Platinum A332

Introduction

Last time I went to Jordan it was in January 2005 with my family, and we followed the same routing via Bangkok. My parents have travelled Royal Jordanian since then, but I have not, and it is clear since that time that the airline has progressed quite significantly. The airline is now a member of the oneworld alliance, is undergoing an extensive modernization program and according to many has become a boutique airline of the Middle East. One question remained...will the acronym from the past of its former name ALIA (Always Late In Arrival) continue to reflect the airline's operations?

Despite being born and raised in Australia, I always enjoy going back to Jordan as it seems to have a strong sense of history and charm which is matched only by a few other countries. This time I had even more reason to go, with family “converging” into Jordan for the Summer from all corners of the globe, including some I have not seen for 10 years. Obviously, I would face the challenge of balancing seeing family, as well as my desire to see as many of the tourist sites Jordan has to offer. Also, this would be my first overseas trip since I turned 18 one month beforehand, so I could finally indulge in pre-departure Champagne (and the unique Jordanian wines available to me on Royal Jordanian)

The planning for the trip did have a few bumps but it was relatively simple. This time, we booked four Club World seats on points on British Airways to Bangkok, and two seats on Royal Jordanian in Crown continuing the rest of the way to Amman (the remaining two seats were purchased). Originally, our itinerary required a stopover for one night in Bangkok, however, with a change in the Summer schedule, Royal Jordanian had pushed back their departure time from 2315 to 0030, and as a result, we were able to make a same-day connection to Jordan.

And so it’s here that my trip report begins. How would one of the major, if not the major airline in the oneworld alliance compare with one of the smaller, more unique airlines? Welcome to the ultimate comparison – British Airways Club World vs. Royal Jordanian Crown

Platinum A332

And the Journey begins...

The pre-flight experience was pretty normal for a flight departing Sydney. We chose to rent a car to take us and our 3 weeks worth of luggage to the airport, as this worked out significantly cheaper than paying for 3 weeks worth of parking at Sydney Airport, where the parking charges are exorbitant to say the least. Also, the thought of taking a bus to and from long-term parking etc was not very appealing, especially on the return journey.

I personally was tempted to take to full advantage British Airways 3-piece maximum of 32kg per pieces luggage system and pack as much of my wardrobe for my 3 week holiday, but chose to pack a suitcase that was approximately 24kg plus hand luggage/laptop for onboard. This was based on the realisation that I only have two hands, and shouldn't pack luggage more than my actual weight..

We arrived at the airport about 3.5 hours before departure, and made our way to the British Airways check-in area. The set-up for premium check-in for BA in Sydney is nothing special, and the only way to distinguish the premium counters from economy class is the screen display. It would be nice, given the JSA, if BA used the Qantas premium area, but given there were no lines at the check-in counters it was more than adequate. Despite being on separate tickets, all of our bags were checked in straight through to Amman, but without premium tags. We were required to pick up our Royal Jordanian boarding passes from the transfer desk in Bangkok. The check-in agent remarked that since T5 opened in London, the luggage is scanned and any tags placed on the bag, such as First, Club World, Priority etc is purely cosmetic. However, we were arriving in Amman airport, which is definitely a throwback to the 70's where the only way to distinguish luggage is probably through a purely cosmetic tag. I was intrigued as to how this would pan out on arrival into Amman…

We were given express outbound passes, which probably saved about 10 minutes in emigration, but the airport did not seem as busy as I expected given that there are 5 flights to Europe on QF/BA this afternoon, as well as your CX afternoon service to HKG and the usual SQ/TG/MH departures. After making it through emigration, we made our way to the First Class lounge, for what would be my first experience in the new lounge voted the best in the world (OK, albeit by Skytrax....which isn't exactly the most accurate, unbiased survey measure). My mother and sister were distracted by the construction zone duty free along the way....with the aviation enthusiast (yours truly) asking them to hurry up so I can have more lounge time, and my Dad standing in amusement and still bewildered as to how I convinced to arrive at the airport so early before a flight....such is life travelling with a family....



