The Photos


I am going to start this TR with the telling of a dream I had a few months back. I thought that since this trip will be on the whale jet that it would be apropos.

I was doing a transfer at some unknown airport and walked down the ramp off an aircraft and made my way to the next gate. This next aircraft was some new fandangled monster of an aircraft that would not have been out of place in a Thunderbirds episode.
I was travelling with a friend but somehow he disappeared when it came to boarding this new plane. I boarded and settled into my First class seat. I wandered up to the cockpit (this is a dream remember) to check out what was going on up there.
We started our taxi which was up a hill like a giant ski slope. I noticed my friend running alongside the plane and I said to the pilot that is my friend. The pilot stopped and my friend was able to board through the cockpit entrance door. He then went back to his seat but I stayed in the cockpit for the take off.
This entailed travelling down the ski slope in order to gather enough speed to takeoff. Once airborne I decided it was time to head back to my seat. I sat in my luxurious first class seat and the crew member came over and offered me a drink. I of course asked for champagne and the crew member replied ‘I am sorry sir we don’t have any’.

I woke up from the shock.

I kid you not this was a real dream I had. Now on the real trip report.

As a Starwood whore I decided to stay overnight prior to my flight at the Sheraton Skyline in order to get double stays and hopefully retain Platinum for this year.
After checking out I asked about the Hoppa times as I was lugging a suitcase and didn’t feel like dragging it over to the bus stop. I then found out that now that T5 is open the Hoppa busses run to T4 and T5 every 30 minutes and one was due soon. Fabulous this saved the transfer on the Heathrow Connect service from Heathrow Central station.

The Hoppa was along shortly and I boarded with quite a few others and we made our way around to the Jurys Inn near Hatton Cross station before arriving into the bowels of Terminal 4.
I ascended the elevator to the check-in area and made my way up to the QF desks. On the way I passed the security entrance and noticed that the Fast Track line seemed to have disappeared. I queued for a few and then a queue guard asked me if I was travelling in First and I said yes. He then proceeded to track down an agent to check me in and apologised for the delay. Just was he was coming back to me one of the F desk agents became free so I stepped up to her.

I was checked in quickly and was happy to be free of my suitcase and I enquired about the Fast Track security line. At this point a wandering F concierge approached and offered to direct me. She also said if I need any assistance prior to the flight she would be in the lounge soon and would be happy to help. She then directed me to Fast Track which had switched to the left of the main security queue which was what had befuddled me earlier. It used to be on the right of the main queues.

Fast Track was just that and I was through in no time without the need to de-shoe.

I headed down to the Gate 1 Galleries lounge complex, stopping briefly on the way to grab a couple of shots of the big bird. I was greeted and invited to go downstairs for business and upstairs for relaxation. As we have been here before on this trip I won’t go into a description of the place again.
I grabbed the obligatory champagne and bacon baguette and sat to surf for a while on my laptop. The bubbles were Lanson Rose and Piper H Brut. I noticed a baby buggy in the lounge with F tags to SYD on it and my heart sank, as the baby was being quite vocal at the time.

After a long spell in the lounge it was time to stretch my legs a bit before going to the gate. I did a quick march up and down part of the terminal and then went to the gate. There were separate lines for Economy and First who both entered the aircraft through one door from the lounge and Business and Premium Economy who entered from another door that led to the upper deck.

I was standing waiting and the dispatcher asked me if I was Mr Moomba I replied in the affirmative and she asked me to step aside for a moment. She explained that the plane had a fault with some of the First seats in that the controls didn’t work. They had only been informed shortly beforehand. She offered to let me travel on a different aircraft later in the day but I was already booked into a hotel in SYD and more importantly if I switched it would not be a 380 that I would travel on.
She said that Customer Services would contact me and deal with the problem and would probably be waiting in Singapore for me. She also said that they should be able to move me to a functioning seat in F at SIN as there was a lighter load from there to SYD. I said I had purposely chosen this flight to fly the 380 and would stick with it for now. She thanked me for being so understanding and explained that another passenger had thrown a hissy fit about this even though she had been re-seated into a functioning seat. Obviously I was too far down the QF totem pole as a mere AA EXP to be considered for a move to a functioning seat.

I got back in the queue and although they were still only pre-boarding the dispatcher asked the agent to let me on board.

Flight QF032 LHR-SIN Seat 2A
Aircraft: 380-800
Departure time: 12:15

Once on board I was offered PJs, amenity kit, a drink, olives and almonds. The crew member working my side offered to show me how the seat worked and explained where the various controls were. The touch screen panel was not working on my seat so she couldn’t show me much. I tried the manual buttons under the touch screen and these did not work either.

