BR KHH-TPE and KL TPE-BKK in J
Aug 16, 2004, 4:57 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: New York
Posts: 7,357
BR KHH-TPE and KL TPE-BKK in J
Hi all,
Here are just some additional reports from my trip to Kaohsiung to Bangkok. I flew EVA Air/Uni Air from KHH to TPE and then connected to KLM’s evening to Bangkok. Well, the KHH to TPE had a BR flight number, but in reality, it was operated by Uni Air’s crews and equipments (noted some B7’s MD-90s are painted in EVA Air livery).
August 12, 2004
BR 908 KHH-TPE Lv1640 Arr1730 McDonnell Douglas MD-90 B-17915 in Uni Air livery
I arrived at KHH airport about an hour prior to departure, and the airport was divided into an International and domestic terminal. The international terminal was pretty deserted, but BR check in counters were pretty busy, especially some cancellations that morning due to typhoon. I waited almost fifteen minutes before being checked in and there were three parties in front of me. The agent was apologetic and checked my bag all the way to BKK, and gave me the first boarding pass, as long as the lounge invitation. After gotten my boarding pass, I headed to immigration and security checkpoint with no wait. I went to the Evergreen lounge, which was a basic facility with a self-serving snack and beverage stations. Food includes various warmed Chinese buns, sandwiches, pastries, and some packaged snacks, and beverage had the normal soft drink/juice/beer selections, as well as some hard liquors. I don’t see any wines. There was a small business center with photocopy machines, phone booths, fax machine, and an internet-connected computer. I did not stay long, as I wanted to buy some duty free items. Our gate this afternoon was 9 and there was a small crowd there. Unfortunately, boarding was delayed due to weather at Taipei, and some American businessmen expressed some rather rude behaviors (if you ask me, it was quite disgraceful. For some reasons, some Westerners feel that they are the kings in others’ land and express some personally considered rather bad-mannered). Well the gate agent’s English did not help, but she had nothing to add, except we should be boarding soon. Thankfully, boarding soon began at 4:33pm, and newspapers were offered as we boarded. To my disbelief, the business class cabin was filled with all Westerners, except me as the sole Chinese. The flight was half full in J and Y was pretty full. After door was closed at 4:33pm, the F/As offered us a choice of beverage – apple juice or water, more newspapers, and towelette. The F/As were professional, and soon we were off to R/W27. We took off at 4:56pm, and flying time was forty minutes, with a cruising attitude of 41,000feet. If you look at a map of Taiwan, one can easily draw a straight line between KHH and TPE, but for some reasons (perhaps due to the height of the mountain range in the inland), the routing of KHH and TPE was that we flew out of the coast, and then traveled along the West Coast of Taiwan, before turning inland onto Taipei.
Well the F/A sprang into action after the pilot signaled a service check at 5:02pm. For economy passengers, they were offered a pastry and a choice of coffee, water, and juice. For business, we had a choice of three desserts – a blueberry cheese tart, an orange jelly/panna cotta type dessert, or a Caramel-Mocha take, along with our choice of beverage. I had the Mocha cake, which was served on a real china bowl, as long as a cup of tea with milk and sugar. The china was a basic white with a orange paint stroke – very nice. It was more than sufficient for a forty minutes flight. Descent soon began at 5:15pm, and we landed on R/W23 at 5:36pm. After we exited the runway, a China Airlines’ Boeing 747-400 B-18207 took off. We parked at Gate C9 six minutes later, and all passengers headed to the transit area. Some EVA Air’s plane spotting information –
Gate C7 SEA/EWR BR Boeing 747-400 Combi B-16405 New livery
Gate C6 SFO BR Boeing 74E B-16407 Old Livery
Gate C5 LAX BR Boeing 747-400 New livery
KL 878 TPE-BKK Lv1910 Arr2145 Boeing 747-400 Combi PH-BFC in KLM Asia livery
City of Calgary Classic livery
I headed to the transit counter and was immediately given an onward boarding pass. Since BR was the handling agent for KLM, the boarding pass was already printed and was given a lounge pass to Evergreen lounge. The business class section was very crowded but I found a seat. The buffet was extensive with some hot dishes, such as fried rice/ vermicelli, as long as Chinese buns, sandwiches, soups, and some snack, as well as non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, such as wines and hard liquors. There was free wireless internet service, for those with a laptop and wireless LAN port/card. The flight was fairly full in J and Y, as there was some amount of passengers heading to BKK, as well as Europe for the Olympics. I noted some passengers with the official Taiwanese Olympics representatives in business class. Boarding began at 6:29pm, and a pre-takeoff beverage was immediately offered – champagne for me, as well as menus and a sock/eyeshade/pen set (no amenity kit – I guess only the long haul flights). The F/As were friendly and efficient, but like their US alliance partner, Northwest, they all disappeared into the galley after the meal service. Door was first closed at 7:07pm, but then there was a problem with one of the cabin doors, mechanics were called on board, and we did not push back till 7:28pm. The pilot kept us well-informed and made two announcements during the short twenty minutes wait. After an Air Macau’s A321 landed, we took off from R/W23 at 7:42pm. Flying time was three hours and three minutes, and our cruising attitude was 35,000feet, and our routing took us south towards Tainan, and then headed towards Da Nang, and started our descent after passing Surin.
