Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Community > Trip Reports
Reload this Page >

Austrian Business: Vienna-Singapore-Melbourne/Sydney-Kuala Lumpur-Vienna

Austrian Business: Vienna-Singapore-Melbourne/Sydney-Kuala Lumpur-Vienna

Old Jul 15, 2006, 11:12 am
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Europe
Programs: UA:1K MM, AF:FB-Platinum; QR: PC Platinum, FI: Saga Gold
Posts: 2,915
Austrian Business: Vienna-Singapore-Melbourne/Sydney-Kuala Lumpur-Vienna

This was an excellent flight. I would highly recommend Austrian long-haul business to everyone!


---Cabin Service---

The cabin service was excellent. The flight attendants – in their bright red uniforms – were most attentive. They were constantly walking through the cabin to see if anyone needed anything. There was no time when the crew disappeared – as is sadly the case on almost all other airlines. If you asked for a drink, the assumption was to give you a refill until you specifically asked them not to refill it! They were also helpful in recommending places to go in the destination cities.

Each Austrian long-haul flight features a professional chef on board. He stays in the galley and prepares the meals which are then brought out by the flight attendants. One of them told me that they do much more to the food in-air than other airlines which do it on the ground pre-flight. It shows in the quality! Afterwards, he comes out and chats with passengers about their meal – something you’d expect in a nice restaurant! This was simply fantastic and is apparently being done on a trial basis – I’m surprised they don’t advertise it more. [I say “he” because on all 4 long-haul sectors it was a he.]

Most impressive of all is that this high level of service was consistent on all 4 long-haul sectors.


---Food and Beverage---

The food and beverage service was not only excellent – but the choices (especially in food) were too.

This was the menu on one of the sectors (sorry don’t remember which):


DINNER


Hors d’Oeuvres

• Prawns “Louis Armstrong”
• Smoked salmon with sour cream and fresh chive
• Buffalo mozzarella with tomato and fresh basil
• Grilled asparagus with parmesan
• Caesar’s Salad with fillet of beef
• Spring-rolls with sweet chili sauce


Soup

• Creamy watercress soup with tomato croutons


Main course

• Pepper crusted Steak with oven-roasted vegetables and baked potato
• Grilled red snapper with sautéed mushrooms and tomato basil risotto
• Ricotta spinach ravioli with asparagus, artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes


Assorted cheese and exotic fruit


Desserts

• Ice Profiteroles with hot chocolate sauce
• Raspberry mint panna cotta
• Viennese “Kaiserchmareen”, shredded pancake with plumragout



BREAKFAST


• Fresh fruit
• Plain yoghurt with homemade granola
• Musli to order

• Spanish omellette
• Eggs sunny side up
• Club sandwich

• Oven-fresh bread and croissants
• DO & CO apricot jam



WINE LIST



• Piper Heidseick, Champagne Brut, Reims
• La Borgate Prosecco, Veneto

• 2005 Welschriesling Gross
• 2004 Aura Verdejo
• 2004 Chardonnay Penfolds Koonunga Hill

• 2004 Zantho Zweigelt Peck & Umathum
• 2002 Rioja Marques de Caceres
• 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Rosemount Estate


The Hors d’Oeuvres were served from a trolley – some passengers had one of each! I didn’t but seconds were offered: the spring rolls were absolutely great! I had the steak and was asked what sides I’d like with it! The club sandwich was very good – and original on a plane. In addition to this, they served warm canapés before the main meal and as a mid-flight snack – terrific!

The wine list was a bit foreign to me. I liked that they served the Piper in a 375 ml personal bottle – I’ve had bad experiences with champagne having gone stale when you ask for a glass mid-flight. (I also liked the fact that they served Gordon’s gin – not Bombay Sapphire: a sign of class in my book!!!)


----Seat/Cabin---

This was a Boeing 777 with the old-style business class seats. (Austrian is introducing lie-flat seats on their 777’s this summer.) The seats however were plush and comfortable. The fact that I had an empty seat next to me on all 4 sectors contributed to this! I could have one (small) monitor on the Airshow map and one on whatever I wanted to watch throughout the flight!

The color theme of the cabin is all green – the carpets, the seats… I did not find this particularly attractive. It however did not look “worn” – and will soon be gone!


---In-flight Entertainment---

There was no AVOD – although this will be available in the new-style business class. The selection of movies was very poor. The music selection was marginally better – both classical and some leading edge pop/rock that I had not heard. The IFE is however a big minus on Austrian.


---Amenity kit---

A bright lime colored bag comes with eyeshades, socks, lip balm, moisturizers. tooth-brush and cream --- and a pointy ball so you can give yourself a massage ! It’s all you’d expect. (Austrian does not offer pajamas.)


