The Long Way Home: AKL-HEL F/Y
Jul 16, 2004, 7:00 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2002
Location: AKL, New Zealand
Posts: 241
The Long Way Home: AKL-HEL F/Y
Please note this is my first FT trip report so be gentle 
The Long Way Home - AKL-HEL MH F/AY Y
Part I
Finally the day has come for our first ever long-haul first class flight and we are mighty excited, especially myself
Our flight on Thai, TG991 is due to leave at 13.45 and will take us first to Bangkok and we'll have then a quick transfer (50 minutes) to TG920 onwards to Frankfurt, and finally we'll connect to AY to Helsinki. The whole trip will take some 32 hours!
The usual last-minute rush with packing etc. is somewhat hectic. We'll be gone for 2 months (on a working holiday based in HEL with a couple of holiday trips to Central Europe) and have a house sitter, who is also coming to drop us off at the airport.
Then comes the bomb – I check Auckland airport departures and there is a dreaded FLIGHT RESCHEDULED message for our flight, it is delayed by some 3 hours, which is enough to ruin our connections. I am devastated, what are we going to do? I try calling Thai but their offices are conveniently closed (it's Saturday morning). I use the excellent Availability Tool to find what other connections would take us to Frankfurt on time. I spot a SQ flight leaving around 2pm with a connection to FRA and decide we'll head off to the airport as planned and see what they will offer us.
AKL AIRPORT
We get to the airport at about 11.30am. The TG 1st Class Check-in is very friendly but somewhat clueless. The rep began to check us in and told us about the delay and said our connection will be re-booked on arrival at BKK. I said that we have to be in HEL tomorrow so can you please check connections now. She did something on her screen and then called someone and asked to see our passports and made a comment on the phone that it should be ok.... after hanging up, she explained that they will put us on NZ via LAX and LHR, which would leave some 9 hours later. We are allergic to LAX (as it’s about the worst airport to do a transfer I’ve ever been to) so I said we’d rather not go through there and asked about going via SIN. She made another phone call and said a Thai rep will come in a minute to sort us out.
It took a few minutes for the rep to arrive and I was making small talk with the check-in girl. I noticed they were giving NZ$8 meal vouchers for the delay... and I wondered how would we be treated if we were flying in economy class (I figured that they’d put us in a hotel in BKK to wait for the daily FRA flight or something like that). Anyway, the very professional Thai rep arrived and told us that they could put us on Malaysian Airlines via Kuala Lumpur and we’d be in FRA in time to catch our original Finnair flight to HEL. I asked her whether we’d still get the miles form the flights and she called someone to ask and said yes we will but we have to ask for them by writing to Thai. (as a side note I was not convinced it will be that easy, over two months later we are still waiting for TG to sort it out!!).
We decided to go for it and she escorted us to the MH 1st Class check in (we bypassed security check on the way!). At check in, everything was done very nicely and the Thai rep also gave us an invitation to the NZ 1st Class Lounge.
We hadn’t quite realized that the MH flight was leaving very very soon and we only had like 25 minutes till boarding!! Now here comes the first glitch in this royal 1st class luxury – there was no separate customs line as they have for NZ flights and we had to queue for an agonising 10-15 minutes for passport check. This was after spending valuable time at the BNZ bank queue to pay for the departure fee (I just can’t understand why they can’t include in the tickets like almost everywhere else!).
Once we had cleared passport control and security, I had some pre-ordered shopping to collect including some very nice NZ wines for my friends to sample
That only took a minute or so, but to my deep disappointment, there was not enough time to even drop by the lounge and we had to rush through to the gate 
All of this happened so fast that I didn't even think about asking the schedules for the MH flights so I had no idea when we'd get to KUL, not to mention how much time we'd have there before connecting to FRA!
1 May 2004
AKL-KUL MH130 Malaysian Airlines First Class
B777-200
Seats 2K/2J
Flight time: 11 hours 30 minutes
The gate was just about empty when we got there and we walked straight into the plane. The crew welcomed us, we stuffed all our bags into the overhead lockers and sat down in the biggest seat I've so far flown in. The very friendly male F/A chats with us and they were aware that we'd been a last-minute addition from TG. We asked about my partner's vegetarian meals and he assures us that there will be plenty on offer but they had no time to prepare anything especially. My partner sighs and says that he is doomed never to get his special meals (which happens quite often I have to admit!). Anyway, the FA asks us for our drink choice and we naturally go for champagne. It's Dom Perignon 1995 and it is rather excellent!
I ask the crew if we are flying via Brisbane but to my delight we are going non-stop to KUL (MH used to stop in BNE last time I flew them). I also forgot to pack a pad for writing notes on, so I asked the FA for one and he brought me nice letter pad with envelopes (he had to hunt for one in the galley as I saw him opening one locker after another).
The scheduled departure was 12.50, but we are still sitting by the gate at 13.15. No worries, we are not in hurry and I am onto my second glass of Dom. We finally take off at 13.25 and the captain says the flight time will be 11 hours 30 minutes.
The crew closes the curtain to business class at 13.35 and give us our amenity kits. It's quite a nice Aigner branded bag with a toothbrush, Colgate toothpaste, mouthwash, a comb, socks, shades, Aigner eau de toilette, lip balm, face refresher etc.
The 1st class is configured 2-2-2 and there is only 2 rows. There was only 3 other passengers so we had plenty of space! See http://www.malaysiaairlines.com.my/p..._b777-200.html for a seat plan.
Seat features:
Pitch 72"
Recline (inch) 17.5"
Width between armrest 21.3"
Easy sleeper reclining seats – electronically adjustable.
Leg rest (extendable) – electronically adjustable.
Lumbar Support – electronically operated.
Headrest & Side Wings – manually adjustable.
In-seat power outlet for portable PC, located at the centre armrest.
10.4" In-seat Touch Screen Video, located in the armrest.
Satellite telephone is available at all seats.
90 degree swivel chair table stowed in the armrest.
Cocktail table – located at the centre armrest.
Individual fibre optic reading lights.
Side Pocket.
Seat Cover – Woolen.
Headrest Cover – Suede.
Seat is arranged in pairs (2-2-2), every seat is either window or aisle.
We get acquainted with our seats and the IFE. The MH 'Select Plus' entertainment is rather good, it's on demand and there was about 15 movies plus TV channels plus games plus a CD library.
The FA gives us the menus and takes further drink orders. I get a Campari & OJ and peruse through the menu. There was a separate beverage menu, which has the usual stuff plus a few featured wines. This flight featured two meals, a so-called Light Meal which turned out to be a complete feast of 6 courses, and a Dinner prior to landing.
LIGHT MEAL
Malaysian Satay
Our famous Charcoal grilled chicken and beef skewer topped with spicy peanut sauce
Hors d'oeuvre Deluxe
A tray of cucumber filled with tamarind and sesame chicken
Marinated prawns wrapped with rice vermicelli enhanced with plum chilli sauce
Roma tomato with char-grilled vegetables
Choice of Soup
Asian seafood broth, perfectly garnished with prawn and coriander won ton, shiitake mushrooms and coriander sprig
Creamy potato and cabbage chowder complemented with carrots and fresh dill
Mains
Pan-fried beef fillet with herb peppercorn crust featured with tomato and basil salsa with demi-glaze
Char-grilled salmon steak with a classic creamy sauce of dill
Pan-fried chicken thigh delicately infused with lemongrass, onion and ginger sauce
Vegetable Kurma; mixed vegetables with spices and coconut creamy
Vegetables and accompaniments
Courgette with sautéed onions
Roasted stuffed pepper with ratatouille
Saffron rice
Potato au gratin
International Cheese Board
Seasonal Fresh Fruits
Almond, Date and Banana Cake with King Island Cream
The whole meal was served from a trolley with all choices prominently displayed. The service was immaculate and the food was delicious and aplenty.
I especially liked the satay and the prawn appetizer. The FA asked if I would like to sample all three, to which I wholeheartedly agreed
I had the seafood soup and the salmon, which were good and my partner had the veggies options and he especially loved the chowder!
I had some cheese with grapes and crackers, they were also served from the trolley but I've forgotten what they were. By the time they were offering the cake, I was absolutely stuffed and asked the FA to bring me the cake in about an hour. I'm glad I didn't pass it by because it was absolutely marvelous and rates as one of the best cakes I've had anywhere!
After the meal, it was time for some entertainment and rest. My partner's IFE was being very touchy and he had to shuffle it around to see the image. I said he could move to another seat but he didn't want to sit by himself
I didn't really find any movies I liked so I took out the laptop and asked the FA where to plug it in. He got an assortment of plugs but none of them worked with our laptop I played a game until the batteries ran out which only took a hour. While my partner watched Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (for about the 3rd time), I took out my book, had a cappuccino and relaxed until it was time for the dinner service to begin (this was at 21.55 NZ time).