A while later the dispatcher came on board and I asked her what exactly didn’t work and could the seat be made flat by some other means. She grabbed the CSM and he explained there are other manual buttons on the seat at the top of the divider, which they use to control the seat. He tried these buttons and the seat did move which was nice to see. Also another little flip down control under the dead touch screen has manual buttons that did work. So even though I didn’t have the full functionality of the touch screen panel the seat was able to recline and move. The dispatcher asked if I was happy and I agreed it would be fine. She said that CS would still be contacting me about appropriate compensation as the seat is faulty.

I played a bit with the IFE and noticed that they had SkyCam which is a camera mounted in the tail looking down over the monster. It was switched on and I was able to see us at the gate and watch the taxi and take off on the IFE.

The captain announced a flight time to Singapore of 12 hours and 20 minutes. The captain again came on at 12:33 and announced ATC holding us still but should be on the move shortly. At 12:36 we pushed back for the long flight to SIN. I did note with some joy in my heart that the baby was not in First and must have been attached to some QF status passenger seated elsewhere in the aircraft.

After take off the crew came around and asked for drinks order and I asked for champagne of course. Did I tell you it was the lovely Comtes de Champagne? I was in my element. With the drink came a plate containing a lovely flavourful prawn tartlet and a chicken cube on a Chinese soup spoon that was fabulously flavoured with ginger and was so juicy and it really got the taste buds a tingling. It actually surprised me how much of a burst of flavour in your mouth a little piece of chicken could produce.
The bubbly was re-filled and more of the canapes appeared which I greedily accepted.

Let us talk seat. On boarding and for take off and landing the seat faces forward in a locked position and you need to wear an over the shoulder seat belt that connects to the lap sash. The shoulder belt is an inertia reel type one like you would get in a car. This only needs to be worn for take off and landing. During turbulence the lap belt is the only one required.
The seat can be angled towards to the window so that you can look out without having to crane your neck and in this position you are also looking directly at the IFE screen. There is a buddy seat/foot stool where you can be joined by someone for your meal. The IFE screen folds away to allow the second passenger to sit on the stool.

There is something to be said for sitting in luxury staring out the window of an aircraft sipping fine champagne.

Hot towels were handed out and the menu orders taken for the lunch service.

LONDON TO SINGAPORE

LUNCH

CANAPES
Tartlet of Prawn and Aioli
White Cut Chicken with Ginger and Shallots

SALADS AND OTHER THINGS
Cream of Pumpkin Soup with Herb Crème Fraiche
Poached Veal and Beetroot Salad with Roast Garlic and Red Wine Vinegar
Salad of Pan Fried Wild Mushrooms with Sourdough Croutons

LIGHT, VEGETARIAN AND SANDWICH
Seared Loch Duart Salmon with Lemon and Olive Oil Dressing and Steamed Greens
Pan Fried Polenta with Braised Fennel and Olives
Roast Corn Fed Chicken Burger with Sage and Onion Stuffing*
Big Bowl of Tuscan Soup with Cavolo Nero and Borlotti Beans*
Our signature Steak Sandwich with Tomato and Chilli Relish*

SEARED LOCH DUART SALMON
Moroccan Style with Couscous and Warm Eggplant Salad
Braised Fennel with Olives and Roast Potatoes
Warm Eggplant Salad and Green Beans

GRESSINGHAM DUCK CONFIT
Chestnuts, Bacon and Vinocotto Glazed Radicchio
Thyme Jus, Slow Cooked Carrots and Spinach

LAVERSTOKE PARK LAMB RACK
Almond and Mint Sauce with Slow Cooked Carrots in Cider and Beans
Thyme Jus, Roast Potatoes and Steamed Greens
Warm Eggplant Salad and Potatoes

SIDE SALAD
Salad of Rocket, Red Chard, Mizuna and Baby Spinach with your choice of dressing

Aged Balsamic and Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fresh Lemon Juice and Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Palm Sugar Vinaigrette

CHEESE
Hand selected blue, soft and hard cheese served with accompaniments

DESSERT
Apple and Blackberry Pie with Crème Anglaise
Assiete of Desserts
Whole or Sliced Seasonal Fruit*
Roskilly Organic Ice Cream Tubs*

PETITS FOURS
A selection of Amedei dark chocolates
Handmade Scottish Shortbread*
Little Lemon Cakes*
* Available anytime throughout your flight.

HOT BEVERAGES

GIANCARLO COFFEE
Café Latte
Cappuccino
Grinders Decaffeinated
Espresso
Flat White
Long Black
Mocha
Liqueur Coffee

T2 TEA
Experience the beautiful fragrant loose leaf tea bags from around the world, supplied by T2.
English Breakfast – A blend of finest the Sri Lankan full bodied teas produce a rich and well rounded flavour.
Peppermint – A well rounded peppermint flavour captures the sweet essence of all things ‘minty’ with a sweet, cool lingering aroma.
Chamomile – Relax and unwind with this fragrant infusion of sweet golden chamomile flowers.
Sencha – A classic green tea grown in Japan. These beautiful emerald green leaves produce a sweet, smooth grassy flavour.
Lemongrass and Ginger – Zesty and bright lemongrass contrasts the spicy flavour of ginger to create a wild taste sensation.
Other teas are available on request.

