calvin99

Hi… first of all I would like to say that I am fairly new in writing trip report and I haven’t wrote any yet… so I hope you enjoy my report and any comment would be appreciated.

Surabaya – Hong Kong on CX780
Aircraft type: Airbus 330-300
Registration: B-HLK (I am not sure about the registration)
Class of Travel: J – upgraded (hehe)
Seat: 18G
June 18, 2004
Estimated Departure Time: 08:25
Actual Departure Time: 8:40
Estimated Arrival Time: 14:05
Actual Arrival Time: 14:07

Surabaya, the capital of East Java, is the second largest city in Indonesia. The city has been growing in a rapid speed in which the city boost a number of 5 stars hotel and several newly built shopping mall. Juanda International Airport, Surabaya, is one of those airports that urgently need an expansion and renovation. The airport is extremely busy and all aprons were occupied during busy hours. Fortunately, a new terminal is being built right now and it is meant to completely replace the old terminal.

I arrived the airport around 7:05 local time and proceed to the check in counter. I was booked on economy class, 30K. I proceed directly to the business class check in counter (due to my Marco Polo silver). There was a person in front of me and after approximately 3 minutes of wait, it was my turn. I was greeted by a lady with smile. I showed my ticket, Marco Polo card and then she replied me by saying that the flight is completely full (Y was completely overbooked) and I will be upgraded. Yes.. I have not been upgraded by Cathay for so long… and I am extremely happy to got one. But then she asked me do I have trousers?? Haa... trousers?? (I was wearing shorts with a polo shirt). I asked her why and she replied me that there are a certain criteria for upgrade and she said that I am not allowed to wear shorts if I really want to get upgraded. Well… this is really new to me as I have traveled on HKG-SFO, J, with shorts without any problem. O well… I don’t want to miss the J class so I accept her offer, grab my long pants on suitcase.

A lounge invitation and boarding pass was given and I was assigned to 18G. I was going to ask for a window seat but then since I am an upgraded passenger, I don’t want seems to be fussy so I proceed on. I went to the fiscal counter (all Indonesian passport holders will have to pay ridiculous fiscal fee of Rp. 1.000.000 - around US$ 110) and then pay the Rp. 75000 (around US$8) airport tax. Afterward, I went to the immigration counter. Out of the four available (yes, the whole airport only have four immigration counters) only two were open. It took around half an hour to pass through the immigration and by the time I got through, it was already 7:50. I proceed to the lounge, namely the Trowulan lounge. The lounge is extremely small but then since Juanda does not serve a lot of international flights, it was acceptable. There were limited beverages, including soft drink and mineral waters and some food which I didn’t pay attention. I grabbed a newspaper and guess what… it is yesterday newspaper.

By the time I sit on the lounge, boarding has commenced already. So I grabbed my laptop and bag and proceed to the plane. There were two separates line, one for Y and the other for J and Marco Polo members. I entered the plane through door 1L and was greet by a flight attendant from Hong Kong. She showed me my seat, which is 18G and then went back to give me some drinks, ranging from tomato juice, orange juice and water. I took the orange juice and then waited patiently for the plane to take off. Doors were closed on time at 8:25 and we started to push back several minutes later. We taxi to the middle of the runway and hold there (I don’t know what is the name of the taxiway). We waited for one GA B733 arrived, follow by a Mandala B732, unknown F28, GA-Citilink F28 and Adams Air B734 to take off. After that we started to starts to taxi using runway 28 and then make a U-turn to runway 10. Departure started immediately, and we left the ground around 8:40.

