Dec07/Jan08 BA31 LHR-HKG in Business/Club+ F lounge visit

[ny911]

This would be a pictorial report as usual. The photos are mainly from my previous 2 BA31 flights in Dec and Jan. The focus would be on LHR T1 and the latest generation of Club World seat (NNCW). Hope you guys would enjoy it and please feel free to leave some comments.

LHR T1 Departure Hall




Walk all the way down,you would see this Zone-R


Arrival lounge is just 2 doors next to the Zone-R check-in area


Club World/Europe check-in area




4 FIRST/Emerald check-in counters inside


Entrance of lounges


FIRST on the left and Terrace on the right


Duty Free between F and J lounge


Elemis Spa for premium passengers

[ny911]

The massage service was fully booked,so I can only take a shower to refresh myself instead.










Second entrance of FIRST lounge








The Champagne Bar


Sandwiches


Pasta

[ny911]

Take a rest






Time to go


On the way to my gate




This flight is operated by mid-J configuation (52J) 744. The layout is F>Y+>J>Y,which is weird. Business Class pax has to share the gallery with Y+ passengers.

Upper Deck

[ny911]

Seat 64AB


Seat 64HK


Locker


Privacy Screen Button








New seat guide

[ny911]

Amenity Kit






View from 62K (Emergency Exit row)


PTV


Reading light


No lights on the roof, a good design.

[ny911]

Bed


Bed with blanket


Mr 63B seems sleeping well


AVOD, but IFE is still the weakest point of BA as the program was the same in Dec and Jan.


New Club Kitchen (not surprised at all)










Trademark of NNCW

[ny911]

Breakfast service starts soon








The table design is better than CX’s.






Footstool


I managed to get good sleep on both flights. 62K is slightly better than 64K as there is more legroom and no noise from the gallery. The Inflight Service Manager did come to greet me on Jan’s BA31. We had a nice chat and he gave me a set of FIRST Class pyjama. Regarding to the new Club seat, I told him everything is fine, except the IFE system. Besides the IFE, I would prefer flying with BA rather than CX in Business Class. Thanks for reading.

[Singapore_Air]

The table design is better than CX’s.

Could you clarify which version of CX's Business Class you were referring to?

Nice trip report. Glad to hear that the footstool didn't collapse for you

[jjpb3]

Regarding to the new Club seat, I told him everything is fine, except the IFE system. Besides the IFE, I would prefer flying with BA rather than CX in Business Class.

I mostly agree . I'd add one more criterion: I prefer the breakfast options on CX as well.

Great pics, ny911, and thanks for the pictorial tour of NNCW.

[SQflyergirl]

Thanks for the pics. Enjoyed it.

[KeithMEL]

Cheers for the awesome piccies of [pedantry]NG(eneration)CW[/pedantry]. I too concur with your opinion of BA vs CX.

[jhm]

Thanks, ny911 for the pictorial trip report and capturing the essence of what makes the BA product so good, i.e. the peace and tranquility of zone R comapred to the main terminal chaos outside; the T1 F lounge (probably my favourite out of those in LHR and LGW) and 62K (better than BA F IMHO).

The Inflight Service Manager did come to greet me on Jan’s BA31.

Just one very small correction - the BA equivalent is the Cabin Service Director (CSD).

I haven't tried CX's 74A J yet (which I assume you was referring to) but is the table that bad ? The main complaints about BA's NGCW appear to be the AVOD IFE often not working; the wobbly table (particularly bad when trying to work with a laptop); the tendency of the footstool to collapse and the floppy bed.

[ny911]

Thanks, ny911 for the pictorial trip report and capturing the essence of what makes the BA product so good, i.e. the peace and tranquility of zone R comapred to the main terminal chaos outside; the T1 F lounge (probably my favourite out of those in LHR and LGW) and 62K (better than BA F IMHO).



Just one very small correction - the BA equivalent is the Cabin Service Director (CSD).

I haven't tried CX's 74A J yet (which I assume you was referring to) but is the table that bad ? The main complaints about BA's NGCW appear to be the AVOD IFE often not working; the wobbly table (particularly bad when trying to work with a laptop); the tendency of the footstool to collapse and the floppy bed.

Thanks for the correction,jhm.

Personally, I think BA T1 F lounge is too crowded in the evening (most of them are short haul travelers), which is a common problem of all OW F lounges in the world. Since I haven't been to LHR T4,so how would you compare LHR T1 F, T4 F and T4 CCR??

I have flown on NGCW for four times so far. The footstool worked perfectly on 3 out of 4 flights,so only 1 of them doesn't stand at the same height as the seat. It is fine for me, as I am not tall and I can always put my legs on the side lockers.

AVOD IFE was working well on all my NGCW flights. However the program of Dec07 and Jan08 is EXACTLY the same.

The 744/74J J table is difficult to pull nearby or push away, because it is always stucked by the plastic cover of the table storage.

The new 74A J table is even smaller than the old one (and of course the BA one). It is easier to pull nearby,but I still cannot push it as far away as NGCW's.

Both version of CX J tables are more difficult to be folded than NGCW's.

Sorry for my poor written english. Please any experts add few more words to share your experience and describe it for me.

[jhm]

Thanks for the reply, ny911.

Personally, I think BA T1 F lounge is too crowded in the evening (most of them are short haul travelers), which is a common problem of all OW F lounges in the world. Since I haven't been to LHR T4,so how would you compare LHR T1 F, T4 F and T4 CCR??

I've been in the T4 CCR only once (before a flight to SIN) and didn't think much of it. There's pre-flight dining but the menu didn't look appetising and the staff are nowhere near the standard of the (I believe) Peninsula trained staff in the CX F lounges. The other food seemed to be the same as the menu in the T4 and T1 F lounges, e.g. risotto and pasta. I understand from others that the CCR is a shadow of its former self.

Apart from the CCR in T4, there's the lounge complex (with the CCR, F lounge, J lounge and Elemis spa) and the gate 1 lounge (for J). The people in the small and crowded F lounge are OW emeralds (as F pax would go to the CCR) and in fact most people (including me) think that the gate 1 lounge (on two levels) is the best lounge in T4 with the Chef's Theatre (someone standing there cooking food such as noodles throughout the day) and being less crowded than the F lounge.

[ny911]

Thanks for the reply, ny911.



I've been in the T4 CCR only once (before a flight to SIN) and didn't think much of it. There's pre-flight dining but the menu didn't look appetising and the staff are nowhere near the standard of the (I believe) Peninsula trained staff in the CX F lounges. The other food seemed to be the same as the menu in the T4 and T1 F lounges, e.g. risotto and pasta. I understand from others that the CCR is a shadow of its former self.

Apart from the CCR in T4, there's the lounge complex (with the CCR, F lounge, J lounge and Elemis spa) and the gate 1 lounge (for J). The people in the small and crowded F lounge are OW emeralds (as F pax would go to the CCR) and in fact most people (including me) think that the gate 1 lounge (on two levels) is the best lounge in T4 with the Chef's Theatre (someone standing there cooking food such as noodles throughout the day) and being less crowded than the F lounge.

It seems the situation in T4 F lounge is even worse than T1 F lounge. I don't mind the lougne is too crowded as I am not a real F pax ,but it's just my comment. The staffs in T1 are ok,the service standard likes ''dai pai dong'',grab a seat and order a drinks by yourself. There are some nice and professional staffs,meanwhile 1 or 2 of them are impolite/without smile.