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TG F (LHR-BKK), SQ F (BKK-SIN), SQ Y (SIN-SYD), and On-The-Ground Experiences

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  • TG F (LHR-BKK), SQ F (BKK-SIN), SQ Y (SIN-SYD), and On-The-Ground Experiences

    Introduction

    With BD miles asking to be cashed in and one of my best friends tap-tap-tapping his foot in SYD waiting for a visit from me, I decided to take the very first two-week holiday in my working life and booked a flight to SYD.

    It was good coincidence that my brother had a medical conference in KUL so that I could have a little side-trip on the way back -- an excellent opportunity to visit another city for the first time. An even better coincidence was that SQflyergirl would actually be in KUL in early August, so my summer holiday had all the makings of a memorable trip.

    The latter part (SYD-LHR with a detour in KUL) is a topic for another TR. This trip report is about my first-time journey to SYD. I do recall I owe nickbot some pictures to make up for my negligence to snap in-flight photos from the YVR Do in July , so I thought I could make this my first pictorial trip report as well.

    Advanced apologies for any inarticulate rambling. I sometimes can’t control the urge to put my thoughts on paper. (Note: This is a work in progress so I'll be posting in installments and might edit after the initial posts. I hope y’all don’t mind too much. )

    My itinerary:

    LHR-BKK TG911 F
    BKK-SIN SQ971 F
    SIN-SYD SQ231 Y
    Last edited by jjpb3; 10 August 2007, 03:25 AM.
    ‘Lean into the sharp points’

  • #2
    At LHR

    True to form, I had work to complete before my holiday, which meant I was working late into the night before my flight. With two bags to check in, I decided to forgo the pleasures of the subterranean walk required by the Heathrow Express at LHR and instead called a cab to drop me off at T3. Given my state of fatigue, the extra £££ was worth it. There was enough traffic to allow me to snooze on the way to the airport, but not enough to cause me heart palpitations about missing my flight.

    After the infamous Glasgow terrorist attack, LHR has now instituted measures to disallow curbside dropoff at T3. The cab will let you off some ways from the terminal building, and the baggage carts have been placed between the dropoff point and terminal so that you can take a cart shortly after alighting from your cab. I have a feeling this arrangement will be less appreciated once the renowned London rain rolls in, because the walk from the trolleys to the terminal isn't a short one, but it was fair weather when I left, so the walk didn’t seem so onerous.

    TG checkin is reached by turning left after reaching the terminals, and the premium class counters are towards the back from where you enter T3,. This is a contrast to the SQ premium class counters which are nearer than the Y counters to where you enter the terminal. IMO, the placement of the TG counters is not very convenient for those who have paid (with cash or miles) for priority checkin.

    I had a very friendly checkin agent, who had to wrestle with the computer systems before informing me (with a sympathetic frown) that TG couldn’t issue the BP for my SQ flight. She told me that I’d have to visit the SQ counter upon arrival at BKK, but really, I didn’t mind: I wanted the proper red BP for my collection anyway . I was asked whether I knew where the lounge was, and I said yes, but of course I had no intention of being in the SK lounge. The SKL was much better for starting my trip.

    The Fast Track lane was, amazingly, fast, so aside from the surprisingly vigorous grope at security (now I personally know what CGK and MegatopLover have experienced ), passage to airside was relatively painless. Well, not quite. I had promised myself I wouldn’t be annoyed by the footwear circus, but I still was. The requirement to subject just your shoes to an additional x-ray continues to strike me as silly ... and it hasn't failed to irk me.

    SKL F is a very civilized way to start your trip. It helps that the TG flight is half an hour after SQ317, so the SQ F pax and Solitaires leave the lounge pretty much to TG pax after 1130 or so. I suspect TG F pax don’t know (whew, thanks for that!) about access to the SKL F because I didn’t see any of my fellow pax in the lounge prior to departure.

    After LHR checkin and security, there's nothing quite like a good old-fashioned Singapore Sling to start the journey. It also doesn’t hurt to have a flight in F to look forward to.

    Last edited by jjpb3; 30 June 2008, 06:01 AM.
    ‘Lean into the sharp points’

    Comment


    • #3
      *clap clap* Looking forward to further installments.
      All opinions shared are my own, and are not necessarily those of my employer or any other organisation of which I'm affiliated to.

      Comment


      • #4
        Coming right up, KeithMEL.
        ‘Lean into the sharp points’

        Comment


        • #5
          Excellent jjpb3,...very much looking forward to reading more

          Comment


          • #6
            TG F (TG911 LHR-BKK) - 1

            When I arrived (refreshed by the Singapore Sling ) at the gate, the flight had not begun boarding. It was a full flight. Passengers with small children were called first, ahead of the First and Business Class passengers –- understandable, though a bit bizarre to me. From what I observed, all the passengers with small children (at least those who boarded before me) were travelling in Y; I don’t see how premium cabin passengers would have impeded their way.

