Originally Posted by
bocastephen
Would you describe the seat as similar to a laz z boy recliner where the leg rest comes all the way up (yes feet will dangle) and there is enough recline to sleep comfortably?
The leg rest comes basically all the way up but it's a tad shorter than a recliner. For me the way it supported my legs wasn't too comfortable (supports until halfway of my calf). I think the recline wasn't too bad and I was able to get some sleep, but overall I won't say a "comfortable sleep" - that would be a lie flat business class and above.
Originally Posted by
ma930407
I have experienced something similar to what you described. There is a significant disparity in the service quality of cabin attendants - a higher cabin class does not necessarily guarantee better service, as economy class sometimes receives superior attention. This disparity is even more pronounced among the senior cabin crew in charge of premium economy and economy class. I have encountered some outstanding crew members, as well as those who are simply rude and unenthusiastic about their job. Interestingly, flights JL5/6 to JFK and those to Singapore/Ho Chi Minh seem to consistently have the worst service from the crews. Similarly, for Hong Kong route, JL735/736 from Narita most of the time have better crews then JL29/26 from Haneda. Not sure why, although this may probably just be a coincidence. I think JAL does not have a policy for greeting elites (even JGC Diamonds) - it all depends on the proactiveness of individual crews (and how strict the senior cabin attendant is).
It's surprising how JL 5/6 is their flagship (and I think, longest) route, the first route they rolled out A350-1000 on, so you would expect them to put their best CAs on this flight. The Tokyo - New York route is also highly competitive against all the other carriers. For many other carriers PY is a true upgrade from Y (better service, different food, etc.) but for JAL it seems PY is really just a better seat and almost nothing else (you get two extra drink choices, and cup noodles?). Oh, I guess the lounge access would be quite valuable if you didn't have status (other airlines usually don't provide lounges to PY). They recently rolled out economy class meal upgrades, can't they provide the upgraded meal in PY? Anyway I don't see myself wanting to go for PY again, the Y seats on JAL are much bigger than other airlines so the amount of upgrade you get to PY isn't that much either.
Usually on large widebody aircrafts they have a separate senior CA in charge of the Y cabin who will come to greet status members. The greeting itself isn't too important - but whenever I'm greeted, I feel that throughout the flight the CAs are also just a little more attentive.