G-BOAC

Apologies for the awful pun

For about the last 6 months there‘s been talk on and off internally of me visiting Korea for various meetings and work-related activities and finally in mid-October I was able to firm up plans and lock in some actual dates. I’d been investigating flight options and found some ‘quite good’ C fares on LH which I liked the look of (having tried LH C earlier this year and liked it, plus with an eye on early BD*G requalification) but by the time I came to book there was nothing realistic on LH.com. Enter Expedia and the availability of an attractive ‘Expedia Special’ (~1700 GBP – given my baseline reference “if I must” plan was ~1200 on BA in Economy via NRT and HKG, that is attractive in my book!) to ICN on OZ direct if I could be slightly flexible on dates. Of course I could I assumed it was a Z class fare so did a quick search of the BD earning chart to verify it should garner me the usual 200% and found it should, so I went ahead and booked (and for the record, the first leg was posted with 11014 miles in the old BD account 3 days after flying ^). This year I’ve flown a more diverse range of carriers than ever before (i.e. not just BA or oneworld) so was looking forward to continuing this by sampling OZ. Extra research on the OZ forum didn’t turn up too much and I had some PMs from other interested FTers too based on a thread I started, so I vowed to spend some time writing up a detailed report ‘for the record’. Here goes…

OZ522 LHR-ICN Saturday 10 November 2007 21:00/16:40*
I had been auto-allocated seat 3D at booking and a call to the OZ UK office had been friendly but ultimately useless for changing seats so I thought I’d get to LHR about 3hrs before departure and try for Row 1. It’s no problem for me hanging around T1 a bit longer – I planned to use the BA lounge thanks to Open Doors as a BA Gold and if I was at home I’d simply be working on my materials for the week anyway. All I need is my Smartphone (for its smart aspects, not to bray down loudly, boorishly and self-importantly in lounges, worry not!), my laptop and ‘net access most of the time – it’s certainly no great hardship to do the same work with a free drink and food elsewhere So I left home for the all-too-familiar Waterloo->Baker Street->Paddington Tube ride and the omens were good: trains pulling in as soon as I arrived at the platforms. I’d planned on the 17:40 HEX and after grabbing my pre-ordered ticket I was seated in the first carriage for easy exit at T1 by 17:35 – no free upgrade to First via any code this time, but for once the lack of First carriage at the end of the train worked nicely for me!

There was something wrong I couldn’t quite place my finger on at first – but then I realized it was going to LHR in the dark! Not something I’ve done for a long time looking back since my flights always depart during the day normally. That little niggle resolved I went back in to autopilot, only switching off as I emerged from the lift in T1 when I couldn’t press on to Zone R as usual and had to actually look where OZ checked in! Zone D. Easy And they didn’t skimp on desks either – 4 open for Business/*G and 4 for ‘Travel’ class. It seems to be manned by SK agents (I was expecting BD since they’re resident in T1 and SK aren’t) and within minutes I was moved to 1C and watching my bag (properly tagged with Business and Priority snob tags ) disappear down the chute. The lady said C was looking busy but Y wasn’t and confirmed it was a new plane ^ The format was 2-3-2 in 4 rows with an extra row 5 of just 2 seats each side. I was handed a lounge invite to the BD lounge and informed Gate 52 was already posted before I asked if there was any kind of fast track security to be informed that sorry, there wasn’t. But that was no issue (for once) – T1 was deadly quiet and (despite the few people who were in front of me being the usual brand of liquid/x-ray moron ) by only 18:05 I was airside and walking towards the BA lounge complex.

