Christmas in the UK – Qantas and BA Business Class from Sydney via HKG
Jan 20, 2013, 10:54 am
#17
In Memoriam
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Katoomba (Blue Mountains)
Programs: Mucci
Posts: 8,083
I’d arranged for a taxi to pick me up at 8am, reckoning that I’d be at the airport at about 8.30am giving me almost three hours in the famed Qantas First Class lounge. I’d managed to score another lounge invitation which meant that I was able to enjoy the much talked about eggs benedict, rather than a buffet style breakfast in the Business Class lounge below.
Jan 20, 2013, 11:18 am
#19
In Memoriam
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Katoomba (Blue Mountains)
Programs: Mucci
Posts: 8,083
Dave
Jan 20, 2013, 11:26 am
#20
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
Programs: AF Platinum, EK Gold, AA EXP, UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 21,635
Sensational report Matt! Outstanding narrative and great pics.
Agree with you on QF food and wines... some of the best in the sky.
Love your socks, BTW.
Agree with you on QF food and wines... some of the best in the sky.
Love your socks, BTW.
Jan 20, 2013, 11:39 am
#21
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Home: East Mids UK - Work (Base): Accra, Ghana.
Programs: BAEC: Silver - Marriott: Titanium
Posts: 12,086
^
Jan 20, 2013, 4:30 pm
#22
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Kent, UK
Programs: BA Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,809
Thanks for your comments everyone, I love hearing them, and it keeps me motivated.
The socks.... I love them. I got them from Next in the summer (in the UK) but I looked in December and I couldn't get them anymore
The next part will be up soon, hopefully tonight (Sydney time).
The socks.... I love them. I got them from Next in the summer (in the UK) but I looked in December and I couldn't get them anymore
The next part will be up soon, hopefully tonight (Sydney time).
Jan 21, 2013, 1:23 am
#27
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Bargara Australia
Programs: VA, SQ, IHG, HH,ALL, Europcar
Posts: 1,530
Christmas in the UK – Qantas and BA Business Class from Sydney via HKG
What a discovery, during a slow
Night shift, long tennis match then a new Matthandy TR.
Looking forward to the rest ......
Night shift, long tennis match then a new Matthandy TR.
Looking forward to the rest ......
Jan 21, 2013, 3:21 am
#28
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Kent, UK
Programs: BA Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,809
I stepped off of the aircraft and made my way to the transit area, past the dreaded temperature check. It’s not immediately obvious how to transfer at HKG since there are signs to airline desks but once you make your way towards them there is a sign ushering you towards a boarding pass check and the boarding gates. As I already had my boarding pass for the next flight I went that way. After having my BP checked I attempted to make my way through security. Being a stereotypical English man I diligently grabbed a handful of trays and proceeded to try to put my carry-on bags in them, as per the rather clear sign telling me to do so. I tried to put my small roller case in before being shouted at that it was too big, fine. I then tried with my camera back pack before being shouted at again, bloody hell. I made some remark about the sign which was ignored so I turned to the person behind me and said “that told me then” eliciting a smile. Through security I then made my way upstairs to the main departure area before swiftly following the signs to gates 1-4 where the haven of the Wing was located.
For those of you that haven’t had the pleasure yet, the Wing lounge in Cathay Pacific’s newest offering at Hong Kong, having been totally re-designed and refurbished less than a year ago. It is easily my favourite Oneworld international business class lounge and today I’d be spending about five hours there.
I was greeted warmly at the entrance and ushered over to have my boarding pass checked. I’m sure that the agents must lament the Oneworld rules that allow people to access other airlines lounges, oh well, it suits me just fine.
I immediately turned right to have a shower. It was great to be able to freshen up and as I’d packed a change of clothes I really could feel like I’d started again. Whilst the showers are great there are a couple of flaws, one that could be addressed easily, the other not so. The controls for the water are at the far end of the shower meaning that you have to try and flick it on and then jump out of the way before the water starts to fall. Secondly, the shower never really gets that hot. Personally I’d advise against using the cold tap at all, just turn the hot one on to full.
I then made my way upstairs to find somewhere to sit. The lounge wasn’t particularly busy but for some reason everyone seems to congregate in the first seating area past reception. I prefer the quieter area near the Noodle Bar and so I headed straight there. First up was the bar and I ordered some much needed water. I then went off to the Noodle bar to order some Dan Dan Mein and Pork Buns, my usual order when I’m in Hong Kong before returning to my seat to wait for the buzzer.
My corner in the Wing
My corner in the Wing
I didn’t move much for the next 3 hours or so but I did catch up with a view episodes of the Wire that I’d purchased and loaded up onto my phone before leaving. If you haven’t seen it I can thoroughly recommend it!