DINNER
Selection of Hot Savouries
Fish otak-otak
Mediterranean tartlet
Chicken and Mushroom Filo
Seasonal Salad, a fresh selection of salad green and garnishes complemented with a green pesto dressing
Mains
Pan-fried chicken complemented with corn cake
Stir-fried Prawns delicately topped with tomato, chilli and coriander sauce
Lamb medallion enhanced with mint orange fruit sauce
Mushroom Ragout Roll
Vegetables and accompaniments
Braised pak choy with roasted garlic
Char-grilled eggplant
Chinese fried rice
Roasted potatoes with sea salt
Seasonal fresh fruits
Lime & Coconut Cake
The food was once again great. I sampled all three appetizers and had the prawns, which were really nice.
All too soon our first-ever 1st class flight was over and we landed in KUL on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 9
Lounge: -
Comfort: 8
Service: 10
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 8
To be continued...
The Long Way Home - AKL-HEL MH F/AY Y
Part I
Finally the day has come for our first ever long-haul first class flight and we are mighty excited, especially myself
Our flight on Thai, TG991 is due to leave at 13.45 and will take us first to Bangkok and we'll have then a quick transfer (50 minutes) to TG920 onwards to Frankfurt, and finally we'll connect to AY to Helsinki. The whole trip will take some 32 hours!
The usual last-minute rush with packing etc. is somewhat hectic. We'll be gone for 2 months (on a working holiday based in HEL with a couple of holiday trips to Central Europe) and have a house sitter, who is also coming to drop us off at the airport.
Then comes the bomb – I check Auckland airport departures and there is a dreaded FLIGHT RESCHEDULED message for our flight, it is delayed by some 3 hours, which is enough to ruin our connections. I am devastated, what are we going to do? I try calling Thai but their offices are conveniently closed (it's Saturday morning). I use the excellent Availability Tool to find what other connections would take us to Frankfurt on time. I spot a SQ flight leaving around 2pm with a connection to FRA and decide we'll head off to the airport as planned and see what they will offer us.
AKL AIRPORT
We get to the airport at about 11.30am. The TG 1st Class Check-in is very friendly but somewhat clueless. The rep began to check us in and told us about the delay and said our connection will be re-booked on arrival at BKK. I said that we have to be in HEL tomorrow so can you please check connections now. She did something on her screen and then called someone and asked to see our passports and made a comment on the phone that it should be ok.... after hanging up, she explained that they will put us on NZ via LAX and LHR, which would leave some 9 hours later. We are allergic to LAX (as it’s about the worst airport to do a transfer I’ve ever been to) so I said we’d rather not go through there and asked about going via SIN. She made another phone call and said a Thai rep will come in a minute to sort us out.
It took a few minutes for the rep to arrive and I was making small talk with the check-in girl. I noticed they were giving NZ$8 meal vouchers for the delay... and I wondered how would we be treated if we were flying in economy class (I figured that they’d put us in a hotel in BKK to wait for the daily FRA flight or something like that). Anyway, the very professional Thai rep arrived and told us that they could put us on Malaysian Airlines via Kuala Lumpur and we’d be in FRA in time to catch our original Finnair flight to HEL. I asked her whether we’d still get the miles form the flights and she called someone to ask and said yes we will but we have to ask for them by writing to Thai. (as a side note I was not convinced it will be that easy, over two months later we are still waiting for TG to sort it out!!).
We decided to go for it and she escorted us to the MH 1st Class check in (we bypassed security check on the way!). At check in, everything was done very nicely and the Thai rep also gave us an invitation to the NZ 1st Class Lounge.
We hadn’t quite realized that the MH flight was leaving very very soon and we only had like 25 minutes till boarding!! Now here comes the first glitch in this royal 1st class luxury – there was no separate customs line as they have for NZ flights and we had to queue for an agonising 10-15 minutes for passport check. This was after spending valuable time at the BNZ bank queue to pay for the departure fee (I just can’t understand why they can’t include in the tickets like almost everywhere else!).
Once we had cleared passport control and security, I had some pre-ordered shopping to collect including some very nice NZ wines for my friends to sample
That only took a minute or so, but to my deep disappointment, there was not enough time to even drop by the lounge and we had to rush through to the gate All of this happened so fast that I didn't even think about asking the schedules for the MH flights so I had no idea when we'd get to KUL, not to mention how much time we'd have there before connecting to FRA!
1 May 2004
AKL-KUL MH130 Malaysian Airlines First Class
B777-200
Seats 2K/2J
Flight time: 11 hours 30 minutes
The gate was just about empty when we got there and we walked straight into the plane. The crew welcomed us, we stuffed all our bags into the overhead lockers and sat down in the biggest seat I've so far flown in. The very friendly male F/A chats with us and they were aware that we'd been a last-minute addition from TG. We asked about my partner's vegetarian meals and he assures us that there will be plenty on offer but they had no time to prepare anything especially. My partner sighs and says that he is doomed never to get his special meals (which happens quite often I have to admit!). Anyway, the FA asks us for our drink choice and we naturally go for champagne. It's Dom Perignon 1995 and it is rather excellent!
I ask the crew if we are flying via Brisbane but to my delight we are going non-stop to KUL (MH used to stop in BNE last time I flew them). I also forgot to pack a pad for writing notes on, so I asked the FA for one and he brought me nice letter pad with envelopes (he had to hunt for one in the galley as I saw him opening one locker after another).
The scheduled departure was 12.50, but we are still sitting by the gate at 13.15. No worries, we are not in hurry and I am onto my second glass of Dom. We finally take off at 13.25 and the captain says the flight time will be 11 hours 30 minutes.
The crew closes the curtain to business class at 13.35 and give us our amenity kits. It's quite a nice Aigner branded bag with a toothbrush, Colgate toothpaste, mouthwash, a comb, socks, shades, Aigner eau de toilette, lip balm, face refresher etc.
The 1st class is configured 2-2-2 and there is only 2 rows. There was only 3 other passengers so we had plenty of space! See http://www.malaysiaairlines.com.my/p..._b777-200.html for a seat plan.
Seat features:
Pitch 72"
Recline (inch) 17.5"
Width between armrest 21.3"
Easy sleeper reclining seats – electronically adjustable.
Leg rest (extendable) – electronically adjustable.
Lumbar Support – electronically operated.
Headrest & Side Wings – manually adjustable.
In-seat power outlet for portable PC, located at the centre armrest.
10.4" In-seat Touch Screen Video, located in the armrest.
Satellite telephone is available at all seats.
90 degree swivel chair table stowed in the armrest.
Cocktail table – located at the centre armrest.
Individual fibre optic reading lights.
Side Pocket.
Seat Cover – Woolen.
Headrest Cover – Suede.
Seat is arranged in pairs (2-2-2), every seat is either window or aisle.
We get acquainted with our seats and the IFE. The MH 'Select Plus' entertainment is rather good, it's on demand and there was about 15 movies plus TV channels plus games plus a CD library.
The FA gives us the menus and takes further drink orders. I get a Campari & OJ and peruse through the menu. There was a separate beverage menu, which has the usual stuff plus a few featured wines. This flight featured two meals, a so-called Light Meal which turned out to be a complete feast of 6 courses, and a Dinner prior to landing.
LIGHT MEAL
Malaysian Satay
Our famous Charcoal grilled chicken and beef skewer topped with spicy peanut sauce
Hors d'oeuvre Deluxe
A tray of cucumber filled with tamarind and sesame chicken
Marinated prawns wrapped with rice vermicelli enhanced with plum chilli sauce
Roma tomato with char-grilled vegetables
Choice of Soup
Asian seafood broth, perfectly garnished with prawn and coriander won ton, shiitake mushrooms and coriander sprig
Creamy potato and cabbage chowder complemented with carrots and fresh dill
Mains
Pan-fried beef fillet with herb peppercorn crust featured with tomato and basil salsa with demi-glaze
Char-grilled salmon steak with a classic creamy sauce of dill
Pan-fried chicken thigh delicately infused with lemongrass, onion and ginger sauce
Vegetable Kurma; mixed vegetables with spices and coconut creamy
Vegetables and accompaniments
Courgette with sautéed onions
Roasted stuffed pepper with ratatouille
Saffron rice
Potato au gratin
International Cheese Board
Seasonal Fresh Fruits
Almond, Date and Banana Cake with King Island Cream
The whole meal was served from a trolley with all choices prominently displayed. The service was immaculate and the food was delicious and aplenty.
I especially liked the satay and the prawn appetizer. The FA asked if I would like to sample all three, to which I wholeheartedly agreed
I had the seafood soup and the salmon, which were good and my partner had the veggies options and he especially loved the chowder!
I had some cheese with grapes and crackers, they were also served from the trolley but I've forgotten what they were. By the time they were offering the cake, I was absolutely stuffed and asked the FA to bring me the cake in about an hour. I'm glad I didn't pass it by because it was absolutely marvelous and rates as one of the best cakes I've had anywhere!