The BA lounge complex was equally dead with 3 desk agents to present myself to, each of them pretty much twiddling their thumbs. I approached the FIRST/Gold side with my Asiana BP and BA card sheepishly in hand, expecting to be directed back over to the right in to the Terraces (Business/Silver) lounge (the Open Doors rules are quite clear in that as a Gold you’re permitted access on any carrier to BA’s own lounges, but only at Terraces level not the usual FIRST level you’re entitled to when on BA/oneworld). But it wasn’t to be – the agent was lovely (why people insist on calling them ‘Dragons’ I don’t know, it’s an FT term I won’t use myself) and welcomed me with a smile and some chat, stickered my BP for the F lounge and ushered me in that direction ^ I had to go to the Terraces anyway to collect some currency from the Travelex there but soon enough I was back in my rightful-wrongful place The lounge itself was just as quiet – I think that may be why she was happy to let me in there instead – and I settled back in to autopilot mode to demolish a (almost certainly) unhealthy amount of Heidsieck Blanc de Millenaires and a bacon baguette, both of them tasting that little bit better for the fact I wasn’t expecting to get either that day! With boarding due to commence 20:20 I thought I’d pop in to the BD lounge just to see if they did anything special for OZ pax. They didn’t. That was equally quiet with only OZ and a BD (ex-BMED) flight to Tehran still to depart. After necking a cheeky Boddingtons in honour of the FTer of that name I grabbed a bottle of water and set off for Gate 52 in good time…

Proper priority boarding ^ (are you listening BA? No, never…sigh) commenced at 20:30 for Special Needs/Families/Business/*G and I was one of the first on to be greeted by a newspaper trolley (Times and FT in English) at door 2L and a friendly welcome from the crew. I settled in to 1C with one of the crew hovering to hang my jacket and was pleased to note not only new seats but AVOD – I’d lucked in to one of the 777s with both (usually I believe LHR gets the new seats and PTVs without AVOD). Personal storage is not great around the seat (no problem with overhead space, just for ‘immediate access’ stuff) in row 1. This is a really great improvement to BA’s newest Club World design and one I appreciate (I usually have a small pile of crap to stow – iPod, mobile phone, passport/papers, Sony NC ear buds, etc.). Slippers, Sennheiser headphones and the branded amenity kit (contents: eye shades, ear plugs, toothbrush and paste, Biotherm ‘clarifying lotion and lipablm, and Neutrogena body lotion…no flight socks oddly?) were in the seat pocket and I noted the very large TV screens in use (in Row 1, attached to the bulkhead – in other rows, on the seatback in front). Leg room was impressive and comfortable and the seat controls easy to work out with plenty of control over angles, footrest height, leg support, etc. There’s a small divider between seats for when you want to sleep, but I was disappointed it wasn’t bigger for more privacy (I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: maybe I’m just a miserable old bugger but one of my biggest reasons for loving BA’s NCW product so much is the wonderful degree of privacy it affords in the window seats). Each seat has power with a standard plug (i.e. not Empower), again like NGCW. By about 20:40 corks were popping and that’s always a nice sound – enough to distract me from being unfortunately joined in 1A by – as ever with my luck – some random bloke not a nice lady! Customs/immigration forms were efficiently handed out just after the Water/OJ/Champagne run and we were looking good for an on-time departure. Despite what the check-in girl told me there were 12 empty seats in C so I excused myself (“Nothing personal, mate!” basically ) and moved to 2D (lettering is AC-DEG-HK) having the entire middle block to myself. Storage is slightly better here with plastic ‘holder’ areas under the back of the seat in front for shoes/water bottles/glasses when sleeping, etc. I would say Row 1 is probably good for easiest egress in the window/middle seat but I’d prefer the row 2 aisles in future (happily, 2D is what I was auto-assigned for my return leg!).

The galley setup seems to be just like UA’s from my trip in September – 2 toilets on the left by the cockpit door and a large area on the right for the crew to prepare/hang out in. The bathrooms are nicely equipped – toothbrush packs, combs, mouthwash, 4/5 bottles of sprays/moisturizer, etc. and a nice little bunch of flowers. There are also bathrooms at the back of the cabin so I’d echo the advice I was given on the OZ forum and say row 4/5 is least desirable.