Still to come - my first experience in the QF First Lounge, the shaking cabin floor of the Upper Deck, reservation trouble in Bangkok and much more…..including pictures!

skye1

Looking forward to reading this. I went to Jordan summer 2008 in RJ Crown Class as well (I should prolly do a trip on it at some point....). Will be interesting to "compare notes" on the experience. Definitely a different take on business class for sure. There was much to like about Crown Class, as well as much to get used to.

Platinum A332

Duty Free to First Lounge – 20 minutes

Yes, it eventually took 20 minutes to make the few meters from the duty free zone after emigration to the Qantas First lounge. Due to the strong Australian dollar at the time, nothing really appealed to me, especially as I knew my “signature fragrance” to quote my friends, DKNY Be Delicious, could be purchased for significantly cheaper from overseas airports. (as an aside, from Changi, bought the 100ml perfume + body lotion + body wash...so I smell consistently nice of course! for about the same as the 100ml from Sydney) However, the well groomed, stylish and good-looking Etihad crew bound for Abu Dhabi with their matching luggage definitely served as some great eye candy before my long-haul journey. (sorry, did not take a photo!!)

We eventually made it to the door of the First Class Lounge, and there was a reason as to why I left extra time. Naturally, when travelling, it’s always best to be as nice as possible and to be as flexible as possible. Amongst four people, we only had one Platinum level card, so we prepared for two of us to go to the lounge, and two to go to the Business lounge should the staff not allow all of us entry…and then swap at half-time if you will. Generally, my sister isn’t a fan of airport lounges anyway, while yours truly loves them, so there was always room for compromise. On entry to the lounge, my Dad commented it is busier than usual. I think this was due to the Qantas maintenance troubles, where there was a flight to San Francisco delayed by something close to 30 hours, a Hong Kong flight delayed by 6 hours and so on. I was glad to be flying British Airways today!

Thankfully today we had a very nice lounge agent. On entering the lounge, my Dad acknowledged the rules, and the “lounge dragon” told us the lounge was quite busy and could only adhere to normal policy (member + one guest)….but we were free to take a tour and have a drink for 15 minutes. Acknowledging the rules, we were more than happy with this compromise. However, unprompted, she then decided that all four of us could stay in the lounge at the same time, but told us that the restaurant today is quite busy…so it might be best to stay in the main lounge area. Naturally, I was ecstatic (OK…I was composed, only loud and crazy on the inside), my Dad was thankful and we made our way into the main area of the First Class lounge.

There is a lot written about the lounge here on Flyertalk so I’ll try to keep it brief….my reaction was positive. The lounge had a nice and modern feel to it, I especially liked the wooden dividers and the Italian leather lounges…but was not as fussed over the honeycomb like carpet. I also loved the expansive windows that offered great views for avid plane spotters, and of course of the City of Sydney. I also personally loved the old-fashioned departure board, and quite enjoyed the flickering sound and I guess the retro experience of it. I know from QF009’s trip reports that he would definitely disagree! Being the foodaholic that I am, the lounge menu is the first thing that I looked for, and it did not disappoint. Much better than your usual Qantas lounge fare of mini Sandwiches and Sausage Rolls….


Qantas, Aircalin and Air China

City of Sydney

The First Lounge

Qantas Boeing 747-400 in New Livery

The good-looking crew departing for Abu Dhabi

I will post the menu at a later date - but the menu for the food in the lounge was quite extensive. There are basically three food options in the lounge. First, there is what is called a "First Choice" selection, which is basically a bar with a selection of cold Antipasto like grilled vegetables, cheeses etc

Selection of items from "first choice"

The second more popular option is the restaurant, whereby customers can sit in a formal dining area (albeit with plastic knives) and enjoy items from a club sandwich to a three course meal.

The main restaurant area - please excuse the photo quality

The option to which we availed to today was to order food in the main lounge area. Naturally, there is a crossover between the restaurant menu and the lounge dining menu (both of which I will post up later). So today we ordered quite a few options from the menu, and were also allowed to order desserts that were on the restaurant menu as opposed to the lounge dining menu. Generally, I found the food to be simple and tasty and the desserts definitely met my strict seal of approval.