After the meal, it was time for some entertainment and rest. My partner's IFE was being very touchy and he had to shuffle it around to see the image. I said he could move to another seat but he didn't want to sit by himself
I didn't really find any movies I liked so I took out the laptop and asked the FA where to plug it in. He got an assortment of plugs but none of them worked with our laptop
I played a game until the batteries ran out which only took a hour. While my partner watched Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (for about the 3rd time), I took out my book, had a cappuccino and relaxed until it was time for the dinner service to begin (this was at 21.55 NZ time).DINNER
Selection of Hot Savouries
Fish otak-otak
Mediterranean tartlet
Chicken and Mushroom Filo
Seasonal Salad, a fresh selection of salad green and garnishes complemented with a green pesto dressing
Mains
Pan-fried chicken complemented with corn cake
Stir-fried Prawns delicately topped with tomato, chilli and coriander sauce
Lamb medallion enhanced with mint orange fruit sauce
Mushroom Ragout Roll
Vegetables and accompaniments
Braised pak choy with roasted garlic
Char-grilled eggplant
Chinese fried rice
Roasted potatoes with sea salt
Seasonal fresh fruits
Lime & Coconut Cake
The food was once again great. I sampled all three appetizers and had the prawns, which were really nice.
All too soon our first-ever 1st class flight was over and we landed in KUL on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 9
Lounge: -
Comfort: 8
Service: 10
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 8
To be continued...
Jul 16, 2004, 7:02 pm
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2002
Location: AKL, New Zealand
Posts: 241
Part II
Kuala Lumpur KLIA MH F lounge
I haven't been to KLIA in a few years but it looks pretty much the same. After a bit of confusion, we find the MH Golden Lounge upstairs, flash our BPs and are directed to the 1st class lounge. Now please remember this is our first time on F so we may be easily impressed, but this lounge is simply utterly luxurious! :-:
We have a couple of hours until our connection to FRA, we park ourselves by a nice little table and I go explore the lounge. Showers, sauna, an amazing buffet with a restaurant-like setting with white tablecloths etc! I decide to get refreshed and take a shower first. Very nice and I emerge re-vitalised. We have some coffee/tea and soft drinks and I go check the buffet. Unfortunately, we both are still stuffed from our onboard feasts, so I can't even think about eating... but wait a minute, maybe I'll sample those divine looking little seafood sandwiches So I do and they are heaven! The buffet looks amazing with plenty of hot food options as well.
I go outside and wander around the shops. Prices look quite cheap but then I had really had no idea how much the Malaysian currency is worth as we had not planned to be here in the first place! Anyway, I do buy some toiletries and cigarettes (later looking at my Visa bill, they were indeed cheap!). Back to the lounge and some more coffee before we venture to the gate and find a long queue to the security. And no F line!! So we queue with the Y pax, there's lots of them and it looks like a full flight. Finally we get through but boarding hasn't even begun (it is now 23.55 KUL time and we were scheduled to depart at 23.50) so we hang around for some time until it begins. The check-in is done in fairly orderly fashion and F/C pax are invited to board first. There is a separate door for F/C and so we leave the masses behind
1 May 2004
KUL-FRA MH006 Malaysian Airlines First Class
B777-200
Seats 2K/2J
Flight time: 12 hours
The departure is delayed by about half an hour or so. We don't really care as we will have plenty of time at FRA before our flight to HEL departs – in fact the later we arrive, the better, as we will be in Y and will have no lounge access at FRA!
For some reason, they don't offer any champagne before take-off, so we settle for orange juice. The F cabin is full with only 1 free seat. We are back in 2K/2J and my partner is looking suspiciously around and thinks it is the same plane we took from AKL, he asks the crew but they don't really know. I assure him it's not the same plane and that his IFE will work fine!
The lead FA (purser?) comes to ask how my last name is pronounced, which is a really nice touch. She is extremely professional and gives top service throughout the flight.
The crew dispenses menus, amenity kits, newspapers & magazines and then we're finally off at 00.30 KUL time.
LIGHT SUPPER
Malaysian Satay
Our famous Charcoal grilled chicken and beef skewer topped with spicy peanut sauce
Sevruga Malossal Caviar
Served on Ice Sockle with traditional garnishes
Choice of Soup
Lobster Cream Soup
Clear vegetable and pasta soup
Seasonal fresh fruits
Should you prefer a complete dining experience, we suggest the following selection of main course:
Specialty of the week (I never asked what this was)
Grilled beef steak served with caramelized pearl onion sauce accompanied by chateau potatoes, Vichy carrots and sugar snap peas
Mushroom tortellini accompanied by tomato cream sauce and shaved Parmesan cheese
Chargrilled herb chicken breast complemented with sweet basil and tomato concassee Italian noodles and chunky ratatouille
We are still quite full but can't resist sampling the food. Most pax seemed to bypass the dinner altogether in favor of sleep. I had already decided not to take the satay but when the purser came around with the trolley, I just couldn't resist so I asked for a couple of the chicken ones. She was about to give me a full dozen of them so I had to stop her They are so good though!!
I could not bypass the caviar as I'm rather partial to all kinds of seafood (if you hadn't already noticed!). It was divine and naturally I took a schnapps of ice cold vodka with it.
Then I had the soup which was not that great and I was really getting full again so I left half of it. The purser cam around to take the soup dish and asked for our main selection, which we politely declined. She looked quite disappointed and said 'But you hardly had anything Sir!' If only she knew the amount of food we already had had!
Then it was time to sleep. I am a very bad sleeper on airplanes so I was really looking forward to trying out the seat. It did not recline all the way but was comfortable enough and I managed to get about 6 hours of sleep. My partner was happily asleep when I woke up and I accidentally split some water on him (twice!) when I was fiddling around with something. The centre armrest was wide enough to hold a few drinks but in the dark they were dangerously close to you!
I was feeling a bit peckish by now so I asked for a coffee and a snack and the FA brought me two small sandwiches plus a plate of cheese and crackers. I was completely out of touch with the timezones by now but my watch was saying it was 02.00 Finnish time so some 12 hours to go before landing home in HEL!
I read my book and waited for the breakfast service to begin.
BREAKFAST
Health drink
Fresh fruit juices
Seasonal fresh fruits
Cornflakes or Muesli
Mains
Freshly prepared eggs - your choice of boiled, fried or scrambled egg served with grilled chicken sausage
Nasi Lemak, a well known traditional Malaysian breakfast dish of fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk served with prawn or cuttlefish sambal and the must have accompaniments of stir-fried spinach, cucumber, boiled egg, crunchy deep-fried peanuts and anchovies
Grilled minute breakfast steak accompanied by orange sage butter
Thick French toast filled with apple served with maple syrup
Vegetables and accompaniments
Grilled tomato
Sautéed fresh button mushrooms
Sautéed fresh spinach
Roesti potatoes
Bakery selection
The whole service was again done from the trolley and it was pretty unbelievable :-: The FA had asked earlier for the choice for eggs and I had ordered fried eggs but that did not seem to matter as everything was laid down nicely on the trolley. I had the fried eggs anyway, I was slightly tempted by the Nasi Lemak but I'm not that adventurous during breakfast
My partner only had some potatoes for his main and the FA found that hard to believe saying 'Are you sure Mr. XX?'
We landed at 06.50 so only 20 minutes behind schedule. Sadly, this was the end of our F part of the journey and as we stepped off the plane, we became cattle
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: -
Lounge: 10
Comfort: 8
Service: 10
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 8
FRA AIRPORT
After some general confusion on where to go, we exit the gate area through the passport control and find the AY check-in. We didn't get BPs for this flight at AKL but our luggage is going all the way through to HEL. The check-in is closed and won't open until 8.30 and then we'll have a further 2 agonising hours until our flight depart. We begin to be a bit dazed as we've been on the road for some 30 hours already and my partner's being very grumpy due to my suddenly picking up smoking again (I had given up two months before – a filthy habit I know).
Finally the check-in opens and we have no problems getting our BPs. We then proceed straight to the gate area which was a huge mistake. The security guy tries to warn us that nothing will be open but we didn't quite realize this until we see the ghost town of the departure hall with one single shop (closed) and one single cafe (closed). Our gate is miles away so we drag our sorry selves there and wait.. and wait... and wait until a couple of hours later the door is opened to the proper gate area.
2 May 2004
FRA-HEL Finnair AY822 Economy Class
A319
Seats 19A/B
Flight time: 2hrs 25mins
The flight is full, we cram our bags and ourselves to the very tiny looking Y seats and prepare for a grueling couple of hours. This last leg on the way home is always agonising, you just want to get there as fast as possible and don't really care about anything.
This is my first flight with Finnair in about 13 years and I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the service. The really cool nosecams should be a standard feature on all airplanes!
The crew was being very chirpy and efficient, they did a couple of drink rounds and a meal was served. Cold meatballs and potato salad, not bad but nothing else... then my partner's grumpiness increases when it turns out there is no vegetarian meal for him onboard . This despite my mother explicitly checking this with Finnair a week before our flight! The FA was very apologetic and after a while came around with a salad she'd whipped up from somewhere (crew meal maybe??). Nice rescue job, too bad the salad was nothing special!
Most pax seemed to be Finns and there was a lot of booze going around
They played some news and something else on the little screens that popped out from the ceiling – without sound though which was a bit odd (all was subtitled in English).
We landed on time and my family was waiting for us, it was so good seeing them after 2 years!