Once we reached 10,000feet, seat belt sign was turned off, and the F/As sprang into action. First, the beverage cart was rolled out (yes, carts was used extensively by KL – very coach like if you ask me, but they were more efficient). A bowl of mixed nuts were offered, and our entrée orders were taken. The meal was served in two courses – appetizer, salad, and entrée, and then dessert. I don’t understand why there is a need to rush through the meal service. There were three hours… I would appreciate a three course offering. Here is the menu and wine list!
Taipei to Bangkok
Appetizer
Hors d’Oeuvre
Salmon with horseradish sauce garnished with lime
The appetizer was okay with three slices of freshly smoked salmon, accompanied by smoked salmon mousse, and then there was a small salad bow, which was a basic green salad with cherry tomato, Radicchio, oak leaf lettuce, iceberg lettuce, and a tub of ranch dressing. The bread basket came with a choice of French or wheat rolls.
Main Courses
Oriental Chicken served with egg-fried-rice and stir-fried vegetables
I had the chicken, which was okay – the sauce was Chinese gravy, and the vegetables were tasty. The chicken was cut into bit pieces and were deep fried, and then braised for those culinary experts.
Or
Grilled beef fillet served with sautéed broccoli with butter, carrots, pumpkin, herbed butter and dauphinoise potatoes
My neighbor had the beef, which looked great, and it was quite substantial. I just did not feel like having red meat that evening.
Dessert
We invite you to select your choice of tart or fresh fruit from our dessert trolley
I had the tart, which was a nut tart with strawberry sauce, and my neighbor had the fruit bowl, which had pineapples, watermelon, cantaloupes, and grapes.
After the meal, I had a cup of tea, and the F/As collected the trays and disappeared for the rest of the flight. They did not do any walk through in the cabin, until descent was begun. They passed out the Dutch houses, which were cute, and my neighbor gave him mine, since he told me that he had a large collection. There was a classic PTV, with five channels of movies, and various short subjects. I watched the comedy channels, which was quite good. I miss Will and Grace. After so many “Everybody Loves Raymond” episodes, it is good to see other sitcoms, but I can’t help to wonder when the airlines will start showing episodes of reality TV. Descent began at 9:21pm Bangkok local time, and we landed on R/W21R at 9:45pm, and we parked at gate 54 five minutes later. An El Al’s Boeing 747-200 4X-AXQ in classic livery and a SQ’s Boeing 777-200ER 9V-SQR were parked besides us. Bags were out in ten minutes, and the priority tags worked very well. I headed out and took a cab to my hotel, Miracle Grand Convention. I booked the hotel through www.asia-hotels.com.th, as recommend by fellow FT talkers. The price was $61 including tax and everything and breakfast. The taxi ride cost $110 Baht. The hotel was very nice, especially for the price. The room was stylish and the bathrooms were clean and well designed. I highly recommended this hotel for those, who had a short layover. The taxi ride was only twelve minutes. You can arrange a complimentary ride, if you called the hotel in advance. At check-in, you should ask about your departure flight information, and a shuttle will be arranged. The breakfast buffet was very good with a choice of continental, Western, Chinese, Japanese, and Thai food items. My only complaint was TV – only two English channels – namely CNN and CNBC.
I hope you enjoy this report! One more to go!
Carfield
Wines
White Wine
Saint-Veran 2002, Les Vins des Personnets
Mas la Chevaliere 2002, Vine de Pays d’Oc
Red Wines
Chateau Franc-Perat 2001, Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux
Moulin de Ciffre 2001, Faugeres
Champagne
Piper Heidsieck, Champagne Brut
Port
Noval 1997, Late bottled Vintage Port
Dessert Wine
Chateau de la Peyrade, Muscat de Frontignan
KLM’s Special Wine
Syrah Rose 2003 La Baume
Here are just some additional reports from my trip to Kaohsiung to Bangkok. I flew EVA Air/Uni Air from KHH to TPE and then connected to KLM’s evening to Bangkok. Well, the KHH to TPE had a BR flight number, but in reality, it was operated by Uni Air’s crews and equipments (noted some B7’s MD-90s are painted in EVA Air livery).
