After about an hour I asked if I could take a look downstairs at the economy cabins. The nice FA serving and the bar said that this was no problem and showed me to the back stairs and opened the gate that ensured that people didn’t fall down the stairs during turbulence. She told the crew to let me back up when I’d finished.

I walked down the stairs and realised that I'd actually forgotten that there was a whole other deck underneath me. The main deck on this aircraft and accommodate 399 economy passengers and it was vast. I made my way towards the front of the aircraft to get the full view. I was able to walk the full length of the main deck, from the back stairs to the front stairs which led to First Class. For some reason it seemed much more spacious than the Singapore Airlines A380 that I’d been on previously.


The centre economy cabin on the main deck


The forward stairs leading to First Class with the First Class bar area visible

I definitely prefer upstairs

On my return one of the crew was sitting on the stairs doing some paperwork. She was sitting right across one step which would have made it hard for me to get past. However, instead of moving out the way for me, a passenger after all, she just sat there and didn’t even acknowledge my existence. I actually had to ask if she would move so that I could get past. Forget the fact that I was a passenger, wouldn't any decent, normal person move anyway? The fact that I was a paying passenger and she was crew just made it worse. I then got to the gate at the top of the stairs and I couldn’t work out how to open it. Again, she just kept staring at her paperwork as I tried to fumble with the gate to get it open. I had to turn to her and ask in a rather firm tone whether she’d open the gate for me, she did, without uttering a word. I was amazed by this, another example of crew that was completely uninterested in the passengers that they were supposed to be looking after.

On my return it was clear that the crew had activated the mood lighting.


Mood lighting active in the business class cabin


Anyway, I returned to my seat a little peed off by this. I decided to turn my seat into a bed so proceeded to get the mattress out of it’s bag and fully recline the seat. With everything set up it was very comfortable. The only downside was that the foot tunnel was quite narrow.


My seat in flat bed mode, very comfortable

As a bed, the seat offered a good amount of elbow room and with the soft mattress and large cotton pillow it was easy to get comfortable. I didn’t actually go to sleep but instead decided to lay in bed and watch Peter Jackson’s ‘The Lovely Bones’. A bit of a strange but not a bad film.

I took advantage of the mini-bar and helped myself to a drink of Evian. It was only a small bottle and after that ran out I went back to the bar to get a top up.
On my return the mood lighting was in full swing.


Mood lighting in the smaller, rear business class cabin


Mood lighting in the main business class cabin

And so, for the last hour and a half of my flight I watched the end of the film and dozed before the captain came on to inform us that we had 40 minutes to landing. This was followed by the turning on of the lights which was done reasonably sharply without using the mood lighting at all.

We were soon descending into Dubai and flew over the city itself. At night it’s difficult to see anything in detail but I suspect it would look amazing during the day.

After a slightly wobbly landing we pulled up at Dubai’s Terminal 3 at around 00.55. Next to us was the customary row of Emirates tail fins.


Waiting Emirates Aircraft at Terminal 3

Deplaning was relatively quick with three air bridges attached to the aircraft.


Waiting to disembark


Three air bridges attached to this A380


Verdict

The Emirates A380 business class experience is truly excellent, apart from the crew on this occassion. The seat was spacious, private and comfortable, the lounge was good with an amazing view, the food and the bar really topped it off. I found the IFE a bit confusing and the wireless controller a bit of a gimmick.

You know my thoughts on the crew, utterly unprofessional and I've already penned my email to Emirates. Let's hope the next leg is better.