First UA flight ORD-NRT-SIN-NRT-ORD in C (long)
Nov 29, 2003, 1:41 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CGK SIN PER ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hyatt Plat
Posts: 2,813
First UA flight ORD-NRT-SIN-NRT-ORD in C (long)
Background
I have traveled plenty since I was young; always experiencing different C services on various airlines (CX, SQ, QF, NW, BR, EK, BA, JL etc) with my parents but never managed to obtain status on any airline. The last 2.5 years, I did not travel out of the US because of the difficulty of getting a work visa back to the US after what happened on 9/11. However, I have recently received a parole that allows me to travel without a visa back to the US. I was determined to get status on an airline somehow and over dinner on 2 occasions with SweetWillie, coupled with their recent promotions and network within Asia, decided to go with UA.
I also had a friend who traveled extensively to Singapore on UA and because his company sends him in C class, he generously gave me 2 Sweet Spot SWU for a start. So I booked the following itinerary in the hopes of qualifying for PremEx for 2004.
$100 for the Double EQM promotion
$718 for a V fare ORD-NRT-SIN-NRT-ORD (waitlisted on the outbound, confirmed on the inbound)
$283 for a quick ORD-LAX-ORD trip 12/6-12/7, and
another trip that I will have to take before 12/15
ORD-NRT November 18th 2003
UA 881 12.10pm-4.25pm +1 Seat 25C Boeing 747-400
Actual wheel off: 12.55pm
Actual wheel down: 4.25pm +1
A few days, I checked my itineraries and saw that my ORD-NRT segment was listed as KL, immediately called the reservations and snagged 25C. Woke up at 7am on this rainy Tuesday morning, packed some last minute stuff into my garment bag and my rollerbag. Left the house at 8am and took a cab from my apartment to Clark/Lake to grab the Blue Line. Arrived at ORD at 9am and checked in at the economy class counter. At this time, the agent told me my upgrade from NRT-SIN had cleared and she chose 15D for me. Both my boarding passes were printed but she did not ask for my SWU so I did not give it to her. Please advise if this is wrong and I will give it up. Why did I check in 3 hours early for my flight? Because I was holding an Indonesian passport and I had to talk to a immigration officer at the Intl terminal before I took off so I hopped on the train and spent about 1 hour at the immigration section. Returned to T1 at 10.10am, had a quick cigarette and headed off to C18.
Boarding started at 11.30am and F/C passengers as well as MP Prem/PremEx/1K members were invited to board at the same time. There were quite a number of Japanese businessmen on this flight in C and the load was around 80% in C and 70% in Y. In the main deck, I noticed all 5 rows of the middle C seat were empty. Settled into my seat and was offered water/OJ/Champagne. Took water and fiddled around with the magazines. At this time, we were given our noise canceling headsets, menus and amenity kits. Amenity kit consisted on a toothbrush/toothpaste, eyeshades, Do not disturb sticker, socks, dental floss and some lotion. Unfortunately Ch. 9 was not available on this flight. Flight time was announced at 13h 10min. During the flight, I noticed strong headwinds indicated by the airshow, reducing our groundspeed to as slow as 440mph. Doors were closed at 12.35pm and it was a nice takeoff.
Curtains were not closed at any portion of this flight due to security reasons and resulted in quite a number of Y class passengers using the lavatories in C. Shortly after takeoff, cold nuts were provided with a drink and lunch was served. Menu is as follows:
To Begin:
Spiced shrimp and Parma Ham
Cocktail sauce and fresh lemon
Garden Salad
Classic Caesar dressing
Main Course
Filet Mignon with applewood smoked bacon demi-glace
Roasted red potatoes and green beans with yellow pepper
Grilled salmon with Asian Chutney
Vegetable medley and Chinese egg noodles with sesame oil
Japanese Obento Selection
An appetizer of steamed scallop, salmon with egg yolk vinegar, crabmeat, chicken isobe maki with macadamia nut and udon noodles.
A main course of salmon teriyaki with shimeji mushrooms, simmered seaweed, chilled beef sirloin and steamed rice.