If you’d like to see more photos of the Wing lounge at Hong Kong International Airport click on the banner below:
As boarding time got closer I decided to head over to the dedicated Qantas/BA lounge as I’d be able to hear any announcements there. The lounge is located near gate 16 and was therefore quite a walk from the Wing. I arrived to find it rather busy. This is to be expected as two London flights leave around the same time, mine was the later one, leaving at 11.45pm local time.
I noticed a weird new trend amoungst the passengers in this lounge. It now seems to be perfectly normal to change into your pyjamas before boarding the aircraft! I suppose these might be the same kind of people that see no problem in popping to the supermarket in said pyjamas also. I would be doing no such thing.
The Qantas/BA Lounge
Boarding was called at about 11.15pm but as I arrived at the gate it’s clear that chaos had ensued with long snaking queues for Business and First as well as economy and premium towards the other side of the gate area. First we were boarding, then we stopped, who knew what was going on. People were pushing past me to get through the queue which was rather annoying.
Hong Kong to London Heathrow – British Airways Club World
Flight: BA28
Carrier: British Airways (BA)
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER – G-STBF
Scheduled Departure Time: 23:45
Scheduled Duration: 13h 15m
Scheduled Arrival Time: 05:00
Travel Class: Business
Seat: 13K (seat plan)
I eventually made it on board at about 11.25pm and was greeted at the door before being directed to my seat on the right hand side of the aircraft. Boarding was as chaotic as the gate area with everyone fussing around and going back and forth to who knows where. All I wanted was a quiet flight as I was tired enough already to be honest.
Eventually, as we got closer to depature, things did settle down a bit and the crew came around to offer pre-departure drinks of the usual Champagne, water or orange juice. I’d really had enough alcohol by this point and as I wanted to sleep I went with orange juice. The crew seemed friendly enough at this point but that turned out not to be the case in the end.
Chaotic cabin
Chaotic cabin
As I got all of my stuff sorted out I really started to notice the difference between the Club World seat and my experience on the Qantas A380. I know it’s unfair to try to compare a window seat on an A380 with a window seat on the 777 but the first thing that struck me was the lack of storage space. At least on the Qantas seat there is a large seat pocket in front of you. With the BA seat there is a small drawer but with the blanket and pillow and all of my other stuff such as pyjamas there really wasn’t enough space to tidy everything away. The pillow and the blanket got stuffed down the side of the seat and I managed to squeeze everything else into the drawer by my feet.
The next thing that I noticed was both how narrow and unsturdy the seat felt. The Qantas Skybed has a good solid feel to it, very much unlike the Club World seat with beige plastic abound. There was also no mood lighting, just harsh overhead florescent tubes. Let’s not forget that this particular aircraft was actually much younger than the A380 that I’d just flown on. Don’t get me started on the noise either, and the dry air. I don’t understand why there are so many Boeing fan boys out there when Airbus clearly has the passenger experience much more in mind. Sorry BBB!
Anyway, we pushed back about 15 minutes late at mid-night local time and had an extremely long taxi before our eventual take off at around 12.25am. The take-off itself was rather strange, with lots of short turns and alternating engine power.
BA’s Club World Seat
Leg room
Pre-departure orange juice
A BA 747 that we’ll be following to London
After the seat belt sign was switched off the crew came around to offer hot towels and amenity kits and then came back through the cabin to take dinner orders.
The menus had been handed out before we pushed back which allowed people to make their choice on the ground.
Here is the menu:
Orders were not taken by name and unfortunately it was more in the style of ‘what do you want?’ which happened to set the tone of the service by this one particular crew member. I think she must have thought we were all naughty children in school who deserved to be told off.
I selected the halibut and the pie before going off to the loo to change into my pyjamas. A bar run was completed at about 1am Hong Kong time and I decided to simply stick with water. I’d actually had quite a bit to drink on the previous flight by all accounts and was feeling a bit hung over.
Watching something, I can’t remember!
For those of you that haven’t had the pleasure yet, the Wing lounge in Cathay Pacific’s newest offering at Hong Kong, having been totally re-designed and refurbished less than a year ago. It is easily my favourite Oneworld international business class lounge and today I’d be spending about five hours there.
I was greeted warmly at the entrance and ushered over to have my boarding pass checked. I’m sure that the agents must lament the Oneworld rules that allow people to access other airlines lounges, oh well, it suits me just fine.