Beef Rendang

Fried Calamari with Lime and Chilli

Antipasto Plate

Classic King Prawn Fried Rice

Mud Cake, creme fraiche and berries...

Sticky Date Pudding, selection of ice cream, and my waist feeling slightly larger...

As we were not flying First Class on Qantas, from my understanding, you're not entitled to use the Spa, so there was only one thing left to do before boarding....relax with my feet up watching planes take off


Relaxing until boarding time

Sorry that this section seemed a little bit rushed...but if anyone has any more requests regarding First Class lounge, feel free to leave a comment =). Still to come, the shaking Upper Deck floor, Reservation trouble in Bangkok, and an Airbus 310 following Botox and some cosmetic surgery...

Platinum A332

I think that it is definitely a unique product, but I must admit that I did enjoy quite a few aspects of my Crown Class experience. Naturally....I don't want to give away too much yet....

Platinum A332

The shaking upper deck cabin floor…

British Airways BA 010
1st July 2008
Dep Sydney 1635 (1705)
Arr Bangkok 2255 (2320)
Boeing 747-400 52-J Configuration
Forgot to grab the registration…..
My seat – 62K (rest of family also in Row 62)

Although we had been in the lounge for almost three hours now, boarding definitely came too soon – and I could definitely spend quite a lot of time in this lounge. There has been criticism that the lounge is more designed for O&D passengers originating from Sydney, as opposed to some other lounges such as BA in LHR in Terminal Five, CX in HKG etc. I guess this is true in that there aren’t any features such as “cabanas” for the transiting passenger, but I think the lounge is great!

Today we were boarding from Gate Lounge 34 and Boarding had a closing time of 1550. I can’t find a photo…but the Boarding passes that British Airways not use out of Sydney are quite ugly. Obviously this does not distract from the flight experience itself, but I always thought the stock was more stylish….anyway, I digress.

There were separate boarding lines today for First/Club World/Executive Club and for World Traveller Plus/World Traveller. If I recall correctly though, the priority lane marker was from Qantas and not British Airways. Given at the time that there were rumours that BA was pulling out og Sydney, I thought this was a sign, but I have been proven wrong several times since then.

This was only my second time flying in the upper deck of a Boeing 747-400, and I was definitely excited. My first experience was back in July 2005 on a school trip when JL used to operate the KIX-BNE-SYD-KIX triangle route. However, that time, it was a Boeing 747-300 with old economy class seating…so today’s experience would be ever so slightly different. I was so excited to make my way onto the airplane…that I forgot to take a photo of the actual aircraft. We were greeted warmly as we entered the aircraft and told “your seats are located on the Uppder Deck today”.

However, on arriving on the upper deck, there were no crew members to be found immediately, and I could feel the cabin floor shaking. I was quite bewildered by the shaking of the cabin floor, but soon realized it was just a flight attendant who was literally stomping through the cabin – someone must have had a bad day! No greeting as she walked past as we went to find our seats. Never mind I thought, BA crew are quite friendly so I’m sure she will come around later on More on her later.

A friendlier male cabin crew member with a more refined walk that didn’t shake the cabin floor soon offered the choice of Water, Champagne or Orange Juice. As I mentioned before, being my first flight since I turned 18 a month beforehand, I went for the champagne (Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve). It was quite a nice way (though not a Krug way) to start a 22 hour journey sitting backwards sipping on champagne and enjoying the sense of privacy the NGCW cabin offered….until I felt intermittent shaking of the cabin floor once again


Champagne

For some reason, we had a half hour delay upon boarding the plane, I think this was due to one of the runways being closed at Sydney airport. As a result (or I am not sure if it is standard procedure), we were offered the Elemis amenity kits as well as the menus for today’s flight. When being offered the items however by the female cabin crew member, they were almost thrown at me. When I said good afternoon to her, I was not greeted with any response. I was shocked. Did she not like the shirt I’m wearing? Is she so against my DKNY Be Delicious? Did she not like my shoes? Was she meant to be on a military charter and not on a British Airways flight? Was she an airliners.net member and very anti-Flyertalk? I was confused – and did not try my luck by asking for a newspaper….The next thing she came out of nowhere and pushed my TV screen button so it popped out for the safety demonstration….except (my tray table up at this time), she hit the tray table button….OK, someone is having a bad day. I glanced to my Dad in 62B with a confused look…from what I could see though, her service style was, umm…..consistent?