Served with green tea
Dessert
International cheese selection
Stilton and Black Diamond Cheddar cheese
Eli’s Apple Crunch pie
Midflight Snack
Please help yourself to assorted treats between the two main meals. Sandwiches or noodles are available upon request.
Prior to Arrival
Smoked brisket sandwich with Swiss cheese and demi-glace
Fresh fruit appetizer
Or
Fresh season fruit plate with creamy yogurt
Featured Wines
Champagne
Brut, Billecari-Salmon
Brut Royal NV. Pommery
White Wine
Burgundy
Chablis Chardonnay 2000, Chateau de Chemilly
St.-Veran chardonnay 2001, Joseph Drouhin
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
Riesling Kabinett 2002, Selbach-Oster
Sauvignon Blanc
Allan Scott Vineyards Marlborough 2002
Red Wine
Cotes-du-Rhone
Grenache 2000, Chateau D’Orsan
Rhone Blend 2001, Paul Beaudet
Shiraz
Windy Peak Victoria 2000
Cabernet Sauvignon
Vina Errazuriz Aconcagua Valley 2001
Covey Run Washington 2000
Flight Attendents took orders based on status and I was the last one to be asked as I had no miles with UA at all. I had the Salmon and it was pretty good. I was not treated differently from any other passengers and my water glass was almost always full at all times throughout the flight.
After lunch, I reclined my seat and took a 2 hour nap before waking up and taking a walk into the Y cabin. Back in the C galley, a quick look at the passenger manifest showed 2 million milers, a couple of 1Ks, and a lot of PremEx and Premiers. I also treated myself to a sandwich and some chips before going back to my seat and watching some movies. Prior to arrival, I had the sandwich and it was nothing good nor bad about it. We landed at NRT at 4.25pm but because they were out of gates, we parked in a remote area and had to take a bus to the terminal and resulted in us going through security and finally clearing that at 4.45pm. At this time, I rushed to the RCC hoping to take a shower but was told that there was a 15 min wait and my next flight was already boarding. I decided to forgo the shower and headed to gate 33 for my next flight but not before stopping by the smoking room adjacent to the gate for a quick puff. Next segment, NRT-SIN to continue.
I have traveled plenty since I was young; always experiencing different C services on various airlines (CX, SQ, QF, NW, BR, EK, BA, JL etc) with my parents but never managed to obtain status on any airline. The last 2.5 years, I did not travel out of the US because of the difficulty of getting a work visa back to the US after what happened on 9/11. However, I have recently received a parole that allows me to travel without a visa back to the US. I was determined to get status on an airline somehow and over dinner on 2 occasions with SweetWillie, coupled with their recent promotions and network within Asia, decided to go with UA.
I also had a friend who traveled extensively to Singapore on UA and because his company sends him in C class, he generously gave me 2 Sweet Spot SWU for a start. So I booked the following itinerary in the hopes of qualifying for PremEx for 2004.
$100 for the Double EQM promotion
$718 for a V fare ORD-NRT-SIN-NRT-ORD (waitlisted on the outbound, confirmed on the inbound)
$283 for a quick ORD-LAX-ORD trip 12/6-12/7, and
another trip that I will have to take before 12/15
ORD-NRT November 18th 2003
UA 881 12.10pm-4.25pm +1 Seat 25C Boeing 747-400
Actual wheel off: 12.55pm
Actual wheel down: 4.25pm +1
A few days, I checked my itineraries and saw that my ORD-NRT segment was listed as KL, immediately called the reservations and snagged 25C. Woke up at 7am on this rainy Tuesday morning, packed some last minute stuff into my garment bag and my rollerbag. Left the house at 8am and took a cab from my apartment to Clark/Lake to grab the Blue Line. Arrived at ORD at 9am and checked in at the economy class counter. At this time, the agent told me my upgrade from NRT-SIN had cleared and she chose 15D for me. Both my boarding passes were printed but she did not ask for my SWU so I did not give it to her. Please advise if this is wrong and I will give it up. Why did I check in 3 hours early for my flight? Because I was holding an Indonesian passport and I had to talk to a immigration officer at the Intl terminal before I took off so I hopped on the train and spent about 1 hour at the immigration section. Returned to T1 at 10.10am, had a quick cigarette and headed off to C18.