The crew were smiley and efficient about their duties so I wasn’t surprised when we pushed back early at 20:55 and given the TV screens don’t need to be stowed, the moving map told me we took off at 21:09. I noted the cabin lights were hardly dimmed at all which is unusual. Given the time I think the crew worked fast to server dinner ASAP to maximize sleep for people. Menus and hot towels came quickly and were followed by the orders being taken for food and the first drink – and then oddly our menus were taken away. That’s a first for me and I’ve no idea why except for cost saving? (The menu contains both LHR-ICN and ICN-LHR for Nov/Dec 2007 so I guess they re-use them as much as possible). My table was set by 21:30 and I was served my Champagne (as ever!). There is an interesting service pattern – 2 crew man a trolley down the left aisle first serving drinks and Western starters, then return back down the aisle to repeat the process on the right side. Then on the left another crew member commences the Korean service. Of course, there was no way I was going to stick to boring Western cuisine so I had time to observe all this Here is the complete dinner menu, and I’ve put the rest of it (for those that aren’t bold enough to ask to take one; see below!) at the end of this post:

I had no idea where to start with my ‘Bi-Bim-Bab’! Which must be a common problem as the tray includes a simple set of instructions for stupid Westerners out of their depth like me You mix the rice, hot sauce and sesame oil in to the big bowl of vegetables and stir thoroughly, basically. And then consume with the side dishes and soup. And very nice it was too! On the Korean tray you get wooden chopsticks and a metal spoon…on the Western tray I noted metal cutlery except for plastic knives I assume that’s some regulation OZ must comply with, but as with all such rules they are, err, stupid!

Service throughout was attentive with many top-ups forthcoming. The pilot came on the horn to welcome us and inform us we had 4 pilots and 13 crew on board, and were looking bang on schedule. As I’m busy mixing my little bowl, the Western mains are served in the same left-right pattern. After everyone was done on the mains/Korean dishes, a cheese plate was brought around on the trolley with port (which it would have been rude not to have a couple of glasses of!). After that was cleared away, dessert arrived and so did the brandy with coffee All in all, I felt nicely full but not like I’d over indulged too much on the food. A good balance. Glassware and china is all of a high quality – basically, the whole ‘product’ feels like a quality setup (bar the knives). Again, all service was left-then-right aisle.

After diner was all cleared (completed by more hot towels and water bottles being handed out) I have to say the crew all but disappeared. They were always behind the curtain in the galley whenever I went up to the bathroom and didn’t do passes of the cabin. I am not sure if this is part of a more discreet service ethic or not, but I do know they were responding to call bells within seconds as I required several more brandy top ups to aid sleep Having watched the Simpsons movie throughout dinner I completed ‘I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry’ and then bedded down. Now the bed itself is OK…but it’s still a slopey/wedgie seat The slope seemed worse than the LH C bed I had tried before and this really does (for me at least) make getting comfortable hard. I really only sleep well fully flat. Don’t get me wrong, I’d rather be there struggling to sleep than down the back, but it’s just a shame airlines go for these slopey setups. I was tired (and full of brandy!) so sleep itself was no problem but it was fairly fitful as I kept trying to get comfortable and raise myself back up the slope! I got 3hrs or so banked and then gave up about 3:30 out of ICN and grabbed the laptop to do some work.

