My friend and I were booked on different flights for this trip since I found her a good deal on Emirates from France which could include two stopovers in Dubai. Me on the other hand had a return trip between DXB and JNB on Kenya airways. I booked in such a way that the timings would match. I would depart a couple hours before her from Dubai and arrive at the same time in Johannesburg. On the way back, she would have departed an hour after me from Johannesburg, around 13:00 and I would have arrived about 45 minutes after her, shortly after midnight. This would have allowed a good night of rest after landing in Dubai... This plan would have worked brillantly if Kenya Airways would not have made important schedule changes on their Nairobi to Dubai flights. Instead of arriving at midnight, I could have arrived a few hours before in the evening, or the next day… at 5am. This resulted in some changes in my flight from Johannesburg too and they (or Amex Platinum travel) basically left me with two, as equally bad, options :
- - Depart Johannesburg at 01:55 (am !), arrive in Nairobi around 07:00 (on a 737-800) and have a 7 hour layover in NBO before taking the dreamliner flight to DXB and arrive around 21:00
- - Depart with the original dreamliner flight from JNB around noon, have a 7 or 8 hours layover in NBO and take a night flight on the 737 to DXB and arrive a 5 am…
I choose the first option. Rebooking on Emirates was not one of the options offered…
So after a one hour nap at the Protea JNB airport, I took the last shuttle to the airport and arrived in the desert terminal shortly before 23:00. Only a handful of international flights were departing at that time, the KLM flight to AMS just before midnight, my flight to NBO around 2 am and one hour later a flight to Kigali…
Checking my bag was a swift operation although most of the counter agents looked pissed and tired to work at that time of the day, and I was offered to wrap my bag, free of charge.
Check-in area KQ in JNB
Free luggage wrapping
As you can imagine, clearing security and immigration took litterally no time and I was airside in a few minutes after check-in. Fun fact : The main security check point was closed at the time I got there and a security agent escorted me to the staff/crew checkpoint to clear security, and then get to the main terminal !
Main security check point was closed, I had to use the staff/crew check point to access the terminal
Two more stamps in the collection ! Entry and exit the very same day !
Rush hour in JNB International !
Kenya airways uses the Bidvest lounge in JNB International, which is also a priority pass lounge and shows as open 24/7. JNB International has several priority pass lounges, with some looking nicer than the Bidvest lounge and were showed on the app as open until 2 am. Unfortunately, both lounges I wanted to visit were closing so I went to the only open lounge available, the bidvest lounge upstairs.
Bidvest lounge in JNB, the only one open 24/7
The lounge is ok, wifi was ok, the seating was ok, the buffet was not very appealing, but ok (although I did not eat much as I was not hungry at all). It was just an empty contractor lounge in the middle of the night, with the staff looked to be as annoyed to work at that time of the day night than me flying at that time. Nothing really sexy… but better than waiting inside the terminal. At least they had seats where you could lay back. A few other passengers were using those to have more or less extended nap…
Bidvest lounge JNB International terminal
A real feast !
I was starting to feel quite sleepy and struggled a bit not to fall asleep in the lounge and miss my flight. Around 01.20 I decided to leave the lounge and walk towards the gate, and the priority boarding started a few minutes after I arrived, with lots of confusion and people trying to jump the queue… seriously ?!
After the boarding pass and passport check, we had to wait another 10 minutes in the jetty before getting inside the plane…
Waiting in the jetty for boarding. We waited 10 minutes as the aircraft was not yet ready.
Kenya Airways KQ765, November 13th 2018
JNB Johannesburg O.R Tambo – 01:55
NBO Nairobi – 07:00
Boeing 737-800NG – 5Y-CYB – Seat 01A, Business class, window.
Finally, I got to my seat 1A at 1.45 am. The seat is very similar to a first class domestic seat in North America. Still better than what the European airlines offer within Europe, but not as good as a full flat seat you can get on their dreamliner. The legroom was ok.
The menus were distributed on the ground, together with a welcome drink (non alcoholic only). We pushed back at 2 am, with the business class cabin about 80% full. A small amenity kit was placed in the seat pocket.
Pre departure beverage - No alcoholic options available
Seat controls, KQ 737-800 Next Gen Business class.
Legroom seat 01A
Menu KQ Business class JNB-NBO
I was not very hungry and asked the flight attendant to only get the dessert. When the service began about 30 minutes after take off, she brought me the snack box with just the 2 small desserts inside, in a plastic cup. The taste was uneventful.
I eventually managed to fall asleep afterwards and maybe slept a couple of hours, thanks to my eye mask (I am using the BA first class one as I find it very comfy to wear…)
Pushing back from JNB
The late night "dinner" - KQ JNB-NBO business class
I just ordered the "desserts"
I woke up around 5 am, feeling thirsty and wanting to visit the lavatories and since all the window shades were left on, you could see the cabin naturally lit by the rising sun. That was one of the most bizarre feelings I had in my aviation life : Literally everyone was alseep in the cabin, and when I walked in the front galley to use the lavatory, i found the purser and the flight attendant also asleep on their jumpseats. It was like I was the only survivor of a loss of cabin pressure where everyone fell in a coma ? I was able to serve myself some water from the galley and visit the loo and I guess that using the flush woke up the purser who asked me when i went out if « I needed something… »
Very bizarre feeling. I guess this night flight must be tough for the crews too, as I think they are doing a same day shift from NBO. I prefer not to know if the cockpit crew was still awake during the entire duration of the flight, but can easily think they were not…
Outside views when I woke up...
... and inside the cabin - all the window shades remained open during take off and for the entire duration of the flight. But despite the raising sunlight, everybody, including the cabin crew, was sleeping !
Very bizarre feeling. Am I the only one awake !?
Some nice outside views approaching Nairobi
We landed in Nairobi around 06:50 with some nice views over the valley and mountains and disembarked by bus at 07:00. (This time I could not take pictures of the Kilimanjaro as it was on the other side)
Flight route
5Y-CYB when disembarking in NBO