird feeling I got after my recent LAX-HKG flight that maybe that flight was not the best I have had in J. It was a strange thought since I was travelling one of the world's best airlines (if not the best). So I thought to myself, let me post my opinion out there and see if I just had a bad flight or if this was common.

Obviously, it is quite evident that most of the readers are quite fond of CX and I think that CX must be doing something right to deserve such loyalty. I guess I was lucky that I had some very positive experiences in AA J because after reading these posts it seems that it is rare for people to enjoy AA J.

Thank you all for your inputs.

Panjabi

As the OP:panjabi has commented, he has had his fair share of opinions from loyal and frequent CX flyers who may or may not agree with him.

Thus as most of us have already vented on various issues between AA and CX, it's time to move on. The thread has been commented on and we do not need to start flaming each other on other issues not directly related to the topic.

So its time to say Sayonara !