Rather than answering what appears a simplified multiple choice question, allow me to offer the following observations:

· Your trip reports are very well written, a pleasure to read, and a very good basis to decide which First Class to chose before a trip.

· On a US biased site, which FT is for all its virtues and faults, it is refreshing to read a clearly non-PC report by someone who bases his strong opinions on fact, rather than on hearsay collated to suit a particular point of view.

· Having said that, and taking into account the considerable effort on your and your secretary´s part to produce such reports, I do not know whether the cost-benefit analysis warrants a continuation. After all, there is unlikely to be significant change of the content in the future. You are travelling at a frequency exceeding that of even the most slave driven pilots, and I fear that your future reports would be more of the same. Reading your most recent report could become required reading for all new members, and whoever wish to enjoy themselves can read it as often as they like. Fly SQ PAR-SIN, or UA LHR-SFO, or QF MEL-FRA, barring something special (which you could always write up quickly) we are not going to learn much more than what we know already. And as your style remains the same, the entertainment value will wear off.

· In your place I would report on different airlines (eg IB if you eventually fly them to GIG), or if there is something memorable to report. There is no need to devalue your currency by issuing it in excess.


With view to the content of your reports, I am afraid that you seem to suffer from a skewed relationship between reality and your expectations. In short, you expect an elmtree to bear cherries. Of course we have the right to obtain value for money for the services and goods we purchase. Of course the service in what generally is called First Class is no such thing. It may not quite be cattle class with wider seats, but in many aspects it is. If we compare real prices with those thirty years ago, even the full F fare (RTW even more so) is ridiculously cheap. The real income of the staff in F has multiplied, something has to give, and it is the quality.

You and I had the opportunity to travel extensively in F and pay for it. This gives us an insight into the price quality ratio which no employee of an airline, often not even the CEO, can match. Half the cabin staff is jealous that you are sitting in their seat (UA), the other half feel that you are interfering with their routine from the minute you board. Contrary to decades of attempts to inculcate the basics of liberal market economy into the general population, very few employed service providers grasp the concept that customers make payday possible. This problem extends far beyond the airline industry, (banks being another example).

To complain about this state of affairs may be justified, but it is a bit like complaining about a taxidriver from Chicago not finding a street in New York. While it may not be difficult for you and other New Yorkers, there is no point in complaining about the shortcomings of the guy from Chicago. Just grin and bear it, reluctantly accept the notion that travel even in so called first class is a necessity rather than a pleasure, and concentrate on the real pleasures and luxury that you can find outside planes.

Have a good meal BEFORE you board a plane, then drink lots of water, have a glass of average wine and sleep. A cup of coffee when you wake up, and a proper breakfast at Hotel of your choice. Above all, if you can not travel First Class, stay at home in First Class !