At 3hrs out of ICN the second meal service began – quite early I’d say (though probably to try and get you on the local ‘lunch’ time better). This time the crew member simply came around with one menu and presented it to you personally, took it back after you’d chosen and then they moved on to the next person with it! Very odd. However, it was no problem when I requested to have one to take away with me. It cost me a funny, bemused look and my dignity, but it’s all for the greater FT good The china/tray was nicely presented – though my pepper pot was empty! Hot sauce was a good substitute Loving that stuff already! The menu this time was:

And I opted for the seafood (which was very nice and certainly no skimping on the ‘value’ items ^) and drank mostly lots of water, only squeezing in a couple of glasses of Champagne and then a coffee. The meal service was both preceded and followed by a hot towel run – I have no idea why BA only do one run (most of the time), it’s such a simple little thing it really is a nice touch to have them before and after each service ^

We touched down at 16:46 just behind a JAL flight which made me worry about immigration queues so having docked at our gate by 16:58 (with jetways being connected to both 1L and 2L but only 1L opened initially to let C off first it seemed) I was first off and hoping to beat the rush. How wrong I was – a more serene arrival experience I don’t think I’ve ever had! It was only a short walk to Immigration and that took all of 1 minute for me and someone in front of me – by 17:02 I was on the way to baggage reclaim which sprang in to life with priority bags coming out first ^ Even pausing to exchange some currency I was outside waiting for the bus to my hotel by 17:10, well in time for a 17:18 bus. That’s even better than my last time at SIN! OK, it’s a sample size of 1 experience but I can never, ever imagine that happening at LHoleR!

So there we go – I was in Korea on the way to the IC Grand and I’d completed my first OZ flight. Overall I was impressed. It was comfortable and well equipped for a C product, the service was always friendly and attentive and the catering was bang on IMHO. I didn’t sleep as well as I would have on BA but then it was a direct flight at a good price and despite the less than ideal bed, I still arrived very relaxed, not too exhausted and I’d fitted in productive work too. Really, what more can you want from a Business product on a business trip? I look forward to trying the return flight (where I won’t be trying to sleep so hope for AVOD again!) though not to leaving Korea – I am now off out to explore a bit before the real work begins

(As promised above, here is the rest of the menu for drinks, etc.)

G-BOAC

Ooops! I didn’t leave myself a placeholder for my brief time in Korea so here it goes anyway…

Unfortunately, I don’t have much time to explore the city itself since this is a work trip. By the time I got to the hotel last night I was beginning to flag and wasn’t hungry so I stayed awake as long as I could working and then crashed out to awake relatively early after about 8 hours sleep (allowing me to write the first part of the TR of course ). I was determined, however, to take the morning off to see at least some bits of Seoul and ‘thanks’ to delays on my boss’s flight from the US I actually ended up with the whole day to myself, allowing me longer than expected. I had very helpfully been given some whirlwind advice from VC10 Boy for some things to take in and when I stopped by the Concierge for a map I found him to be excellent and very helpful. In fact, most of the suggestions overlapped! Armed with a fistful of maps and advice I thought I’d brave the Subway from the stop right at the IC (Samgseong) to Anguk as the Concierge suggested, which meant a change of lines in order to take in the Jogyesa Temple (which in addition to be being amazingly ornate had a ceremony in progress which was interesting to observe) and the myriad shops at Insa-dong.

I say ‘brave’, in fact it was no issue at all. Everything important seems to be in English too which is a boon for people like me with little idea about how Hangeul works (the Concierge loaded me up with a great travel guide which is like a watered down, free Lonely Planet which introduces this and I get the logic, but it’d take far more time than I have this trip to get used to it usefully). The subways were very busy but clean and wider than the Tube I’m used to so felt more comfortable. It was fascinating to watch the ‘seniority’ system at work, with everyone willingly giving up the ‘Senior Citizen’ seats for a new arrival if they were older than themselves. Try finding that on the Tube! Though people seemed to talk very discreetly on their phones which work underground as I’d expected (covering their mouths which I’d heard about but never seen) it seems one worrying trend has crossed the globe – kids playing their crappy tinny music so loud you hear it second hand

The Concierge recommended I walk to the Cheonggyecheon Canal from the temple and I duly followed his advice. He then suggested I get a cab to the Cable Car station to go up to North Seoul Tower but I decided I’d just keep on walking instead and take in more of what was around me. I was already feeling very comfortable here – you get the benefit of not understanding most of the stuff (shop signs, advert text, etc.) which feels kind of relaxing as you have to let yourself ‘go’ and just absorb things. This is one thing I enjoyed hugely about Tokyo too. However, the really important things are also in English like on the Subway (e.g. street signs, major road signs) so you have the safety net of not getting lost! On the whole, I found it much more accessible than Tokyo (though again both have been one-off experiences to date). The weather was perfect for my liking – not so cold to make you want to be inside, not so hot to make walking a chore, and just a nice amount of crispness in the morning air. Another reason to keep walking not hop in a cab.

