Inaugural/early 787 flights FT meet-up thread
Nov 4, 2012, 7:46 am
#229
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: LIS/ATL/other
Programs: UA 1K, Avis PC, Hertz PC, Sixt Plat, Marriott Gold, HH Silver
Posts: 1,983
Nov 4, 2012, 7:49 am
#230
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: LIS/ATL/other
Programs: UA 1K, Avis PC, Hertz PC, Sixt Plat, Marriott Gold, HH Silver
Posts: 1,983
Rampies aplenty
45 minutes before arrival and there are already plenty of rampies waiting for SMI/J and the 787. I guess they won't have to wait for a gate to become available if they arrive early. Status has its privileges.
Nov 4, 2012, 12:55 pm
#232
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Denver, CO
Programs: UA 1K 25 years/2MM, Honors LT Diamond, AVIS & Hertz Prez Club
Posts: 4,754
Mr. Smisek most likely was showing up on the Upgrade List but that probably wasn't supposed to happen. He was assigned to a center section bulkhead seat in Row 17 so that he could easily get up and move around the cabin, meet with media, talk with passengers and sign A LOT of memorabilia. It's unfortunate they couldn't have pulled him off the UG list earlier to avoid all the criticism on here. At the end of the day, it was unfounded. A GS DID get upgraded on the flight just before departure too.
It was all handled exceedingly well and United should be proud of what they did for this flight and for everyone on board.
That said - I'm going to level my one and only criticism of the 787. The seats in Y are entirely too narrow. The bulkhead seat controls are at hip level INSIDE the seat area. You can't read the buttons, your hip/thigh constantly touches the controls activating your reading light. The side walls are jammed directly into your shoulder if you're a broad shouldered person depending on the placement of the window in your respective row. I will never choose a window seat on this plane. I also would choose another suitable aircraft if I can't get a bulkhead seat since you're already crammed in tight (at 9 across) and even with E+ it is a tough squeeze.
All the other attributes of the plane - the quiet, smooth ride, electrochromatic windows, the LED lighting, large bins, lower altitude, higher humidity - I experienced all of that and was very satisfied.
If UA had done 8 across (like ANA) this really would be Game Changing and give people a reason to feel it's a different experience. But if you're crammed in, you will take less notice to the other features. That's my opinion and I don't expect everyone to agree with me, but it's how I see it.
It was all handled exceedingly well and United should be proud of what they did for this flight and for everyone on board.
That said - I'm going to level my one and only criticism of the 787. The seats in Y are entirely too narrow. The bulkhead seat controls are at hip level INSIDE the seat area. You can't read the buttons, your hip/thigh constantly touches the controls activating your reading light. The side walls are jammed directly into your shoulder if you're a broad shouldered person depending on the placement of the window in your respective row. I will never choose a window seat on this plane. I also would choose another suitable aircraft if I can't get a bulkhead seat since you're already crammed in tight (at 9 across) and even with E+ it is a tough squeeze.
All the other attributes of the plane - the quiet, smooth ride, electrochromatic windows, the LED lighting, large bins, lower altitude, higher humidity - I experienced all of that and was very satisfied.
If UA had done 8 across (like ANA) this really would be Game Changing and give people a reason to feel it's a different experience. But if you're crammed in, you will take less notice to the other features. That's my opinion and I don't expect everyone to agree with me, but it's how I see it.
Nov 5, 2012, 8:17 am
#233
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 9
That was an incredible flight on an incredible plane. Can't wait for them to have a bunch more flying throughout the system.
You're criticism is spot on. Having sat in the window seat you were in originally I totally agree. However, I would have liked to check out a row where the window cutout would be right next to the seat. The indent around the window looks like it's big enough that being right next to it would provide a decent amount of extra shoulder space. So I guess to test that theory I'll just have to get on another 787 in a different row 
As for the cramped space, I didn't think it was worse than the 763 I flew down on the day before. Unfortunately economy is getting more cramped on all carriers but at least the 787 has some nice features to help take your mind off of it. Not sure I'd feel the same way after a 12 hour flight but that would be pretty uncomfortable in most any carriers economy class.
It was great meeting so many people from FT on the flight. Definitely a flight I'll remember forever.
