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Tokyo Heatwave: SIN-HND-SIN on ANA 787-9 Dreamliner Premium Economy (NH842/843)

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  • Tokyo Heatwave: SIN-HND-SIN on ANA 787-9 Dreamliner Premium Economy (NH842/843)

    I recently spent 3 days in Tokyo. It was a very hot 3 days in July 2023, while Tokyo was in the grip of a heatwave, with daytime temperatures as high as 37 degrees C. Still it was great to be back in Japan, which I last visited before the pandemic.

    I travel less for work these days. One lasting effect of the pandemic is that it is now perfectly acceptable to do meetings with senior executives via video. Less of a need to travel for meetings. But the reality is that to work or do business with someone, you do need that face to face interaction, so while I travel less, the occasional trip is still necessary.

    With so few trips, it is even more important for me to make each flight experience to count. While work schedule is of course top priority, as well as paying a reasonable ticket price, within those parameters I will make it a point to pick and choose flights which broaden my experience of equipment types, airlines and classes of travel. Life would be boring, otherwise!

    My current employer has a travel policy which allows for premium economy for flights over 7 hours. My previous employer's policy was 8 hours and above. What a difference an hour makes! WIth a 7 hour cut-off, I am now able to travel to Japan and Australia in Premium. Great! No plans to change my handle to peyfler yet...but it does make trip planning a little more exciting...

    I flew there and back on ANA's 787-9 Dreamliner, in Premium Economy. While I had flown ANA before in Y, this was my first time in PEY. It would be interesting to see how ANA's PEY product compared to SQ's.

    Of course, while there, I ate several interesting meals, at the kind of places only locals would know about, and also headed out for a run (despite the heat!).

    Last edited by yflyer; 8 September 2023, 01:41 AM.

  • #2
    NH842 has a very civilised departure timing of 11.15am. I headed to Changi Airport T1 on a sunny Sunday morning in mid July.



    No check-in queues at 9.35am in the morning, when I got to the check-in counters.



    Check-in was quick. As I left the check-in area, I was surprised to see the ANA tech crew at the far end of the check-in island going through what looked to be breathalyser tests. A very public place to do these tests. Needless to say, I saw the staff there give them the thumbs up...

    Passport checks to enter the airside are are now automated, with scans of your passport and boarding pass, along with facial recognition -- no more pesky thumbprints.

    The airside area was quite busy, with most shops open.



    Apart from the shops, there were many comfortable rest / work zones in the airside area where pax could spend time (No lounge access needed in T1 to get comfortable!) ...



    As Krisflyer / Star Gold, I did have lounge access, so I headed up the escalator to the lounge area...



    Three lounges in this part of the terminal, QF, BA and the SATS Premier Lounge...



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    • #3
      The designated ANA lounge was the SATS Premier Lounge...



      I was a little concerned to see a "Full Capacity" sign at the entrance, but thankfully that only applied to Priority Pass and other lounge memberships, not airline frequent flyers, and I was let in.



      First impressions: a nicely styled, if not particularly distinctive looking, lounge...



      The lounge was busy, butt not totally packed, so ambience was good, with a decent choice of seating still available...



      ...in two different lounge zones...



      There were stylish cubby holes for work...



      ...and several massage chairs for resting (All unoccupied!)



      ​​​​​​​

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      • #4
        There was a dedicated F&B zone with table seating...



        There was a decent buffet selection of hot & cold dishes...



        ...including SATS signature laksa...



        Beverages included sparkling wine...



        Red & white wine...



        Liquor...



        Beer, mixers, and soft beverages...


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        • #5
          Dining selections in the late morning included cold soba noodles...



          Chicken congee...



          A range of hot veg and non-veg dishes...



          ...including South Asian selections..



          Lontong...



          Baked beans, potato wedges, and bee hoon...



          Overall, I thought this was a decent lounge. Not a "destination lounge" by any means, but perfectly fine for a snack and a drink before a flight.

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          • #6
            I headed to the gate, which was at the far end of one of the T1 D piers...



            The gate holding rooms in T1 have been beautifully redecorated...



            The holding room for D48, E48, E49 was huge, and very nicely styled...



            Decor wise, this was a match for many airline lounges (Though there was obviously no F&B available)



            What a lovely gate holding room!

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            • #7
              At the gate, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner registration JA925A, just 2 years and 7 months old...



              On time boarding...



              The Business Class cabin was a fairly dense staggered forward facing 1-2-1...



              The window seats all had aisle access, with seats either closer to the window or the aisle...



              These were seats that would recline fully flat, into the cubby hole ahead of the seat.

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              • #8
                Next, premium economy cabin, just 2 rows of seats, laid out 2-3-2, in separately partitioned zone...



                The seats themselves looked more traditional (Dare I say dated?) than other airlines' PEY seats, but they were large and comfortable...



                My seat was the first row bulkhead window-side pair. Miraculously the seat next to mine was empty (the only empty PEY seat on this flight), so I had both window and aisle seats to myself.



                A view of the middle bulkhead seats...



                The seats were fabric covered, with leather headrests...



                Recline was generious -- a lot more than your typical Y seat.



                I also found the adjustable leg rest quite comfortable when extended...



                Adjustable reading lights...



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                • #9
                  Each seat came with a fabric-covered pillow and blanket...



                  There was an interesting fold out drink holder in the armrest...



                  Foldout Tray Table...



                  The opposite armrest had an interesting notch...



                  ...which served to support the tray table when it was fully extended.

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                  • #10
                    Headphones and slippers were in the seat pocket in front of my seat...



                    Shoe horn thoughtfully provided together with the soft slippers...



                    The cabin crew came round offering eyeshades and earplugs...

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                    • #11
                      IFE was a fold out touchscreen...



                      ...with a nice selection of movies (Though not quite as massive as SQ's Krisworld selection)...



                      A few live TV channels...



                      Note the USB charging port (lit up in blue) in the above pic.

                      There was also AC power under the seat.



                      Airshow display on the IFE...



                      I could not resist checking out the electronically dimmable window shades...



                      There were no dedicated toilets for PEY. You had to cross one section of the Y cabin to get to the restrooms, which was no great hardship, but still it would have been nice to have restrooms closer toPEY.

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                      • #12
                        Pushback, and a long taxi past the T5 construction site to get to Runway 20L...



                        Waiting behind an Air France A350 bound for CDG...



                        Turning onto Runway 20L...



                        A powerful, yet quiet, take-off, with great views of the East Coast of Singapore out of the right side windows...


                        Last edited by yflyer; 8 September 2023, 01:44 AM.

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                        • #13
                          Moist paper towels distributed after take-off...



                          I took the opportunity to explore the IFE before meal service...



                          Sound quality was borderline through the supplied headphones.



                          These were not noise cancelling, and sounded barely average.



                          I set them aside and used my own headphones.



                          I rewatched parts of "The Menu"...



                          Picture quality was great...



                          This pic is must-watch if you are a foodie, by the way...



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                          • #14
                            Inflight wifi was available...



                            It was not particularly cheap, at USD 21.95 for the full flight, but at least it was time based, and not based on data (Which is impossible to estimate or ration)...


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                            • #15
                              I was keen to see how dark the electronically dimmed windows went during the day.



                              At least to my eyes, they went very dark indeed....

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