---Lounges---

Austrian uses the Air New Zealand lounge in Sydney – which is huge and has been discussed on this board many times. The plane only stops for about 30-45 minutes in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur so there’s no time to really go and enjoy the lounge. (We arrived in Singapore at 3:30 a.m. and it was quite a sight to see Changi deserted with almost every store closed!)

In Vienna, I used the Austrian Senator Lounge that’s beyond passport control, i.e. in the non-Schengen area. The lounge was small with no panoramic view - but not crowded at all. The oversized chairs - all in very bright colors – were very comfortable. The food and beverage offered were fine, more than I expected but nothing special.

The staff in the lounge was very good – i.e. they double-checked that my frequent flyer number was in the system since I had a through check-in. The monitor had been showing the flight as boarding for what seemed a very long time, but the staff said to wait until they told us to board…


---Pet Peeve---


The hot towels that Austrian offers are tiny, thread-bare and parts of them not hot at all. This was consistent on all 4 sectors as well – unfortunately.

Last edited by Braniff; Jul 15, 2006 at 1:00 pm
Braniff is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2006, 3:45 pm
  #2  
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Programs: BA
Posts: 3,890
^ ^ Great Report. I've been considering l/h Austrian in J. There prices seem to be really competitive on flights from the UK to the East. Did you happen to get any photos? In particular of the seat?

Thanks!
More Champagne Sir? is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2006, 5:31 pm
  #3  
Moderator, Hilton Honors
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: on a short leash
Programs: some
Posts: 71,419
Thanks for the report braniff ^

Hopefully someone can add to your comments with an experience on the new business class soon.
Kiwi Flyer is offline  
Old Jul 16, 2006, 4:11 am
  #4  
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: ZRH / YUL
Programs: UA, TK, Starwood > Marriott, Hilton, Accor
Posts: 7,281
Thank you for this report. OS long-haul C is fairly high up on the list of products I'd like to try, and your experience certainly made me even more keen on flying them anytime soon. The "flying chef" in particular sounds like a nice aspect, although I'm still a bit sceptical as to how much real cooking can be done in an airplane galley.
airoli is offline  
Old Jul 16, 2006, 6:02 am
  #5  
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Nice report Braniff. Looks like another airline premium cabin to add to my 'must try one day' list.

I had a look at the Austrian website and it has some nice pics of the new J class seat. Looks very comfortable indeed. Perhaps I will wait until next year when they finish rolling this out.
Moomba is offline  
Old Jul 16, 2006, 10:13 am
  #6  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Europe
Programs: UA:1K MM, AF:FB-Platinum; QR: PC Platinum, FI: Saga Gold
Posts: 2,915
Thanks for the feedback.

I'm afraid I don't have any photos of the old seat - but these should be gone on the Boeings by the end of the summer. (They're not installing the new lie-flat seats on the Airbuses - at least yet - so beware.)

The fares are incredibly competitive to Australia although there are rumors circulating that OS will stop flying there and focus more on Japan, China, etc. Apparently there's very little business traffic going to Australia - explaining their fares !

I am (was?) also skeptical about what can be done on-board to food but I can testify that the meals are fantastic. It may simply be that having a professional chef on board means that the meals are heated properly during the flight!

I should also have mentioned that the presentation of the meal service is great. There are no trays. Your table is set-up individually with tablecloth, cutlery (real ones), glasses, bread plate, salt and pepper shakers, et cetera. Then your choices are brought to you - mains straight from the galley, but the starters from a trolley because you can choose...

Last edited by Braniff; Jul 16, 2006 at 12:51 pm
Braniff is offline  
Old Jul 19, 2006, 6:50 am
  #7  
mag
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: sadly, mainly grounded...
Programs: LH M&M, FTL / *S
Posts: 406
thanks for the report, braniff, it matches my experiences with OS.

i had NG service a few times to KUL and enjoyed OS to PEK regularly. i remember that the chef used to be also very good in wines and so two flights ended up in a serious wine tasting with comments from the chef (it started with a discussion that austrian wines are underrated...).
but, hey, you are among only a few who prefer gordon's over bombay!!
mag is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 1:49 am
  #8  
 
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: New York, NY
Programs: AA, Hertz, SPG, Amex MR, Mahalo Rewards
Posts: 241
Thanks for the report.

About the above poster, there's an article in the NY Times yesterday praising Austrian wines.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/19/dining/19thei.html
elhumano is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 6:40 am
  #9  
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold (and other non-status plastic)
Posts: 1,889
Nice report, Braniff. Thanks... and I am now tempted to try OS for my planned trip down under early next year...