Having found the cable car I was soon at the observation deck of the tower. The view wasn’t as clear as it could have been but it was still hugely impressive. As was the feeling of ‘sheer drop’ when you go near the windows (something they tout in the brochure thingy!). In a bad way for someone who doesn’t like heights, that is! Since I was there I decided to have lunch at the Korean (“Hancook”) restaurant in the tower. Probably would be considered a bit of a ‘touristy’ thing to do but I was the only obvious foreigner in there I have to say. And I enjoyed it. I’m no expert on Korean food but the lunch offering is the full buffet plus additional chosen main with tea (and I had a beer too) for about 23,000 KWN so it seemed a good deal, especially with the view to admire. Plus I was now nicely hungry after the walking and skipping breakfast.

After the cable car back down it was onwards to Namdaemun gate and then towards City Hall for a trip to Deoksugung Palace opposite it. Or so I thought. I was foiled by it being closed on Mondays Something which also did for the plan to visit the War Memorial (I’d read that was closed in the guidebook at least). Oh well, next time! Now feeling puffed with confidence about the Subway I eschewed a cab once more and hopped on at City Hall to ride ‘the green one’ all the way back to the hotel for a well deserved beer from my free minibar (love that benefit!) before returning to the more mundane world of work! Still, at least it’s the reason I had the opportunity to see any of Seoul, even if it was a small part and rather quickly! ^

OZ521 ICN-LHR Thursday 15 November 2007 13:35/17:25
Since I was staying at one of the IC hotels in Seoul I knew the ‘City Air Terminal’ was very close by and that I could check in there (only OZ and KE allow this) and get a bus direct to ICN (without the faff of stopping at other hotels). I also knew from the Concierge that they wouldn’t accept you under 3hrs before departure So I checked out by 10am and walked all of 2 minutes through the back of the hotel and in to the terminal where I found it looked just like a tiny airport: both KE and OZ had their manned check-in desks and in OZ’s case 2 for First/Business/*G and 4 for Travel Class. Retrieving my BP for the pre-assigned 2D and confirming I had hand luggage only (but not that I’d packed it myself – oh no, how did my flight depart and land safely?!?! ) took all of a minute and armed with my BP and lounge pass I was directed to the second floor to clear Immigration. One stamp in the passport and one on the BP later and I was soon relieved of another 14,000 KWN for the bus ticket. All terribly civilized and simple – it reminded me of the Paddington HEX check-in of which I was a fan when BA offered it. The 10:15 bus slowly fought its way forward through the near-gridlock which seems constant in Seoul but at least this time I enjoyed a far better view of things thanks to another crisp, clear morning vs. my evening arrival bus trip, with two essential travel tools (iPod + NC earbuds) blocking out the in-bus TV nicely

