This seems to be a trend with airlines and you're not likely to experience any better on other carriers. I've recently flown SQ and QR J, both on 5+ hr flights, and in both cases one had to grab the crew's attention to get a drink. On Qatar the cabin was small enough that this was relatively easy, compared to EK or SQ that have much bigger cabins.

Oh, the humanity. :rolleyes:

I guess you think airlines should be training crew in telepathy?

If you want a drink, ASK for one. You have a call button. You even have two legs. Or if you don't want to ask, bring your own. Many options. It really isn't that hard is it?

1. Asking for one is fine - but what happens if you press the call button and no one shows up (repeatedly for 45 mins) ? This is standard in Y, but not J. And we are talking about J service here.

2. Getting up and getting one on your own because no one shows up is not acceptable. Ok in Y - but not J.

3. Bring your own ? I don't think so. How do you bring your own with liquid restrictions ? And why should you when you pay for a ticket ? This is not acceptable for Y or J.

For real? You find it unacceptable to get yourself a cup of water? Wow.

I buy the drinks after security, or buy it at a duty free shop who seals the package for me. Not very difficult to do and saves me the aggravation later.

That's precisely why. I paid for a TICKET. If I want something else, I'll either bring it myself or ask one of the crew for it. I don't expect the crew to know what I want and I'd much rather they just left me alone.

With respect, Sean, premium pax do expect to be served At their seat within a reasonable interval after requesting service, and such service is advertised as part of the value of a premium ticket. I agree that this is what the call button is there for. But I am sure you will agree that it's also a hallmark of a good service routine in premium cabins on all airlines to offer at least one refill during meal service at the apertif/ dining/ liqueur/ stages without people pressing bells and to ensure that the juice/soda/water drinkers are kept topped up through the service. In F Class service should be as closely personalized as feasible. In J class the call button should quickly get you what you want in between services, though a self service bar should always be available and stocked on longhaul flights to minimize bell pushing. In Y, regular juice/water rounds should minimize the need for personalized attendance in the main cabin; the speed of attention to the call light will vary, though CC should never be encouraged to treat the blue light as an ornament

An airline that is failing to provide such services is slipping on product quality,
in my view

That's precisely why. I paid for a TICKET. If I want something else, I'll either bring it myself or ask one of the crew for it. I don't expect the crew to know what I want and I'd much rather they just left me alone.

Were you a regular on the UA Forum before ?

The point I was trying to make is that 3 of the supposedly best carriers performed at the same level, in my experience.

I'm perfectly happy to get up and grab a drink myself, but like others have said, a good service in J would be where someone asked if you wanted a refill on seeing an empty glass.

If I wanted the kind of service you describe, I would fly Air Asia X!

Good service in J would be where someone took my empty glass away without saying a word. I don't want to have some forced interaction in the name of mass-market pseudo-hospitality. YMMV.

I generally don't pay any attention to the way that other passengers are dressed. It's public transport, even in F, not a first night at the opera.

+1 ^

You are of course free to do this, but to suggest this should be Standard Operating Procedure when flying business class is ridiculous. Also, at some airports like my home airport AMS security is done at the gate for non-Schengen departures, so the option "buy drinks after security" is not even available.

If you have a quick look at the Emirates web site, they want you to know that you paid for much more than a (transportation) ticket: food, drinks, seats, entertainment, service are all prominently featured on the web site. Or if Emirates stops providing seats will you say: "I'll go to IKEA first when I am going to fly"?

That's fine and feel free to tell the crew not to bother you. For me and I suspect most of the rest of us, we'd like a flight attendant to show his/her face at regular intervals so that we can ask for a drink or some snack whenever we feel like it.

I have bought drinks on board leaving Schiphol many times. Simply ask the store to seal them into a tamper proof bag. There are specific drinks marked as eligible or ineligible to be taken on board in all the stores there.

This is a tricky one. Sometimes I want to be left alone to work or sleep, other times I want frequent top-ups. I think erring on the side of leaving pax alone is the best option though. Even in Y the galley crew will give you whatever you want... on any airline... This is a reason I like the EK A380 J bar, I don't mind walking to the bar at all (it's 30 seconds, and probably good for me - does anyone else do the recommended circulation exercises? I think not...) and it makes it a more natural situation to request a beverage.

Especially on USA based airlines, I do find the almost obsessive ignorance of the call bell (FAs walking down the cabin past you, seeing you push the bell, ding dong sounds, the light comes on, you look at the FA in the eye and they stare straight ahead and walk on past...) rather weird. I've flown enough that I know when they're busy and when they just couldn't be bothered... if you're not bothered, why not just say so?

Really good service would be when crew know whether to leave you alone or keep refilling the champagne. And they don't need to read minds to make that happen.

I just got off a QR flight, was asleep on a row of seats at the back, and was actually woken by crew and asked if I wanted a meal. I thought it was silly, since it was obvious I wanted to sleep and be left alone.

I'm not saying everyone will always get it right - but it would be nice to have someone walk down the aisle checking if passengers need anything. You're free to ignore and be ignored.

DBX Shuttle Bus Runs
 

DBX seems to have some "growing pains" at the moment, especially when it comes to shuttle busses.

I'm a regular LGW-DBX-ICN // ICN-DBX-LGW traveller and I've found that the DBX-LGW leg (final return) is always out on the tarmac. Two have been within about 10 minutes from the gate, the most recent was an epic 20 odd minutes driving further and further out (jokes about reaching the Qatari border were in evidence).

The one good thing about the shuttle busses is that they have better air-con than the terminal. The bad thing is having to make the "dash" in midday Dubai heat.