The Suite
The suite itself is uncomfortable in fully-upright position, and requires a lot of “tweaking” before finding the ideal contour to adjust to the spine. In sleep mode, it does the trick, but honestly, I did not sleep much given that this flight departs at 1 PM New York time and primarily operates as a day flight. Though slightly worn, the cushion was soft and comfortable for resting position and reading.
There is a seat control panel on a tablet-like device adjacent to one’s armrest, which is convenient for moving the contraption around without having to fumble around other hardware. Though the screen says, “minibar,” the minibar itself on the Asiana F Suite is not utilized and supposedly created as another storage space? A bit puzzling...
Being enclosed is also a nice feeling, if you enjoy privacy. After the first meal service, the cabin lights are dimmed and the ceiling panels reflect the stars, which is tranquil. I would say that on the overall 14 hour flight, I slept no more than 4-6 hours, without keeping exact count. Not shabby by any means, but given the time of day, I wasn’t expecting to sleep very much. The one time I did doze off, I woke up sweating, as it was warm wearing the PJs.
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The Crew
End-to-end, the crew serving the First Class cabin on this flight did an excellent job. The head service agent was extremely polite and efficient, introducing herself upon boarding and seating and offering to take my coat and welcome me on-board. Her colleagues were also friendly and professional, if not lacking a few language refinements, but I am not a high-maintenance passenger and as long as duties are carried out with a smile and not in an overly drawn-out fashion, I am a happy camper. Lavatories were also constantly clean and had a range of products to use to pamper up, as well as toothbrushes and shave kits.
The Scenery
Our routing took us directly due north of New York, passing over Montreal and Eastern Quebec before crossing over the Hudson Bay, Rankin Inlet (Nunavut), The Northwest Territories, above Yukon, Northern Alaska, the Chukchi Sea, Siberia, Harbin, China and Shenyang before mobilizing around North Korea.
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Landing and arrival
The approach into Seoul was stunningly beautiful: the JFK-ICN flight arrives slightly before dusk and afforded gorgeous views of the city. I was captivated by the approach we took around North Korea and around the city of Incheon before making our final descent into the airport.
Customs, Immigration and clearance was flawless and I bundled up to board the train to Seoul!
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Asiana First: Final impressions[/b]
I highly recommend flying Asiana as it is a quality airline with which sets the bar very high for other Star Alliance carriers. Having only flown Air India in intercontinental First class, which is a different experience on its own, I cannot compare Asiana to many others. I know that the airline is very proud of its in-flight product and has worked hard to maintain that consistency.
Thank you for reading, and as always, feedback is appreciated!
IrishAyes