Boarding started at 11.30am and F/C passengers as well as MP Prem/PremEx/1K members were invited to board at the same time. There were quite a number of Japanese businessmen on this flight in C and the load was around 80% in C and 70% in Y. In the main deck, I noticed all 5 rows of the middle C seat were empty. Settled into my seat and was offered water/OJ/Champagne. Took water and fiddled around with the magazines. At this time, we were given our noise canceling headsets, menus and amenity kits. Amenity kit consisted on a toothbrush/toothpaste, eyeshades, Do not disturb sticker, socks, dental floss and some lotion. Unfortunately Ch. 9 was not available on this flight. Flight time was announced at 13h 10min. During the flight, I noticed strong headwinds indicated by the airshow, reducing our groundspeed to as slow as 440mph. Doors were closed at 12.35pm and it was a nice takeoff.
Curtains were not closed at any portion of this flight due to security reasons and resulted in quite a number of Y class passengers using the lavatories in C. Shortly after takeoff, cold nuts were provided with a drink and lunch was served. Menu is as follows:
To Begin:
Spiced shrimp and Parma Ham
Cocktail sauce and fresh lemon
Garden Salad
Classic Caesar dressing
Main Course
Filet Mignon with applewood smoked bacon demi-glace
Roasted red potatoes and green beans with yellow pepper
Grilled salmon with Asian Chutney
Vegetable medley and Chinese egg noodles with sesame oil
Japanese Obento Selection
An appetizer of steamed scallop, salmon with egg yolk vinegar, crabmeat, chicken isobe maki with macadamia nut and udon noodles.
A main course of salmon teriyaki with shimeji mushrooms, simmered seaweed, chilled beef sirloin and steamed rice.
Served with green tea
Dessert
International cheese selection
Stilton and Black Diamond Cheddar cheese
Eli’s Apple Crunch pie
Midflight Snack
Please help yourself to assorted treats between the two main meals. Sandwiches or noodles are available upon request.
Prior to Arrival
Smoked brisket sandwich with Swiss cheese and demi-glace
Fresh fruit appetizer
Or
Fresh season fruit plate with creamy yogurt
Featured Wines
Champagne
Brut, Billecari-Salmon
Brut Royal NV. Pommery
White Wine
Burgundy
Chablis Chardonnay 2000, Chateau de Chemilly
St.-Veran chardonnay 2001, Joseph Drouhin
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
Riesling Kabinett 2002, Selbach-Oster
Sauvignon Blanc
Allan Scott Vineyards Marlborough 2002
Red Wine
Cotes-du-Rhone
Grenache 2000, Chateau D’Orsan
Rhone Blend 2001, Paul Beaudet
Shiraz
Windy Peak Victoria 2000
Cabernet Sauvignon
Vina Errazuriz Aconcagua Valley 2001
Covey Run Washington 2000
Flight Attendents took orders based on status and I was the last one to be asked as I had no miles with UA at all. I had the Salmon and it was pretty good. I was not treated differently from any other passengers and my water glass was almost always full at all times throughout the flight.
After lunch, I reclined my seat and took a 2 hour nap before waking up and taking a walk into the Y cabin. Back in the C galley, a quick look at the passenger manifest showed 2 million milers, a couple of 1Ks, and a lot of PremEx and Premiers. I also treated myself to a sandwich and some chips before going back to my seat and watching some movies. Prior to arrival, I had the sandwich and it was nothing good nor bad about it. We landed at NRT at 4.25pm but because they were out of gates, we parked in a remote area and had to take a bus to the terminal and resulted in us going through security and finally clearing that at 4.45pm. At this time, I rushed to the RCC hoping to take a shower but was told that there was a 15 min wait and my next flight was already boarding. I decided to forgo the shower and headed to gate 33 for my next flight but not before stopping by the smoking room adjacent to the gate for a quick puff. Next segment, NRT-SIN to continue.