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: -
Comfort: 6
Service: 9
Meal, normal: 6
Meal, vegetarian: 1
Entertainment: 10 for the nosecams, 5 for the rest
Kuala Lumpur KLIA MH F lounge
I haven't been to KLIA in a few years but it looks pretty much the same. After a bit of confusion, we find the MH Golden Lounge upstairs, flash our BPs and are directed to the 1st class lounge. Now please remember this is our first time on F so we may be easily impressed, but this lounge is simply utterly luxurious! :-:
We have a couple of hours until our connection to FRA, we park ourselves by a nice little table and I go explore the lounge. Showers, sauna, an amazing buffet with a restaurant-like setting with white tablecloths etc! I decide to get refreshed and take a shower first. Very nice and I emerge re-vitalised. We have some coffee/tea and soft drinks and I go check the buffet. Unfortunately, we both are still stuffed from our onboard feasts, so I can't even think about eating... but wait a minute, maybe I'll sample those divine looking little seafood sandwiches
So I do and they are heaven! The buffet looks amazing with plenty of hot food options as well.I go outside and wander around the shops. Prices look quite cheap but then I had really had no idea how much the Malaysian currency is worth as we had not planned to be here in the first place! Anyway, I do buy some toiletries and cigarettes (later looking at my Visa bill, they were indeed cheap!). Back to the lounge and some more coffee before we venture to the gate and find a long queue to the security. And no F line!! So we queue with the Y pax, there's lots of them and it looks like a full flight. Finally we get through but boarding hasn't even begun (it is now 23.55 KUL time and we were scheduled to depart at 23.50) so we hang around for some time until it begins. The check-in is done in fairly orderly fashion and F/C pax are invited to board first. There is a separate door for F/C and so we leave the masses behind
1 May 2004
KUL-FRA MH006 Malaysian Airlines First Class
B777-200
Seats 2K/2J
Flight time: 12 hours
The departure is delayed by about half an hour or so. We don't really care as we will have plenty of time at FRA before our flight to HEL departs – in fact the later we arrive, the better, as we will be in Y and will have no lounge access at FRA!
For some reason, they don't offer any champagne before take-off, so we settle for orange juice. The F cabin is full with only 1 free seat. We are back in 2K/2J and my partner is looking suspiciously around and thinks it is the same plane we took from AKL, he asks the crew but they don't really know. I assure him it's not the same plane and that his IFE will work fine!
The lead FA (purser?) comes to ask how my last name is pronounced, which is a really nice touch. She is extremely professional and gives top service throughout the flight.
The crew dispenses menus, amenity kits, newspapers & magazines and then we're finally off at 00.30 KUL time.
LIGHT SUPPER
Malaysian Satay
Our famous Charcoal grilled chicken and beef skewer topped with spicy peanut sauce
Sevruga Malossal Caviar
Served on Ice Sockle with traditional garnishes
Choice of Soup
Lobster Cream Soup
Clear vegetable and pasta soup
Seasonal fresh fruits
Should you prefer a complete dining experience, we suggest the following selection of main course:
Specialty of the week (I never asked what this was)
Grilled beef steak served with caramelized pearl onion sauce accompanied by chateau potatoes, Vichy carrots and sugar snap peas
Mushroom tortellini accompanied by tomato cream sauce and shaved Parmesan cheese
Chargrilled herb chicken breast complemented with sweet basil and tomato concassee Italian noodles and chunky ratatouille
We are still quite full but can't resist sampling the food. Most pax seemed to bypass the dinner altogether in favor of sleep. I had already decided not to take the satay but when the purser came around with the trolley, I just couldn't resist so I asked for a couple of the chicken ones. She was about to give me a full dozen of them so I had to stop her
They are so good though!!I could not bypass the caviar as I'm rather partial to all kinds of seafood (if you hadn't already noticed!). It was divine and naturally I took a schnapps of ice cold vodka with it.
Then I had the soup which was not that great and I was really getting full again so I left half of it. The purser cam around to take the soup dish and asked for our main selection, which we politely declined. She looked quite disappointed and said 'But you hardly had anything Sir!' If only she knew the amount of food we already had had!
Then it was time to sleep. I am a very bad sleeper on airplanes so I was really looking forward to trying out the seat. It did not recline all the way but was comfortable enough and I managed to get about 6 hours of sleep. My partner was happily asleep when I woke up and I accidentally split some water on him (twice!) when I was fiddling around with something. The centre armrest was wide enough to hold a few drinks but in the dark they were dangerously close to you!
I was feeling a bit peckish by now so I asked for a coffee and a snack and the FA brought me two small sandwiches plus a plate of cheese and crackers. I was completely out of touch with the timezones by now but my watch was saying it was 02.00 Finnish time so some 12 hours to go before landing home in HEL!
I read my book and waited for the breakfast service to begin.
BREAKFAST
Health drink
Fresh fruit juices
Seasonal fresh fruits
Cornflakes or Muesli
Mains
Freshly prepared eggs - your choice of boiled, fried or scrambled egg served with grilled chicken sausage
Nasi Lemak, a well known traditional Malaysian breakfast dish of fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk served with prawn or cuttlefish sambal and the must have accompaniments of stir-fried spinach, cucumber, boiled egg, crunchy deep-fried peanuts and anchovies
Grilled minute breakfast steak accompanied by orange sage butter
Thick French toast filled with apple served with maple syrup
Vegetables and accompaniments
Grilled tomato
Sautéed fresh button mushrooms
Sautéed fresh spinach
Roesti potatoes
Bakery selection
The whole service was again done from the trolley and it was pretty unbelievable :-: The FA had asked earlier for the choice for eggs and I had ordered fried eggs but that did not seem to matter as everything was laid down nicely on the trolley. I had the fried eggs anyway, I was slightly tempted by the Nasi Lemak but I'm not that adventurous during breakfast
My partner only had some potatoes for his main and the FA found that hard to believe saying 'Are you sure Mr. XX?'
We landed at 06.50 so only 20 minutes behind schedule. Sadly, this was the end of our F part of the journey and as we stepped off the plane, we became cattle
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: -
Lounge: 10
Comfort: 8
Service: 10
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 8
FRA AIRPORT
After some general confusion on where to go, we exit the gate area through the passport control and find the AY check-in. We didn't get BPs for this flight at AKL but our luggage is going all the way through to HEL. The check-in is closed and won't open until 8.30 and then we'll have a further 2 agonising hours until our flight depart. We begin to be a bit dazed as we've been on the road for some 30 hours already and my partner's being very grumpy due to my suddenly picking up smoking again (I had given up two months before – a filthy habit I know).
Finally the check-in opens and we have no problems getting our BPs. We then proceed straight to the gate area which was a huge mistake. The security guy tries to warn us that nothing will be open but we didn't quite realize this until we see the ghost town of the departure hall with one single shop (closed) and one single cafe (closed). Our gate is miles away so we drag our sorry selves there and wait.. and wait... and wait until a couple of hours later the door is opened to the proper gate area.
2 May 2004
FRA-HEL Finnair AY822 Economy Class
A319
Seats 19A/B
Flight time: 2hrs 25mins
The flight is full, we cram our bags and ourselves to the very tiny looking Y seats and prepare for a grueling couple of hours. This last leg on the way home is always agonising, you just want to get there as fast as possible and don't really care about anything.
This is my first flight with Finnair in about 13 years and I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the service. The really cool nosecams should be a standard feature on all airplanes!
The crew was being very chirpy and efficient, they did a couple of drink rounds and a meal was served. Cold meatballs and potato salad, not bad but nothing else... then my partner's grumpiness increases when it turns out there is no vegetarian meal for him onboard
. This despite my mother explicitly checking this with Finnair a week before our flight! The FA was very apologetic and after a while came around with a salad she'd whipped up from somewhere (crew meal maybe??). Nice rescue job, too bad the salad was nothing special!Most pax seemed to be Finns and there was a lot of booze going around
They played some news and something else on the little screens that popped out from the ceiling – without sound though which was a bit odd (all was subtitled in English).
We landed on time and my family was waiting for us, it was so good seeing them after 2 years!
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: -
Comfort: 6
Service: 9
Meal, normal: 6
Meal, vegetarian: 1
Entertainment: 10 for the nosecams, 5 for the rest
Jul 17, 2004, 7:23 pm
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2002
Location: AKL, New Zealand
Posts: 241
The return, part I
==thanks for all the feedback!==
Here is the return trip, part I HEL-BKK
HEL AIRPORT
It's been a great two months but now it's time to return home to NZ. Our return journey will take some 36 hours, first to FRA with AY in Y and then the rest of the way in TG F via BKK & SYD. We are hoping that this time we'll actually get to fly the flights we have tickets for, and experience the TG F service for the first time! Little did we know what was in store for us!
We get to the airport about 2 hours prior to departure. We head for the Finnair business class check-in and after some queueing get to the counter. I kindly ask her in Finnish if it's ok to check-in here as we have a 1st class connection. She doesn't say much, takes our tickets, tags our luggage and says we need to check-in at FRA for the TG flights. So far, so good!
We say a slightly teary goodbye to my mother and then it's off to the departure area.