Shortly after take off, the ISM went on to greet the passenger and I noticed that she did not greet all passengers on J. I believed she only greet the real J passengers as well as the Marco Polo member as I was greeted individually by her. I was also asked to fill the questionnaire regarding the flight which I was mostly satisfied with. Hot towels and drinks were offer soon I opted for an orange juice and then it was follow by a breakfast. In addition, I also notice that the flight attendant serve the hot meal to J passenger and then Marco Polo member (which is me) and then the other upgraded passengers. The menu as follow:
Breakfast

Juice Selection

Fresh Season Fruits (which is quite fresh)

Fruit Yoghurt, Corn Flakes or Muesli

Roast Beef Satay
Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice)
Pak Choy and Sambal
(I chose this and it was extremely nice, extremely the sauce)

Or

Spanish Omelets
Grilled Beef Sausage
Broiled Tomato with Herb and Sautéed Mushrooms

Or

Stir-fried E-fu Noodles with prawns and Vegetables
Chinese Breakfast Dumplings

Assorted Bread and Rolls
Served with Preserves, Honey and Butter

Tea and Coffee

Refreshment
Beef Satay served with accompaniments (tastes quite good)

I was quite surprise to offer refreshment on this flight (around 4 hours 20 minutes) as I flew the route on 1999 and 2000 on J and no refreshment was available back then. I watched Starsky and Hutch on the flight, which is quite funny and then turned on my laptop to play some games. Refreshment was served approximately an hour before arrival. Arrival was on runway 25R and the plane was docked on gate 68. I said good bye to the flight attendant before walking out the plane and then proceed to the immigration counter. I took me around 10 minutes to get there as gate 68 is the furthest gate at the airport. Immigration was completed less than a second and then proceed to carousel 11, in which my luggage was already out there and waiting for me. I walk through the custom and took the airport express train.
Overall it was an extremely pleasant flight on Cathay Pacific and it was really nice of CX to upgrade me to J. I am certainly looking forward on my next flight on CX.

Kurt

Nothing better than an op-up, as they say. Sounds like a good flight. Is there a return segment? We'd like to see that one, too

What is the population of Surabaya? I know SQ flies there. Is Garuda still popular?

calvin99

hm.. i m not sure about the population of surabaya but according to yahoo it said it is approximately 3,600,000...

i will try to write the return segment.. but i would be on Y.. i believe...

hm.. yea.. SQ serves SIN - HKG i believe 6X a week using B772 (before.. it used to be 14X a week using the A313..).. furthermore for international traffic wise.. the city is also served by BR (B762 2X) BI (A319/A329/B763 4X) MH (B734 14X) and Air Asia (7X weekly)..

GA.. is popular due to the very cheap price (US$350).. compare to CX (US$452).. thats one month ticket.. however.. to fly GA.. u usually needs to fly SUB-CGK-SIN-HKG.. departure from SUB around 6 am.. and arrive hk 16:00.. yesterday.. my aunt took GA and it was delayed till 19:27.. however.. my dad that took GA J class around a month ago said the service was very good.. maybe on the same level as CX.. but the entertainment was really poor...

ACfly

Thanks for the delightful report Calvin...

I am really siurprised by the dress code for upgrade.. and that the GA would even asked that you change clothes...

I know that one of the tricks to getting upgrade is to dress nicely... but that's before the upgrade is given.. In your case, the upgrade was given to you and then they they request clothes change...

Wierd! Oh well, what mattered most is that you got the upgrade! ^

calvin99

the return part...

SUB – HKG
Aircraft: A330-300
Registration: B-HLV
August 11, 2004
Gate: 47
Departure (Actual): 16:10 (16:12)
Arrival (Actual): 19:50 (19:37)
Seat: 19K
Class: J (upgraded) on the new Regional J Seat

After spending approximately a month in Hong Kong, I have to fly back to Indonesia where I will stay there with my parents until my summer holiday end and fly back to the States. The flight between Surabaya and Hong Kong has been full for approximately a week as many Indonesian fly back due to the end of Indonesia’s summer holiday. On August 6, I received a call from my parents where there was some family problem in Indonesia and it would be wise if I can go back earlier. I called the Marco Polo afterward but the next available flight on August 8 is overbooked. I waitlisted but did not make it. So the next flight would be Sunday, August 11.