I immediately turned right to have a shower. It was great to be able to freshen up and as I’d packed a change of clothes I really could feel like I’d started again. Whilst the showers are great there are a couple of flaws, one that could be addressed easily, the other not so. The controls for the water are at the far end of the shower meaning that you have to try and flick it on and then jump out of the way before the water starts to fall. Secondly, the shower never really gets that hot. Personally I’d advise against using the cold tap at all, just turn the hot one on to full.
I then made my way upstairs to find somewhere to sit. The lounge wasn’t particularly busy but for some reason everyone seems to congregate in the first seating area past reception. I prefer the quieter area near the Noodle Bar and so I headed straight there. First up was the bar and I ordered some much needed water. I then went off to the Noodle bar to order some Dan Dan Mein and Pork Buns, my usual order when I’m in Hong Kong before returning to my seat to wait for the buzzer.
My corner in the Wing
My corner in the Wing
I didn’t move much for the next 3 hours or so but I did catch up with a view episodes of the Wire that I’d purchased and loaded up onto my phone before leaving. If you haven’t seen it I can thoroughly recommend it!
If you’d like to see more photos of the Wing lounge at Hong Kong International Airport click on the banner below:
As boarding time got closer I decided to head over to the dedicated Qantas/BA lounge as I’d be able to hear any announcements there. The lounge is located near gate 16 and was therefore quite a walk from the Wing. I arrived to find it rather busy. This is to be expected as two London flights leave around the same time, mine was the later one, leaving at 11.45pm local time.
I noticed a weird new trend amoungst the passengers in this lounge. It now seems to be perfectly normal to change into your pyjamas before boarding the aircraft! I suppose these might be the same kind of people that see no problem in popping to the supermarket in said pyjamas also. I would be doing no such thing.
The Qantas/BA Lounge
Boarding was called at about 11.15pm but as I arrived at the gate it’s clear that chaos had ensued with long snaking queues for Business and First as well as economy and premium towards the other side of the gate area. First we were boarding, then we stopped, who knew what was going on. People were pushing past me to get through the queue which was rather annoying.
Hong Kong to London Heathrow – British Airways Club World
Flight: BA28
Carrier: British Airways (BA)
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER – G-STBF
Scheduled Departure Time: 23:45
Scheduled Duration: 13h 15m
Scheduled Arrival Time: 05:00
Travel Class: Business
Seat: 13K (seat plan)
I eventually made it on board at about 11.25pm and was greeted at the door before being directed to my seat on the right hand side of the aircraft. Boarding was as chaotic as the gate area with everyone fussing around and going back and forth to who knows where. All I wanted was a quiet flight as I was tired enough already to be honest.
Eventually, as we got closer to depature, things did settle down a bit and the crew came around to offer pre-departure drinks of the usual Champagne, water or orange juice. I’d really had enough alcohol by this point and as I wanted to sleep I went with orange juice. The crew seemed friendly enough at this point but that turned out not to be the case in the end.
Chaotic cabin
Chaotic cabin
As I got all of my stuff sorted out I really started to notice the difference between the Club World seat and my experience on the Qantas A380. I know it’s unfair to try to compare a window seat on an A380 with a window seat on the 777 but the first thing that struck me was the lack of storage space. At least on the Qantas seat there is a large seat pocket in front of you. With the BA seat there is a small drawer but with the blanket and pillow and all of my other stuff such as pyjamas there really wasn’t enough space to tidy everything away. The pillow and the blanket got stuffed down the side of the seat and I managed to squeeze everything else into the drawer by my feet.
The next thing that I noticed was both how narrow and unsturdy the seat felt. The Qantas Skybed has a good solid feel to it, very much unlike the Club World seat with beige plastic abound. There was also no mood lighting, just harsh overhead florescent tubes. Let’s not forget that this particular aircraft was actually much younger than the A380 that I’d just flown on. Don’t get me started on the noise either, and the dry air. I don’t understand why there are so many Boeing fan boys out there when Airbus clearly has the passenger experience much more in mind. Sorry BBB!
Anyway, we pushed back about 15 minutes late at mid-night local time and had an extremely long taxi before our eventual take off at around 12.25am. The take-off itself was rather strange, with lots of short turns and alternating engine power.
BA’s Club World Seat
Leg room
Pre-departure orange juice
A BA 747 that we’ll be following to London
After the seat belt sign was switched off the crew came around to offer hot towels and amenity kits and then came back through the cabin to take dinner orders.
The menus had been handed out before we pushed back which allowed people to make their choice on the ground.
Here is the menu:
Orders were not taken by name and unfortunately it was more in the style of ‘what do you want?’ which happened to set the tone of the service by this one particular crew member. I think she must have thought we were all naughty children in school who deserved to be told off.