Nov 29, 2003, 1:42 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CGK SIN PER ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hyatt Plat
Posts: 2,813
NRT-SIN November 19th 2003
UA 801 5.30pm-11.55pm Seat 15D Boeing 777-200
Actual wheel off: 5.40pm
Actual wheel down: 11.10pm
I boarded this flight at 5.05pm to find that I was one of the last few passengers to board. The 777 interior is always nice and remembered clearly my first 777 flight from SIN-CGK on EK a number of years ago. Stuffed my bag into the overhead bin and settled onto my seat. In this flight, C was almost full, with only 3/4 middle seats empty, mine being one of them. The FAs quickly came with my menu, OJ, headsets, and socks for this flight. Ch.9 was available and I overheard the captain asking for a later departure time for FL 350. Menu orders were again taken based on status and again I was the last one to be asked. However, I felt the FAs were warmer than those on my ORD-NRT flight. Could be because they were based in NRT?
Flight time was announced at a quick 6 hours 30 mins. The surging power of the huge engines was unmistakable as we rumbled down the runway. Similar to the last flight, the curtains were not closed. Shortly after takeoff, dinner was served. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Prosciutto ham and mozzarella cheese
Garden salad with Asian dressing
Main Course
Grilled filet mignon with Champagne mushroom saucee
Potatoes au gratin and asparagus
Charbroiled spicy miso breast of chicken
Thai chili sauce, chicken rice and tasai with oyster sauce
Grilled salmon, shrimp and scallops with hoba-miso marinade
Shiitake mushrooms and rice with black sesame seeds
Dessert
Tropical sherbet medley
Orange, mango and raspberry flavored.
Wine List (please refer to my first post as the list is exactly the same)
I had the chicken and it tasted very good and I had to skip the dessert as I was very tired at this point. I fell asleep watching Charlie’s Angel and woke up to find myself only 40 mins out of Singapore. Quickly freshened myself up and filled out the necessary form for Singapore immigration. I don’t know about everyone else, but the landing was very smooth, to a point it felt more like a turbulence than a landing. Very impressive. We taxied to our gate and that concludes the end of my first complete outbound with UA in C. Next two segments, SIN-NRT-ORD to follow.
UA 801 5.30pm-11.55pm Seat 15D Boeing 777-200
Actual wheel off: 5.40pm
Actual wheel down: 11.10pm
I boarded this flight at 5.05pm to find that I was one of the last few passengers to board. The 777 interior is always nice and remembered clearly my first 777 flight from SIN-CGK on EK a number of years ago. Stuffed my bag into the overhead bin and settled onto my seat. In this flight, C was almost full, with only 3/4 middle seats empty, mine being one of them. The FAs quickly came with my menu, OJ, headsets, and socks for this flight. Ch.9 was available and I overheard the captain asking for a later departure time for FL 350. Menu orders were again taken based on status and again I was the last one to be asked. However, I felt the FAs were warmer than those on my ORD-NRT flight. Could be because they were based in NRT?
Flight time was announced at a quick 6 hours 30 mins. The surging power of the huge engines was unmistakable as we rumbled down the runway. Similar to the last flight, the curtains were not closed. Shortly after takeoff, dinner was served. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Prosciutto ham and mozzarella cheese
Garden salad with Asian dressing
Main Course
Grilled filet mignon with Champagne mushroom saucee
Potatoes au gratin and asparagus
Charbroiled spicy miso breast of chicken
Thai chili sauce, chicken rice and tasai with oyster sauce
Grilled salmon, shrimp and scallops with hoba-miso marinade
Shiitake mushrooms and rice with black sesame seeds
Dessert
Tropical sherbet medley
Orange, mango and raspberry flavored.
Wine List (please refer to my first post as the list is exactly the same)
I had the chicken and it tasted very good and I had to skip the dessert as I was very tired at this point. I fell asleep watching Charlie’s Angel and woke up to find myself only 40 mins out of Singapore. Quickly freshened myself up and filled out the necessary form for Singapore immigration. I don’t know about everyone else, but the landing was very smooth, to a point it felt more like a turbulence than a landing. Very impressive. We taxied to our gate and that concludes the end of my first complete outbound with UA in C. Next two segments, SIN-NRT-ORD to follow.
