Originally Posted by
vendetto
I was just replying to someone mentioning to fly back direct to LAX, that there is no way to fly back direct, that's all. I chose AC back so that would break down a long flight into 2 segments (7 and 6 hours) and hopefully give me chance to visit Montreal for about 3 hours... We arriving at noon and flight out at 6 pm. Its a short window but hoping to grab a taxi to downtown Montreal and back.
I love the spirit!
As far as LH vs. UA in Y is concerned, they are very different airlines and it really depends on what your personal preferences are.
As other posters here mentioned, LH has free alcohol and UA may have more space, even in UA E-.
As far as video entertainment goes, UA in Y is usually better than LH but it depends on the plane (I am talking about UA this time especially).
Food in Y is bad on both airlines. Just don't eat it.
My personal experience is that on LH long haul you can get food poisoning and on UA it will just taste bad - but these are fairly anecdotal arguments. If you like Indian vegetarian food, you may be happy IF they serve it on UA (more rarely on LH).
Pillows and blankets look similar on both airlines and this is pretty much the only similarity.
LH has a slightly better on time record than UA for long haul flights. It may mean nothing when you arrive at FRA and learn about a delay to AMS. I am not an expert on this but I think IAH is a better airport to change planes at than FRA. In terms of getting out in a cab to see something BOTH of them are s*itty.
Do you get to sleep instantly on the plane? If yes, LH is your choice because it has a long leg and a short leg. If no, UA is better because it splits the segments more evenly.
Again UA's 777 usually offers more comfort than LH 747 or A380. Beware though that E- on these flights is usually pretty filled up and E+ is where you might find some empty space.
LH attendants are usually much better looking than UA attendants showing their age on TATL flights. If you are a male, this might be your thing. If you are a female, you will have a 300% better chance to interact with an opposite sex on UA.
Passenger mix seems to be more international on LH than UA that caters more to Americans than to other nations. So if you care to strike a nice conversaition with a foreigner, pick LH.
If you want more details, please do not hesitate to send me a PM.