Kiwi Flyer

Boston to San Francisco (BOS-SFO) on American 757 first class

The flight was delayed 20 minutes, at first. The quoted reason being late arriving cabin crew. Boarding was called earlier than I expected, some 45 minutes before the new departure time. So I boarded. Moments later the captain went out to the gate and stopped the boarding process, and those of us who had already boarded were deplaned. It seems weather in San Francisco was giving us a further 60 minute delay but either that information had just come through or was miscommunicated.

So I headed back to the Admirals Club to wait the reboarding.

Once onboard we got a pillow and blanket, a pre-departure drink (alas water or orange juice only), a printed menu and our meal order taken whilst still on the ground. I guess all these extra service items are due to being a "daytime" trans-con flight? I don't recall getting these before but in hindsight all my AA trans-con nonstop flights before now have been red-eyes.

I'd selected a seat based on FEBO again, and again it paid off with one choice proving far more popular than the other.

For the second day in a row we wait onboard for more than an hour before pushback. The reason given was we were short on ground staff. I couldn't help noticing, though, that midway through the delay the airbridge was reattached and door reopened to let one last passenger onboard. Later in the flight the pilot made a special announcement over the PA berating cost cutting and asking us all to write in to Mr Arpey. Very unprofessional.

While we waited on the ground the captain gave several updates on the score of the Red Sox game. Despite the result I don't think it improved fans' mood when they realised they could have been watching much more of the game on tv.

The in flight entertainment was Goal 2, Oceans 13 and, you guessed it, Evan Almighty.

When handing out the warm nuts and first drinks the FA missed me. When I managed to get her attention I got great service the rest of the flight. Hic.

We had a further delay on arrival due to weather. As we descended it looked like fog was rolling in, but as we landed it was apparent it was only low cloud (the cloud did not reach ground level).

Kiwi Flyer

Boston to San Francisco first class menu

DINNER

To Start

Warm mixed nuts

Appetizer

Mojito shrimp served with somen noodles garnished with parsley

Salad

A combination salad featuring fresh seasonal greens, offered with your choice of pepper cream dressing or castello monte vibiano olive oil and balsamic vinegar and accompanied by a chili-cucumber salad

Bread Basket

Assorted gourmet breads

Entrees

Beef torta roma. Diced beef tenderloin and wild mushroom stew topped with fresh wilted spinach and spinach-strewn gnocchi.
May we suggest a glass of Westside Red, Paso Robles to complement this entree. Westside is a lively blend of several grapes including the syrah. This deep flavoured wine equalizes the beef tenderloin and wild mushroom stew.

Four cheese ravioli with tomato cream sauce. Ravioli pasta filled with four cheeses, complemented by a tomato cream sauce, sauteed onions and freshly chopped garlic.

Dessert

Ice cream sundae. Vanilla ice cream with a choice of hot fudge, butterscotch or seasonal fruit toppings, whipped cream and pecans

or

Fruit and cheese. A selection of seasonal fruit and fine cheeses

To Finish

Ghirardelli chocolates

Light Refreshment

Freshly baked on board, Otis Spunkmeyer cookies

Pre-Arrival Beverage

Chilled sparkling water with a fresh citrus garnish

Sparkling Wine

Louis Bouillot Cremant De Bourgogne Brut Rose

White Wines

Wente San Francisco Bay Chardonnay

Canyon Road Sauvignon Blanc

Red Wines

Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon

Westside Red, Paso Robles


BEVERAGES

Spirits
Skyy vodka
Tanqueray gin
Bacardi rum
Glenlivet single malt scotch
Maker's mark bourbon
Crown royal canadian whisky
Dewar's white label scotch whiskey
Jack daniel's tennessee whiskey

Beers
Heineken, Amstel light and select US beers

Brandy and Liqueurs
Di saronno amaretto
Kahlua
Bailey's irish cream
Courvoisier vsop fine champagne cognac

Other beverages
Carbonated beverages
American Airlines premium blend
Regular and decaffeinated coffee
Tea
Fruit juices
Milk

Kiwi Flyer

Break my body, with the back of your hand
San Francisco to Dallas Fort Worth (SFO-DFW) on American MD80 first class

I arrived at the Admirals Club just as it is closing. Why do they close before the boarding time of the last scheduled flights (yes more than one)? It doesn't make sense to me. And tonight, with many delayed flights even less sense. So I am dumped unceremoniously into the terminal.