...however, there are some scary rumours going around that OS might be pulling the route:
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=234337
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=235639

That would be not be good news
kt74 is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 9:16 am
  #10  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Programs: OWEmerald; STARGold; BonvoyPlat; IHGPlat/Amb; HiltonGold; A|ClubPat; AirMilesPlat
Posts: 38,186
I concur with your comments about OS's front cabin long haul product. I took the VIE-IAD flight in the spring, after hearing similar positive reports. I think what strikes me most is the simplicity and eligance of the service and amenities, just what you'd expect from a small carrier with high standards. I don't recall an onboard chef, but I do remember a very fine meal, served in the old fashioned, first class way.

The Senator lounge at VIE is small, but when not crowded, a pleasant oasis well stocked [for breakfast] when I was there in the mid-morning. Hard to locate though, but this may in part be due to the construction going on at the airport terminal.

I thoroughly recommeng giving OS Business a try, particularly next winter when the conversion to new seats should be completed. (I never believe roll out schedules...SAS has not met theirs, nor is AC even close on theirs.)
Shareholder is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 11:50 am
  #11  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Europe
Programs: UA:1K MM, AF:FB-Platinum; QR: PC Platinum, FI: Saga Gold
Posts: 2,915
OS to cancel services to Australia ???

Originally Posted by kt74
Nice report, Braniff. Thanks... and I am now tempted to try OS for my planned trip down under early next year...

...however, there are some scary rumours going around that OS might be pulling the route:
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=234337
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=235639

That would be not be good news

This is what Air Transport World is reporting in today's e-newsletter.

Austrian Airlines Group is looking for further cost-cutting measures and is considering reducing or ending service to Australia. According to a source close to airline management, Austrian pays €400,000 ($500,600) in operational costs for each one of its nine weekly 777-200ER rotations to Australia, where it serves Sydney six-times-weekly and Melbourne thrice-weekly. The route is being pressured by high fuel prices and fierce competition from Middle Eastern carriers operating between Europe and Australia. AAG CEO Alfred Oetsch is expected to discuss the carrier's strategy next week at a press briefing. Austrian is the only European Star Alliance member that offers direct flights to Australia.

Separately, AAG flew a consolidated 2.13 billion RPKs in June, a 1.8% increase over the year-ago month. ASKs climbed 2.8% to 2.9 billion, dropping load factor 0.7 point to 73.5%.
Braniff is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 2:40 pm
  #12  
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: BRU
Programs: LH SEN, SN Gold, Eurostar Carte Blanche, BA, QF, AF
Posts: 6,856
Thanks for the report!

At your stops in SIN or KUL, did everybody get out of the aircraft or could you stay onboard? Maybe surprisingly, I have so far managed to avoid direct flights with a stop, so would like to know for my upcoming trip to Australia with OS (assuming they will still be flying).

SmilingBoy.
SmilingBoy is offline  
Old Jul 21, 2006, 3:15 pm
  #13  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Europe
Programs: UA:1K MM, AF:FB-Platinum; QR: PC Platinum, FI: Saga Gold
Posts: 2,915
Originally Posted by SmilingBoy
Thanks for the report!

At your stops in SIN or KUL, did everybody get out of the aircraft or could you stay onboard? Maybe surprisingly, I have so far managed to avoid direct flights with a stop, so would like to know for my upcoming trip to Australia with OS (assuming they will still be flying).

SmilingBoy.

You had to leave the plane. They asked everyone to stay in the gate area since it was "only a 20 minute stop" - which most people did. The stop however wsa twice that in length and some people wandered off - "walkabout" !
Braniff is offline  
Old Jul 24, 2006, 3:36 pm
  #14  
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: BRS (Bristol, UK)
Programs: LH SEN/*G
Posts: 1,265
Austrian quitting Australia

Ah, I'll be sad if this goes. Austrian have been my main carrier to KUL, SYD and MEL for many years; my first flight was a SYD-VIE in January 1997, which I think was the first season that the service (as NG) operated. I remember the travel agent in Hobart raving on about it, and it was enormously good value, and I was working in INN, so it all worked out. At least I've moved forward in the cabin over the years.

If October 1996 was the first outing of this route (and I could be wrong), then I guess they've looked at it and concluded that after 10 years, it's probably reached maturity. Whenever I leave London on OS458, it always seems full of people connecting into OS1, and I wonder if that's the problem. If the OS plan is to establish VIE as the gateway between East/West (Old/New) Europe, then you don't want to be cluttering up your feeder flights with tourists paying very little money for LHR-VIE.

At some stage during this summer, LHR-SYD disappeared from the on-line booking engines, and became unbookable and I worried then that they'd pulled it. It came back after a couple of weeks. Maybe they were testing out what would happen to loads on OS458 if you took the tourists out?

I'll still stick with OS, partly sentimental reasons, partly good value, but it looks like my last one could be SYD-VIE-LHR on Sunday 15th October.

Last edited by BristolTraveller; Jul 24, 2006 at 3:37 pm Reason: spelling
BristolTraveller is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.