On October 12th 2015, I flew Business Class in a brand new Finnair Airbus A350-900 XWB (Extra Wide Body) from Brussels Aiport (BRU) in Belgium to Helsinki Vantaa Airport (HEL) in Finland. While Qatar Airways and Vietnam Airlines already operate the new Airbus A350 aircraft, Finnair is the first European airline to put the world’s most modern aircraft into service. The first Finnair A350 aircraft (registration OH-LWA) was delivered on October 7th 2015, and it will be rostered on the Helsinki-Shanghai route starting November 21st (according to the Finnair website). Prior to those long-haul flights, the A350 is used for crew familiarization flights within Europe, and Brussels was its 4th destination (after Amsterdam, Barcelona, Hamburg). I loved the A350 plane (so quit and spacious) and the new Finnair Business Class is very enjoyable.
I made a Youtube clip with my impressions of the flight, including some comments of Finnair’s CEO who was onboard the flight. I will also upload my photos below this post.
- Trip: BRU-HEL
- Airline: Finnair
- Aircraft type: Airbus A350-900 XWB
- Aircraft registration number: OH-LWA
- Flight Number: FIN812
- Date: October 12th, 2015
- On time departure: no (12.23 pm instead of the scheduled 11.40 am)
- On time arrival: no (3.35 pm instead of the scheduled 3.12 pm)
- Miles: 1026
- Flight time: 2 hours 12 minutes
- Seat: 8L
- Class: business (D)
1. BUSINESS CLASS CABIN
It is a clear that a lot of thought has gone into the design of Finnair Airbus A350 XWB’s remarkably bright and spacious cabin (which should not come a surprise since Finland is a country with design as one of its trademarks). The Nordic style cabin – created by the Finnish design house dSign Vertti Kivi & Co - is dominated by relaxing white and grey colours with some subtle blue accents. In addition, the large panoramic view windows allow a lot of natural light into the cabin, contributing to the overall bright atmosphere. A remarkable feature of the cabin is the dynamic mood LED lighting, which continuously changed during the flight, ranging from a warm orange/red glow suggesting an Asian sunrise to cool Nordic blue shades resembling the Northern lights.
The Finnair Airbus A350 XWB has 297 seats: 46 in Business Class, 43 in Economy Comfort Class, and 208 in Economy Class. The 46 Business Class seats are spread over 2 cabins: a large Business Class cabin with 32 seats (in 8 rows) is located behind the cockpit, while a smaller and more intimate Business Class cabin with only 14 seats (in 4 rows) is located in front of the Economy Comfort cabin. Both Business Class cabins are divided by the main boarding door, a galley and 2 lavatories.
Business Class seats are arranged in a 1-2-1 alignment ( a so-called herringbone layout), ensuring absolute privacy and direct aisle access for all (no jumping over people’s feet here). The Business Class seats on the sides are angled toward the window (about 2 windows per seat, offering great views), while the seats in the middle are angled towards each other.
The seat map of Finnair’s Airbus A350 XWB can be found here:
http://www.finnair.com/go/2015.10-54...50_seatmap.jpg
2. BUSINESS CLASS SEAT (& WHAT SEAT TO CHOOSE)
For its Airbus A350 XWB, Finnair choose the Zodiac Cirrus III fully lie-flat seats. IMHO, these are the best Business Class seats in the skies (especially for sleeping). These days, similar seats can be found on the planes of Cathay Pacific, American Airlines (B77W), EVA Air and more recently Air France. Qatar Airways also uses a variant of this seat type on their Boeing 787s and Airbus A380/350s. However, none of these airlines (with the exception of Qatar) combines these seats with a fresh, bright, and highly aesthetical cabin design like Finnair does. IMHO, with the introduction of its Airbus A350, Finnair is now offering one of the best Business Class products in the skies.
All Business Class seats have the same characteristics: 192 cm (78 inches) in pitch, a width of 53 cm (21 inch), and a 180 degree recline. Each seat comes with plenty of storage space for your personal stuff. Next to the seat, at eye level, are the seat and entertainment controls, a reading light, a universal power supply outlet, and a multi-port connector. Each seat feature a medium-sized tray table in addition to a work surface (so you don’t have to remove your laptop when dinner or lunch is served). There’s a large ottoman footrest in front of every seat. When tired, you can recline the seat into fully flat-bed of just over 2 metres (82 inches) long. The side storage compartment offers some extra knee space when you want to sleep on your side (like I do).
What are the
best Business Class seats on Finnair’s Airbus A350 XWB?
- The seats in row 9 to 12 are located in their own little private cabin and are therefore highly recommended.
- Solo travelers should go fo the window seats, while companions should choose the middle seats.
What are the
worst Business Class seats on Finnair’s Airbus A350 XWB?
- I suggest to avoid the seats in row 1, 8 and 10, since the proximity to the galley is bothersome (especially since the plane is so quiet).
- I also suggest to avoid the last row of Business Class, row 12, which is in front of the Economy Comfort Class bassinet seats.
3. AMENITIES
This was a short flight (2 hours and 12 min) and no amenity kit was provided. However, to promote their first A350 flight to/from Brussels, Finnair displayed some amenity kits in Business Class (see photo below).
4. MEAL
A lunch was served 30 minutes after takeoff. The starter and main course were served at once on a single tray. Food was actually quite delicious. The starter consisted of country paté with apple chutney, while the entrée was chicken with a delicious tomato/curry sauce. Dessert was a Finnish pastry filled with blueberry compote.
5. ENTERTAINMENT
IMHO, Finnair developed one of the most impressive inflight entertainment systems. It contains a lot of movies and series (including lovely episodes from the Discovery Channel and national Geographic) but what makes the IES so fun is the superb flight tracking: you can observe the plane from different angles (including cockpit view) along the flight route by touching the screen.The plane also has a camera in its belly and tail, which makes for some fun moments at takeoff and landing.
6. ONBOARD INTERNET
This will please many frequent flyers! According to the Finnair website – I quote - Business Class passengers, Finnair Plus Gold and Platinum members, and Oneworld Sapphire and Emerald members enjoy full internet access FREE of charge, while Economy Class passengers can purchase it either by the hour or for the duration of the flight. Internet worked great during the flight and was free indeed.
7. OTHER INFLIGHT EXPERIENCES
# CREW: this was a familiarization flight aimed at training the cabin crew and make them familiar with the new plane. More than double the normal number of crew members was present onboard, and they all did a fantastic job. I found their stylish Nordic uniforms quite remarkable.
#LAVATORY: two lavatories for Business Class passengers are located in front of the plane (behind the cockpit), and another two are located in the galley between the two Business Class cabins. Both lavatories were kept very clean during the flight. There is also a dedicated Ladies' Room on board.
8. MY VERDICT
Finnair is offering a fantastic (and perhaps my new favorite) Business Class product on its Airbus A350.
- Seat : 9/10
- Food: 8/10
- Inflight entertainment : 9/10
- Amenity kit: 9/10
- Service: 9/10
- Cabin atmosphere: 9/10
- Overall experience: superb: 9/10