Hi EK Mates,

I have been reading for quiet some time now posts that describe how EK has become expensive, reduced mileage, fares buckets are not clear, poor service etc etc etc.

As many of you know I fly EK quiet a lot so I thought I would add my prespective to these recent reviews & posts. I have no insight into the Y or J product of EK so I will keep my focus on the F Cabin and do a comp with the competition.

1) Expensive: Yes EK premium fares have gone up but then its the same case with other airlines too. Have a look at the SQ or CX premium fares. You will find the situation is identical if not worse.

2) Service: I will say that service can be a little here or there(inconsistent) but I would put that to a couple of factors. Keep your expectations low and be polite. Keep in mind that you are dealing with a multinational crew which means having for example an Indian + Thai + South African + Aussie + British + Egyptian + Chinese + Russian + Aussie + Portuguese + Filipino OR something similar as your every day average flight crew on an EK flight. This is not an easy mix and they have their own cultural & language issues to deal with too which complicates the cabin environment. Get my point?? Multinational crew has its pro's but unfortunately has its con's too. As per my sole experience I would attribute this as the primary reason for the inconsitent service levels on EK flights and not fatigue or underpaid etc etc.

3) Skywards: Miles have indeed dried up & there is no doubt about that and also the online redemption discounts etc that were there prevviously every year from time to time have been done away with. This is a sore point & a mistake on EK's part but I am sure EK views this differently.

What EK was 10 years ago and what EK is today needs no mention. If I am not wrong then EK offers the maximum number of flights with F today and is keen to intorduce it to the new upcoming sectors as well.

Just to remind myself of how good EK or for that matter SQ are I did 2 Long Haul F flights with BA and 2 ULH flights with CX & trust me the difference is just amazing. The food offerings, wine list, choice of liquor & IFE onboard & then the Lounge Network & the Chauffeur Drive & last but not the least the privacy that the Suites offer. And then the ever expanding network and the multiple daily frequencies of the same sectors & blah blah. I mean I could go on & on.

EK is now a world recognised Premium Product right up there with SQ & not your every day Middle East Airline. So you will have to pay the extra premium if you want to enjoy what EK has to offer or you can always take your business to BA or CX or TK.

The breakfast took some time to come so thats why this post got a bit too long

Thanks for reading. Your comments as always are more than welcome.

Safe Flying

EGT

I think there have largely been 2 issues. One is the comparative rise in EK fares vs. other airlines, where they've gone from being among the cheapest to among the most expensive. The other is saver mileage making it difficult to retain status.

But neither of these is really relevant to someone who always flies in First. That's the least price sensitive segment of the market, and yes you pay a premium to fly EK. I think in F, the hard product is fairly consistent, the service is great when it's not excellent, the lounge at DXB is fantastic etc. The problem is in J and Y where the product is above average but not worth a huge premium. And this is the more price sensitive segment.

The other issue is mileage, which again, hardly affects people flying F. 2.5x the miles and hardly any scope for Saver fares means this is a good deal, not that status has any benefits in this case. This is a big issue for Y pax given that one has little incentive to spend 60% more to buy a flex fare. Again, EK has a good product I think, but the Skywards devaluation would make an FTer think twice about where their loyalties lie.

I agree
the points redemption is hard to take compared to Etihad where you can pool all the miles and also earn status and miles on other airlines.
and their redemptions are very good.

im about to jump ship.
im sure they wont miss me.

Elitegold traveller, we are booked in F from BKK to HKG and I will be reporting on our experience (inflight service) for this short flight July 8th.

Strangely enough, the formulaic EK experience in Y class keeps me going back. I know what to expect and it works great for me.

If I have to fly in a premium cabin though, I pick someone else. The EK hardware is great but many of the premium cabin crews are an utter disgrace, especially on the 380 fleet.

This sounds discouraging but we will find out for ourselves and report back.

Based on my personal experience - 4 F class flights each on EK and SQ in the last 12 months in both the A380 and 77W on both airlines, I would not rate EK as "right up there" with SQ.

For me, SQ is still ahead of EK in terms of cabin service, food quality and, dare I say, hardware.

EK has too many "un-necessary" items in their suites. Please get rid of the tacky in-seat mini-bar and snack basket!

Cabin crews are not as attentive and polished as SQ.

Even from a pricing point of view between AUS-Asia-Europe, EK is always the "cheaper" option. Hence my choice to fly EK at times. And I do accept the fact that I get what I paid for.


K

Agree! The mini bar is quite tacky - always has been!!! To be honest, so are the showers in the A380. Why the suites or other areas weren't upgraded further instead is quite a riddle...

On that note, anyone been on Qatar in F? Thanks....

Although they might be seen as tacky to some, many cultures - some of EK's key target customers- enjoy the "tacky" bells and whistles.