I arrived Central station around 1 and I proceed to the J check in counter (due to Marco Polo silver status). To my surprise the queue on J was even longer than Y. There were 4 people in front of my, however I waited less than 5 minutes and was directed CX furthest left check in counter. The check in itself proceeded efficiently but not really with smile. I presented my ticket, MCP Card and my passport. Less than a minute, my Y class boarding pass with seat 30K printed with my lounge invitation card. However, the agent continued to hold my boarding pass and seems to be thinking for a while. Later on she picked up the phone and made a call to somewhere which resulted in my upgrade to J. My Y boarding pass was torn down and a new J class boarding pass was printed. The agent then started to smile and said that I got upgraded to J, however the only seat available would be 19K. I said that I am more than happy to accept that. She gave my stuff back and I said thank you. The whole process completed within 10 minutes.

After check in, I went to have lunch as Yung Kee, one of Hong Kong’s leading restaurants with my brother to have to roast goose rice. Completed my lunch and I was on the airport express by 14:35. Today, the airport express train was quite packed and almost every seat around my cabin was occupied.

Arrived HKIA around half an hour later and I proceed immediately to the security and custom. I shopped for a while and bought some snacks for my parents and then I started to think which lounge I shall go to. Gate 47 is nowhere near the Wing or the Pier and I think it was kind of weird gate assignment for CX. O well, somehow I decided to go to the Pier, but by the time I got there sand seated, it was already 15:20. I grabbed some snacks and a mineral water and then sit back and made several final phone calls to my friends.

I left the lounge around 15:40 and stated to walk from the right side of the Y to the far left. Walked to the gate took around 10 minutes and arrived there around 15:50. I checked out the plane and it was B-HLV, one of CX’s newest A330-300, less than a year old. As usual, two separate lines for J and Y and I entered the plane using door 1L and seated on the last row of the J.

B-HLV is equipped with the new regional J class and after hearing a lot of negative comments about the seat, I really want to find out if it is really that bad. Personally, I don’t think the seat was that bad, however, on its upright position, I kind a feel that the seat was too “upright” making my back uncomfortable. The seat itself wasn’t really that hard as most people complain about and the leg room was adequate but again, I do not like the idea to eliminate under seat storage. On the sleeping position, the seat does not really recline that much and the leg support did not really come up as well, making sleeping not very comfortable. However, I did manage to get an hour of sleep. Compare to the old J class seat, I will choose the old one as it believe it recline more and feels better when it is on upright position. However, the feature on the new J seat such as electronic control for the sitting position as well as a much bigger TV screen are really nice.

Doors were close around 16:05 and we pushed back around 16:12. Pre-departure drinks were served as usual which I took an orange juice. A very short taxi to runway 25L where we were no 3 for take off, after two CX B777s, a B-HLC and BLN. By 16:20, our aircraft already lined up and departure commenced shortly. Take off roll took approximately 45 seconds and I have to say that the sounds from the RR engines are almost not noticeable, so smooth and quiet.

Snacks were served shortly afterward, a choice of nuts or something that is not explainable but taste very good. It seems to be some kind of seafood with some veggies around it. Approximately and hour after take off, dinner were served. (I forget to take the menu so not sure about the dishes name). A tablecloth and tray were carried from the galley and the appetizer consisted of some crabs, prawn and tuna fish. Tastes really fresh and extremely nice. Along with appetizer were the some vinegar sauce salad which is really fresh and moisture. Breads were also offered as well which I choose onion bread, hot and tasty again. Main course was served from the cart and there were three choices, I believed it was a steak, a seafood curry rice and chicken rice (the special dishes from Peninsula). I choose the chicken, again it tastes quite good but again, I always have to complain about the small proportion of CX main course. After dinner was some fruits and cheese, which I only opted for the fruits (consisted of three grapes, a watermelon, pineapple). Afterward, haagen daze ice cream was offered, with choices of vanilla, cookies n cream or strawberry. I tooked the cookies n cream and it was served with HOT tea (I think it is kind of weird to serve a cold ice cream with hot tea).

After dinner, it was already two hours into the flight and after I finished watching movie Law of Attraction, I went to have a good an hour of sleep. Half an hour out of Surabaya, our plane started our descent from our flight level 380. Drink were offered shortly after we started descent and then cabin crews were busy preparing the plane for landing.