Nov 29, 2003, 1:43 am
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CGK SIN PER ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hyatt Plat
Posts: 2,813
SIN-NRT November 27th 2003
UA 800 7.20am-2.50pm Seat 13B Boeing 777-200
Actual wheel off: 7.25am
Actual wheel down: 2.20pm
After a week of cheap good food and unbelievable humidity in Singapore, I had to go back to the wintry conditions of Chicago. My parents dropped me off at the airport at 5.15am and I had to go through 3 people looking over my passport for my visa, security checks for my luggage and then finally to the ticketing counter for Economy passengers. The computer terminals this morning were down and only 2 computers were working so every agent had to use that 2 computers. My agent did request for the SWU and I gave it to her. Boarding passes were printed out and an invitation to the SATS Premier Lounge was also included. All these took about 35 mins and when I finally got through immigration, it was 6am. I gave a quick call to my parents and headed to the Duty Free to buy a carton of cigarettes and a bottle of gin. Went to the smoking room and sat there for about 5 mins before heading off to the gate at 6.20am. Boarding started at 6.40am. Loads in C were almost full in this flight, with only 2/3 seats empty. Again, I felt the FAs were very nice and warm when they distributed the headsets, menus, OJ and socks.
Flight time was announced at 6 hours 55 mins and Ch 9 was available on this flight. Take off was again an amazing experience with the 777 and the FAs were wonderful on this flight. My water was never empty and they were always looking for things to help us out. The purser took the breakfast orders by row from front to back, which was surprising to me. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Your selected entrée will be served with breakfast breads, butter and fruit preserves.
Main Course
Scrambled eggs in crepe gratinee
Mornay sauce, Parmesan cheese, bacon and a spinach soufflé with a fresh fruit appetizer
Kway teow with seafood
Stir-fried noodles with prawns, breast of chicken in oyster sauce, mushrooms and a fresh fruit appetizer
Continental breakfast
Selection of pastries, seasonal fruit, cereal and yogurt.
Prior to Arrival
Chilled Mexican chicken and vegetarian wraps with tomato salsa
Mozzarella cheese, tomato, mushrooms and pine nut basil pesto
Or
International cheese selection
Camembert, Blue Opal and Gruyere cheese with fresh fruit
Dessert
Baked banana and apricot cheesecake
Wine List (please refer to my first segment as the list is exactly the same)
I had the Kway Teow and it was excellent, almost as good as the local hawker fare. Again, because I did not sleep the previous night trying to adjust back to US time, I fell asleep while watching Johnny English and woke up about 45 mins prior to arrival. I declined to have the snack and instead chose to finish Johnny English and freshen myself for the landing. It was another nice landing but we had to park at a remote area again. No worries as I had 3 hours to myself in NRT before my next flight.
I went to the RCC lounge and checked some emails and SMSed my parents and friends in Singapore. I was disappointed with the selection of snacks at the RCC and was very hungry at that time. Nevertheless, I took a pager for the shower rooms and was paged less than 10 mins later. The shower room was impressive to say the least. You also pick up a basket containing everything you need and all were molton brown products. I spent a good 20 mins in the shower and another 10 just dressing myself. Overall a nice experience at the RCC. Around 4pm, I took a walk around NRT and this airport is not small by any means. I could not find the Singapore Airlines lounge and walked back to gate 33 to have a cigarette in the lounge.