That said - I'm going to level my one and only criticism of the 787. The seats in Y are entirely too narrow. The bulkhead seat controls are at hip level INSIDE the seat area. You can't read the buttons, your hip/thigh constantly touches the controls activating your reading light. The side walls are jammed directly into your shoulder if you're a broad shouldered person depending on the placement of the window in your respective row. I will never choose a window seat on this plane. I also would choose another suitable aircraft if I can't get a bulkhead seat since you're already crammed in tight (at 9 across) and even with E+ it is a tough squeeze.
.
.
As for the cramped space, I didn't think it was worse than the 763 I flew down on the day before. Unfortunately economy is getting more cramped on all carriers but at least the 787 has some nice features to help take your mind off of it. Not sure I'd feel the same way after a 12 hour flight but that would be pretty uncomfortable in most any carriers economy class.
It was great meeting so many people from FT on the flight. Definitely a flight I'll remember forever.
Nov 5, 2012, 9:30 am
#234
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Chicago, IL
Programs: United MileagePlus Silver
Posts: 31
I echo the praise on United for the way they handled the flight...very hands-off and it was great to be able to have a little fun for once and move freely around the plane for almost the entire flight.
Still of the opinion that United had originally intended to have a separate media flight and they were forced to combine them to yesterday's 1116 but that's just speculation on my part. Either way, it was really cool to have a mix of media, passengers, and executives/employees on the flight...everyone had a great time and was so curious about the plane.
The biggest 'tech' footprint of the Dreamliner is the engines, in my opinion, hands-down. When captain Starley announced the statistics, the amount of fuel consumption (or lack thereof) was indeed impressive. Also, I was sitting in a 'sweet spot' area behind the left engine that is typically very noisy. It was very quiet, all things considered. The windows are fantastic--almost double the size as a 767. The electrochromatic shades are GREAT...a little slow to respond but that's okay. My only concern with the windows is how well the window buttons/tech can stand the test of time and abuse by passengers.
Obviously, I am not happy about NO CHANNEL NINE! ...!? I will be complaining about that--it should be easy enough to add it to the entertainment system. Speaking of, it is top-notch otherwise...great selection of tv shows, movies, music.
Seats are a bit narrow in E. Bathrooms are a bit small but I did like the way the doors open up. Air vents: great, lighting: great. I did not notice much of a difference with the cabin pressure/humidity but then again it was a short flight.
Congrats, United! UA1116 is a flight I will never forget. Also enjoyed meeting everyone from the forum, hope I see you again soon.
-Channel9
Still of the opinion that United had originally intended to have a separate media flight and they were forced to combine them to yesterday's 1116 but that's just speculation on my part. Either way, it was really cool to have a mix of media, passengers, and executives/employees on the flight...everyone had a great time and was so curious about the plane.
The biggest 'tech' footprint of the Dreamliner is the engines, in my opinion, hands-down. When captain Starley announced the statistics, the amount of fuel consumption (or lack thereof) was indeed impressive. Also, I was sitting in a 'sweet spot' area behind the left engine that is typically very noisy. It was very quiet, all things considered. The windows are fantastic--almost double the size as a 767. The electrochromatic shades are GREAT...a little slow to respond but that's okay. My only concern with the windows is how well the window buttons/tech can stand the test of time and abuse by passengers.
Obviously, I am not happy about NO CHANNEL NINE! ...!? I will be complaining about that--it should be easy enough to add it to the entertainment system. Speaking of, it is top-notch otherwise...great selection of tv shows, movies, music.
Seats are a bit narrow in E. Bathrooms are a bit small but I did like the way the doors open up. Air vents: great, lighting: great. I did not notice much of a difference with the cabin pressure/humidity but then again it was a short flight.
Congrats, United! UA1116 is a flight I will never forget. Also enjoyed meeting everyone from the forum, hope I see you again soon.
-Channel9
Nov 5, 2012, 1:57 pm
#235
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: IAH
Programs: *AG, Choice Privileges Elite Diamond, SPG Gold, La Quinta Returns Gold, Wyndham Rewards Gold
Posts: 466
Meanwhile, for thus of us on UA 1435 yesterday, the situation was the exact reverse.
