March 10, 2008
San Francisco – London
British Airways First Class
Boeing 747-400
I like San Francisco International Airport, so the prospect of a six hour layover was a pleasant rather than daunting proposition. The airport is conveniently located just a couple of miles from the attractive downtown district of Burlingame, easily reached via a 10 minute ride on the city transit bus. And, now that BART trains come right to the airport terminal, I could speed into San Francisco for a late lunch and a bit of last minute shopping should I so choose. I did.
But first, I wanted to check-in with British Airways and rid myself of a 40 pound backpack. In addition to the 8:30 flight to London on which I was booked, BA also has a 5:30pm departure, so I knew the check-in counter would be open. The International Terminal is a short walk from Alaska’s facilities in Terminal 1, so I gathered my gear and headed on over.
Upon entering the International Terminal, I checked a TV monitor to see where BA’s check-in was located. The 5:30 departure was listed so I naturally continued on down the flight listings just to verify the 8:30 departure and see that it was operating on time. Oh no! BA 286 was showing CANCELLED. I checked the inbound flight from London. It too showed CANCELLED. On a positive note, it was only 3:00pm, so I continued on to the check-in counter to determine my new flights. I wasn’t looking forward to the possibility of being switched to the 5:30pm departure because it leaves so early in the evening. By my body clock, I wouldn’t even begin to get tired until we were only 2-3 hours out of London. When it comes to flying between North America and Europe, I say the later the better.
The good news was that BA 284, the 5:30pm departure, was sold out in First. I was instead offered an Upper Class seat on Virgin Atlantic’s 7:30pm nonstop. Hmm… It was tempting as I’d never flown Virgin before. However, Virgin’s Upper Class is a Business Class product. Admittedly it’s a very good Business Class product, but at the end of the day it’s still Business Class.
“Is there anything available on BA’s 9:40pm departure out of Los Angeles?” I asked.
This was the flight I’d wanted when I originally booked this trip but Alaska’s Partner Desk was unable to procure it for me. Although I generally prefer flying out of SFO over LAX, I had wanted to check out the new First Class lounge at TBIT. Now that opportunity presented itself rather nicely.
“Why, yes” replied the agent, “We do have a seat in First aboard that flight.”
“Book it, Danno! How will I get down to LA?”
Tap-Tap-Tap Click-Click Tap-Tappity-Tap-Tap-Tap
“There’s space on American’s 6:15pm departure, arriving LAX at 7:35pm.”
“Excellent! Thank you.”
March 10, 2008
San Francisco – Los Angeles
American Airlines First Class
McDonnell-Douglas DC-9-80 N969TW
Despite having logged over 180 flights on American since 2001, I hadn’t flown First Class on an American domestic flight since 1983. That flight was between Dallas and Chicago aboard a DC-10 equipped with a round table designed to seat four in its First Class cabin. The First Class seats were large and deep and the two hour DFW-ORD flight offered a nicer service than you’ll find on many longer flights these days. Salad was served from the trolley, as was dessert. Between meals the table served as an excellent lounge area. We played cards and drank beer after lunch. Of course, the cards were complimentary back then.
Today’s one hour flight between San Francisco and Los Angeles was hardly an eye-popper in terms of inflight service but the seat was comfortable and the beer was cold. Interestingly, the wonderful aroma of chocolate chip cookies permeated the cabin though no cookies were ever offered. Instead I munched on the deluxe snack mix and enjoyed the setting sun as we sped down to Los Angeles in just 57 minutes.
Climbing out of SFO through early evening clouds
Sunset off the California coast while flying between SFO and LAX