AA transatlantic J class vs BA
Jun 10, 2001 | 3:13 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: LAX, HKG
Programs: AA EXPLT, BA Gold, Shang Elite
Posts: 2,228
AA transatlantic J class vs BA
For a change i tried AA transatlantic finally. overall the product is better than i had thought.
(with about a dozen of BA transalantic as benchmark, i have a pretty good statistical sample for comparison, but my AA sample size is 1)
it was a 777 with 2-3-2 in J.
the seats are similar to those 3-class 767 flying bos-lax, but it seems the pitch was the most generous. (but still can't beat BA's new CW beds)
seems that AA assumes passengers are tall but slim, as the width is still as bad, with all the electronics bulging into your waist.
however, the leg rest is longer than the old BA cradle or CX's J
what amazed me was the handicap sized restroom, the biggest i had seem in any aircraft.
the bose noise-cancelling headphone was impressive, but more about it to follow.
service was okay, not too bad but not impressive at all. on par with BA (scoring 3.5 star equally when the benchmark rate for CX is 4.5-5.0) ----- until 1 hour before landing, when the FA started waking everybody up to collect those bose noise-cancelling headphones, and they were extremely rude in doing this, ORDERING (yes, ordering) some passengers to leave the seat for them to search for the plastic bag! (not the headphone, the bag)
if they really are so unsecure about these headphones they should have asked for some sort of deposit form the passengers.
[honestly, i don;t think they are of any use outside the noisy airplane, maybe for the passengers in the car/bus which are almost as noisy. the driver definitely cannot use this, as he needs to be aware of external traffic/horns]
i enjoy gourmet food but i don't care about airplane food/wine, so i won't have a word there. aa/ba are similar in terms of quality.
(with about a dozen of BA transalantic as benchmark, i have a pretty good statistical sample for comparison, but my AA sample size is 1)
it was a 777 with 2-3-2 in J.
the seats are similar to those 3-class 767 flying bos-lax, but it seems the pitch was the most generous. (but still can't beat BA's new CW beds)
seems that AA assumes passengers are tall but slim, as the width is still as bad, with all the electronics bulging into your waist.
however, the leg rest is longer than the old BA cradle or CX's J
what amazed me was the handicap sized restroom, the biggest i had seem in any aircraft.
the bose noise-cancelling headphone was impressive, but more about it to follow.
service was okay, not too bad but not impressive at all. on par with BA (scoring 3.5 star equally when the benchmark rate for CX is 4.5-5.0) ----- until 1 hour before landing, when the FA started waking everybody up to collect those bose noise-cancelling headphones, and they were extremely rude in doing this, ORDERING (yes, ordering) some passengers to leave the seat for them to search for the plastic bag! (not the headphone, the bag)
if they really are so unsecure about these headphones they should have asked for some sort of deposit form the passengers.
[honestly, i don;t think they are of any use outside the noisy airplane, maybe for the passengers in the car/bus which are almost as noisy. the driver definitely cannot use this, as he needs to be aware of external traffic/horns]
i enjoy gourmet food but i don't care about airplane food/wine, so i won't have a word there. aa/ba are similar in terms of quality.
Jun 10, 2001 | 4:00 pm
#2
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Jersey Isle
Programs: BA Gold, BMI Gold, LH Senator, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 1,175
I prefer 767 on AA as I got stuck in middle seat once on AA 777 and also on SR flight another time. Have only flown J on BA intra-European so I can't compare much. Entertainment system is great but I sometimes miss the portable DVD players.
Jun 10, 2001 | 5:36 pm
#3
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: Austin
Posts: 938
Agreed that the Bose headsets are fantastic. The Nazi tactics to recover them up to two hours before landing are unacceptable, however. The tactics let you go away from the flight with a very bad impression of the airline.