August 12, 2004
BR 908 KHH-TPE Lv1640 Arr1730 McDonnell Douglas MD-90 B-17915 in Uni Air livery
I arrived at KHH airport about an hour prior to departure, and the airport was divided into an International and domestic terminal. The international terminal was pretty deserted, but BR check in counters were pretty busy, especially some cancellations that morning due to typhoon. I waited almost fifteen minutes before being checked in and there were three parties in front of me. The agent was apologetic and checked my bag all the way to BKK, and gave me the first boarding pass, as long as the lounge invitation. After gotten my boarding pass, I headed to immigration and security checkpoint with no wait. I went to the Evergreen lounge, which was a basic facility with a self-serving snack and beverage stations. Food includes various warmed Chinese buns, sandwiches, pastries, and some packaged snacks, and beverage had the normal soft drink/juice/beer selections, as well as some hard liquors. I don’t see any wines. There was a small business center with photocopy machines, phone booths, fax machine, and an internet-connected computer. I did not stay long, as I wanted to buy some duty free items. Our gate this afternoon was 9 and there was a small crowd there. Unfortunately, boarding was delayed due to weather at Taipei, and some American businessmen expressed some rather rude behaviors (if you ask me, it was quite disgraceful. For some reasons, some Westerners feel that they are the kings in others’ land and express some personally considered rather bad-mannered). Well the gate agent’s English did not help, but she had nothing to add, except we should be boarding soon. Thankfully, boarding soon began at 4:33pm, and newspapers were offered as we boarded. To my disbelief, the business class cabin was filled with all Westerners, except me as the sole Chinese. The flight was half full in J and Y was pretty full. After door was closed at 4:33pm, the F/As offered us a choice of beverage – apple juice or water, more newspapers, and towelette. The F/As were professional, and soon we were off to R/W27. We took off at 4:56pm, and flying time was forty minutes, with a cruising attitude of 41,000feet. If you look at a map of Taiwan, one can easily draw a straight line between KHH and TPE, but for some reasons (perhaps due to the height of the mountain range in the inland), the routing of KHH and TPE was that we flew out of the coast, and then traveled along the West Coast of Taiwan, before turning inland onto Taipei.
Well the F/A sprang into action after the pilot signaled a service check at 5:02pm. For economy passengers, they were offered a pastry and a choice of coffee, water, and juice. For business, we had a choice of three desserts – a blueberry cheese tart, an orange jelly/panna cotta type dessert, or a Caramel-Mocha take, along with our choice of beverage. I had the Mocha cake, which was served on a real china bowl, as long as a cup of tea with milk and sugar. The china was a basic white with a orange paint stroke – very nice. It was more than sufficient for a forty minutes flight. Descent soon began at 5:15pm, and we landed on R/W23 at 5:36pm. After we exited the runway, a China Airlines’ Boeing 747-400 B-18207 took off. We parked at Gate C9 six minutes later, and all passengers headed to the transit area. Some EVA Air’s plane spotting information –
Gate C7 SEA/EWR BR Boeing 747-400 Combi B-16405 New livery
Gate C6 SFO BR Boeing 74E B-16407 Old Livery
Gate C5 LAX BR Boeing 747-400 New livery
KL 878 TPE-BKK Lv1910 Arr2145 Boeing 747-400 Combi PH-BFC in KLM Asia livery
City of Calgary Classic livery
I headed to the transit counter and was immediately given an onward boarding pass. Since BR was the handling agent for KLM, the boarding pass was already printed and was given a lounge pass to Evergreen lounge. The business class section was very crowded but I found a seat. The buffet was extensive with some hot dishes, such as fried rice/ vermicelli, as long as Chinese buns, sandwiches, soups, and some snack, as well as non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, such as wines and hard liquors. There was free wireless internet service, for those with a laptop and wireless LAN port/card. The flight was fairly full in J and Y, as there was some amount of passengers heading to BKK, as well as Europe for the Olympics. I noted some passengers with the official Taiwanese Olympics representatives in business class. Boarding began at 6:29pm, and a pre-takeoff beverage was immediately offered – champagne for me, as well as menus and a sock/eyeshade/pen set (no amenity kit – I guess only the long haul flights). The F/As were friendly and efficient, but like their US alliance partner, Northwest, they all disappeared into the galley after the meal service. Door was first closed at 7:07pm, but then there was a problem with one of the cabin doors, mechanics were called on board, and we did not push back till 7:28pm. The pilot kept us well-informed and made two announcements during the short twenty minutes wait. After an Air Macau’s A321 landed, we took off from R/W23 at 7:42pm. Flying time was three hours and three minutes, and our cruising attitude was 35,000feet, and our routing took us south towards Tainan, and then headed towards Da Nang, and started our descent after passing Surin.