Approach to Surabaya’s Juanda International Airport was carried through ILS runway 10 approach, and touch down was extremely smooth, at 19:37. A very short taxi to the terminal and everyone started to rush to go to the extremely slow custom in Surabaya. I managed to be the fourth person on the line. There were only three passport controls open, so I guess the last person that get off the plane will have to wait for quite a while. After the passport control, I rushed to get a cart, which was not available so I was force to hire those people who took the cart. My bags were among the first to come out. Proceed to the custom which I was asked to open my suitcase. The lady who searched my suitcase was questioning me why I only have clothes and shorts in suitcase but no electronic appliance, which I answered cause I didn’t bring one (a stupid question). Everything went smoothly and I was on my car, going back home by 20:00, a new record for Juanda.

Rating
Check in: 10 (completed less than 10 minutes, without fuss and good upgraded, what do else do you want)
Lounge: 10 (as usual CX’s lounge is one of the best, too bad I did not spend enough time there)
Boarding: 9 (entered the plane without queue, o well, I was greeted by an agent that is talking on the phone)
Seat: 8 (The new regional seat is quite comfortable but I will still prefer to old one)
In flight service: 8 (Not the best one I had with CX, ISM didn’t go to greet passenger. However, The service from the cabin crew itself was very friendly and efficient especially one of the male flight attendant (didn’t get his name) and Gigi)
Entertainment: 7 (The selection does not really interested me that much)
Food: 9 (One of the best food I have had in the air)
Arrival: 9 (Juanda is a crappy airport, but I managed to get out of it in less than half an hour, that’s good enough)
So overall, it would be 8.75, another pleasant flight on CX. I really really like CX, maybe I have fallen in love with CX.. haha... especially the way they spoil me with the upgrades.. hehe..!! I can’t wait for my next long haul travel of CX, HKG – LAX, on mid August although I have to connect to the crappy AA on my way to IND.

djjaguar64

I also fell in love with CX after they had upgraded me YVR to HKG and vice versa. Excellent service and great crew, food was good as well. It's that service with a smile that just makes your flight experience a JOY. Thanks.

AviAsian

The reason why there is no space in front for baggage in the new regional business class on the Airbus A330-300 and Boeing 777-300 aircrafts is that the Empower port for laptop, inflight email service box and IFE equipment are stored in this area.

I guess if we want the latest technology oboard the aircraft these days, it comes at the expense of not having space as these equipments do take space. Let's put it this way, if we don't have a Empower laptop power outlets, inflight email and the latest IFE equipment, the customers will complain for not having it and secondly, when you have them and they don't understand the logistics behind the installation these systems and thus a reduction in space. Therefore, they will complain either way.

Overall, customers will remain the same - never 100 percent satisfied. However, I am glad you enjoyed your flight in the new regional business class.

Just like you, I am also hooked onto the CX service! They certainly do a fine job!

Fly Cathay Pacific - the world's best airline!

StarG

calvin99,

You are a very lucky person! Being upgraded one way is lucky, but being upgraded both ways is another thing!
You might have posted wrong route and date on the return flight.

Anyway, I was upgraded twice on CX, the first one when I was MPO SILVER, and the second one MPO GREEN. Both for CGK-SIN, long weekend due to public holiday in Indonesia. It seems like CX heavily overbook Y in such periods. Therefore, even a lowly GREEN like myself can get upgraded.
J became totally full after the upgrades. My wife kept teasing me that I have smiles on my face for the whole day because of the upgrade.

My wife and her mom (both just Asia Miles members) have also once received Y to J upgrade CGK-SIN.

Great trip reports!

calvin99

yup yup.. i posted the wrong dates and routes.. thank you for that..

it should be july 11, 2004 on HKG-SUB
i hv to admit that i m very lucky to get upgraded both way.. in fact.. i got upgraded more than 5 times on CX.. although all of the upgrades r on HKG-SUB or SUB-HKG..

i guess the reason is that there isn't a lot of flyer with higher elite status that fly on HKG-SUB