Kiwi Flyer

HONOLULU to LOS ANGELES (HNL-LAX) on United 767-300 in first class

While I missed out on visiting the HNL RCC I guess I didn't miss much. Certainly none of the other RCCs I have visited have amounted to much. And I was relieved to be continuing my journey pretty much as intended.

The cabin crew were in unusually good mood and we had a few top-ups of pre-departure drinks.

No channel 9. Movie was Ratatouille.

More drinks after take off, some hot nuts, and a supper of chicken, rice, bread roll and banana slice.

Managed to get a little bit of sleep on the short red eye flight. But if I'd realised how little I would have tried harder to sleep longer on the flight up from Auckland. Oh well - another longhaul flight tonight to try and reduce my sleep deficit on.

Then awoken for landing. We arrived rather early and had to wait to get to the gate.

Kiwi Flyer

Auckland to Honolulu business class menu

LUNCH

Starter

Cumin spiced prawns
with cauliflower hummus, pickled orange, rocket and basil oil

Bakery

Sourdough bread, dark rye and caraway seed bread, scroll rolls and garlic bread

Main Course

Loin of New Zealand lamb
with gorumet potatoes, glazed witloof, pea puree and roast lamb jus

Seared hapuka fillet
with crushed soft herb potatoes, crayfish and citrus butter and pickled vegetable salad

Cranberry and cherry stuffed chicken thigh
with orange glaze, roasted butternut and green courgettes

Dessert

Granny Smith apple, almond and hazelnut crumble cake
with pohutukawa honey cream

Gourmet dessert
of Black Doris plum and creme fraiche ice cream and cookies and cream ice cream

Cheese and Fruit

A selection of fine New Zealand cheese and fresh seasonal fruit

Hot Drinks

Freshly brewed or decaffeinated Gravity coffee, tea, herbal tea or hot chocolate


LIGHT MEAL

Starter

Fresh fruit salad
of pineapple, melon and orange

Refreshment

Chicken, bacon and gruyere panini
with gourmet red cabbage and radish coleslaw

Roast beef, spinach and caramelised onion jam tortilla wrap
with kawakawa butter

Dessert

Freshly baked blueberry friand and raspberry lamington

Hot Drinks

Freshly brewed or decaffeinated Gravity coffee, tea, herbal tea or hot chocolate


DRINKS

Wine

For details of our onboard wines, refer to your Air New Zealand Wine Guide.

Champagne

Veuve Clicquot NV Champagne

OR

Champagne Laurent-Perrier L-P NV Brut

New Zealand Sparkling Wine

Cocktails

Falling water

Backyard bellini

Spirits

Glenfiddich malt whisky
Chivas regal blended whisky
Jack daniel's black label
Gordon's gin
42 below vodka
Courvoisier vsop
Captain morgan rum
Ron bacardi superior

Port and Liqueurs

Portuguese port
Grand marnier
Baileys irish cream

Beer

A selection of beer featuring steinlager, export gold, heineken and low alcohol lager

Soft Drinks

Mineral water
Orange juice
Apple juice
Tomato juice
Cranberry juice
Pineapple juice
Cola
Lemonade
Tonic water
Ginger ale
Diet cole
Diet lemonade

Hot Drinks

Freshly brewed coffee
Decaffeinated coffee
English breakfast tea
Chamomile tea
Lemon tea
Decaffeinated tea
Darjeeling tea
Earl grey tea
Peppermint tea
Green tea
Hot chocolate

Kiwi Flyer

In transit in Los Angeles

I forgot to check what time check in and lounge would be open for my onward flights. But I figured probably not at 0430 so wandered around a bit before heading to the relevant terminal for my next flight.

I booked a side trip to pass some time before the next longhaul flight. This got me started on qualifying in a 2nd program for the year (on only the first day), access to the lounge including breakfast, lunch, free drinks and perhaps most importantly a shower. Plus free computer access for several hours. All this for less than the cost of a day room at a nearby hotel. A no brainer.

The terminal is a zoo - one big queue that seems to have no end for economy. So I decide to use my other card (which I'm not crediting miles to for these flights) to gain access to the first class line. No questioning as to why I'm checking in some 8 hours before departure ( ), nor why I wanted to check in for the return. I was offered an earlier flight which I declined.

Through security which has very little queue - perhaps because everyone is stuck downstairs still trying to check in? At the lounge I am offered much better seats thanks to my other status. I then grabbed a shower, and a nice breakfast before heading onto the computers to update this report.

Kiwi Flyer

The eventful start to 2008 travels continues. An aborted flight and awaiting replacement aircraft.