HOT CHOCOLATE

WHITE WINE
Coldstream Hills ‘Reserve’ Chardonnay 2006
Yarra Valley, Victoria
Winner of the Sydney Royal Wine Show 2009 ‘Best Show Wine’ trophy this is a beautifully refined, subtly complex, seamless chardonnay of world class. An excellent example of cool climate chardonnay. Attractive notes of citrus, pear and quince with underlying minerally, slatey notes. Finishing with refreshing mineral acids, it leaves a lingering impression of fruit and zest.

Mesh Eden Valley Riesling 2006
Eden Valley, South Australia
This wine is a collaborative effort from two of Australia’s most talented wine makers, Jeffrey Grosset and Robert Hill Smith, using fruit from a region famous for producing world class Rieslings. It has long rich flavours of citrus and minerals with a great persistence and texture, finishing crisp, clean and dry.

Giaconda ‘Aeolia’ Roussanne 2006
Beechworth, Victoria
This wine is made by Rick Kinzbrunner, winner of the 2000 Qantas/Australian Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year Competition. An outstanding example of Roussanne which arguably puts many of France’s Rhone Valley versions to shame. The aroma is a heady mix of pear, white nectarine, hazelnut and cashew. The palate is equally sumptuous, possessing a creamy mouth feel with great fruit definition and balance.

RED WINE
Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier 2006
A decade before the Cote Rotie tradition of blending Shiraz with Viognier became fashionable in Australia, Tim Kirk at Clonakilla was busy mastering the art. Every Australian winemaker playing with blending Viognier into their Shiraz needs to buy this to see how it should be done.

Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir 2006
Yarra Valley, Victoria
The Sexton Vineyard is the partner wine to the excellent Tarraford Vineyard. The dark cherry, bramble fruit, spice and earthy forest floor aromatics are highly pleasing. On the palate medium to full bodied offering plum, sour cherry, brown spices and earthy character. It has fine but slightly chalky tannins and balanced acidity. Good length. Excellent now and has the X-Factor potential for further improvement.

Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon 2004
South Australia
Penfolds Bin 707 was named by an ex-Qantas marketing manager after the Boeing 707, with its first release in 1964. Bin 707 is the Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon equivalent of the Grange Shiraz. Bin 707 is an immensely concentrated style with red berry and dark chocolate fruit balanced by well-seasoned new oak and powerful, but not overwhelming tannins.

DESSERT WINE
Lillypilly Family Reserve Noble Blend 2002
Riverina, New South Wales
The 2002 is an outstanding sweet wine, deep golden in colour and smelling very complex: floral, honeyed aromas mingle with butterscotch, spices, apricot and mixed citrus peels.

CHAMPAGNE
“My only regret is that I did not drink more Champagne.” Lord Maynard Keynes, on his deathbed.
In celebration of the dynamic region that is Champagne, Qantas is proud to feature a range of Champagne styles in our program from some of the region’s finest and most respected Champagne houses including Charles Heidsieck, Taittinger, Dom Perignon and Krug. From the fresher, more delicate Chardonnay dominant or Chardonnay-exclusive ‘Blanc des Blancs’ styles, through to the weightier, more savoury Pinot Noir-dominant cuvees, our program showcases the diversity and quality for which this region is deservedly famed.

Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 1999

My order was taken along with the various options for dressings etc including an option for Balsamic and Olive Oil instead of butter. As you may have noticed before QF offer several accompaniments with their meals and until you understand this the menu looks rather odd. In the above, for example the Duck can be served with the chesnuts, bacon etc or with the Thyme Jus and carrots.

I placed my order and went for a wander upstairs to check out the business lounge. There is a very red set of lounge chairs where the business class passengers can mingle. Also there is a self service station offering some wine and snack food options.

I went back to my seat and then the table was set for lunch.

The crew member working my side was pleasant enough but was very forgetful and messed up the meal service quite a bit. She didn’t fill my balsamic and olive oil bowl for the bread until after I had eaten my starter and already had some bread.

The salad was delectable and the juicy veal made a surprisingly good accompaniment to the beetroot salad.

Next up the main course was delivered at which time the lack of balsamic and oil was noticed and dealt with. No salad arrived to accompany my main course lamb even though it was ordered. This was proving to be a less than stellar performance by the crew member. My water and wine glasses were re-filled often though. The 707 was luscious and bold and went down a real treat with the lamb main course.

Next up I opted for some cheese and continued to drink the 707 with this course.