2 July 2004
HEL-FRA Finnair AY825 Economy Class
A320-100
Seats 7A/B
Flight time: 2hrs 40mins
HEL is very crowded and as it's quite small, it gets quite uncomfortable with hundreds of people shuffling back and forth. It's time for some last-minute shopping so we head to the Stockmann store. We buy some Finnish design glass and I stock up on liquorice and Fazer chocolates. The check-out girl is very friendly and I get a 5% discount for living abroad She also adds packaging materials to the two vases we bought, great service!
We queue to the gate and after a very orderly boarding process, take our seats. The plane seems to be full. We leave on time and the nosecam is really cool again. Meal service begins shortly after, and once again there is no vegetarian meal loaded. And once again, we had checked with Finnair two weeks prior that the meal request was fine and they said it is
The FA is really sorry and offers to report this. The food is some kind of meat with a bread roll and a piece for chocolate for dessert. The vegetarian eats the roll and the choc and is not happy. The food is pretty crap anyway. The male FA who is doing the dinner drinks first ignores our row and I have to wave him back. I have a Spanish red wine which is pretty crap too.
We later send feedback to Finnair about the missing veggie meals and they reply (within a week) saying how sorry they are and that we will get a voucher in the mail (it hasn't arrived yet).
Otherwise the flight is pretty uneventful and we land in FRA on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: -
Comfort: 6
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 4
Meal, vegetarian: 0
Entertainment: 10 for the nosecams, 5 for the rest
FRA AIRPORT
So here we are, all ready for some F luxury! We find the TG check-in after a bit of confusion and take our trolley to the F counter. The male rep (not TG staff) takes our tickets and looks at his computer screen with a slightly worried look on his face. He says to the woman on the next counter in German that there are no bookings for us.. hmm... what is this about we wonder. The woman taps furiously on her PC and then talks to us in English and says our bookings have been cancelled!!!
We are flabbergasted!!! What?? How can that be?? Who did it?? Why?? The woman has no answers to these but continues tapping on her PC and says that she'll telex Bangkok about it. Then she says that she can re-book us F on the FRA-BKK leg but that the BKK-AKL is sold out in F and she can only give us guaranteed C seats!!! We politely ask her to check any other connections in F from BKK, including other airlines. She refuses this and says our tickets are only valid on TG (hmm how can this be since we already flew on MH?). There is nothing else she can do, so we take the C BPs and she assures us that BKK will take care of us and that most likely we can get the F seats there.
We cannot believe they cancelled our bookings and are extremely unhappy about the whole turn of events. The man prints our Bps and guides us to the LH F lounge upstairs. We still have about 2 hours before departure.
Finally I get to see what the LH SEN lounges are all about! I've read so much about them on FT and have always envied people for using them. As a lowly LH FTL I've been to many FTL lounges and they have been pretty good except for the lack of anything to eat (besides peanuts and gummy bears!). So we step into the SEN lounge and I can't believe this is what they call a F lounge! It is exactly like an FTL lounge with the addition of some bread rolls, a salad and cold sausages. What a disappointment!! The lounge is also very crowded and we share a table with a Japanese guy in the smoking section. We are not impressed!
2 July 2004
FRA-BKK TG923 Thai Airways First Class
B747
Seats 1A/B
Flight time: 10 hours 40 minutes
We get to the departure area and there is a longish queue for BP checks to get into the gate area proper. No separate F/C queue! We are way too early and have to wait for some time before boarding starts. It is quite funny watching a lot of people assuming standby positions by the gate counter, ready to run for their lives! The gate is very crowded and it looks like a full flight.
Boarding is finally announced, with F/C invited to board at their leisure so we take our bags and shuffle through the masses to the counter. There is a separate door for F/C and we are politely guided through to the plane, where we are welcomed by the lead purser who takes us onto our seats and makes us very welcome! She says there is only one other pax in F so we can stow our luggage anywhere! We settle into our seats, and she is immediately serving us champagne. I didn't see the bottle so not sure what it was. Tasted good anyway
She chats with us and is very sympathetic when I tell her about the mess with our tickets. We get some more champagne and the male FA gives us the menus and amenity kits, which is a Thai-styled colourful toiletry bag with . A little later he is back asking which size 'comfort clothing' we'd like. My partner does not first understand – he didn't believe me when I told him we'd be getting PJs!! We get them and they look rather nice with a small Thai logo. There is a good selection of magazines and I grab a few to peruse through while enjoying the drinks.
Take-off is a little late, which doesn't bother us. Dinner service begins soon after with aperitifs, I take a Campari & OJ, which is just beautiful. We are also served some very tasty Thai nuts to go with the drinks. I have another Campari but decline on the nut refill.
I don't have the actual menu as the FA was too quick to take them away and I didn't bother asking for one. Anyway, I had some very nice Pinot Gris with my dinner while my partner had French white wine. The lead FA was really excellent and made absolutely sure our glasses were never empty! Here's the dinner from my notes, all was again done from the trolley which I love!
Canapés – very tasty and my partner had special veggies ones which he loved
Thai snack – which was a really delicious small chicken dish
Caviar service with all the garnishes and ice-cold vodka – this was even better than on MH! Also on offer was smoked salmon and foie gras
For my main I had a Mussuman beef curry with rice & potatoes, which was extremely tasty and pleasantly spicy
Cheese & fruits – I just had some grapes and strawberries, had a nice glass of Port though
Dessert was a Swiss roll with vanilla sauce
For once, the vegetarian meal worked really well so my partner was extremely pleased
After dinner, it was lights out and we both changed into our PJs – what a decadent feeling that was The seats go fully flat and are very comfortable. The cabin was quite hot though and I tossed and turned for a while before drifting off to dreamland. I slept for about 6-7 hours and got up 1hr 50mins before scheduled landing. I think the crew was waiting for us to wake up because the breakfast service was starting as I got back from changing out of the PJs.
Breakfast once again done out of the trolley and included juices, yoghurts, cereals, muesli, fresh fruits, bakery items, jams, followed by a selection of hot foods. I had an omelet with some fried bacon and tomato while the vegetarian feasted on potatoes
We landed on time. The lead FA thanked us and wished us luck for getting the 1st class seats through to AKL.
Overall, this is what we paid for and expected – a true 1st class experience! ^
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: 2
Comfort: 10
Service: 10 :-:
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 7
Here is the return trip, part I HEL-BKK
HEL AIRPORT
It's been a great two months but now it's time to return home to NZ. Our return journey will take some 36 hours, first to FRA with AY in Y and then the rest of the way in TG F via BKK & SYD. We are hoping that this time we'll actually get to fly the flights we have tickets for, and experience the TG F service for the first time! Little did we know what was in store for us!
We get to the airport about 2 hours prior to departure. We head for the Finnair business class check-in and after some queueing get to the counter. I kindly ask her in Finnish if it's ok to check-in here as we have a 1st class connection. She doesn't say much, takes our tickets, tags our luggage and says we need to check-in at FRA for the TG flights. So far, so good!
We say a slightly teary goodbye to my mother and then it's off to the departure area.
2 July 2004
HEL-FRA Finnair AY825 Economy Class
A320-100
Seats 7A/B
Flight time: 2hrs 40mins
HEL is very crowded and as it's quite small, it gets quite uncomfortable with hundreds of people shuffling back and forth. It's time for some last-minute shopping so we head to the Stockmann store. We buy some Finnish design glass and I stock up on liquorice and Fazer chocolates. The check-out girl is very friendly and I get a 5% discount for living abroad
She also adds packaging materials to the two vases we bought, great service!We queue to the gate and after a very orderly boarding process, take our seats. The plane seems to be full. We leave on time and the nosecam is really cool again. Meal service begins shortly after, and once again there is no vegetarian meal loaded. And once again, we had checked with Finnair two weeks prior that the meal request was fine and they said it is
The FA is really sorry and offers to report this. The food is some kind of meat with a bread roll and a piece for chocolate for dessert. The vegetarian eats the roll and the choc and is not happy. The food is pretty crap anyway. The male FA who is doing the dinner drinks first ignores our row and I have to wave him back. I have a Spanish red wine which is pretty crap too.
We later send feedback to Finnair about the missing veggie meals and they reply (within a week) saying how sorry they are and that we will get a voucher in the mail (it hasn't arrived yet).
Otherwise the flight is pretty uneventful and we land in FRA on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: -
Comfort: 6
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 4
Meal, vegetarian: 0
Entertainment: 10 for the nosecams, 5 for the rest
FRA AIRPORT
So here we are, all ready for some F luxury! We find the TG check-in after a bit of confusion and take our trolley to the F counter. The male rep (not TG staff) takes our tickets and looks at his computer screen with a slightly worried look on his face. He says to the woman on the next counter in German that there are no bookings for us.. hmm... what is this about we wonder. The woman taps furiously on her PC and then talks to us in English and says our bookings have been cancelled!!!
We are flabbergasted!!! What?? How can that be?? Who did it?? Why?? The woman has no answers to these but continues tapping on her PC and says that she'll telex Bangkok about it. Then she says that she can re-book us F on the FRA-BKK leg but that the BKK-AKL is sold out in F and she can only give us guaranteed C seats!!! We politely ask her to check any other connections in F from BKK, including other airlines. She refuses this and says our tickets are only valid on TG (hmm how can this be since we already flew on MH?). There is nothing else she can do, so we take the C BPs and she assures us that BKK will take care of us and that most likely we can get the F seats there.