This flight is no exception and is also late. Gee my on time stats this trip are not very good at all.

The AA concourse is crowded, and I have plenty of time to fill in, so I wander around airside as far as I can. The other concourses are almost deserted with just a handful of United and shop employees shutting up and leaving, and about a dozen United passengers stranded overnight bunking down.

When boarding eventually starts, later than the announced delayed departure time, it takes 40 minutes. How can it be so slow for such a small aircraft? Once all passengers are onboard there is a further irritating wait while bags are being loaded - they clearly didn't start unloading and loading bags when the aircraft arrived.

So for the third time in well under three days I spend more than an hour onboard before pushback. Those with tight connections may want to check that I'm not on your flight!

I swap seats so that a couple could sit together, only slightly irritated to be getting a worse seat in the exchange. Still by now I am so tired I barely stay awake for the safety briefing and am sound asleep while we taxi, only waking on final descent into DFW airport. Which just goes to show, even in the more uncomfortable seats/aircraft it is possible to sleep if I'm tired enough.

This very late arrival means I do not have enough time for a shower as I'd planned, but at least my planned comfortable connection means I am not running for the next flight as some other fellow passengers had to do. My onward flight is in the same terminal so I head straight for the Admirals Club. My next transit is rather a short one and so I take the precaution of checking in here instead of at the next airport. The nice friendly agent checks that I have good seats ^ although struggles with the seatmap for another airline. I pointed her to seatguru. 4 more boarding passes spit out. While all this was happening a family entered the club making good use of the "and family" access allowance - there must have been more than a dozen family members.

Kiwi Flyer

Doesn't make sense from where I stand
Dallas Fort Worth to Hartford (DFW-BDL) on American 737-800 first class

Why Hartford? Well Connecticut is another state I have yet to visit, the flight is over 1200 miles (thus maximises Qantas status credits), the schedule fits nicely and has first class (earns triple status credits relative to economy class), and there are back-up options if I have to reroute due to excessively late flights. I also wondered if the fall colours would be out yet (as it happens no).

The flight boarded much quicker than my other AA flights, but still at 25 minutes longer than I'd expect.

The in flight entertainment was Eye on American and How I Met Your Mother, followed by Evan Almighty.

As I check our flight path recited by the captain I realised that during this flight I will have overflown more than half of all US states on this trip alone, with more still to come. This is a reflection of my path reaching into almost all corners of the USA.

There is some mild turbulence throughout the flight.

Breakfast is an omelette or sugary cereal, plus fruit, bagel or biscuit.

For the first time in days I have a flight that is largely on time, only arriving a few minutes late due to a lengthy taxi time at DFW.

Kiwi Flyer

Hartford to Dallas Fort Worth (BDL-DFW) on American 737-800 first class

When I planned this trip I pondered a different route back, to add to my unique flown routes and possibly also add another destination to my tallies. However given this long sequence of flights I decided it was prudent to book the turnaround flight to ensure I would not misconnect and get stranded with big knock-on effects.

The terminal is small with no amenities other than a bathroom and a couple of shops. I walked a few laps while I waited to reboard. I didn't risk going landside. The turnaround didn't go quickly, with delays while ground crew sorted out a late departing flight to Chicago, and then another minor delay while a bump volunteer was sought. Out of the question for me this time.

Boarding itself took about 30 minutes. How can an airline schedule 40 minute turnarounds when boarding alone consistently takes almost this long, then add in time for cleaning, catering and deplaning? It seems Jetconnect (Qantas domestic in New Zealand) isn't the only airline with overly optimistic schedules.

Meal is lunch - a choice of beef enchilada or beef sandwich (too bad if you don't like beef), plus salad, cookie, cheese and crackers.

In flight entertainment is Eye on American and The Big Bang Theory, followed by once more Evan Almighty.

Again some minor turbulence, and we do not make up much of the delay. On arrival we have a long taxi - long distance that is, as we taxi at fairly high speed.

FLYGVA

Wow, I am once again impressed. ^^

boxo

Yikes! It's a good thing I don't do OW - no chance of you mucking my flights with delays. You don't have the same effect on trains, do you?!