They rolled out an old pmCO 767 to take its place. (No, there wasn't any media present.) The seats were old and grimy, and some clearly needed repair. The flight left about 20 minutes late. The video monitor on my seat was so fuzzy, that it looked like a 1960's TV set running on rabbit ears. The ovens in the 1st class galley did not work properly, so if you order the pasta dish, your dinner came about 30 minutes late. And to top if off, the captain made the comment that the flight was "proudly operated by Continental crew." (At this point in time, this comment is bush-league. You don't work for Continental anymore. You haven't for 8 months. Get over it.)
All in all, it was a depressing flight. And to top it off, the baggage handling at SFO was terrible last night. They normally use carousel 1 at SFO for the IAH flights. It a double carousel with 2 conveyer belts. But for some reason, last night, they emptied out 1435 onto carousel 2, which is a single carousel. This meant that it took an extra 30 minutes to unload all the baggage onto the carousel, since carousel 2 was shared with 3 other flights, at the same time. (I strongly suspect that if 1435 was the inaugural 787 flight, this would not have happened.) This meant that I missed the next 2 BART trains out of SFO.
I was really angry when I left SFO last night. I mean, I was really hacked off.....
Thanks, Jeff. Thanks a lot.
They rolled out an old pmCO 767 to take its place. (No, there wasn't any media present.) The seats were old and grimy, and some clearly needed repair. The flight left about 20 minutes late. The video monitor on my seat was so fuzzy, that it looked like a 1960's TV set running on rabbit ears. The ovens in the 1st class galley did not work properly, so if you order the pasta dish, your dinner came about 30 minutes late. And to top if off, the captain made the comment that the flight was "proudly operated by Continental crew." (At this point in time, this comment is bush-league. You don't work for Continental anymore. You haven't for 8 months. Get over it.)
All in all, it was a depressing flight. And to top it off, the baggage handling at SFO was terrible last night. They normally use carousel 1 at SFO for the IAH flights. It a double carousel with 2 conveyer belts. But for some reason, last night, they emptied out 1435 onto carousel 2, which is a single carousel. This meant that it took an extra 30 minutes to unload all the baggage onto the carousel, since carousel 2 was shared with 3 other flights, at the same time. (I strongly suspect that if 1435 was the inaugural 787 flight, this would not have happened.) This meant that I missed the next 2 BART trains out of SFO.
I was really angry when I left SFO last night. I mean, I was really hacked off.....
Thanks, Jeff. Thanks a lot.
Last edited by LEONIDES; Nov 5, 2012 at 2:02 pm
Nov 5, 2012, 6:52 pm
#236
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Seattle, WA
Programs: UA MM *G, AA EXP, OW Emerald, Hyatt Globalist, Gold everywhere else
Posts: 833
Meanwhile, for thus of us on UA 1435 yesterday, the situation was the exact reverse.
They rolled out an old pmCO 767 to take its place. (No, there wasn't any media present.) The seats were old and grimy, and some clearly needed repair. The flight left about 20 minutes late. The video monitor on my seat was so fuzzy, that it looked like a 1960's TV set running on rabbit ears. The ovens in the 1st class galley did not work properly, so if you order the pasta dish, your dinner came about 30 minutes late. And to top if off, the captain made the comment that the flight was "proudly operated by Continental crew." (At this point in time, this comment is bush-league. You don't work for Continental anymore. You haven't for 8 months. Get over it.)
All in all, it was a depressing flight. And to top it off, the baggage handling at SFO was terrible last night. They normally use carousel 1 at SFO for the IAH flights. It a double carousel with 2 conveyer belts. But for some reason, last night, they emptied out 1435 onto carousel 2, which is a single carousel. This meant that it took an extra 30 minutes to unload all the baggage onto the carousel, since carousel 2 was shared with 3 other flights, at the same time. (I strongly suspect that if 1435 was the inaugural 787 flight, this would not have happened.) This meant that I missed the next 2 BART trains out of SFO.
They rolled out an old pmCO 767 to take its place. (No, there wasn't any media present.) The seats were old and grimy, and some clearly needed repair. The flight left about 20 minutes late. The video monitor on my seat was so fuzzy, that it looked like a 1960's TV set running on rabbit ears. The ovens in the 1st class galley did not work properly, so if you order the pasta dish, your dinner came about 30 minutes late. And to top if off, the captain made the comment that the flight was "proudly operated by Continental crew." (At this point in time, this comment is bush-league. You don't work for Continental anymore. You haven't for 8 months. Get over it.)