We cannot believe they cancelled our bookings and are extremely unhappy about the whole turn of events. The man prints our Bps and guides us to the LH F lounge upstairs. We still have about 2 hours before departure.
Finally I get to see what the LH SEN lounges are all about! I've read so much about them on FT and have always envied people for using them. As a lowly LH FTL I've been to many FTL lounges and they have been pretty good except for the lack of anything to eat (besides peanuts and gummy bears!). So we step into the SEN lounge and I can't believe this is what they call a F lounge! It is exactly like an FTL lounge with the addition of some bread rolls, a salad and cold sausages. What a disappointment!! The lounge is also very crowded and we share a table with a Japanese guy in the smoking section. We are not impressed!
2 July 2004
FRA-BKK TG923 Thai Airways First Class
B747
Seats 1A/B
Flight time: 10 hours 40 minutes
We get to the departure area and there is a longish queue for BP checks to get into the gate area proper. No separate F/C queue! We are way too early and have to wait for some time before boarding starts. It is quite funny watching a lot of people assuming standby positions by the gate counter, ready to run for their lives! The gate is very crowded and it looks like a full flight.
Boarding is finally announced, with F/C invited to board at their leisure so we take our bags and shuffle through the masses to the counter. There is a separate door for F/C and we are politely guided through to the plane, where we are welcomed by the lead purser who takes us onto our seats and makes us very welcome! She says there is only one other pax in F so we can stow our luggage anywhere! We settle into our seats, and she is immediately serving us champagne. I didn't see the bottle so not sure what it was. Tasted good anyway
She chats with us and is very sympathetic when I tell her about the mess with our tickets. We get some more champagne and the male FA gives us the menus and amenity kits, which is a Thai-styled colourful toiletry bag with . A little later he is back asking which size 'comfort clothing' we'd like. My partner does not first understand – he didn't believe me when I told him we'd be getting PJs!! We get them and they look rather nice with a small Thai logo. There is a good selection of magazines and I grab a few to peruse through while enjoying the drinks.
Take-off is a little late, which doesn't bother us. Dinner service begins soon after with aperitifs, I take a Campari & OJ, which is just beautiful. We are also served some very tasty Thai nuts to go with the drinks. I have another Campari but decline on the nut refill.
I don't have the actual menu as the FA was too quick to take them away and I didn't bother asking for one. Anyway, I had some very nice Pinot Gris with my dinner while my partner had French white wine. The lead FA was really excellent and made absolutely sure our glasses were never empty! Here's the dinner from my notes, all was again done from the trolley which I love!
Canapés – very tasty and my partner had special veggies ones which he loved
Thai snack – which was a really delicious small chicken dish
Caviar service with all the garnishes and ice-cold vodka – this was even better than on MH! Also on offer was smoked salmon and foie gras
For my main I had a Mussuman beef curry with rice & potatoes, which was extremely tasty and pleasantly spicy
Cheese & fruits – I just had some grapes and strawberries, had a nice glass of Port though
Dessert was a Swiss roll with vanilla sauce
For once, the vegetarian meal worked really well so my partner was extremely pleased
After dinner, it was lights out and we both changed into our PJs – what a decadent feeling that was
The seats go fully flat and are very comfortable. The cabin was quite hot though and I tossed and turned for a while before drifting off to dreamland. I slept for about 6-7 hours and got up 1hr 50mins before scheduled landing. I think the crew was waiting for us to wake up because the breakfast service was starting as I got back from changing out of the PJs.Breakfast once again done out of the trolley and included juices, yoghurts, cereals, muesli, fresh fruits, bakery items, jams, followed by a selection of hot foods. I had an omelet with some fried bacon and tomato while the vegetarian feasted on potatoes
We landed on time. The lead FA thanked us and wished us luck for getting the 1st class seats through to AKL.
Overall, this is what we paid for and expected – a true 1st class experience! ^
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 8
Lounge: 2
Comfort: 10
Service: 10 :-:
Meal, normal: 10
Meal, vegetarian: 10
Entertainment: 7
Jul 17, 2004, 7:28 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2002
Location: AKL, New Zealand
Posts: 241
The return, part II BKK-AKL
BKK AIRPORT
When the doors opened, there was a TG rep waiting for us. She escorted us to the 1st class lounge and said they will do their best to secure our paid seats. I asked her what the compensation would be if this did not happen and she said she has to check with her supervisor and that we'll be contacted in the lounge later.
We will have a 6-hour layover in BKK and had no intention of leaving the airport (We went to BKK last year for a holiday). The F lounge was immaculate, quite small with lots of comfy chairs and tables. There were max 3-5 other pax when we there and there was so much staff around that I was wondering what they all did... anyway, first of all I go and grab a shower which was really nice, much better than the MH F one in KL and I thought that was superb! I change my clothes and feel like a new person. This was a non-smoking lounge so I venture off to find a place, the receptionist tells me there is a business class lounge a bit further away but as I find a smoking room 20 metres from the lounge, I can't be bothered.
The 6 hours do go quite quite slowly, although there is free internet and lots of newspapers and drinks to entertain us. The food selection doesn't however look that great and all I eat there is one sandwich with some kind of paté on it (not recommended!). Behind one of the wall panels I find a lovely Thai lady who asks if I want a (free) massage and I do! It was pure heaven, she did my neck, shoulders and face too – I remain all properly dressed if that's what you're thinking about
I prepare a list of questions to ask the TG rep when he/she comes to us. Top of the list is why our bookings were cancelled and why my email of 2 months prior asking for mileage credit for the AKL-FRA legs had not been answered.
As the hours go by, we become increasingly anxious about the lack of information from TG so I go to the receptionist to ask what's happening. She taps on her PC and tells me there is no change and F is still full. I ask if I can speak with a customer service manager but she does not understand my request at all and directs me to the small TG service desk on the corridor. This is manned by 4 teenage looking guys so I don't even bother asking them about anything but return to the lounge. I ask the receptionist again if I could talk to someone at TG about our situation but she just did not understand what I wanted so I gave up after a while... I guess TG F lounge staff has not been trained to deal with unhappy F customers because technically there shouldn't be any!!
The promised TG rep never comes back to us
Soon after, the receptionist comes and tells us the news we've been waiting for: we are indeed downgraded but the flight manager has secured us better seats so she asks for our BPs that had 26E/F on them. She goes away and comes back in a minute with our new seats 24E/F handwritten on the BPs. Wow, what an improvement.. we are in an even worse mood now! 
3 July 2004
BKK-SYD TG991 Thai Airways Business Class
B777-200
Seats 24E/F
Flight time: 9 hours
Our flight will be boarding soon and my partner becomes very fidgety and suggest we go to the gate. I assure him that a TG rep will come and escort us and finally one does. We follow her like little dogs, she does not speak to us at all which was rather strange. It's a long walk to the gate and we go through security as well. The gate is just about empty when we get there and we are escorted all the way to our seats.
The C class looks definitely crappy and does nothing to increase our happiness. On the contrary, we have a clear view into the F class and if looks could kill, there would've been a couple of F pax that never left BKK on that flight
The C class is full. We are offered OJ/water and we're soon off in the air. We get a C amenity kit and the menus. The C kit is a downgraded version of the F one, but with pretty much the same stuff inside. I had thought they'd be kind enough to give us the F kits since we'd paid for them, but no way. There are about 4-5 FAs serving C, they do their job well but there is none of the extra courtesy and care we had on the previous leg.
The C seats suck big time! The recline is ridiculous and the footrests are a joke. I would never pay any extra money for flying TG C! Dinner service begins soon after take-off and we get some unremarkable snack nuts in a little bag. I take another Campari & OJ which comes in a glass that is exactly twice as small as the ones in F!! This does nothing to improve my mood but I am still careful not to take it out on the crew as it's not their fault that TG screwed up...
The dinner is more like a slightly glorified Y meal until we get to the cheeses & the dessert, which are the only courses served from the trolley. Vegetarian courses are served separately.
FIRST SERVING
Hot Savoury; Fried Thai Curry Fish Mousse Cake
Vegetarian: spring rolls
First Course
Hot Smoked Apricot Salmon
Poultry Terrine with Duck Liver
Palm Heart Salad with corn seeds
Salad; Mixed green salad with Thousand island dressing
Main courses
Stir-fried shredded pork with carrot, bamboo shoot, black mushrooms & yellow Chinese noodles
Fillet of Siam perch with red capsicum sauce, parsley potatoes, carrots, spinach
Broiled Tournedos steak with teriyaki sauce, buttered egg noodles, stir-fried vegetables
Chicken curry “Pa-naeng”(medium hot), steamed Thai jasmine rice, Chinese broccoli
Vegetarian: curry with mixed veggies, tofu and rice
Assorted Cheese and dried fruit tray
Fresh fruits
Dessert
Assorted fruit sherbet
Assorted mini French pastries
The savoury was served separately on a little plate but the rest is served on trays that had the salad and appetizer on it, exactly as you would expect in Y.