Kiwi Flyer

LOS ANGELES to LOS ANGELES (LAX-LAX) on American MD80 in economy class

Eventually it was time to board and I headed for the gate. I boarded with the first call, stowed my carry on and took my seat. As the a/c filled up I wondered if there had been some mistake - the gate monitors showed 21 standby pax but yet still the seat beside me was vacant. It appeared the last pax had boarded and the crew did final checks. Then, just as the door was closed one last pax boarded. Oh well.

There was a bit of running around by the cabin crew during the safety briefing and again as we headed out for the taxiway. Then we stopped. The captain made an announcement they just needed to check this one indicator light. Oh dear - I know what this means.

Sure enough we soon turn around and taxi back to the gate. On the way an announcement is made the a/c is being taken out of service and to please wait at the gate for a replacement a/c and reboarding. I suppose I should be thankful this is happening at a hub and not some airport in the boondocks where replacement a/c would not be available.

After a short wait for the airbridge to connect we disembark and I made my way back to the lounge to research my options while I awaited news on the flight.

Kiwi Flyer

I'd specifically chosen this pair of flights for the day trip for the turnaround being same aircraft, for the nice long connection from the flight to Los Angeles, for a longish connection before my longhaul flight from Los Angeles, and lastly for the plenty of alternative flights in case things went pear-shaped (so I wouldn't get stranded at the turnaround point in case of mechanical there).

What I hadn't counted on was the issue being on the outbound flight. I looked up and confirmed the delayed flight was also delaying the return - ie it was still a same a/c turnaround. That the delay was not yet too serious for me. That there was some chance of standing by for the next AA flight, although no guarantee of success. That the next but one AA flight would be too late to return for the longhaul flight.

The initial 30 minute delay (to 80 minutes after scheduled departure) proved to be as optimistic as I suspected. Another 30 minutes were added. Then another 15. By now time was getting close to a go/no go decision for me. I headed out to the gate. The aircraft was just pulling in. Clearly there was going to be further delay.

to be continued (another flight to catch)

Kiwi Flyer

... continued

More than 2 hours after scheduled departure, and with delays reported at both LAX and SFO, I decided to pull the plug.

I headed back the lounge. They were unable to deal with ticketing issues but offloaded me from the flights and made a note requesting full refund (on non-refundable ticket) due to trip in vain by AA's delay.

I went landside to sort out the refund, and then proceeded to the terminal for my next flight - even though it was rather early.

I later found out the pair of flights to and from San Francisco ended up over 3 hours late. If I had taken them I would still have made the longhaul flight, but only just beating the check in cutoff.

Kiwi Flyer

LOS ANGELES to SYDNEY (LAX-SYD) on United 747-400 in first class

Check in was empty and I scored an upgrade. Given a choice of almost the entire cabin - not surprising, few if any purchased F on this flight.

Through security quickly and up to the international first lounge. This was empty when I arrived and slowly filled in the few hours before the flight. The lounge is a pathetic joke for a first lounge - indeed most business class lounges outside north america beat it.

No shower. No computers. No reading matter. Pathetic food and drink on offer.

I had a few drinks and caught up on some sleep. I was hoping to guest in Lurker, who was on the same flight, but got no phone call to be let into the lounge.

As passport details were checked on entry to the lounge we were escorted through to the airbridge when boarding started - no further checks needed. I took my seat. First was full, at least until an engineer boarded to advise the couple behind me that their seats were broken and they ended up getting rubbish business class seats - all that was left for them.

It has been a while since I had flown United international first, but within minutes it all came flooding back to me. The seats are not very good - too short, braces that dig in. Tiny monitor, bad IFE (other than channel 9 and I also like being able to play music channel of your choice while showing flight path). No newspaper or magazines offered.

Pre-departure drink in plastic cups Choice of champagne, orange juice or water.

Menu (both food and drink) fairly ordinary.

No pajamas. Average amenity kit.

In short - worse than several business classes I have flown lately.

It brings to mind the chicken and the egg. Does hardly anyone pay for first class because it is so crappy, or is it so crappy because hardly anyone pays for it?

We pushed back on time. Then spent 40 minutes taxiing. Listening to channel 9, our flight was the first of several to turn away at the runway due to tail winds exceeding tolerances. So we waited for either the active runway to reverse direction, or for the wind to die down.

I wasn't particularly reassured by ATC asking if they remove the gusts notification would we be okay to fly, hearing yes from the pilot and then seconds later the wind report had the gusts notification removed.