We pushed back half an hour late…and my intitial reaction (iternally for two seconds) was “why is the plane driving into the terminal?”…until I realized once again that I was sitting backwards.....I tried taking a photo of the First Class lounge, but my camera was on the wrong mode and as a result it came out blurry…


First Class lounge from outside

I love the Boeing 747-400 and its take-off as it roared down the runway. It was a different experience taking-off backwards but it was something that was easy to adjust to…and I actually quite enjoyed it. The Boeing 747-400 is noticeably more noisy than the Airbus 380 (my last flight experience on SQ returning from Dubai in February)….but I find the engine noise soothing and comforting...

Soon after take-off, we were offered beverages….and I was boring and went for a Diet Coke with a slice of lemon *ducks for cover*. This was served with macadamia nuts, which were quite tasty. I had noticed that as the flight attendant was moving a trolley through, the shaking died down quite a bit.

Me being boring....

I soon started the entertainment system, while pursuing the menu options for today’s flight. The menu is the same for SYD-BKK and BKK-LHR. If you would like me to post the BKK-LHR legs, just leave a comment

Sydney-Bangkok
Dinner
Starters
*King Prawns on apple and celery salad with lemon mayonnaise
or
Mozzarella cheese, sun-blushed tomatoes and grilled artichokes dressed with peppered olive oil
*Fresh seasonal salad served with vinaigrette
Main
Braised short rib of beef with root vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes
*Pan seared breast of chicken with herb jus, fresh asparagus and new potatoes
Thai stir-fried vegetables with noodles
Main course salad of smoked trout, potatoes and watercress mayonnaise
Dessert
Pecan tart
A selection of cheese
A selection of fruit

On pursuing the menu options I decided to select the King Prawns for starter, with the Chicken breast for main (no, I was not trying to be healthy, as the lounge food pictures would have indicated). However, by the time the FA reached our row, she said there was no chicken left “but you could have the beef?” No apology – I know it is not the flight attendants fault, but some courtesy never hurt anyone….I went for the beef, as it sounded quite decent anyway.

First the starter, which was quite nice presented on a tray with the salad. The dressing for the salad was a spicy lemon olive-oil based dressing which was divine….one of the nicest dressings for a salad I have had on an airplane. While I was eating my meal and watching Desperate Housewives…a bread basket was literally shoved in my face, I chose the garlic bread. Interestingly, chocolates were already on the tray….now I know I am a huge chocoholic, but even I wait till dessert for my chocolate!!

Starter

Soon after the stater, the main was presented…which to me seemed a little bit economy-esque. The meat was also quite fatty unfortunately and the root vegetables were overdone. Still, it is airplane food we are dealing with here, so I won’t be too fussy.

Main

For dessert I chose the pecan tart…salad bowl still on the tray, hot towel yet to be removed, butter ramekin still there and glasses not offered to be refilled. The pecan tart was quite dry unfortunately and disappointed me. My tray was taken away soon after…so was my Mum’s, but she was yet to consume her chocolates. When she enquired with the flight attendant (trolley still there), the response “I’m sorry, I can’t get it now”. When my mum asked for another one “We have run out…”. Being the nice son that I am *angelic face* I got her some chocolate from downstairs.