I had the fish (surprise!), it came in a Y box and was not very good. There was a rather long break before they served any wine/drinks to go with the meal.
The highlight of the dinner was with the cheeses and dessert. They were served from the trolley (and I later found out that F had the exact same courses). I sampled three cheeses (sorry forgot what they were!) with crackers and some grapes and had a glass of Port as well.
The dessert pastries looked absolutely fabulous! There was about a half dozen different ones and we both had a couple – they were divine! We both passed on the sherbet, but they looked good as well.
After dinner, it was time to rest. I was so tired that I fell asleep immediately. I woke up feeling really refreshed and perky and thought that we'll be landing soon. My partner looked at me and said it was 1 o'clock... where?.. In Sydney!!
Oh dear, that meant we had another 6 hours to go and I had slept for exactly one hour!!! I was devastated. I couldn't go back to sleep even though my sudden perkiness only lasted for half an hour. I spent the night trying to fall asleep but it was useless and the seat was really uncomfortable.
Breakfast was served on Y trays again and it was rather unremarkable.
SECOND SERVING
Fresh fruits
Quiche Metiza, grilled chicken sausage
Tomato and French beans
After a grueling time, we finally land in SYD. We are continuing on the same plane but all transiting pax are required to take their bags out of the plane, go through security and then re-board the plane some 40 minutes later.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 0
Lounge: 10
Comfort: 5
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 5 (dessert 10)
Meal, vegetarian: 8
Entertainment: 6
SYD AIRPORT
At SYD, I grab the person that looks like she's the flight manager and tell her our situation and ask if there are any free F seats on the remaining leg to AKL. She is really surprised to hear this and wonders why BKK hasn't telexed her about us. She assures us she'll put us up front immediately and asks us to get copies of our tickets done in the lounge. She tells us to look her up when we are boarding. Her professionalism and attitude lifts our mood considerably. I can't help but wonder why they did not put us in F on this leg in the first place though...
We go up to the NZ lounge and as we don't have F BPs, we are guided to the C lounge. The lounge looks really nice, it's big and airy and they have a good spread of breakfast foods available. I just grab a coffee and a croissant while Mr Vegetarian feasts on vegemite
The lounge is non-smoking so I go for a fix and then wait downstairs, I'm simply too tired to to go up again! Soon we go back to the gate and look for the flight manager but she is nowhere to be seen. Just as F/C boarding is called for, she appears from the plane and escorts us to our new seats. On the way there, she asks if we'd been compensated in BKK for the downgrade and she is again surprised that we had received nothing.
4 July 2004
SYD-AKL TG991 Thai Airways First Class
B747-400
Seats 1K/J
Flight time: 3 hours 5 minutes
F cabin is full, although the Prince of Tonga and his companion (bodyguard?) are occupying two seats each. The FA puts our bags in the small locker at the front and we take our seats in the first row. She explains that these seats only work manually and is apologetic about this. We are so happy to back where we belong that we don't care and, anyway, the seat works fine with the manual adjusts!
Take-off is about half an hour late, but the captain says we'll arrive on time. Soon after take-off, the crew prepare for breakfast, which is another trolley service and similar (if not the same) as we had on the FRA-BKK leg.
BREAKFAST
Fresh fruits
Fruit yoghurts
Cornflakes and cereal
Hot options
Omelet
Roasted vegetable frittata
Boiled eggs
Grilled bacon
Grilled chicken sausage
Tomato
Mushrooms
Roast potatoes with herbs
Noodle soup with roast pork (available on request)
Roll, croissant, Danish pastry
The crew is understandably busy with an almost full load so there is no personal feeling to the service, which is anyhow impeccable.
I watch a movie and enjoy the long breakfast and then we already land in AKL, pretty much on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 9 (for the TG flight manager)
Lounge: 8
Comfort: 8
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 9
Meal, vegetarian: 9
Entertainment: 8
AFTERWARDS
The next day we got back, I sent a 2-page fax to the TG AKL office, asking them a lot of questions that were left unaswered and also asking them to give us a) full F mileage for the whole trip b) a cash refund for the downgrade and c) some compensation for the inconvenience experienced.
They replied straight away asking me to mail them our tickets and BPs and said they would investigate the matter. This was a week ago and we are still waiting for a reply.
We paid a lot of money for the tickets so I am really hoping for a favorable outcome. The one and only TG F leg we had (out of the 4 paid for!) was truly excellent, but the overall experience left a lot to be desired.
When the doors opened, there was a TG rep waiting for us. She escorted us to the 1st class lounge and said they will do their best to secure our paid seats. I asked her what the compensation would be if this did not happen and she said she has to check with her supervisor and that we'll be contacted in the lounge later.
We will have a 6-hour layover in BKK and had no intention of leaving the airport (We went to BKK last year for a holiday). The F lounge was immaculate, quite small with lots of comfy chairs and tables. There were max 3-5 other pax when we there and there was so much staff around that I was wondering what they all did... anyway, first of all I go and grab a shower which was really nice, much better than the MH F one in KL and I thought that was superb! I change my clothes and feel like a new person. This was a non-smoking lounge so I venture off to find a place, the receptionist tells me there is a business class lounge a bit further away but as I find a smoking room 20 metres from the lounge, I can't be bothered.
The 6 hours do go quite quite slowly, although there is free internet and lots of newspapers and drinks to entertain us. The food selection doesn't however look that great and all I eat there is one sandwich with some kind of paté on it (not recommended!). Behind one of the wall panels I find a lovely Thai lady who asks if I want a (free) massage and I do! It was pure heaven, she did my neck, shoulders and face too – I remain all properly dressed if that's what you're thinking about
I prepare a list of questions to ask the TG rep when he/she comes to us. Top of the list is why our bookings were cancelled and why my email of 2 months prior asking for mileage credit for the AKL-FRA legs had not been answered.
As the hours go by, we become increasingly anxious about the lack of information from TG so I go to the receptionist to ask what's happening. She taps on her PC and tells me there is no change and F is still full. I ask if I can speak with a customer service manager but she does not understand my request at all and directs me to the small TG service desk on the corridor. This is manned by 4 teenage looking guys so I don't even bother asking them about anything but return to the lounge. I ask the receptionist again if I could talk to someone at TG about our situation but she just did not understand what I wanted so I gave up after a while... I guess TG F lounge staff has not been trained to deal with unhappy F customers because technically there shouldn't be any!!
The promised TG rep never comes back to us
Soon after, the receptionist comes and tells us the news we've been waiting for: we are indeed downgraded but the flight manager has secured us better seats so she asks for our BPs that had 26E/F on them. She goes away and comes back in a minute with our new seats 24E/F handwritten on the BPs. Wow, what an improvement.. we are in an even worse mood now!
3 July 2004
BKK-SYD TG991 Thai Airways Business Class
B777-200
Seats 24E/F
Flight time: 9 hours
Our flight will be boarding soon and my partner becomes very fidgety and suggest we go to the gate. I assure him that a TG rep will come and escort us and finally one does. We follow her like little dogs, she does not speak to us at all which was rather strange. It's a long walk to the gate and we go through security as well. The gate is just about empty when we get there and we are escorted all the way to our seats.
The C class looks definitely crappy and does nothing to increase our happiness. On the contrary, we have a clear view into the F class and if looks could kill, there would've been a couple of F pax that never left BKK on that flight
The C class is full. We are offered OJ/water and we're soon off in the air. We get a C amenity kit and the menus. The C kit is a downgraded version of the F one, but with pretty much the same stuff inside. I had thought they'd be kind enough to give us the F kits since we'd paid for them, but no way. There are about 4-5 FAs serving C, they do their job well but there is none of the extra courtesy and care we had on the previous leg.
The C seats suck big time! The recline is ridiculous and the footrests are a joke. I would never pay any extra money for flying TG C! Dinner service begins soon after take-off and we get some unremarkable snack nuts in a little bag. I take another Campari & OJ which comes in a glass that is exactly twice as small as the ones in F!! This does nothing to improve my mood but I am still careful not to take it out on the crew as it's not their fault that TG screwed up...
The dinner is more like a slightly glorified Y meal until we get to the cheeses & the dessert, which are the only courses served from the trolley. Vegetarian courses are served separately.
FIRST SERVING
Hot Savoury; Fried Thai Curry Fish Mousse Cake
Vegetarian: spring rolls
First Course
Hot Smoked Apricot Salmon
Poultry Terrine with Duck Liver
Palm Heart Salad with corn seeds
Salad; Mixed green salad with Thousand island dressing
Main courses
Stir-fried shredded pork with carrot, bamboo shoot, black mushrooms & yellow Chinese noodles
Fillet of Siam perch with red capsicum sauce, parsley potatoes, carrots, spinach
Broiled Tournedos steak with teriyaki sauce, buttered egg noodles, stir-fried vegetables
Chicken curry “Pa-naeng”(medium hot), steamed Thai jasmine rice, Chinese broccoli
Vegetarian: curry with mixed veggies, tofu and rice
Assorted Cheese and dried fruit tray
Fresh fruits
Dessert
Assorted fruit sherbet
Assorted mini French pastries
The savoury was served separately on a little plate but the rest is served on trays that had the salad and appetizer on it, exactly as you would expect in Y.
