Heidelberg Barbie

+1 for you!

(I saw the video - mmmmm nice)

mcdade

I am surprised no one has mentioned this yet but the A380's are super quiet. I have flown the NRT in Y a few times and I stopped using my noise cancelling headphones on the A380 when I'm sleeping or not watching a movie. It was really strange getting my connection after the A380 the first time and thinking there is something wrong with the plane (think it was an A320) cause it was so loud in the cabin. As I also recall they have a USB jack under the armrest and a network jack (RJ45) but I couldn't find anything on the network when I tried it. The cabin is super open feeling and on top of that you forget that there is a whole floor above you with F and C pax. They do a sort of curved interior so you feel like a normal plane. Lastly, if you are at a window seat then the window and wall is sort of far away from the seat, so it makes it weird to sleep against the wall/window area.

Last flight back from Tokyo, it was so empty that I had my 3 seats at the window but also did the full bed with 4 seats in the middle of the plane and slept most of the way back.

Circumknowitall

Yes, the A380 is very quiet, especially on takeoff. ^

This is a real pity, and the windows themselves have a large gap between the inner and outer panes making reducing the angle of visibilty

supermasterphil

Was thinking about Japan the other day and was wondering if travel has picked up again after the natural disaster in March

weero

Squeak.

What about HON+ in F ... are they still eligible for the limo ride or is it strictly F&F only these days?

NewbieRunner

How should I know? Doesn't HON have to travel in C or Y to ensure a limo ride?

Sorry, Heidelberg Barbie. We are going OT.

Heidelberg Barbie

No apologies necessary, NewbieRunner. Amusing banter is always welcome so long as it is in a spirit of fun!
Makes me smile as I finish my morning coffee.

bobbysfca

I booked an award ticket from SFO to FRA last month. Economy, as there were no Biz seats available. Alas.
I had the option of choosing the United 747 or the LH A380.
For a lark, I decided to try the A380.
Really REALLY big mistake.


What will I find on board?
A zillion people.

Are the seats really more comfortable then other economy seats?
No, about the same.

Do you feel like you have MORE leg room?
ABSOLUTELY NOT!
There is this idiotic IFE metal box blocking about a third of your available footspace. Combining this with a fairly miserly 31 inch pitch, there is very little space to put your leg. Even in the seats without the box, they shift the supports for the seats in front of you over by a few inches, so everybody is cramped.


When someone reclines the seat in front of you is the meal tray in a comfortable position for you?
That part of it which isn't covered or rendered ineffective by the very close seat back.

Is there enough over head storage space?
No, but I got lucky and found a closet space for my backpack.

Is the service good, very good, OK, or lacking?
The service was standard LH. No noticeable difference from A340 or 747...


Man, was I annoyed.
When buying a monster plane, an airline can choose to use the additional space to either relax the cramping for the individual, or stuff in as many people as they can.
LH chose the latter.

While the IFE selection was nice (when it worked, mine took 2 resets), the cost in necessary personal space was very dear.

There are some things others have mentioned like like weird windows, quiet especially if seated fore of the engines, etc... Everything else is just a "shiny metal object" that is an attempt to distract from the cramped discomfort.

I could have, and forever will opt for the Economy Plus of the United 747 and its 36 inch pitch whenever available.

Heidelberg Barbie

Thanks, bobbysfca. This is the sort of thing us flyers of this new craft need to know, the GOOD the BAD and the UGLY. Much as we want to think the best, the realities are, there will be things we do not like.

I do agree with you on the seating situation. Here is a huge, newly designed aircraft with the possibility of making all PAX comfortable and instead the corporates choose to maximize the amount of PAX in economy rather then giving that little bit of extra leg room, better pitch and a slightly wider seat (which might have actually increased LH's popularity - to offer something not too many airlines offer to the economy crowd)

I hope to see more postings of Economy PAX on their A380 experiences. ^

weero

While I like UA's seats and especially the E+ section much better ... I can't stand that atavism of a 747 anymore. Decrepit airframe which can't stand turbulence, old smelly seats, zero inflight entertainment.