Pecan Tart

Soon after the dinner service, I put my feet up, and watched a couple episodes of Will and Grace. I have no idea why my shoes are still on in this photo, but once again I digress


As my body clock was still on Sydney time, and wanting to sleep as much as possible on the next leg before an early morning arrival into Amman, I decided to go downstairs and checkout the Club Kitchen. I must say, it is quite a good concept. Quite a few items ranging from fruit to sandwiches to chocolate truffles. I went for a glass of Red (I think it was the Rufus Stone Heathcote Shiraz…but my memory is fuzzy), a what seemed to be a Roast Beef and Tabouleh wrap, and of course, a chocolate truffle

The Club Kitchen

My selections

Obviously the biggest advantage of the British Airways product is the seat – and I especially enjoyed its great sense of privacy while still offering a decent amount of width. Most importantly, the seat coverts into a flat bed which is great for a long-haul flight. I’ll only post one photo, as there are many more out there of the BA NGCW seat, and I don’t want this report to disintegrate into a comedy post about the shocking quality of my photography.

The seat

Prior to arrival, a snack service was offered and ofcourse I availed to the offering for trip reporting purposes only….oh and that the sweet option was a Chocolate gateau

Refreshments
Snacks
A selection of sandwiches featuring chicken with tomato, Cheddar cheese with rocket, ham with grain mustard and salmon with cucumber
or
Light chicken Caesar salad
Sweets
Chocolate gateau

In retrospect, I am not sure why I chose the Caesar salad, and I think I should have gone with the sandwiches. The salad was quite unappetizing and left most of it. The chocolate gateau, while better than the pecan tart, was quite dry again…but I guess it’s hard to get desserts right on a plane

Refreshments

Soon enough the plane was preparing for landing, and as pre-landing checks were conducted, the shaking of the cabin began again. As I freshened up, I took a photo of the cabin and a better shot of the screen just before descent started into Bangkok

Screen before plane before landing

Upper Deck Club World cabin

We touched down and got to the gate in Bangkok about 25 minutes late, which significantly shorted our transit time. As we left the cabin, as expected, the cabin crew member did not wish any good greetings at all. I should have taken her name, but I was just hoping I would not get her again on my return journey.

Usually, I do a rating for the flight, however, I won’t at the end of this report. This experience does not reflect the usual BA experience, and it would be unfair to rank this flight. After I type up the other flight legs, I will do a ranking but not at this stage.

I hope that you have enjoyed my report so far….and will type up the transit troubles in Bangkok and the A310 after botox and cosmetic surgery when time allows.

Keith009

Tyrell's Rufus Stone Shiraz? Yum, yum!

Shame about that BA FA. You really ought to make a complaint. In lieu of her name, maybe "the female cabin crew member on the upper deck of BA10 SYD-BKK on x date"?

V interesting report thus far, well done. And nice shoes to boot. I am concerned, however, at the distinct underconsumption of alcohol!

Platinum A332

Wow, so nice to get a compliment on my report from one of the masters of trip report writing...thanks!

Regarding the underconsumption of alcohol....I have my justifications
- I was only one month passed 18 at time of the trip
- I was travelling with my parents...
- I was so scared of asking for anything from the flight attendant...so scared, my sexy new shoes were tapping the cabin floor each time the cabin shook as she walked through the cabin.

Oh, and the shoes, were bought specially for the trip as, althought you can't see from the photos, they match one of the line colours in the pants I was wearing..

I was thinking of making a comment to British Airways....and when I was asked to complete a survey on the return journey, I did make a note of it.

Oh, and your post reminded me to add the date of travel....can't believe I forgot that

Platinum A332

I’m sorry….we can’t find your reservation….even though you have all the documentation….

The above title pretty much sums up my first ever experience at Bangkok’s new airport….and it left me with a negative perception of the airport, and of the Thai Airways staff who were dealing with Royal Jordanian at the transfer desk.

First to arrival, and my first impression of the airport despite its modernity from the outside is that it seemed a bit stuffy and poor designed. As our transit time had been cut down quite significantly, we made a mad dash to the transit desk. Given that Bangkok is a transit hub…I was surprised at the rather poor set-up of the transit desks at the airport. I looked for Royal Jordanian under the oneworld counter…..but then noticed its sign among Thai Airways, El Al, Ethiopian etc. So we made our way to that counter and didn’t have to wait long. At this point, I was eagerly looking forward to the Thai Airways lounge, which RJ Crown passengers can use in Bangkok.