All in all, it was a depressing flight. And to top it off, the baggage handling at SFO was terrible last night. They normally use carousel 1 at SFO for the IAH flights. It a double carousel with 2 conveyer belts. But for some reason, last night, they emptied out 1435 onto carousel 2, which is a single carousel. This meant that it took an extra 30 minutes to unload all the baggage onto the carousel, since carousel 2 was shared with 3 other flights, at the same time. (I strongly suspect that if 1435 was the inaugural 787 flight, this would not have happened.) This meant that I missed the next 2 BART trains out of SFO.
(The entire rest of the 764 fleet has been converted to lie-flat/AVOD/E+ and are actually some of the nicest configs UA has.) Can I ask why you didn't change to the IAH-LAX 787 flight and connect to SFO from there?
Nov 5, 2012, 8:06 pm
#237
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: IAH
Programs: *AG, Choice Privileges Elite Diamond, SPG Gold, La Quinta Returns Gold, Wyndham Rewards Gold
Posts: 466
Why didn't I change? My company requires me to use non-refundable, non-changeable S and Z-class fares, for all airfare. The cost to switch to another flight within the 7-day window would have been equal to the cost of the original ticket....There is no way that my manager or client would pay for that. So I was stuck.
Well....the UA 1435 flight next Sunday is supposed to be on the 787. We'll see if that happens. Anything at this point would be an improvement over the equipment they used last night.....sheesh.....
Nov 5, 2012, 10:27 pm
#238
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Seattle, WA
Programs: UA MM *G, AA EXP, OW Emerald, Hyatt Globalist, Gold everywhere else
Posts: 833
Yep.....talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel...Of course, that doesn't explain the horrific baggage handling snafus last night...
Why didn't I change? My company requires me to use non-refundable, non-changeable S and Z-class fares, for all airfare. The cost to switch to another flight within the 7-day window would have been equal to the cost of the original ticket....There is no way that my manager or client would pay for that. So I was stuck.
Well....the UA 1435 flight next Sunday is supposed to be on the 787. We'll see if that happens. Anything at this point would be an improvement over the equipment they used last night.....sheesh.....
Why didn't I change? My company requires me to use non-refundable, non-changeable S and Z-class fares, for all airfare. The cost to switch to another flight within the 7-day window would have been equal to the cost of the original ticket....There is no way that my manager or client would pay for that. So I was stuck.
Well....the UA 1435 flight next Sunday is supposed to be on the 787. We'll see if that happens. Anything at this point would be an improvement over the equipment they used last night.....sheesh.....
Nov 5, 2012, 11:09 pm
#239
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: SEA/ORD/ADB
Programs: TK ELPL (*G), AS 100K (OWE), BA Gold (OWE), Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Plat, IHG Plat
Posts: 7,764
Yep.....talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel...Of course, that doesn't explain the horrific baggage handling snafus last night...
Why didn't I change? My company requires me to use non-refundable, non-changeable S and Z-class fares, for all airfare. The cost to switch to another flight within the 7-day window would have been equal to the cost of the original ticket....There is no way that my manager or client would pay for that. So I was stuck.
Well....the UA 1435 flight next Sunday is supposed to be on the 787. We'll see if that happens. Anything at this point would be an improvement over the equipment they used last night.....sheesh.....
Why didn't I change? My company requires me to use non-refundable, non-changeable S and Z-class fares, for all airfare. The cost to switch to another flight within the 7-day window would have been equal to the cost of the original ticket....There is no way that my manager or client would pay for that. So I was stuck.
Well....the UA 1435 flight next Sunday is supposed to be on the 787. We'll see if that happens. Anything at this point would be an improvement over the equipment they used last night.....sheesh.....
Oh, then you probably didn't see that changes to tickets where they pulled the 787 are free of charge: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...l#post19572170 and United Site. And there's always free SDC as a 1K (I did it that day too to get a 2nd 787 segment in).
Nov 6, 2012, 3:58 am
#240
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Programs: AA,UA SLV, SPG GLD,Hyatt GP Plat.,National Exec., Hertz Platinum
Posts: 237
Wrote a trip report of the 787 here. wanted to post but couldn't post all pics...
http://milevalue.com/united-airlines-787-trip-report/
http://milevalue.com/united-airlines-787-trip-report/