Anyway take off was uneventful but we were late ... as usual for this flight it seems (so common that there is a SYD delays and cancellations thread in the UA forum).

Right on cue, just after the entree was served we hit bad turbulence. Water everywhere while I saved the wine.

The drinks service was bad. They tried opening 3 bottles of champagne - all of it flat. I then gave up on that idea and switched to wine. But the FA had no clue which wine I referred to when I gave the region instead of grape variety - even after inspecting all the labels he still had no idea.

Slept a reasonable amount of the flight. On awakening my requests for water were acknowledged and then ignored ... multiple times.

Breakfast before landing. Again, drink requests routinely ignored. It was no wonder I got dehydrated on the flight.

The bathrooms were not cleaned once in the whole flight. Indeed it was hard to see what the FAs actually did other than hand out meal trays and collect them again. I wouldn't expect service this bad in economy let alone first.

On the plus side, they did hand out express immigration cards.

I'm dreading my next few United transpacs in coming days. But then again, can it get any worse than this?

Gatwick Alan

Oh dear, is UA First really that bad?. Im going to be sampling it at the end of March as the final flight of a quick RTW in F. Be interesting to compare with NH, TG, LH and SQ

Kiwi Flyer

Los Angeles to Sydney first class menu

FEATURED WINES

Champagne

Laurent Perrier 1997 champagne

Nicolas Feuillatte 2002 champagne

White Wine

Marie Antoinette Vincent Pouilly Fuisse 2003 (chardonnay)

Fevre Vaillons 2005 chablis (chardonnay)

Markham Vineyards sauvignon blanc 2006 napa valley

Red Wine

Jean-Luc Colombo Crozes Hermitage 2004 La Tuilerie (syrah)

Jaboulet Gigondas 2005 Pierre Aiguille (grenache blend)

St Hallets "Faith" shiraz 2005 barossa valley

Louis Martini cabernet sauvignon 2003 sonoma

Beverages

Aperitifs, cocktails, spirits, liqueurs and beer

Sanderman Founders Reserve Porto will be offered during the main meal's dessert

Starbucks coffee will be available throughout the flight


FOOD menu

On today's flight, you may choose our traditional dinner, served in courses, or enjoy our Express Dine service - a complete meal served all at once at the time of your choosing so you can maximise your time while on board. Please inform the flight attendant of your choice.

To Begin

Soup

Roasted Yukon gold potato, cheddar and bacon chowder

Salad

Fresh seasonal greens
Hot cumin chicken
Buttermilk ranch or balsamic Dijon vinaigrette

Main Course

Orange and ginger cured duck confit
Roasted shallot vinaigrette, braised fennel and hazelnut jasmine rice

Braised vegetable cannelloni
Organic tomato-herb finishing sauce

Pan-seared filet mignon with horseradish sauce
Red and Yukon gold potatoes, sauteed spinach, shallots and mushrooms

Rosemary lemon Mediterranean sea bass with tomato and olive ragout
Vegetable risotto and green and yellow haricot vert

Express dine
Today's Express Dine features your choice of any of the above entrees, fresh seasonal greens with classic Caesar dressing and Eli's Creme Caramel Cheesecake for dessert

Dessert

To complete your dining experience:
Ice cream with sundae toppings
Cheese selection: Kerrygold Vintage Cheddar, Port-Salut, Wensleydale with cranberry
Fresh strawberries with brown sugar sour cream dip

Prior to Arrival

Spinach and feta cheese omelette with pomodoro sauce
Black Forest ham

or

Fresh seasonal fruit plate

Kiwi Flyer

Sydney to Auckland business class menu

LUNCH

Starter

Kaffir lime and coriander scented salmon with tropical mango chilli salsa, micro greens and lemon oil

Main Course

Horopito braised venison with mustard seed spatzle, braised red cabbage, mushrooms and bacon lardons

Home-made gnocchi in porcini scented cream sauce with roasted vegetables and shaved parmesan

Oriental tasting plate of Thai roasted beef, rice paper roll, seared tuna, cucumber, daikon and capsicum salad with chilli and lime dressing

Dessert

Dark chocolate marquis with roasted macadamia nuts and pinot poached pears

or

Gourmet dessert of feijoa ice cream and blackcurrent and blackberry ice cream

Cheese and Fruit

Fine regional cheese and preserved fruit

Spirits

Glenfiddich malt whisky
Chivas regal blended whisky
Jack daniel's black label
Gordons gin
42 below vodka
Courvoisier vsop
Captain morgan rum
Ron bacardi superior