However, on presenting all our documentation, printouts, frequent flyer cards etc at the counter…the lady replied “We can find three reservations, but there is not one for (sister’s name)”. I greeted her with a blank look, as did my Dad. They said there is no separate ticket for my sister. I explained, as we booked two tickets on Frequent Flyer points at the same time, two reservations were on the same ticket number.

“OK, let me check again..” she responded

“No I cannot find the reservation….we only have three seats”

By this point, I was getting frustrated and bordering on (term for female dog)y which is NEVER a good thing. The RJ representative was no longer there, as the time was approaching midnight and they went to the boarding gate. I offered to start up my laptop, and show all the details relating to the frequent flyer booking….but they kept insisting “only three seats”, despite my sisters name being under the booking number!

“So what are we supposed to do? Three of us travel and we leave (sister’s name) here?? Do you want me to come on that computer and actually locate the reservation for you??" I said quite frustrated....with my Mum quite amused by the whole situation

"You can stay in Bangkok....it will probably be more fun anyway" she said to my sister

I had an idea so I could take a breather for a minute – I could see people in Qantas uniform, and I thought i should go and explain to them what happened. So, I went over to the Qantas counter with my mother and explained that we booked two tickets on points, two were purchased etc and showed the documentation. The extremely considerate, kind, young male at the Qantas counter came over and started speaking to the Thai Airways representatives manning the Royal Jordanian counter. They kept insisting no reservation existed……then one minute later….

“OK sir, we have found the reservation for (sister’s name)”

So here we were getting close to departure time….our transit time turned into a stressful experience….and the lady did not even acknowledge they were at fault or offer an apology…..what’s my luck with incompetent and uncourteous staff today? They also weren't good looking either....some sort of correlation?

We were issued our boarding passes on Royal Jordanian stock….2B, 2D, 2J and 3D….not even next to each other….I forgot to take her name, and we had 5 minutes to make our flight….so no Thai Airways lounge today, and given the ground handling experience, I won’t be flying Thai Airways anytime soon….

We made our way to the gate which was G4, close to the Qantas lounges. I felt like running into the lounge quickly and grabbing something to drink….but I could see our gate was flashing “Closed”

Huh? We ran as I thought to myself “Since when is Royal Jordanian ever ontime?? So much for the acronym of ALIA”

As we boarded….my mum recognized the station manager there…who has (according to my Mum) been between BKK, KUL and SIN for RJ for at least 20 years now. Before we boarded, she made a complaint to him about the episode that had occurred and he was extremely apologetic and said he would look into it.

And, eventually, after working off the food I had consumed from the lounge in Sydney…I was finally onboard the A310 to Amman….

(Sorry for no pictures this section, but there are some in the next)

Keith009

Definitely. In all likelihood, they probably also use generic shampoo!

1P

That BA 747 upper deck looks terribly claustrophobic with those high-backed coffins.....

And did my eyes deceive me, or did I spot plastic cutlery ?

Platinum A332

I guess that it looks a bit claustrophobic, but I found that I had more than enough personal space....then again I am not a big person.

Yes, you did spot plastic cutlery, but this is an Australian government requirement and not a British Airways policy.. On all flights ex-Australia and to Australia, plastic cutlery must be used. Hence, why on all Qantas flights, you get a metal fork and spoon with a plastic knife...actually....even in the First lounge in Sydney.

In the case of the BA flight attendant....I'd be surprised if she even washed her hair with generic shampoo inn the past month

More Champagne Sir?

All carriers flying into and out of Australia have to use plastic knives - exactly the same reason why the SYD QF Flounge has plastic knives.

Great TR Platinum A332!

Moomba

Nice report Platinum A332.

Shame about the BA crew member. When they are good they are refreshingly good. But as so often with many carriers there are also the bad.

BA food in general IMHO ranges from barely edible to OK. It is time they picked up their game in this department.

mad_atta

The presentation looks lousy as well!

Nice report though. Looking forward to the RJ Crown sectors - they are a very underreported airline...