Kiwi Flyer

Dallas Fort Worth to Los Angeles (DFW-LAX) on American 757 first class

I'd hoped my flight from Hartford would be on time or early so that I could catch an earlier flight to Los Angeles and help celebrate szg's birthday. Alas it was not to be

Instead I was left with my original flight choice, which I'd selected (before the birthday dinner was announced) based on 757 having more comfortable seats than the other choices of MD80 and 737-800.

This time I had a change of terminals. Rather than rush to board I decided to head to the Admirals Club closest to my departure gate rather than closest to my arrival gate. I grabbed a shower for I was sceptical I'd have enough time at LAX to have one. Then caught up on some emails and FT. I left several drink chits that I'd acquired thanks to my non-AA one world emerald status and posted to the Admirals Club treasure hunt thread.

I left the lounge at the appropriate time and was surprised to find boarding was already well underway (this more than 30 minutes before departure). I was even more surprised to find there was enough room for my carry-on in the overhead bin above my seat. My seatmate boarded a couple of minutes later and wasn't so lucky. But this got us talking, with each other and one of the FAs, and made the flight rather enjoyable, quick and somewhat liquid ( )

The meal was dinner and a repeat of one of my previous flights - vegetarian pizza or barbecue beef sandwich, plus salad, cookie, cheese and crackers.

IFE was Goal 2, Eye on American & The Big Bang Theory.

To celebrate arriving slightly early, and to enjoy a more comfortable lounge in T4 than in TBIT my seatmate and I proceeded to the Flagship Lounge, which I was happy to guest him in (as a one world sapphire travelling business class to Australia he would only have had access to Admirals Club on his own). We chatted some more and had a few drinks, or was it the other way around?

Kiwi Flyer

Baby, baby why you want to mess it up
Los Angeles to Hong Kong (LAX-HKG) on American operated by Cathay Pacific 747-400 business class

We couldn't spend long in the Flagship Lounge for our flights were leaving in an hour. We walked over to TBIT which was of course a heaving mass of travellers at this time of day. I headed for the Cathay Pacific counter to check if any better seats were available (the AA agent who checked me in earlier in the day was unable to get me anything better than I'd preselected), to hand in my departure card and to pick up a lounge invite card. The latter was for the interim business class lounge, which as a shared contract lounge has been a stickler for requiring an invite card the previous times I've used it. As it happens I was given an invite to the interim first class lounge but cautioned I wouldn't have time to use it as boarding will commence in a couple of minutes. This was a surprise - Qantas, for example, gave access to the LAX TBIT interim lounges only based on class of travel and not on status (due to overcrowding issues), and other airlines do similarly.

I took one look at the lengthy security queue and decided that indeed I wouldn't have time to visit the interim first class lounge. By the time I next use TBIT the alliance lounges will all be open so I missed my one and only chance. Oh well. Knowing airside both wings are connected I rolled the figurative dice and headed for the other security queue. It was a bit shorter, but factoring in the time to walk across and back to the left hand wing it likely did not save much time.

My boarding pass and passport were checked at the end of the queue. Then checked again just before xray and WTMD. Other than a job creation tool and way to frustrate passengers (for they were extremely slow taking a full minute per passenger to check), I have no idea what they were trying to achieve.

Through security and back to the far end gate. There are several lines laid out - first (and one world emerald despite the sign not indicating as such), business (and one world sapphire again not indicated on the sign), and 3 lines for various rows in economy. While we waited for boarding to commence the boarding pass was checked and marked a couple of times - to do the passport check and also to ensure everyone was in the right line. A few hopeful passengers were booted out of the first line into an economy line ^

Elderly, disabled and young families were boarded first (including some dubious hangers on). Then first class boarded. When I reached the boarding pass reader there was a beep and rejection of boarding pass. A new seat number in first was written on the boarding pass. Alas it was not mine but instead the passenger in front of me that got the op-up.

When I booked the trip I was in two minds whether to book using the CX or AA flight number. I ended up booking with the AA flight number for the status bonus miles (for Qantas Frequent Flyer there is no status bonus on CX flights and unlike Star Alliance the booked airline rather than operating airline counts for this bonus). I figured that even though the flight was likely to be overbooked (and indeed it was), there probably were many one world emeralds on the flight in business class and thus it would be dumb luck to get an op-up. Indeed the first 10 passengers to board (ahead of me or immediately behind) were all one world emerald passengers in business class, and that is just the ones that I could see.

So my 100% record of getting an op-up on Cathay Pacific whenever not booked into the highest cabin has come to an end, as it had to eventually.