The journey is said to take 60-90 minutes again and this time it was bang on 60. I wasn’t told this fact anywhere on the day but I’d read on the City Air Terminal website that I could us the Crew/Diplomatic Security lines for a speedy passage airside. It took a minute or two to get my bearings and work out the terminal layout for where to go but knowing the OZ lounge I needed (the Gate 12 one which was closest to my Gate 6 departure) was ‘to the right’ I headed for Number 2 of the 4 (or maybe 5?) screening points located across the terminal (which is arranged in one big ‘arc’). Here it was actually signposted that City Air Terminal pax get to use the quick channels (which was a shame, because until then in my head I’d found a special, exclusive secret. I was a Diplomat with full “Deeeplowmatik Emu-ni-taaay” in my ‘best’ Joss Ackland voice. The name was BOAC, G-BOAC. License to trip report ) and by 11:25 I was poorer by a pretty reasonable $60 for a load of Duty Free (amazing how many people demand Soju and Kimchi as a present…plus there was $18/about 10p at today’s rates on 1L of Bombay for myself, natch! ) and by 11:30 I’d entered the OZ lounge and settled in a quiet corner. The lounge is quite large (covering a big chunk of both sides of the upstairs above the shops) and fairly nicely furnished – comfortable, neutral, sedate…you get the idea – with pretty standard business class quality offerings I’d say (fruit, snacks, noodles, coffee/tea, booze of the JW Black standard, soft drinks, etc.). I tucked in to some noodles for breakfast with a glass of ‘Champagne’ (Beringer sparkling rose) before hitting the free (^) WiFi for another round of the Never Ending E-mail Sync Game – the gameshow nobody ever wins. There are no boarding calls made and having noted boarding was due to start 13:05 I set off just before 13:00 to what was the very end gate on the ‘right’ of the ‘arc’ of the terminal and exhibiting perfect timing (for once!) walked right on to the plane via the Business line which had just been called for priority boarding. Full marks to OZ for getting everything right on the ground again ^

Boarding via 1L on the dual-door airbridge another warm welcome awaited me along with the newspaper trolley…and a 777 with the new seats but no AVOD Apart from the different IFE controller, the seats seemed identical to the other 777 though the cabin setup was different (only 4 rows of 2-3-2, no extra row 5 with 2 each side…and the front galley has no washrooms, they are behind row 4 on each side only). Today there were 9 empty C seats and once again the cabin was spotless. As my coat was taken and I dumped the pillow/blanket on the E seat (which check-in said they’d keep free as it was not full today ^) I realized I’d not mentioned these in the outbound report and some people may be interested: the pillow is a smallish yellow rectangle thingy with not a huge deal of padding. I did use it outbound when sleeping and it was so-so…more like a cushion then a pillow. The blankets are a very thin grey ‘staticy’ affair. This is another (often overlooked) big improvement BA have made recently to their credit: big, fluffy proper pillows and nice thick duvets in J ^^ (Even if the cabin is usually kept so damn hot the duvet gets slept on top of not under )

The same efficient process seen on the outbound (drinks, landing cards, papers offered, on-time door closure) was only spoiled by the Captain’s apology: there was a lot of traffic to Europe today and limited tracks available from ATC so we’d have to wait 30-35 minutes. The crew used this time to show the safety video and give out hot towels (though not to offer a proactive supplemental drinks run which was surprising to me) and sure enough we pushed back 14:10 in the end, finally getting airborne at 14:28. Despite this, the map still showed us arriving 10 minutes early at 17:15 local time – the benefit of tailwinds!

As we bumped through some mild turbulence the crew swung in to action again like clockwork, just as on the outbound with the same serving routine to the letter so I won’t repeat it…the only difference was a personal visit from the CSM this time to introduce herself, welcome me and thank me for flying with them. Always a nice touch ^ This time the menu was:

Of course I opted for the Korean menu once more (with Champagne!) and was glad I did. This was excellent…and this time I didn’t even need instructions, aren’t I clever?! At least I can say I learned something in Korea, having eaten similar and been taught by a local a couple of nights previously Actually this was one of the nicest airline meals I’ve had this year – I think the key is in its simplicity (and the fact it’s filling but not bloating…and if I’m totally honest ‘finger food’ still appeals to the big kid in me I guess!).

