AIR CHINA 777-300ER BUSINESS CLASS, FRA-PEK
I’m not usually one to join queues before the beginning of boarding, but given how dull non-lounge spaces in FRA are, I thought getting on the plane as soon as possible mightn’t be a bad idea. The business class line had a decent crowd queuing up, which was thankfully reduced by gate agents booting out the economy fliers.
After a good fifteen minutes, boarding began and I made my way down the jet bridge, turning right to Seat 15A on the plane. A sad equipment a few weeks prior meant my eager-awaited ride on the upper deck of a 747-8 was replaced with a 77W. Not a bad plane, but definitely not a 747.
Air China 777-300ER
Air China’s business class seats are upholstered with a respectably ugly dark purple fabric. I’m not sure who chose the color, or why – but thankfully they didn’t choose the padding as the seat was quite comfortable. Legroom was aplenty and the seat could be reclined to a multitude of comfortable positions.
2-2-2 seating (taken after landing)
View from seat 15A
Service started with a flight attendant offering a selection of drinks on a tray. I took an orange juice, whilst my seatmate – a jolly old German-but-South-African-sounding fellow – enjoyed a champagne. I can’t remember exactly what champagne CA serves in business, but the brand name wasn’t recognizable.
Twenty minutes after boarding we pushed back and taxied towards the runway. Once in the air, I enjoyed views of Frankfurt in the distance as well as the last few minutes of sunset.
Taxiing in FRA
Sunset over Frankfurt
In-air service began with the sole German flight attendant coming around to take my dinner and breakfast order. Additionally, she proactively asked whether I would like to be woken up for breakfast if asleep, which was nice. As per usual, I can’t remember what I ordered and ate since I didn’t snap a picture of it. I do remember it was edible – which matched my expectations.
Post-dinner I switched into my Qatar pajamas (CA doesn’t provide any) and got comfortable in my seat. The duvet Air China provides is nice and thick, which I was impressed by. I spent the next hour enjoying an episode of White Collar on my laptop before reclining into bed mode and dozing off.
I managed a good six hours of shut eye and woke up just as we started our descent into Beijing. This business class bed was perfectly comfortable, despite a narrow foot well. There was ample shoulder and head room, good padding and no annoying lumps. Cathay’s J seat in bed mode is a little bit better, but I wouldn’t say by a significant amount.
Mood lighting in the evening
Given my late awakening, I had barely any time to swap out of my PJs before the seat belt sign illuminated. So no breakfast for me, just engine and wing views until we touched down.
Clear day in Beijing!
In summary, my first leg on Air China business class was better than expected. The seat and bed were good, the food edible, and the service fine. I had low expectations going in, and therefore was pleasantly surprised with the experience. Next up, a different seat on the A330!