r-7

Hi,

I will have to travel to HKG soon and will have a choice of traveling on AC or NW or JL in business. If I take AC, I will be on their new 345. All of them are priced at relatively the same.
I will be departing from JFK. If I take NW, I will have to make additional connection which I don't really mind to do so. I am wondering if FT experts can comment on the quality of service / food / seat on these 3 airlines for me. If you were in my position, which airline would you choose?

Thank you

scavenger

All i hear from this forum
is how BAD the 345 is with their bad seats.

ALW

Was there some reason you didn't include Cathay as an option for JFK-HKG?

=aw

tcook052

The NW Int. WBC product hasn't rated highly in recent survey's:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=478456

So that'd leave just AC & JL on you're list, though as has been mentioned there are of course others but not perhaps for the same money. Much may depend on you FFP and since there's no info in your profile we don't know if it's *A or OW, which JL is seeking to enter.

parnel

While the AC 345 seats in J are not the best due to the slant of them when in reclining position I slept for seven hours on my way to DEL in August.

I think you will like AC's J class service offering on that route as well.

tcook052

Almost forgot the 5K AP bonus on the HKG service that might be extra incentive to fly AC:

Book a Vancouver Hong Kong return flight at aircanada.com and earn 5000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles!


Offer Validity
From October 20, 2005
To December 31, 2005 5,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles

Between October 20, and December 31, 2005, earn 5000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles, for booking Vancouver Hong Kong flights at aircanada.com. Reservation must be for a roundtrip ticket (in eligible booking classes�) on flights operated by Air Canada between Vancouver and Hong for travel between October 20, 2005 and June 30, 2006.



� Eligible booking classes: J, C, I, Y, M, B, H, V, Q, L

https://www.aeroplan.com/offers/en/o...005_10_26.html

Frayed_Yak

If you fly JL, you'll get 2 international J flights with a more even journey (better seats and food than domestic).

You'll have to connect at horriblly inconvenient YYZ if you fly AC.

Shareholder

While I agree at this stage, JL offers the best overall service, and NW the worst, there are some other considerations you might wish to make.

First, you provide no details as to your FF program. And since you are discussing airlines in three very different alliances -- I think JL has finally just joined ONEWORLD -- this should factor into your decision, given a J/C class paid flight between NAmerica and Japan provides a good base to your elite future in the important world of FF programs and global airline alliances.

If the trip taking place in December or early next year?
Where else is it likely you'll be flying in the next year?
What is your company's travel policy vis a vis class of servce, fare paid, etc.?

Okay, down to basics. If you will be travelling primarily in the USA after this trip, then will you be more likely to fly AA, UA/US or NW/DL? AA belons to the ONEWORLD alliance (as does/will JL), UA/US and AC to the STAR alliance, and NW/DL to SKYTEAM. Your trip betwen NYC and HKG can earn you as much as 13K base miles and another 3K in class of service status miles.

These will get you close to the first tier of most FF programs (25K status miles are required), so this is where the FF program benefits improve for you in your travel future.

Let's say you opt for JL, which if they are in ONEWORLD now, means you should sign up for an AAdvantage account into which these trip miles should go. You should also then call AAdvantage once your account is set up, and a few weeks before your trip, and ask to participate in the PLATINUM CHALLENGE. This will fast-track you to their mid-tier PLATININUM status (usually needs 50K status miles per year to earn) and give you ONEWORLD SAPPHIRE status, which means you can use airport lounges and other elite benefits any time you fly BA, CX, JL and other airlines members. (You'll have to go to the AA forum and do a bit of research, but those are the general details.) You only need 10K status miles to earn PLAT this way.

So you can fly the best service/seats among the three alternatives. Earn mid-tier elite status in AAdvantage, and start to enjoy the benefits of elite status on your future travel with ONEWORLD airlines.

While there is no Fast Track with NW, you would be joining their SKYTEAM alliance, which may be better based on your future travel.

With AC, you'd be joining STAR, but won't have enough miles to even make the first elite tier, PRESTIGE. So unless you plan to fly US or UA within the states, or LH or AC or SQ or NH through the year, the rationale is not really there to opt for the inconveniences of transiting through YYZ. And while AC's service is okay, the seats on the A345 do have problems and do not rate favourably among most who've flown in them. We are all awaiting AC's major upgrading of international J seats, which will indeed be worth using.

But until then, I would recommend the JL/AAdvantage option. Though, as I note, we'd need to know a bit more about your FF history and future to answer your question more fully.

(Feel free to PM me if you want more details about the AA/JL option, but do post further here so others can assist you and explore all the variations that may come into play. This is a long term strategic thing for you -- or so it sounds -- so let us get you on the right track so you can really benefit from this trip and your FF program future.)

TRAVELSIG

Good advice overall Shareholder- there is, however an elite challenge option with NW- you need to phone and ask for the elite challenge with an agent that understands you will travel a lot or in premium classes frequently- they will offer you PE if you fly 14000 status miles in 60 days- one time only.
BTW I like the name SKYTRAIN alliance- although now days SKYBUS would be more appropriate

Shareholder

Thanks for the correction on NW elite fast track, TRAVELSIG, as well as your recognizing my sense of irony in using SKYTRAIN instead of SKYTEAM. Let's see what more our newbie friend can tell us about his long term plans, then steer him accordingly...

Guava

Never flown North Worst since I was kid so can't comment on them. As far as AC VS. JL on this route, I'd say JL seems more convenient than AC simply because you don't have to clear the customs twice if you connect via YYZ.
If you fly AC, you have to fly out of LGA, so maybe a bit closer to the city than JFK.

In terms of service / food / seat, AC is comparable to JL on this route when it comes to cabin comfort. Neither have fully flat J seats but good enough. Both seats are of newer design and have good audio-video entertainment system to go with it. Service on AC can be great if you bump into good FAs. JL's service may not be as consistant as some might think though are of good quality generally. I don't think service has been JL's trademark strength when compared to other airlines. JL however will have better food by far, but only when flying out of NRT. When flying ex-U.S. airport, the quality of JL food is only so so.

Overall, I'll say the two are really a toss-up. Since you don't seem to value convenience, I'd say then you need to look at how to maximize your frequent flyer utility.

tcook052

Good question: when is JL entering OW? Decided to see if it was mentioned in any PR online but searches haven't revealed a date. This press release gives no concrete date. Anyone know more?

Q Shoe Guy

Next year they will start the process of entering........expect them to take some time to intergrate in oneworld as they have many affiliations with other airline groups!

The OP should take the flight with the best schedule since it is paid J. I personally wouldn't take NW if my life depended on it,but that's just a personal preference.

JL will have the new cabins from JFK.....the aircraft from NRT to HKG will be hit and miss. The service is far better on JL than NW. With regards to AC, if you want the YYZ transit then go for it.......their service is on par with JL(if the aircraft is the 345) and certainly better than NW. Again ,why isn't this OP taking CX?

oopsz

There are two flights I would consider on this route.

JFK-HKG on CX.
EWR-HKG on CO.

Shareholder

BTW, JL is currently ad AAdvantage member carrier and travel on its metal as JL or AA flight numbers are eligible for status miles in AAdvantage. So if the OP would like to return and post some more details, we're prepared to further assist.