I had the fish (surprise!), it came in a Y box and was not very good. There was a rather long break before they served any wine/drinks to go with the meal.
The highlight of the dinner was with the cheeses and dessert. They were served from the trolley (and I later found out that F had the exact same courses). I sampled three cheeses (sorry forgot what they were!) with crackers and some grapes and had a glass of Port as well.
The dessert pastries looked absolutely fabulous! There was about a half dozen different ones and we both had a couple – they were divine! We both passed on the sherbet, but they looked good as well.
After dinner, it was time to rest. I was so tired that I fell asleep immediately. I woke up feeling really refreshed and perky and thought that we'll be landing soon. My partner looked at me and said it was 1 o'clock... where?.. In Sydney!!
Oh dear, that meant we had another 6 hours to go and I had slept for exactly one hour!!! I was devastated. I couldn't go back to sleep even though my sudden perkiness only lasted for half an hour. I spent the night trying to fall asleep but it was useless and the seat was really uncomfortable.
Breakfast was served on Y trays again and it was rather unremarkable.
SECOND SERVING
Fresh fruits
Quiche Metiza, grilled chicken sausage
Tomato and French beans
After a grueling time, we finally land in SYD. We are continuing on the same plane but all transiting pax are required to take their bags out of the plane, go through security and then re-board the plane some 40 minutes later.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 0
Lounge: 10
Comfort: 5
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 5 (dessert 10)
Meal, vegetarian: 8
Entertainment: 6
SYD AIRPORT
At SYD, I grab the person that looks like she's the flight manager and tell her our situation and ask if there are any free F seats on the remaining leg to AKL. She is really surprised to hear this and wonders why BKK hasn't telexed her about us. She assures us she'll put us up front immediately and asks us to get copies of our tickets done in the lounge. She tells us to look her up when we are boarding. Her professionalism and attitude lifts our mood considerably. I can't help but wonder why they did not put us in F on this leg in the first place though...
We go up to the NZ lounge and as we don't have F BPs, we are guided to the C lounge. The lounge looks really nice, it's big and airy and they have a good spread of breakfast foods available. I just grab a coffee and a croissant while Mr Vegetarian feasts on vegemite
The lounge is non-smoking so I go for a fix and then wait downstairs, I'm simply too tired to to go up again! Soon we go back to the gate and look for the flight manager but she is nowhere to be seen. Just as F/C boarding is called for, she appears from the plane and escorts us to our new seats. On the way there, she asks if we'd been compensated in BKK for the downgrade and she is again surprised that we had received nothing.
4 July 2004
SYD-AKL TG991 Thai Airways First Class
B747-400
Seats 1K/J
Flight time: 3 hours 5 minutes
F cabin is full, although the Prince of Tonga and his companion (bodyguard?) are occupying two seats each. The FA puts our bags in the small locker at the front and we take our seats in the first row. She explains that these seats only work manually and is apologetic about this. We are so happy to back where we belong that we don't care and, anyway, the seat works fine with the manual adjusts!
Take-off is about half an hour late, but the captain says we'll arrive on time. Soon after take-off, the crew prepare for breakfast, which is another trolley service and similar (if not the same) as we had on the FRA-BKK leg.
BREAKFAST
Fresh fruits
Fruit yoghurts
Cornflakes and cereal
Hot options
Omelet
Roasted vegetable frittata
Boiled eggs
Grilled bacon
Grilled chicken sausage
Tomato
Mushrooms
Roast potatoes with herbs
Noodle soup with roast pork (available on request)
Roll, croissant, Danish pastry
The crew is understandably busy with an almost full load so there is no personal feeling to the service, which is anyhow impeccable.
I watch a movie and enjoy the long breakfast and then we already land in AKL, pretty much on time.
Ratings for this flight (out of ten):
Check in: 9 (for the TG flight manager)
Lounge: 8
Comfort: 8
Service: 8
Meal, normal: 9
Meal, vegetarian: 9
Entertainment: 8
AFTERWARDS
The next day we got back, I sent a 2-page fax to the TG AKL office, asking them a lot of questions that were left unaswered and also asking them to give us a) full F mileage for the whole trip b) a cash refund for the downgrade and c) some compensation for the inconvenience experienced.
They replied straight away asking me to mail them our tickets and BPs and said they would investigate the matter. This was a week ago and we are still waiting for a reply.
We paid a lot of money for the tickets so I am really hoping for a favorable outcome. The one and only TG F leg we had (out of the 4 paid for!) was truly excellent, but the overall experience left a lot to be desired.
Jul 17, 2004, 9:21 pm
#8
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: SYD
Programs: OZ*G, VA Plat, NZ*G (Elite), QF Gold and PC+, Hyatt Explorist, HH Gold, Bonvoyed ("Gold")
Posts: 5,350
What a great report, jarinzfin - what a pity the same can't be said for much of your experience on the trip. I hope TG do the decent thing - I'd be curious to know what they consider is adequate compensation.
The only time I have flown in F was also on Thai, on the same SYD-AKL run. While the service was excellent (as was the Dom Perignon), I was not impressed by the breakfast - AirNZ's breakfast in business class on the same route was definitely superior. Comfy seats though! I took a wander through business class on that flight and was distinctly underwhelmed by the seats - they were the old style ones, with the footrest attached to the seat in front - was this the type you ended up in? That would be almost enough to make me take up smoking too, if I had paid for first!
The only time I have flown in F was also on Thai, on the same SYD-AKL run. While the service was excellent (as was the Dom Perignon), I was not impressed by the breakfast - AirNZ's breakfast in business class on the same route was definitely superior. Comfy seats though! I took a wander through business class on that flight and was distinctly underwhelmed by the seats - they were the old style ones, with the footrest attached to the seat in front - was this the type you ended up in? That would be almost enough to make me take up smoking too, if I had paid for first!
Jul 18, 2004, 2:42 am
#9
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: HEL
Programs: *G, used to be with TK but left due to their corruption and political ties
Posts: 4,404
Originally Posted by jarinzfin
We paid a lot of money for the tickets so I am really hoping for a favorable outcome. The one and only TG F leg we had (out of the 4 paid for!) was truly excellent, but the overall experience left a lot to be desired.
Jul 18, 2004, 1:17 pm
#10
Moderator, Hilton Honors
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: on a short leash
Programs: some
Posts: 71,419
Great report jarinzfin ^ ^ ^
Shame about the TG experience. Hope you get some answers soon. I havent used TG much but in my limited experience it can be hit and miss in terms of customer service.
AKL-HEL is indeed a long trip - nice to do it in F (well mostly).
Shame about the TG experience. Hope you get some answers soon. I havent used TG much but in my limited experience it can be hit and miss in terms of customer service.
AKL-HEL is indeed a long trip - nice to do it in F (well mostly).
Jul 18, 2004, 3:05 pm
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2002
Location: AKL, New Zealand
Posts: 241
Originally Posted by mad_atta
... I took a wander through business class on that flight and was distinctly underwhelmed by the seats - they were the old style ones, with the footrest attached to the seat in front - was this the type you ended up in?
Thanks for all the feedback, I'll keep you guys updated whenever we hear back from TG!
Jul 18, 2004, 4:29 pm
#12
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: AA-Plat 7 Mil, UA-Plat 2 Mil, BA - Silv., KLM/AF- Plat, Bonvoy-Plat.
Posts: 821
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Great detailed report. Makes me really look forward to my MH First trip next month.
Your situation with the cancelled itinerary for the return portion seems to happen more than it should. Several times when I have been rerouted, the original airline forgets to offload me from the flight and when I am not on board treats me as a no-show and cancels my entire booking.
I've flown TG in C and it does stink. Surely no one pays full fare to fly with them in C. And MH will be the cats meow when they get their new seats installed supossedly later this year.
Great detailed report. Makes me really look forward to my MH First trip next month.
Your situation with the cancelled itinerary for the return portion seems to happen more than it should. Several times when I have been rerouted, the original airline forgets to offload me from the flight and when I am not on board treats me as a no-show and cancels my entire booking.
I've flown TG in C and it does stink. Surely no one pays full fare to fly with them in C. And MH will be the cats meow when they get their new seats installed supossedly later this year.
Jul 18, 2004, 4:45 pm
#13
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Stanmore, Sydney, Australia.
Programs: NZ Airpoints GE
Posts: 1,360
What a great effort, particulary for a first trip report!!!
That sounds like a total mess up with TG! I have heard less than favourable comments about C Class.
Make sure you hound TG to death until you get receive a satisfactory response.
That sounds like a total mess up with TG! I have heard less than favourable comments about C Class.
Make sure you hound TG to death until you get receive a satisfactory response.
Jul 19, 2004, 10:34 am
#15
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: East Ester, Alaska
Programs: Alaska Million Miler, United Million Miler, Wyndham Rewards Diamond, Choice Hotels Diamond
Posts: 12,145
Wow! That light meal on the AKL-KUL sector looked better than some of the full meals I've seen offered on much longer flights. Thanks for this excellent Trip Report!