I haven't flown EK regularly for a while and I do miss it. I find the product, especially in Y, to be generally consistent maybe with the service to be a bit variable. I agree that there is much more variation in F/J.

I wouldn't class the showers as tacky, but a useful facility. Have seen lots of posts on various for about arrivals lounges and showers at airports; being able to have a shower onboard near the end of a 14 hour flight is great

The basket of confectionery can be nice if they have decent confectionery

What on EK F isn't tacky? Everything is golden colored but actually plastic, the snack basket has Mars but they serve you Godiva chocolates, the minibar has warm Sprite.

Qatar hardly flies F on any routes. I think Etihad F is a better comparison - especially their new Suites which look more refined than EK's version.

As far as service goes, I don't know why my experiences have been wildly different from other people's, but I've always had good or fantastic service, but maybe that's about preference. I prefer EK's Y service to SQ's. Haven't flown SQ in premium cabins but limited experience on EK F was great. I don't know, maybe it's not as consistent as SQ?

Well, I've flown in both SQ business and EK first and I would say service levels are on par. The 747 upper deck business class service on SQ is fantastic (and probably the best service I have ever experienced) for a business class product and caters for everything I need. Maybe that's the point why I'm not considering EK F service to be better than that (because I did never require anything more than what was already offered to me) but when I can get an EK F flight from europe to asia at the same price as a SQ J flight on the same route, I'd really prefer EK F, although the levels of service and comfort will probably vary according to the aircraft you'll receive.

I fly both SQ & EK F very very frequently. Here is my prespective on the comp between the 2.

1) SQ service is numero uno up in the air. No doubt about this one. You know how & when you will be greeted & served & the turn down service etc etc. EK can never come close to this & this is mainly due to the multinational crew policy. Trust me thats exactly where the problem is with EK.

2) The inflight catering & the wine list & the Liquor on EK is better. However SQ wins by huge margin in the Champs offering as they offer DOM & KRUG both which you will not find in F on any other commercial airliner in this world.

3) The suites on SQ A380 are much better and without the stupid gimmicks present on EK. This is correct. But the showers on EK A380 are a boon. I travel for business and not leisure. So it helps me to change into proper business attire and get ready to rock & roll straight out of the airport upon landing. I do not need to go to an arrivals lounge or a hotel to take a shower & get ready. Save's precious time and helps me to catch on schedules looking nice and properly dressed for the occasion.

4) The lounge network of EK is far superior that SQ and also do not forget that SQ is bound by STAR to share its lounge network with other non-SQ paxs which is not the case with EK. Also EK's lounge network is huge in comp to SQ and ever expanding which has not been the case with SQ for quiet some time now. So end of the day you get a consistent lounge offering at many destinations along with GOOD food too.

5) I find the SQ 77W F Seat highly uncomfortable for lounging(I am 1.81 Mtrs) & also find it a PIA to have to always ask the FA in the middle of the flight mutilpe times to convert the bed back to a seat or vice versa. EK F seat does not have this issue. I mean my sleep pattern is individual right?? On a 9 - 12 Hrs flight I may sit or sleep a number of times. So the 77W SQ seat is not ideal atleast for me. Others may see this in a different way.

6) The Chauffer drive pick up & drop off service of EK is simply amazing. No need to ask your own chauffer's to pick you up at odd times or go through the risk of them getting stuck in traffic to pick you up from the airport etc etc. The car is ready. You land & off you go. I will not even discuss the monetary aspect of the service which is perhaps more than well understood without mentioning.

7) SQ does not offer F on all its flights to various important destinations in Asia & down under where as EK offers F on a pretty regular basis.

8) Redemptions on SQ even for KF members is damn expensive and its not at all easy to get saver fares. However with EK its not that difficult as a comp.

9) Last but not the least SQ charges EXTRA $$$ for the Suites on the A380 & also for the F on the 77W where as EK does not. Have never understood the logic behind this especially since the 77W's are no longer a NEW offering as SQ states and the A380 is becoming a common sight now almost.

So which one is better out of the TWO??? You choose & decide.

Is EK up there along with SQ. YEEEEES.

Safe Flying

EGT

+1. I've only used it once after about 18-20 hours on the go and it was invaluable, and not too plastic as mentioned above like the suite itself.

+1. Nice to have a choice of nibbles at your fingertips.

I would struggle to list many other plus points of F, especially given the price difference from J. Any delay in serving due to J numbers in the A380 can easily be spent in the bar.

The 23" WS monitor is pretty nice too and good enough that I actually do watch movies when on the flight rather than using laptop which I do on most airlines.

I do like that can close the door on suite , put a do not disturb light on and not be hassled by crew

Going to the bar has little interest for me given that I don't drink

The price difference isnt too bad also on some routes I take