            Because the primary First Class experiences I’ve had (excluding my op-up on CX SIN-HKG) have been on SQ, the observations that follow will include a lot of comparisons to SQ F. I apologize for that, as I don’t mean not to give TG F due credit; it’s just that SQ F is a natural benchmark for me.

            Pre-Takeoff

            I received a warm greeting upon boarding. Unlike with SQ FAs, however, there was no attempt to help me stow my luggage. I didn’t need help, of course, but the lack of an offer was noticeable.

            I was seated in 2K in this configuration. What the seatmap doesn’t show you is that there is a service cart that takes up the middle space for the duration of the flight:



            This cart actually causes the aisle space between it and 2A / 2K to narrow, making it trickier to maneuver a trolley between the seats' footrest and the service cart. The cabin crew members visibly exert more effort tugging the trolley past this point. No wonder the ex-BKK crew energetically encouraged me to take 1K rather than my assigned 2K on my BKK-LHR flight. As I appreciate user-friendly designs, this is not, IMO, a well-thought out choice for the F cabin.

            The service cart also means that, unlike at SQ, you don’t get offered newspapers or magazines; you’re invited to select what you like from that cart. I don't mind that, but it takes away from the feeling of being pampered. (I know, I'm speaking like a spoiled brat ; sorry ).

            As takeoff time approaches, the cart is emptied



            and after takeoff, the publications are replaced with refreshments.





            After experiencing this on the LHR-BKK and BKK-LHR legs, I’m of two minds about whether the cart creates a good F experience. On the one hand, I personally don’t like to bother cabin crew with requests to top up my water (OK, also my wine glass ). But on the other hand, I think this creates an excuse for the cabin crew to be less visible to the passengers.

            Trust me, the lower visibility was very much noticeable on this relatively long flight.
            Last edited by jjpb3; 30 June 2008, 06:05 AM.
            ‘Lean into the sharp points’

            Comment


            • #7
              Well, that cart looks like well, a cart. At least in BA F, the centre portion (where they stocks mags and newspapers) blends with the overall cabin design.

              Keep the TR coming.

              ..and that bloke in the first picture...he must be wearing the compression socks with shorts right?

              Comment


              • #8
                Great TR, jjpb3 - looking forward to more!

                I agree with the comments above. The cart spoils the aesthetics of the F cabin. Plus, as well as giving the crew the opportunity to be less visible, it also means less opportunities to visit the galley (rather than using the call bell) to build up a rapport with the crew.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Cool stuff! Am I the only one who thinks decorative flowers are a bit off?

                  Probably.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by SQFAN View Post
                    ..and that bloke in the first picture...he must be wearing the compression socks with shorts right?
                    ... and as for the other bloke, he seems to be trying (but failing) to do a Hand of StarG impersonation!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      A Brief Interlude

                      One of the pleasures of flying from LHR T3 is being able to marvel at the sheer variety of the tailfins on display (I have zero aviation knowledge, so apart from the 744, I can't tell all the other aircraft apart ; apologies to the aviation experts on our board ):









                      Last edited by jjpb3; 30 June 2008, 06:09 AM.
                      ‘Lean into the sharp points’

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by SQFAN View Post
                        ..and that bloke in the first picture...he must be wearing the compression socks with shorts right?
                        Ugh. More on him later. PITA passenger.
                        ‘Lean into the sharp points’

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by jhm
                          What's the tailfin at the back in the picture (behind AA and, it seems, LH) ? All of the others are easy (particularly Etihad given the clue in the picture ).
                          No idea. But I think that's UA (older logo) behind AA.
                          ‘Lean into the sharp points’

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by jjpb3 View Post
                            No idea. But I think that's UA (older logo) behind AA.
                            Ooops, sorry! I deleted my post as I answered my own question - the answer is in the next picture (same tailfin).

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              TG F (TG911 LHR-BKK) - 2

                              Soon we were rolling to taxi for takeoff. The safety video was played



                              but the cabin crew didn’t seem to care that the tape began in mid-stream! It was one of a number of observations that made me think that TG was less rigorous about enforcing safety than SQ.

                              (A tangential comment: I couldn’t help chuckling during the [half-]video as I remembered this comment from MovieMan. )

                              The TG F cabin is very comfortable. The seat



                              feels narrower than a SkySuite, and I felt less privacy. (Seats 2A and 2K, as well as 1A and 1K, have a more private feel



                              than the rest of the cabin because the other seats seem closer to each other).

                              Here's a view across the cabin from 2K to 2A:



                              I did like the footrest that moved forwards and backwards along some kind of rail



                              because this mobility was useful when I was lounging, but I definitely didn’t like the fact that in full recline position, there remains a gap between the seat and the footrest (you could move the footrest, but then your foot would stick out beyond it), and the fact that it felt as though there was a persistent incline in the headrest. YMMV on these impressions.
                              Last edited by jjpb3; 30 June 2008, 06:14 AM.
                              ‘Lean into the sharp points’

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