So I have just returned from what was both my first DC redemption and also my first ever business class flights.

I don't want to do a full trip report but I do want to summarise my experience.

I flew the following flights

1) LHR-LAX via ZRH with LX in C
2) LAX- JFK with United (Their P.S. product)
3) PHL-MAN with US Air in C

My experience with each was

1) Swiss longhaul in their new business class on A340 is highly recommended by almost everyone but I found it somewhat of a let down. The food and seats were both very nice, although perhaps not amazing. However what let it down for me were that I found the cabin somewhat crowded and noisy(it was full) - I guess I expected business class would be a more relaxing experience when really the cabin felt not that different to economy in terms of how many people were around me.

The most disappointing thing though was the service. The member of cabin crew we had on our side of the cabin was very robotic and I don't think I saw her smile once. Her English also was not great which meant every conversation was slightly awkward (obviously I am not so arrogant as to expect non native english speakers to be able to speak english but on a major international air line I did not expect language to be an issue).

2) United's P.S. on a 757 was actually excellent and probably the best flight I had of the three. The seats were very comfortable, the IFE was the best of the three, with the biggest choice in movies, and the cabin crew were very friendly and professional. My drink was regularly being filled up and they were making an obvious effort to provide a good service. the food was good too. I don't think I could fault this service to be honest, it was very nice.

3) I did not have high expectations from US Air given their standing as somewhat of a budget airline. Their plane was an A333 with their old business product which they are phasing out. That said,the seats were very comfortable for sitting and not that bad for sleeping(altho nowhere as good as Swiss). The trip started off badly however before takeoff when someone sitting in a seat in one of the middle rows was told by some managerial gate staff person(not cabin crew) that she would have to move as her seat was contracted to be used as a pilot rest seat and that she would have to sit somewhere else. It then turned out that the envoy cabin was completely full and this caused a minor panic amongst the staff. USAir had clearly messed up by selling a seat that should not have been sold. Eventually the passenger was told that she would have to sit in economy, where she would receive the envoy service!! Some people could really have gotten angry about this, but instead she seemed to accept it and simply said quietly "and I presume I will get a refund too" to which the US Air manger type person said yes.

After that we took off, and were served food. The food and drinks were all fine, the quality of food was not as good as Swiss but it was reasonable and considering US is at least £150 cheaper than any other airline due to no fuel surcharge, I cant really complain about the slightly less fancy offerings. However I did have a disappointing experience with my cabin crew member, which I am still a little peeved about. During my meal I had asked for a glass of orange juice once during my main course, and during dessert I had asked could I have another. These were the only two things I had asked of him the entire flight. I am always extremely courtous when asking for anything and always say please and thank you. Both times he seemed slightly annoyed by my asking. Finally when he came to take away my tray and the table cloth, I pointed at my glass and said I'll keep this as theres still some left in it. He didnt hear this and thought I was pointing at my glass to ask for another orange juice. His response was, in a sarcastric voice "Seriously! You want another Orange Juice???" Now I was not asking for another one but even if I had, would asking for a third drink during a three course meal be really have been putting him out that much. Also flying business class, I would expect to be teated politely at all times and that flight crew would be willing to go the extra mile for a demanding passenger(although I don't think I was being even remotely demanding). I got the impression that perhaps because I was dressed quite casually and because I had boarded late after all the other business pax, that somehow he felt I didn't belong in business class and that I had obviously got there using miles or an upgrade, which of course I had. However I do not think crew should tailor their service to those they feel deserve to be there and those who do not. I paid my own money and used my own miles to get that ticket legitimately, and I dont think I deserve to be treated with inferiority to any other passenger.

Overall I had some idea from friends of what to expect from business class and when it came to everything including food, seats and IFE it was pretty much as I expected, not amazing but very pleasant. However what I did expect which didnt bear out, was a level of service where the customer/passenger was treated like someone important to the airline, where any request within reason was seen to and where the cabin crew went out of their way to make the experience a pleasant one for the passenger. Is this an unrealistic expectation? Maybe this is more something you only get flying first class with Singapore or Emirates. My friend who flew Air New Zealand in C said he received an amazing service.

Otherwise my lounge experiences were as follows:

LHR - Star Alliance Lounge. Didnt think much of this lounge, it was very packed and the seats were quite functional. The small selection of hot food (bacon and eggs) was nice I guess but I dont think I'd want to spend more than an hour or two in this lounge. 5/10

LHR - Great British lounge. Definitely the nicer of the two. Seemed like quite a nice lounge to spend time in. Smaller than I expected tho. 7/10

ZRH - Did not have time to check out the swiss lounge in Zurich, mainly due to the bizarre layout of the E pier with security and passport checks randomly dotted around.

LAX - United red carpet lounge. Very crowded with a poor selection of snacks and only tea or coffee available without going to the bar. Most alcoholic drinks were $$ Would not rate this lounge very highly but it was OK. 4/10

PHL- US Air envoy lounge.Very nice lounge with lots of comfortable seats and a large selection of drinks, cakes, meats and cheeses. Was quite quiet when I was there. Enough food that you could probably make yourself a small meal with. Probably the nicest lounge of the four. 9/10