Port and Liqueurs

Portuguese port
Grand marnier
Baileys irish cream

Beer

A selection of beer featuring steinlager, export gold, heineken and low alcohol lager

Soft Drinks

Mineral water, orange juice, apple juice, tomato juice, cola, lemonade, tonic water, ginger ale, diet cola and diet lemonade

Hot Drinks

Freshly brewed or decaffeinated coffee, tea, herbal tea and hot chocolate

Kiwi Flyer

SYDNEY to AUCKLAND (SYD-AKL) on Air New Zealand A320 in business class

Our gate was right next to the other UA aircraft, and very close to transfer security. Once through I went directly to transfer desk to get my boarding pass reissued, then up another level to the Air NZ lounge for a great shower and freshen up.

That sorted I looked for a spare computer. Bah - lots of kids playing games on all the computers. It didn't look like they were going anywhere in a hurry, so I decided to cut my losses and head elsewhere.

I was rebuffed at the SQ lounge - just closing in between flights, so I made my way to the one world pier to visit the QF F lounge. Along the way I encountered the obligatory broken moving walkway, which it seems every airport must have at least one of.

I was welcomed back to the lounge and saw to everything I needed to online. I left the lounge about the time I expected boarding to start, figuring the 5-10 minute walk to the gate means boarding should be nearly complete and thus perfect timing. But when I arrived boarding had not yet commenced so I popped back into the Air NZ lounge for a quick drink.

I boarded with the second call in the lounge. Perfect timing - down to the adjacent gate, wait 2 minutes and one of the last to board. No problem with storage space of course.

Business class was full. I have no idea how full economy was or wasn't.

A pre-departure drink and handed out NZ arrival cards.

After take-off drinks orders taken, then delivered plus casava crisps. Menus handed out and finally the personal DVDs. I was slightly annoyed at how long it took to do the DVDs. For a short eastbound flight you need to start the movie as soon as possible in order to see it all. On some flights the crew take DVD orders pre-departure and hand them out as soon as the initial climb is over ^ Not this time. So I was sure to choose a short movie.

A nice lunch. As usual on Air NZ (and in contrast to UA, SQ and QF for example) you could have both dessert and cheeses, if you want. Each is done as a separate course.

Shortly after we descend into Auckland. Again a nice loop over the city to land back to the west. Immigration was busier than I expected - still processing the Emirates arrivals. I think I chose the quicker option of downstairs - upstairs (for NZ and Australia passport holders only) looked to be slow moving. A modest wait at customs and x-ray and I was landside in good time.

Kiwi Flyer

Auckland to Sydney business class menu

BREAKFAST

Wake-up Drinks

Start your day with a fruit smoothie or your choice of juice

Fruit and Cereal

Continental selection with fruit, assorted cereals, bircher muesli and yoghurt

Bakery

Croissants, muffins, Vogel's, brioche or fruit toast served with fruit conserve

Hot Breakfast

Corn and bell pepper fritters with chive scrambled eggs, grilled bacon and avocado salso

Ricotta and white chocolate hot cakes with apple rhubarb compote and creme fraiche

Spirits

Glenfiddich malt whisky
Chivas regal blended whisky
Jack daniel's black label
Gordons gin
42 below vodka
Courvoisier vsop
Captain morgan rum
Ron bacardi superior

Port and Liqueurs

Portuguese port
Grand marnier
Baileys irish cream

Beer

A selection of beer featuring steinlager, export gold, heineken and low alcohol lager

Soft Drinks

Mineral water, orange juice, apple juice, tomato juice, cola, lemonade, tonic water, ginger ale, diet cola and diet lemonade

Hot Drinks

Freshly brewed or decaffeinated coffee, tea, herbal tea and hot chocolate

igel

Your lunch and light meal on your AKL to HNL flight is identical to my AKL to PER flight taken a few days after Christmas. I had used my comp. upgrade from Air NZ. Also had the venison main course on another NZ SYD to AKL flight before Christmas, but the other courses and other choices were different.

WellingtonFF

I read somewhere that UA had recently implemented a customer service improvement program to coincide with the roll out of their refurbished long haul fleet, with SFO as the trial airport. On a J RTW in November I found that the two domestic checkins I did at SFO were great with other US checkins being similar, with a noticeable improvement in service. The domestic and international RCCs were very ordinary, but all the RCCs are the same.

The only rather long haul I did - ORD - LHR was good, and on another thread I mentioned that I found the standard of service and food at least as good as NZ, with food probably being better, although compared with both of them, the SQ sectors were a class above.