Next segment NRT-ORD to follow
UA 800 7.20am-2.50pm Seat 13B Boeing 777-200
Actual wheel off: 7.25am
Actual wheel down: 2.20pm
After a week of cheap good food and unbelievable humidity in Singapore, I had to go back to the wintry conditions of Chicago. My parents dropped me off at the airport at 5.15am and I had to go through 3 people looking over my passport for my visa, security checks for my luggage and then finally to the ticketing counter for Economy passengers. The computer terminals this morning were down and only 2 computers were working so every agent had to use that 2 computers. My agent did request for the SWU and I gave it to her. Boarding passes were printed out and an invitation to the SATS Premier Lounge was also included. All these took about 35 mins and when I finally got through immigration, it was 6am. I gave a quick call to my parents and headed to the Duty Free to buy a carton of cigarettes and a bottle of gin. Went to the smoking room and sat there for about 5 mins before heading off to the gate at 6.20am. Boarding started at 6.40am. Loads in C were almost full in this flight, with only 2/3 seats empty. Again, I felt the FAs were very nice and warm when they distributed the headsets, menus, OJ and socks.
Flight time was announced at 6 hours 55 mins and Ch 9 was available on this flight. Take off was again an amazing experience with the 777 and the FAs were wonderful on this flight. My water was never empty and they were always looking for things to help us out. The purser took the breakfast orders by row from front to back, which was surprising to me. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Your selected entrée will be served with breakfast breads, butter and fruit preserves.
Main Course
Scrambled eggs in crepe gratinee
Mornay sauce, Parmesan cheese, bacon and a spinach soufflé with a fresh fruit appetizer
Kway teow with seafood
Stir-fried noodles with prawns, breast of chicken in oyster sauce, mushrooms and a fresh fruit appetizer
Continental breakfast
Selection of pastries, seasonal fruit, cereal and yogurt.
Prior to Arrival
Chilled Mexican chicken and vegetarian wraps with tomato salsa
Mozzarella cheese, tomato, mushrooms and pine nut basil pesto
Or
International cheese selection
Camembert, Blue Opal and Gruyere cheese with fresh fruit
Dessert
Baked banana and apricot cheesecake
Wine List (please refer to my first segment as the list is exactly the same)
I had the Kway Teow and it was excellent, almost as good as the local hawker fare. Again, because I did not sleep the previous night trying to adjust back to US time, I fell asleep while watching Johnny English and woke up about 45 mins prior to arrival. I declined to have the snack and instead chose to finish Johnny English and freshen myself for the landing. It was another nice landing but we had to park at a remote area again. No worries as I had 3 hours to myself in NRT before my next flight.
I went to the RCC lounge and checked some emails and SMSed my parents and friends in Singapore. I was disappointed with the selection of snacks at the RCC and was very hungry at that time. Nevertheless, I took a pager for the shower rooms and was paged less than 10 mins later. The shower room was impressive to say the least. You also pick up a basket containing everything you need and all were molton brown products. I spent a good 20 mins in the shower and another 10 just dressing myself. Overall a nice experience at the RCC. Around 4pm, I took a walk around NRT and this airport is not small by any means. I could not find the Singapore Airlines lounge and walked back to gate 33 to have a cigarette in the lounge.
Next segment NRT-ORD to follow
Nov 29, 2003, 1:44 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CGK SIN PER ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hyatt Plat
Posts: 2,813
NRT-ORD November 27th 2003
UA 882 5.55pm-2.20pm Seat 25C Boeing 747-400
Actual wheel off: 6.05pm
Actual wheel down: 1.15pm
Boarding began at 5.10pm and it was a very smooth process. The C cabin on the main deck was hardly occupied with only 7 passengers in rows 22-26. There was one passenger my cabin that was acting as if he was not satisfied to be in C and was demanding a lot of things from the FAs. In any case, the FAs were also nice in this flight, presumably because it was a very light load for them. Channel 9 was available on this flight and doors were closed at 5.45pm. During the flight, the FAs only rolled out the dessert carts and nothing else, everything else was carried straight from the galley.
Flight time was announced at 10 hours 10 mins.
Following takeoff, again we were presented with cold nuts and a drink, continued by lunch. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Herb marinated shrimp and peppered beef appetizer
Kenya bean and mushroom salad with lobster vinaigrette
Garden Salad
Balsamic Dijon vinaigrette dressing
Main Course
Filet mignon with Bordelaise sauce and mushrooms
Potatoes au gratin and broccoli florets
Country-style barbecued breast of chicken
French fries and green beans
Japanese Obento selection
An appetizer of sillago roll, salmon temari sushi, grilled eggplant with walnut paste, stir-fried lotus root and soba sushi
A main course of broiled salmon, ,shrimp, scallops and vegetables and shiitake mushrooms, conger eel tataki and steamed rice
Served with green tea.