Before I get into the flight itself, here is a couple of pieces of trivia. With this flight I will have flown into or out of LAX on more different airlines (not counting subsidiary or feeder airlines) than any other airport, with Cathay Pacific being the 10th airline and edging out Auckland with 9 airlines (but soon to be 10). Further, LAX is the 5th airport that I have flown into/out of at least 10 different countries (nonstop) - but a long way behind SIN which has 21 different countries at latest count.

Kiwi Flyer

only long distance - the last one I took was also late, but then again their on-time performance is atrocious

Kiwi Flyer

A pre-departure drink while I settle in. Since I boarded early I take the opportunity to freshen up (and cool down - for the terminal was very hot). A nice amenity kit is handed out along with a menu and a water bottle, and the elite passengers get a personal greeting from the CSD (or whatever CX's equivalent is called).

We push back on time and have a surprisingly short (and quick) taxi. Our flight path takes us up the west coast and over Alaska, across the Bering Strait and down over far eastern Russia, past South Korea and Taiwan. This is a very different path to the Los Angeles to Singapore nonstop flight, which is more westerly instead of northwest. So I add another US state overflown on this trip. Does anyone want to guess how many I'll overfly by the time I'm finished (hint it will not be every state)?

The dinner service was disappointing - just one drink (although admittedly I declined tea or coffee but still should have been offered refills) and they missed me in the dessert/cheese course. This may have been due to the particular way they served. As each row was reached they first served status passengers and then non-status passengers. I couldn't be bothered chasing after more drink (I'd had plenty the previous several hours) or dessert or cheese but it was disappointing.

The seat was quite comfortable, in fact the best of the trip so far. Although kind of similar to Singapore Airlines' space bed it is wider and felt more comfortable apart from the odd sensation in partial recline when the seat bottom was raised up.

The avod IFE was good (responsive, intuitive interface and although not the biggest selection in the skies it was adequate enough for me), but my headset had a screeching glitch in one ear every now and then which was unpleasant to say the least. Needless to say I did not watch Evan Almighty

I managed to get a reasonable amount of sleep. We arrived on time. Seeing where the arrival gate and departure gates where I turned left instead of right as everyone else did and headed for the transfers at the top of the "T". When I arrived I wondered if I'd made a mistake, for the transfer desk was deserted. Fortunately transfer security was open and I was quickly through. A quick wander over to The Pier first class lounge and then a 30 minute wait for the lounge to open.

Kiwi Flyer

Los Angeles to Hong Kong business class menu

SUPPER

Starter

Royal salmon fillet with tomatoes and romaine lettuce and lemon dressing

Main Courses

Pan-seared beef tenderloin on shallot confit parsnip mash, beans, carrots and cherry tomatoes

Stir-fried seafood with green onions and ginger egg fried rice, pak choy and mushrooms

Light Selection

Wontons in noodle soup

Pepperoni and mushroom pizza

Cheese and Dessert

Cheese selection

Fresh seasonal fruit

Chocolate cheesecake with raspberry coulis

Tea and Coffee

Pralines


SNACKS

Braised beef brisket in noodle soup

Sandwich selection

Haagen Dazs Ice cream


BREAKFAST

Starters

Orange or apple juice

Mango smoothie

Fresh seasonal fruit

Fruit yoghurt

Assorted cereals

Main Courses

Denver omelette with streaky bacon, potato wedge and grilled tomato

Braised e-fu noodles with dim sum served with chilli sauce

Abalone clam and mushroom congee served with spring onion pancake

Bread Basket

Assorted rolls and breakfast pastries served with preserves, honey and butter

Tea and Coffee


DRINK LIST

Juices

Orange, apple, tomato

Soft Drinks

Coke zero, coke light, coke, sprite, perrier water, tonic water, soda water and ginger ale

Coffees

Freshly brewed coffee, espresso, cappuccino and caffe latte, regular or decaffeinated

Teas

Hong Kong style milk tea
Ceylon, Japanese, jasmine
organic selection: camomile, earl grey and peppermint


WINE LIST

Champagne

Champagne Deutz Brut Classic

White Wines

Paul Sapin Macon Lugny Cuvee Prestige 2005

Sebastiani Sonoma County Chardonnay 2005

Red Wines

Kirrihill Companions Clare Valley Shiraz 2004

Chateau De Mercey Bourgogne Hautes Cotes de Beaune 2005

Disznoko Tokaji Aszu 5 Puttonyos 1996

Port

Dow's Late Bottled Vintage Port 2000

Aperitifs and Cocktails

Gin, rum, vodka, martini rosso, martini extra dry, campari, sweet and dry sherry, bloody mary, screwdriver