I selected the halibut and the pie before going off to the loo to change into my pyjamas. A bar run was completed at about 1am Hong Kong time and I decided to simply stick with water. I’d actually had quite a bit to drink on the previous flight by all accounts and was feeling a bit hung over.
Watching something, I can’t remember!
Jan 21, 2013, 3:24 am
#29
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Kent, UK
Programs: BA Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,809
My starter arrived at about 1.30am without a smile and surprisingly with the plastic protector still on the loose parts of the accompanying aubergine. The crew member was simply too lazy or too careless to notice. The halibut itself wasn’t bad, but to be fair, I’d been spoilt by the food on the previous Qantas flight. Do BA ever do soups? It’s something so simple and easy to do well.
Smoked halibut, notice the ring of plastic that should have been removed by the crew member prior to serving
The pie arrived about 20 minutes later, served by the other crew member who was Hong Kong based and much more friendly. She offered to top up my water and asked if I wanted anything else to drink. Her English colleague could learn a lot from her.
The pie itself was actually really tasty and quite filling, but the presentation wasn’t exactly great. Incidentally, the china used ex. LHR is different, perhaps it hasn’t filtered down to the outstations yet. I ate every last piece of it. Whilst I was enjoying the aforementioned pie we encountered some quite severe turbulence which meant that the seat belt sign was turned on. I never take mine off but I made the stupid mistake of putting my napkin over the top. I had my headphones on so when the crew member (the rude one) put the divider down and said something to me I didn’t hear. I took off my headphones off and said “sorry?” and she barked “seat belt!” at me to which I just pointed at mine and gestured my hands as if to say “what?”. She’d really annoyed me. I do not deserve to be talked to like a small child under any circumstances.
Steak and mushroom pie
I declined dessert or cheese and attempted to get to sleep at about 2.15am. The BA seat does have some advantages over the Qantas seat, it is extremely private. With the divider up you cannot see anyone and no-one can see you. It’s great for sleeping.
I managed to sleep for about 4 hours but woke up to find that there was some sort of alarm going off. I could hear it even with my ear plugs in. I couldn’t work out what it was but noticed that the crew were trying to find it too. Eventually a passengers bag was found in the overhead locker and the alarm switched off. I can only imagine that it was someone’s phone or such other device that was going off.
I snoozed for the next few hours but ended up having to go to loo every hour or so as I’d clearly drunk too much water which was quite annoying!
With about two and a half hours to go before landing the lights were turned on, which is much too early if you ask me and the breakfast service started with a hot towel which was most welcome. After getting changed back into my normal clothes the crew came along to offer a hot breakfast. I went with the English breakfast option and declined the muesli to start opting for a croissant. There was only marmalade on the tray (I’m not a fan) but I didn’t bother asking if there was any jam because I knew the response that I’d get.
Breakfast
Full English
The hot breakfast arrived and although it didn’t look great it was surprisingly tasty. After clearing everything away I watched a little bit more of the IFE and waited to start our descent. A word about the IFE, this is definitely a strong point. It was as easy to use as the Qantas version (I believe that it’s a similar system) and although the selection wasn’t as wide, there was still a good choice of films and programmes available.
We started our descent at about 4.20am UK time and I was on the right side of the aircraft to get some great views coming in over London. I struggled, but managed to get a photo too.
Our landing was pretty smooth and we touched down about 10 minutes ahead of schedule and parked up at Terminal 5 C.
Flying over London
I disembarked and then took the short train over to the main terminal building. Immigration was pretty quick and then it was down to the baggage hall to pick up my bag. I prayed that it had made the transit in Hong Kong and low and behold, after at least a 20 minute wait for the bags to start arriving, it did. I was quickly through customs (no-one to be seen) and then after picking up a few bottles of Champagne at duty free I was out and on my way to the arrivals lounge.
Unfortunately, this was a rather disappointing flight on many counts. Some would say that it isn’t fair to compare an A380 product to a non-A380 product but BA and Qantas are comparable airlines and promote a similar business class product. The seat, the food and the cabin were definitely better on Qantas although I do enjoy the privacy offered by the BA seat. I must say that I have flown Club World many times before, but putting it up against the A380 from one flight to the next really did point out the differences to me. I can’t wait for BA to take delivery on their first A380 this year.
The crew were pretty average to rude to be honest. As I waited to collect my bags the one crew member that had been serving me was doing the whole ‘darling, darling, kiss, kiss’ act with some of the other crew which was totally unprofessional if you ask me, given that the entire plane load of passengers were standing around waiting for their bags. Not BA’s finest example. I have to say that on the way back the crew were absolutely amazing, so it’s just unfortunate that on this flight I met with some bad rostering.