Dessert
International cheese selection
Shadows of Bleu and Red Cheddar cheese
French Apple tart
Midflight snack
Please help yourself to assorted treats between the two main meals.
Sandwiches or noodles are available upon request.
Prior to arrival
Shrimp, calamari and angel hair pasta with marinara saucec
Parmesan cheese and fresh fruit appetizer
Or
Fresh seasonal fruit plate with creamy yogurt.
Wine List (please refer to my first segment as the list is exactly the same)
The FAs took menu orders by status and I was very surprised that I got first choice among the 7 passengers in my cabin. Naturally I chose the Obento and was very pleased with the catering for this particular option. Very nice and filling. I have to apologize to my readers but I was so tired at this point that again I fell asleep for 7 straight hours. Hey, with the C+ seats, it is hard for me not to sleep. Waking up with about 1 hour 30 mins left, I chose to have the fresh fruit plate as I was still pretty full from the Obento meal. Filled out my immigration and customs form and was all set to land back in Chicago.
When we landed and taxied to the gate, it took someone 20 mins to move the jetway to door 1L. Easily clearing through immigration and customs, I was happy to be back in Chicago.
I am also very pleased with the C product that United offers, although the video screen could be bigger and the level of service was similar to the EVA Air Evergreen Deluxe class that I used to take in the late 1990s. But the seat and lounge in NRT more than makes up for it. I will be taking 2 more domestic flights this year to make PremEx and I am already looking to purchase another V fare back to Singapore in early Feb for another 7 days.
Any questions, do not hesitate to ask and hope you enjoyed my trip report.
UA 882 5.55pm-2.20pm Seat 25C Boeing 747-400
Actual wheel off: 6.05pm
Actual wheel down: 1.15pm
Boarding began at 5.10pm and it was a very smooth process. The C cabin on the main deck was hardly occupied with only 7 passengers in rows 22-26. There was one passenger my cabin that was acting as if he was not satisfied to be in C and was demanding a lot of things from the FAs. In any case, the FAs were also nice in this flight, presumably because it was a very light load for them. Channel 9 was available on this flight and doors were closed at 5.45pm. During the flight, the FAs only rolled out the dessert carts and nothing else, everything else was carried straight from the galley.
Flight time was announced at 10 hours 10 mins.
Following takeoff, again we were presented with cold nuts and a drink, continued by lunch. Menu is as follows:
To Begin
Herb marinated shrimp and peppered beef appetizer
Kenya bean and mushroom salad with lobster vinaigrette
Garden Salad
Balsamic Dijon vinaigrette dressing
Main Course
Filet mignon with Bordelaise sauce and mushrooms
Potatoes au gratin and broccoli florets
Country-style barbecued breast of chicken
French fries and green beans
Japanese Obento selection
An appetizer of sillago roll, salmon temari sushi, grilled eggplant with walnut paste, stir-fried lotus root and soba sushi
A main course of broiled salmon, ,shrimp, scallops and vegetables and shiitake mushrooms, conger eel tataki and steamed rice
Served with green tea.
Dessert
International cheese selection
Shadows of Bleu and Red Cheddar cheese
French Apple tart
Midflight snack
Please help yourself to assorted treats between the two main meals.
Sandwiches or noodles are available upon request.
Prior to arrival
Shrimp, calamari and angel hair pasta with marinara saucec
Parmesan cheese and fresh fruit appetizer
Or
Fresh seasonal fruit plate with creamy yogurt.