Whiskies

Chivas regal 12 years old, johnnie walker gold label, jack daniel's, canadian club

Cognac

Hine rare and delicate fine champagne

Liqueurs

Drambuie, cointreau, bailey's irish cream

Beer

International selection

CX Signature Drinks

Cathay delight, pacific sunrise

Kiwi Flyer

I forgot to mention that the LAX Flagship Lounge has sunk further in NM's Johnnie Walker Index - now down to Black

Kiwi Flyer

Hong Kong to Tokyo Narita business class menu

BRUNCH

Starters

Juice selection

Fresh seasonal fruit

Seasonal salad with Japanese yuzu dressing

Yuba soba noodles

Main Courses

Steamed sea bass and grilled scallop with sea urchin sauce, bamboo rice and Japanese mixed vegetables

Pan-fried fillet of chicken with onion sauce, steamed rice and Chinese mixed vegetables

Frittata with asparagus and pancetta, Cumberland sausage, back bacon and roasted potatoes

Cheese and Dessert

Cheese selection

Selection of pastries

Haagen Dazs ice cream

Bread Basket

Assorted rolls and breakfast pastries served with preserve, honey and butter

Tea and Coffee

Pralines


DRINK LIST

Juices

Orange, apple, tomato

Soft Drinks

Coke zero, coke light, coke, sprite, perrier water, tonic water, soda water and ginger ale

Coffees

Freshly brewed coffee, espresso, cappuccino and caffe latte, regular or decaffeinated

Teas

Hong Kong style milk tea
Ceylon, Japanese, jasmine
organic selection: camomile, earl grey and peppermint


WINE LIST

Champagne

Champagne Deutz Brut Classic

White Wines

Paul Sapin Macon Lugny Cuvee Prestige 2005

Watershed Margaret River Unoaked Chardonnay 2005

Red Wines

Kirrihill Companions Clare Valley Shiraz 2004

Vieux Chateau Landon Cru Bourgeois Medoc 2003

Port

Dow's Late Bottled Vintage Port 2000

Aperitifs and Cocktails

Gin, rum, vodka, martini rosso, martini extra dry, campari, sweet and dry sherry, bloody mary, screwdriver

Whiskies

Chivas regal 12 years old, johnnie walker gold label, jack daniel's, canadian club

Cognac

Hine rare and delicate fine champagne

Liqueurs

Drambuie, cointreau, bailey's irish cream

Beer

International selection

CX Signature Drinks

Cathay delight, pacific sunrise

Kiwi Flyer

Sooner or later I'll find my place
Hong Kong to Tokyo Narita on Cathay Pacific 747-400 business class

I chose this particular flight for the longhaul product instead of regional seating and IFE on some other flights.

I was first in the lounge when it opened and went straight for a shower. Then hopped over to the computers to catch up on some urgent messages and sort out a few things. Unfortunately the lounge's internet connection was down, and even when it came back up was rather flakey, so this made work difficult. I consoled myself with some Moet while waiting for the flight.

The departures screen eventually showed boarding so I headed to the gate next door. By the time I got there it was on "final call" despite the large queue for economy. There was no queue for first/business so I strolled straight through to my seat. The forward business class cabin gradually filled and the last couple of passengers struggled to find room for their carry-ons.

A pre-departure drink and we soon pushed back to join a long queue of wide bodies. As we taxiied to the end of the runway I was surprised to see an Air New Zealand 747 at a maintenance hangar. The skies were extremely murky with humidity and pollution, so no good views on take off. The cloud cover was extensive - we saw the peaks of Taiwan as we flew between the island and mainland, but no view of Japan until on final descent we broke through the cloud.

Brunch was nice and the service was good - much better than on the longhaul flight.

We had a long taxi right around terminal one to get to our gate. A longish walk to immigration. But the processing is fairly quick and only took some 15 minutes despite the queues. They are playing a video about the new procedures which start 20 November 2007 - for Japan is following USA in requiring fingerprints and eye photograph for entry

A couple of questions at customs and I'm off to my hotel, to check in and dump my bag before heading into the city.