Cathay Pacific
Premium Economy Class (E)
Upgraded to Business Class at Gate
CX906: MNL-HKG (Manila to Hong Kong)
26 January 2018
Airbus A350-900
B-LRO
Seat 18G
Departure: 11:00AM
Arrival: 01:08PM
MNL NAIA T3
When I was waiting for my BI flight to depart KUL the previous day, I went to the CX counter in the satellite terminal and had the agent issue my CX boarding passes and a hard copy of my itinerary. I knew I'd need the hard copy itinerary in order to gain entrance to the MNL airport terminal. Sure enough, the police officer stationed at the entrance to NAIA T3 asked to see the hard copy itinerary. Once I produced it, I was quickly inside. I was able to bypass the check-in counters and head directly to immigration. I was cleared through immigration and then security within 10 minutes; it was very fast and not terribly crowded. I hadn't seen any shopping or dining of interest on the landside mezzanine overlooking the check-in counters, so I'd skipped all that and decided to go to the lounge instead.
Worst Airport Award
I can see why people dislike MNL. While they've made improvements in recent years, the airport sucks. The layout is strange and disjointed and there are a many seemingly redundant layers of security. During my visit, the air conditioning in T3 did not work at all. It was sticky and hot in there. There's really no excuse for that. The airport interior is ugly, lacks natural light and has has a very old-fashioned feel to it. But it's not quaint and doesn't have any character. The only exception is the T3 check-in area, which is airy and looks nice. The fact that the four terminals are so far spread out and have no shuttle/tram/train service linking them is just a hilariously bad design.
Further, the airport is in the middle of a neighborhood, with development far too close to it. There's an entire neighborhood (Vitalez) in the middle of the airport. Who thought that was a good idea? Naturally, traffic can be a nightmare. Realistically, they need to do something drastic about this because the current layout really doesn't work. Infrastructure to/from the airport is sorely lacking, as is the airport infrastructure itself. An underground train linking the terminals would be a good start. The renovations at T1 are nice, but it doesn't change the fact that the current best way to transfer from T1 to T3 is by taking a (potentially) 30min cab ride. It's insane. Realistically, they need to build a new airport from the ground up.
Cathay Pacific Lounge T3 MNL
Thankfully, there was a CX-operated lounge at MNL. While it doesn't compare to The Pier, it's a solid lounge and worth a visit if you're there. The breakfast menu was small, but I decided to have a couple things. I had a couple vegetable dumplings (not pictured) and a comically large char siu bao (BBQ pork bun). And naturally I had an obligatory Diet Coke, also not pictured.
B-LRO
I specifically chose this flight because I greatly prefer the A350 over the A330 that is usually used on this route. I think I made the correct choice. Best photo I could get of the bird I'd be flying.
Boarding and Op-Up
This flight was oversold in economy, so I was upgraded to business class during the boarding process. Unlike usual, I got the red light when they scanned my boarding pass. They had me stand to the side for a couple minutes and then returned my boarding pass to me and told me I'd been upgraded to business class. They didn't issue a new pass, just crossed out my seat assignment (32A) and wrote 18G on it instead. A little strange, but it works for me!
The boarding process was uneventful and I was seated in no time. I was a bit disappointed that I no longer had a window seat, but that's a small price to pay for J on the A359.
Seat
This was my first time flying in CX's A359 business class product. It's quite good and very similar to the seats in their 77W fleet.
Menu
Lunch was served on this flight.
Meal
I went with the beef this time around, as I'm not a fan of salmon. The beef was quite good and tender. They served my favorite chili sauce along with it, so I was definitely a happy camper. Everything in the meal was good. I finished it off with another Diet Coke. This time around, I decided to forgo the Oriental Breeze, as the cabin crew were quite busy to get the service completed before landing.
Service
As always, the inflight service was quite good and before I knew it we were on the ground in HKG. I did notice that I did not receive a greeting from the purser or ISM on this flight. Perhaps it's because I was moved at the last minute from my seat in the PE cabin and their manifest wasn't properly updated? Or perhaps it's because it was a full flight and they had a lot to do before landing. No big deal regardless.
On the Ground
Once on the ground, I decided that I'd register for e-channel. So I proceeded to immigration and entered HKG. I thought the enrollment office was in the baggage claim area right after the immigration hall. However, I couldn't locate it. I believe the office is actually in the immigration hall immediately after passport control, but BEFORE entering the baggage hall. Ah well, my mistake on that. Maybe next time.