Up Next
Not long enough in the arrivals lounge and then Christmas and New Year in the UK including carols at the Royal Albert Hall and a trip to the Isle of Wight.
Smoked halibut, notice the ring of plastic that should have been removed by the crew member prior to serving
The pie arrived about 20 minutes later, served by the other crew member who was Hong Kong based and much more friendly. She offered to top up my water and asked if I wanted anything else to drink. Her English colleague could learn a lot from her.
The pie itself was actually really tasty and quite filling, but the presentation wasn’t exactly great. Incidentally, the china used ex. LHR is different, perhaps it hasn’t filtered down to the outstations yet. I ate every last piece of it. Whilst I was enjoying the aforementioned pie we encountered some quite severe turbulence which meant that the seat belt sign was turned on. I never take mine off but I made the stupid mistake of putting my napkin over the top. I had my headphones on so when the crew member (the rude one) put the divider down and said something to me I didn’t hear. I took off my headphones off and said “sorry?” and she barked “seat belt!” at me to which I just pointed at mine and gestured my hands as if to say “what?”. She’d really annoyed me. I do not deserve to be talked to like a small child under any circumstances.
Steak and mushroom pie
I declined dessert or cheese and attempted to get to sleep at about 2.15am. The BA seat does have some advantages over the Qantas seat, it is extremely private. With the divider up you cannot see anyone and no-one can see you. It’s great for sleeping.
I managed to sleep for about 4 hours but woke up to find that there was some sort of alarm going off. I could hear it even with my ear plugs in. I couldn’t work out what it was but noticed that the crew were trying to find it too. Eventually a passengers bag was found in the overhead locker and the alarm switched off. I can only imagine that it was someone’s phone or such other device that was going off.
I snoozed for the next few hours but ended up having to go to loo every hour or so as I’d clearly drunk too much water which was quite annoying!
With about two and a half hours to go before landing the lights were turned on, which is much too early if you ask me and the breakfast service started with a hot towel which was most welcome. After getting changed back into my normal clothes the crew came along to offer a hot breakfast. I went with the English breakfast option and declined the muesli to start opting for a croissant. There was only marmalade on the tray (I’m not a fan) but I didn’t bother asking if there was any jam because I knew the response that I’d get.
Breakfast
Full English
The hot breakfast arrived and although it didn’t look great it was surprisingly tasty. After clearing everything away I watched a little bit more of the IFE and waited to start our descent. A word about the IFE, this is definitely a strong point. It was as easy to use as the Qantas version (I believe that it’s a similar system) and although the selection wasn’t as wide, there was still a good choice of films and programmes available.
We started our descent at about 4.20am UK time and I was on the right side of the aircraft to get some great views coming in over London. I struggled, but managed to get a photo too.
Our landing was pretty smooth and we touched down about 10 minutes ahead of schedule and parked up at Terminal 5 C.
Flying over London
I disembarked and then took the short train over to the main terminal building. Immigration was pretty quick and then it was down to the baggage hall to pick up my bag. I prayed that it had made the transit in Hong Kong and low and behold, after at least a 20 minute wait for the bags to start arriving, it did. I was quickly through customs (no-one to be seen) and then after picking up a few bottles of Champagne at duty free I was out and on my way to the arrivals lounge.
Verdict
Unfortunately, this was a rather disappointing flight on many counts. Some would say that it isn’t fair to compare an A380 product to a non-A380 product but BA and Qantas are comparable airlines and promote a similar business class product. The seat, the food and the cabin were definitely better on Qantas although I do enjoy the privacy offered by the BA seat. I must say that I have flown Club World many times before, but putting it up against the A380 from one flight to the next really did point out the differences to me. I can’t wait for BA to take delivery on their first A380 this year.
The crew were pretty average to rude to be honest. As I waited to collect my bags the one crew member that had been serving me was doing the whole ‘darling, darling, kiss, kiss’ act with some of the other crew which was totally unprofessional if you ask me, given that the entire plane load of passengers were standing around waiting for their bags. Not BA’s finest example. I have to say that on the way back the crew were absolutely amazing, so it’s just unfortunate that on this flight I met with some bad rostering.
Up Next
Not long enough in the arrivals lounge and then Christmas and New Year in the UK including carols at the Royal Albert Hall and a trip to the Isle of Wight.
Jan 21, 2013, 4:53 am
#30
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold, LH Sen, MUCCI, Junior Jet Club.
Posts: 8,104
Excellent report and pics, as ever. Such a shame you got a bad BA crew member, unfortunately they pop up from time to time and don't ever seem to be managed out of the airline - they really let the side down.