Finally I decided I could squeeze in the assiette of desserts which consisted of a lemon tart, chocolate cake and a berry cake. All were lovely. I asked for a cappuccino to go with the dessert but was told the machine was inoperative so I went with a long black instead.

One thing I did note about my crew member which really grated was that she did not know the word sorry. Even when she noticed that lack of balsamic and oil there was no apology just an 'I will get it for you'. Same with the non-functioning espresso machine, no apology was given. Pretty sloppy behaviour for a First trained crew member.
That plus the partially operating seat was not making this the best flight to remember my first 380 ride.

Not normally one to take photos of the inside of lavatories on planes I decided to break with tradition and show you the lovely leather covered toilet seat. Not sure it sits comfortably between two sets of meal photos in my photo set though.

Sleep was of the order next. I didn’t bother getting the crew to do the whole shebang with sheep’s wool under-blanket etc and I just reclined and asked for a duvet instead. I had a great sleep and woke up 6 or 7 hours later and pottered around on the IFE for a while.

Around 1 and a half hours out of Singapore a hot towel was delivered to my seat and the breakfast orders taken.


BREAKFAST

Orange Juice
Apple Juice
Tomato Juice
Sunraysia Pear Liquid Fruit
Sunraysia Mango Liquid Fruit
Passionfruit Energiser Drink

Fresh Fruit Salad
Bircher Muesli
Toasted Muesli
Cereal Selection
Yoghurt and Honey

Toast
Croissant
Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Savoury Muffin
Strawberry Jam, Orange Marmalade, Honey, Vegemite

Free Range Scrambled Eggs
Holdshott Farm Organic Sausages
Organic Dry Cured Bacon
Loch Fyne Smoked Salmon
Roast Vine Ripened Tomato
Sauteed Mushrooms
Potato Cakes
Braised Beans

Leek and Brioche Tart with Loch Fyne Smoked Salmon and Dill Crème Fraiche


I opted for some fruit and yoghurt with toast and vegemite and the passionfruit drink.
I followed this up with some bacon, scrambled eggs, tomato and potato cake which was served with more delicious sour dough toast.

I spent most of the time listening to my own playlist of album whist watching us fly through the air from the tail camera. It was great fun watching this view of the flight. One of the greatest things about the newer IFE systems is that you can listen to your own music whilst watching the flight map. I get so peeved on older systems where you are limited to no music or the radio channels as your options. One nasty habit of the QF system though is that when an announcement is made the music doesn’t automatically re-start when the announcement stops.

After breakfast I returned to civilian clothing and prepared myself for the landing.

The CSM dropped by my seat and informed me that the captain would be letting us know some bad news shortly and that we would be delayed into SIN.

Sure enough a couple of minutes later the captain announced that due to weather issues in Singapore we were having to divert to Kuala Lumpur to re-fuel before heading on to Singapore and assured us there was nothing wrong with the aircraft.

It was rather a half arsed attempt at explaining why we needed to divert and I was quite confused as to the need. Anyway we then sat in a holding pattern for a while half way between KUL and SIN whilst the unscheduled stop was organised by KL Authorities and QF and ATC.

We eventually touched down at KUL at 08:25 and used the whole length of the runway to pull up. We then turned and taxied to an outstand. The CSM explained we would not be able to get off the plane in KL and asked us to be patient. He explained that the captain would let us know more once we had parked.

I don’t suspect KUL staff get to see one of these birds very often and we became the local curiosity. There were many people outside snapping pictures of the plane on their mobile phones.

The captain announced we would be on the ground for over an hour and that we should leave our seat belts unfastened whilst on the aircraft was being re-fuelled.

I was asked if I would like something to drink. I said it was now my birthday and could I be cheeky and have some champagne. He came back a little later with the glass and I said am I the only lush this morning? He said no not to worry there were others as well.

There was a little more to the story to be had before we left KL as there was a sick passenger upstairs who was treated by KUL medical personnel. She was later offloaded in KL and taken away in an ambulance.

After around 90 minutes the captain announced that we were ready to go but needed an engineer, who is A380 certified, to sign off the aircraft before we could depart. He was assured by KL ground staff that an appropriate engineer was on his way.

One empty bottle of Comtes de Champagne later we were ready to depart for Singapore.

We pushed back at 10:40 and took off at 11:03 for the short 30 minute flight to SIN.

We touched down at 11:45 after the flight and headed to our gate where our scheduled stop was originally supposed to be 90 minutes.

The CSM apologised for the seat problem again and thanked me for my business. I said thanks to the crew and departed the aircraft. What no CS representative waiting for me to bow and scrape? Oh dear.

I made my way to the lounge where I grabbed a shower before the expected rush of transit passengers. I then waited in the lounge for the next exciting episode.

So too will you have to wait as this is already a mammoth tome and I am tired of typing.

Be back soon with the SIN-SYD sector.


The Photos