Stuck without AVOD I sat through ‘Transformers’ (which had been edited to buggery for any kind of bloody swear word, no matter how damn mild…sorry, just redressing the balance a tad for a real pet hate of mine ). With a seemingly never-ending supply of Champagne being served to me by the absolutely stunning crew member, that tosh finally drew to a close (you could suspend your belief from the moon and it would still be ridiculous!) and I fired up the laptop in the hope work would keep me awake and I could begin this return leg report too. The crew were extremely attentive on this leg with many regular passes through the cabin: I put this down to it being a day flight not a night flight with more people staying awake. In addition to my near-constant top-ups they came through offering scone/afternoon tea trays, fruit trays, OJ/water, etc. at various points.

Eventually work actually had a soporific effect and despite my intentions to stay awake for this flight and in to the early evening in the UK, I began to doze off to my iPod playing. When I jolted back to life, catching myself before I drifted off fully, I figured I should call it a day and pack away the laptop and try to have a proper nap – this was about 5hrs out of the UK. This time I felt more familiar with the seat and managed to get comfortable slightly more easily, though still suffered from the slope After about an hour I decided to put the bed in to ‘in between’ mode (i.e. in between flat and a lounging seat) and curl up kind of sideways. Hard to describe but I think the fact I was already half-asleep helped me dose off more comfortably again quickly, despite not normally being able to sleep even anywhere remotely upright. When I woke up again it was only 2:30 to go and I was feeling hungry so I asked the crew for something I wish I’d tried on the outbound – the hot ramen (and a nice a cup of tea, just so as not to be too Korean ). This came a few minutes later and then shortly after that they began taking orders for the second meal service anyway:

Feeling like a bit of a pig I ordered the Mixed Saithe and thought I’d at least try it, even if I wouldn’t finish it after the very filling (and delicious) noodles. This time the second meal service began about 2:10 out of LHR as we were taking a familiar-looking (for me at least!) track on the map from HEL. Once again the food was good and the quantity of the fish was excellent (5 nice thick pieces), though I couldn’t eat more than about half of it. Having washed this meal down with a couple of champagnes, a coffee rounded things off nicely with the fruit service and I disappeared to the washroom to freshen up. I had to use the one behind 4H side since the one behind 4C was occupied and when I emerged I noticed two things: firstly, the crew serving Y wore different (plain, red) aprons to the ones in C (flower patterned grey) but I have no idea why…secondly, I couldn’t get back to my seat as the galley was full of about 10 of them giggling like excited school girls with their cameras and camera phones out, posing for pictures with the pax who were in 4HK! The CSM explained the guy was a famous Korean pop star (sorry, I did not get the name) which had been my immediate assumption too. The girls looked embarrassed they’d been ‘caught’ but I thought it was great (and said so and told them not to worry!) – they all seemed so happy and star struck!

After I could make my way back to my seat I noticed we were in a ‘corkscrew’ holding pattern for LHR (circling but losing altitude gradually) and inevitably our early arrival was now showing 17:35 which ultimately proved accurate for touchdown and a fairly rapid taxi saw us on stand 49 by 17:42. And what a fitting reminder of LHR vs. ICN we were immediately given: they attempted to attach the jetty to 1L no less than 3 times before giving up and attaching it to 2L (on the second attempt) Still, it wasn’t all bad…after the hike and a half it takes to get to Immigration from there I was pleased to see it nearly totally empty – so empty that there was no point using the (working) Iris machine and I handed my passport to two of the agents who were chatting about ‘when Seoul and Narita land at the same time and it’s just the two of us on, it gets busy then’ as I approached – yeah who’d have thunk it, huh?

And that was pretty much that. With hand luggage only (Seoul = sensible = Government not pressured by lobbying for one bag rule as a direct result of woeful airport management by a disgraceful monopoly) and despite a stop in the Arrivals shop I hit the 18:03 HEX and made my way home before 19:00 which is pretty good going! All in all this was a great trip. Its real purpose (i.e. work!) was very productive and on a personal level I got to see some of Seoul, experience a new place which I liked a lot, eat some great food…and try another new airline. I am delighted to be able to say that OZ have a very good, comfortable product (though I do wish it was a fully flat bed, that would make it great not just very good) which one can actually enjoy…and I wouldn’t hesitate to fly them again.