Once we reached 10,000feet, seat belt sign was turned off, and the F/As sprang into action. First, the beverage cart was rolled out (yes, carts was used extensively by KL – very coach like if you ask me, but they were more efficient). A bowl of mixed nuts were offered, and our entrée orders were taken. The meal was served in two courses – appetizer, salad, and entrée, and then dessert. I don’t understand why there is a need to rush through the meal service. There were three hours… I would appreciate a three course offering. Here is the menu and wine list!
Taipei to Bangkok
Appetizer
Hors d’Oeuvre
Salmon with horseradish sauce garnished with lime
The appetizer was okay with three slices of freshly smoked salmon, accompanied by smoked salmon mousse, and then there was a small salad bow, which was a basic green salad with cherry tomato, Radicchio, oak leaf lettuce, iceberg lettuce, and a tub of ranch dressing. The bread basket came with a choice of French or wheat rolls.
Main Courses
Oriental Chicken served with egg-fried-rice and stir-fried vegetables
I had the chicken, which was okay – the sauce was Chinese gravy, and the vegetables were tasty. The chicken was cut into bit pieces and were deep fried, and then braised for those culinary experts.
Or
Grilled beef fillet served with sautéed broccoli with butter, carrots, pumpkin, herbed butter and dauphinoise potatoes
My neighbor had the beef, which looked great, and it was quite substantial. I just did not feel like having red meat that evening.
Dessert
We invite you to select your choice of tart or fresh fruit from our dessert trolley
I had the tart, which was a nut tart with strawberry sauce, and my neighbor had the fruit bowl, which had pineapples, watermelon, cantaloupes, and grapes.
After the meal, I had a cup of tea, and the F/As collected the trays and disappeared for the rest of the flight. They did not do any walk through in the cabin, until descent was begun. They passed out the Dutch houses, which were cute, and my neighbor gave him mine, since he told me that he had a large collection. There was a classic PTV, with five channels of movies, and various short subjects. I watched the comedy channels, which was quite good. I miss Will and Grace. After so many “Everybody Loves Raymond” episodes, it is good to see other sitcoms, but I can’t help to wonder when the airlines will start showing episodes of reality TV. Descent began at 9:21pm Bangkok local time, and we landed on R/W21R at 9:45pm, and we parked at gate 54 five minutes later. An El Al’s Boeing 747-200 4X-AXQ in classic livery and a SQ’s Boeing 777-200ER 9V-SQR were parked besides us. Bags were out in ten minutes, and the priority tags worked very well. I headed out and took a cab to my hotel, Miracle Grand Convention. I booked the hotel through www.asia-hotels.com.th, as recommend by fellow FT talkers. The price was $61 including tax and everything and breakfast. The taxi ride cost $110 Baht. The hotel was very nice, especially for the price. The room was stylish and the bathrooms were clean and well designed. I highly recommended this hotel for those, who had a short layover. The taxi ride was only twelve minutes. You can arrange a complimentary ride, if you called the hotel in advance. At check-in, you should ask about your departure flight information, and a shuttle will be arranged. The breakfast buffet was very good with a choice of continental, Western, Chinese, Japanese, and Thai food items. My only complaint was TV – only two English channels – namely CNN and CNBC.
I hope you enjoy this report! One more to go!
Carfield
Wines
White Wine
Saint-Veran 2002, Les Vins des Personnets
Mas la Chevaliere 2002, Vine de Pays d’Oc
Red Wines
Chateau Franc-Perat 2001, Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux
Moulin de Ciffre 2001, Faugeres
Champagne
Piper Heidsieck, Champagne Brut
Port
Noval 1997, Late bottled Vintage Port
Dessert Wine
Chateau de la Peyrade, Muscat de Frontignan
KLM’s Special Wine
Syrah Rose 2003 La Baume
Sep 8, 2004, 1:10 pm
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: New York
Posts: 7,357
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