So I am not sure which is the greater evil: LH's seat or UA's bird.

Heidelberg Barbie

I do like the idea of flying "new" so the A380 flight is exciting.

When the A333 was new 10 years ago, that was a great aircraft. (I flew U(seless)S Air at that time - FRA-PBI. Now it is a shabby aircraft, sorely in need of a refit.

Let us hope that LH does not let its new craft fall into disrepair, which can happen in a matter of months if maintenance is not performed regularly (the interior is of what I am speaking - NOT the mechanics )

Heidelberg Barbie

My first ride on the A380 was a fine experience. There really IS more room for the legs. I was actually able to cross my legs while sitting in my seat (however I am short-legged)
The new touch screen video system is OK but may take some patience as the touch doesn't always respond. With the touch screen systems there are more choices.
I loved the introduction of the tail camera on the aircraft. One can watch the take-offs and landings LIVE. That was fun and interesting and captured the attention of many kids (me included!) I also liked the positioning map system showing graphicly where you are with labels of the cities on that map.
The craft is HUGE both inside and outside.

You do have the feeling of more space as the walls are more vertical.
I was happy with the overall experience.

troje

This week I flew FRA-JNB-FRA, both legs on the A380-800 in Y. For me a first time experience on this airplane. These are my findings:


No, they are not. The seat itself is not noticably different from other Y long haul seats in LH.

Absolutely not. On the FRA-JNB leg, I had a window seat at row 51, which is the second row in the lower deck. Because you sit in the nose of the airplane, the wall curves and thus takes away the space you need for one of your legs. To make things worse, the IFE box is rather huge and is placed in such a way that in NO WAY you can put your feet where they naturally belong. Terrible on a 10+ hours flight.

In fact I could not believe my eyes when I saw my seat... This is simply unacceptable.

For the return flight, I booked the same row but now an aisle seat. While this does not give you the discomfort of the curved wall, the IFE box is still there and placed on the most impossible place, again giving me no chance to put my legs in front of me in a natural way. I'm 1m89 long, so no extreme in terms of length.

Moreover, the IFE box is made of metal that feels very sharp, after several hours I've tried every possible combination of back and legs configuration, however the box was always there to hurt my ankles and lower legs. Unbelievable.

No, unfortunately not. The bins in the front section (rows 50-53) are simply not big enough to host the default hand luggage for all persons. By far. Again I just can't believe this configuration.

Standard LH service. Not bad, not good.

It's clear and already mentioned by another poster in this thread: LH has taken the challenge to cramps as much as possible Y passengers in their A380-800, very much resulting in serious discomfort which to me is not acceptable for long haul flying.

This experience will let me re-consider my FFP strategy. Due to LH groups superior network in central and eastern Europe, I shifted most of my travel from AFKL to LH group. For the coming years my flying pattern will shift to long haul, mainly Middle East and Africa. AFKL with their free Economy Comfort for Platinum members is now a serious alternative.

samplat

I flew the LH A380 JNB-FRA in Y late last year. The A380 seemed to have a much more smooth and quieter ride compared to your typical 747, 777, 340 etc. We had quite a bit of turbulance along the way but it was hardly noticeable in the A380. The cabin also seemed more open visually, though the seats themselves were typical LH without any additional space or legroom. Overall, I wouldnt make any extra effort to be on the A380 though I wouldnt avoid it either.

riku2

This would explain my one and only flight on LH A380 from NRT-FRA where i'm surprised the person behind didn't break the plastic of the touch screen, he hit it so hard. Very nice on such a long flight.

I switched most of my flights to BA since their Y+ is about the same price as B class on LH but a totally different travel experience (economy food but seats like 20 year old business class). Arm rests are wider (how I enjoyed one flight on LH from HKG-FRA with the woman next to me knitting for the whole flight).

BA show how new seats can benefit passengers not just cram more in. With their version of slim seats, they seem to have kept the pitch the same - so a huge amount of leg room in their A320, compared to NEK which is only comfortable if you sit bolt upright. And the BA slim seat is still not as micro thin as the NEK seat.