SMART51

Great report,a lot of details.Hope u took some pictures^

DownUnderFlyer

Great report so far ^. Looking forward to read more.

The reason why some of us refering to those lovely ladies at the Terrace Lounges as lounge dragons is the fact that we as QF Platinums always have to fight to get into the first lounges. But now I know why the lounges are so full: All people with anytime access being moved into first when they should be in business....

I am glad you had a good experience with Asiana. I have flown them many times and their service was always excellent. The big issue with them is the fact that some planes and seats are really old and are not matching the rest of the service.
ICN is not always that smooth for immigration. I had to wait quite long a few times to get through. Luggage however is consistently quick.

G-BOAC

Thanks for the positive feedback, DownUnderFlyer and SMART51 ^ Sorry, I didn't 'do' pictures...asking to keep the menu felt bad enough I've not quite managed to get myself to the level of dedication some here master of taking pictures of everything

I should point out both lounges were very quiet and it's the first time that's happened to me...normally I am indeed directed to the Terraces per the rules.

Fair enough - like I said, sample size of 1. I figured it was probably too good to be true

DownUnderFlyer

Hey, don't waste your time with replying to us. Write more of your trip report
Can't wait.

G-BOAC

Thanks! I have managed to add a little bit about my whirlwind trip around (some of) Seoul today before work kicks in. At least I got to see something other than my hotel and meeting rooms - always a bonus IMHO, I count myself lucky

camsean

Thanks for an interesting trip report.

I flew business on Korean Air once and they were completely sub-standard. Looks like Asiana are the way to go.

Although hopefully, I'll never have cause to go Korea again.

phreegreens

Excellent TR thanks G-BOAC..!

Really looking forward now to my OZ run to SYD in January. (At £2k that's looking like a bit of a bargain..)

Seoul is an interesting place. I haven't been for a few years, but used to go 2/3 times a year, initially when about the only way to get there was on CX through Kai Tak.

SQFAN

Thanks for the TRG-BOAC. ^ Ha ha ha hope you enjoyed the bim-bim-bap. I had it not too long ago on an OZ flight, my first ever. It was quite funny in that the cabin was initially quiet. Once the bim-bim-bap was served, there was a flurry of chopsticks mixing action.

I tried to keep the menu but the cabin crew were quite adamant on getting it back. Had to take a picture of it in the end. So, your observation about being re-used is true then.

Do post pics if you have them. Cheers.

LapLap

Might have flown in C on OZ to from LHR to NRT last year if this sort of information had been available.

Do please post info on your return flight. I'm hoping to replicate your trip within a year or two.

FTR - OZ has given me the best experience in economy I've ever had. Cabin crew were fantastic. Only reason I avoid flying with them now is because they changed their mileage policy so that I can never get more than 50% with them - bmi (or 70% on their own ungenerous FFP)

Moomba

Nice report G-BOAC. Sometimes it is good to find out what the other guys get up to.

I have found my journeys to the Starside to be most enjoyable so far.

manneca

I'm going to be in Seoul in July or August and I'd love some recommedations on what to see, where to eat and so forth. I'll have time for a few days away from Seoul, so if you have ideas on that, I'd be grateful.

Great report.

bseller

You could start here, which chronicles the adventures of a couple fellow FT'ers on their first trip to ICN.

Best, Dave

G-BOAC

Wow, thanks everyone! It seems this is proving useful as a (positive) record of an OZ experience. Hopefully it'll be useful for people in future too for a while ^ I have now also written up the return leg in the second post placeholder...I hope that proves equally useful. Though I have to say both legs were pretty consistent (which is a good thing) so there's not a huge amount of new info in there this time, just more random babbling and stuff