Wine List (please refer to my first segment as the list is exactly the same)
The FAs took menu orders by status and I was very surprised that I got first choice among the 7 passengers in my cabin. Naturally I chose the Obento and was very pleased with the catering for this particular option. Very nice and filling. I have to apologize to my readers but I was so tired at this point that again I fell asleep for 7 straight hours. Hey, with the C+ seats, it is hard for me not to sleep. Waking up with about 1 hour 30 mins left, I chose to have the fresh fruit plate as I was still pretty full from the Obento meal. Filled out my immigration and customs form and was all set to land back in Chicago.
When we landed and taxied to the gate, it took someone 20 mins to move the jetway to door 1L. Easily clearing through immigration and customs, I was happy to be back in Chicago.
I am also very pleased with the C product that United offers, although the video screen could be bigger and the level of service was similar to the EVA Air Evergreen Deluxe class that I used to take in the late 1990s. But the seat and lounge in NRT more than makes up for it. I will be taking 2 more domestic flights this year to make PremEx and I am already looking to purchase another V fare back to Singapore in early Feb for another 7 days.
Any questions, do not hesitate to ask and hope you enjoyed my trip report.
Nov 29, 2003, 9:21 am
#5
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: SPI
Programs: AA Gold, UA LT Plat, Mar LTT
Posts: 18,147
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by indo79:
hope you enjoyed my trip report</font>
hope you enjoyed my trip report</font>
Best wishes, Dave
Nov 30, 2003, 12:06 am
#7
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: The World! Home Base = DCA/IAD
Programs: HHonors, Hyatt GP, Marriott, Varying Levels w/ UA /AF /DL /SQ /AA
Posts: 2,666
Two thumbs up!
Just got back from Chicago today (Saturday).
There's a lot of discussion in the UA forum about whether or not to give up the SWU when you're not asked. You can look there for everyone's strong opinions on it either way.
Glad you had a good experience on business class on UA, as mine have been touch and go in 1st.
Will
Just got back from Chicago today (Saturday).
There's a lot of discussion in the UA forum about whether or not to give up the SWU when you're not asked. You can look there for everyone's strong opinions on it either way.
Glad you had a good experience on business class on UA, as mine have been touch and go in 1st.
Will
Dec 4, 2003, 6:31 am
#13
Join Date: Mar 2001
Programs: AA EXP, BA Gold, UA LT-Gold, SPG Plat, HH Dia, Hyatt Dia, MR Gold
Posts: 2,221
My SQ flight CAI-SIN touched down a shade past 7am on Nov 27th. Saw the UA plane and wondering when is the next time I will be on that flight. UA asia-crew is excellent, although USA-bound crew is always a tossup.
Dec 6, 2003, 11:06 am
#14
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Plano, TX
Programs: Hilton Gold, Marriott Gold, Hertz President's Circle, Avis Preferred Plus, AMEX Platinum
Posts: 344
Excellent report!
Just curious about why you used the economy check-in counters when you were confirmed in business class.
Looks like catering has improved a bit (from what I can tell looking the menus) since I flew transpacific this summer. Other than the fact that the main courses look more impressive, it looks like they've brought back the help-yourself sandwiches and noodles for the midflight snack. This summer all they offered was potato chips and a packet of M&Ms (the flight was out of SFO however-it may still be like that on that flight).
Still, UA obviously has a long way to go to get to where they were in 1999 or 2000. I miss the Ritz-Carlton Millenia brunches on SIN-NRT flights and Godiva chocolates. I hope they come back someday when UA's financial situation is better.
[This message has been edited by UA_Sycophant (edited Dec 06, 2003).]
Just curious about why you used the economy check-in counters when you were confirmed in business class.
Looks like catering has improved a bit (from what I can tell looking the menus) since I flew transpacific this summer. Other than the fact that the main courses look more impressive, it looks like they've brought back the help-yourself sandwiches and noodles for the midflight snack. This summer all they offered was potato chips and a packet of M&Ms (the flight was out of SFO however-it may still be like that on that flight).
Still, UA obviously has a long way to go to get to where they were in 1999 or 2000. I miss the Ritz-Carlton Millenia brunches on SIN-NRT flights and Godiva chocolates. I hope they come back someday when UA's financial situation is better.
[This message has been edited by UA_Sycophant (edited Dec 06, 2003).]