Originally Posted by
RatherGhastly
As part of a journey from Europe to Australia next year in March, I’m looking to fly HKG–SYD on an evening flight in J, either CX 111 (A350) or QF 128 (A330). As the timings are fares will be quite similar, I would appreciate any further thoughts on how the Cathay J product is faring these days, or whether Qantas would perhaps be the better choice. Thanks in advance.
Depends on what you are looking for on the J product. If your priority is to sleep, CX J perfectly fine in my opinion, especially since they give you an extra duvet for your bed on longhaul flights. The seat is also quite comfortable for lounging around to watch TV.
IFE on the A350 is modern and responsive. Not all that different to your typical Ipad at home.
F&B on CX has never been anything to write home about though I'm not sure how it compares to QF's.
Originally Posted by
Gongzuokuang
For comparison purposes:
- Singapore Air was meh. The soft product was OK, but not great. The hard product was a disappointment. Some strange setup where the seat will only recline so far, and then you need to get out of the seat and flip the back; no way to comfortably lounge. And on the regional J the seat had some annoying squeak at every bit of plane movement.
I'm really glad I tried all of these other options as it makes me less critical of Cathay. Sure, they have plenty of room for improvement. I don't walk off the flights as impressed as I've been in the past. But I learned that the grass isn't greener...
Totally agree on your thoughts on SQ J. I'm not a fan of needing to get out of the seat to flip the back over in order to lie flat. A bit inconvenient especially when you wake up just as a meal is about to be served. Also I didn't like how the footwell is located to one side even though the entire seat faces forward, forcing you to sit or lie diagonally at an awkward angle when reclined or in lie-flat mode. I can only imagine the issue becomes magnified for taller folks. SQ has the better soft product overall (F&B amenities etc.), but after taking my first flight on SQ's J on their 77W, I am totally on the camp that thinks CX's long-haul J is more comfortable for lounging and sleeping . That Cirrus J seat (even the pre-refresh generation on 77W that is over a decade old) is one seat CX really got right.