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HKG-TPE Turnaround on TG's A340-600

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  • HKG-TPE Turnaround on TG's A340-600

    Hi all,

    This is my first Trip Report in SQtalk, normally I would do a TR in a.net, however I found their posting format is not that user friendly and I have to spend lots of time to edit over there, so I try to do a quick report here first.

    In fact, I should say this report would be a photo report rather than a detailed trip report since my English is not so good, hope you don't mind.

    Background of the trip:
    I do this trip because I found that TG is using A340-600 for BKK-HKG-TPE-HKG-BKK route every Monday and Wednesday, as a A340-500/600 lover, I would give it a try. IIRC, I havn't on A340-500/600 since my SIN-CGK-SIN turnaround last year. The ticket price including taxes and surcharges was HK$1610, it is quite expensive comparing with China Airlines or EVA Air in this route which offering ~HK$1200 all inclusive.

    24 June 2009

    Hong Kong (HKG) -- Taipei (TPE)
    Airline: Thai Airways
    Flight: CI 600
    Aircraft: A340-600
    Registration: HS-TNF
    Seat: 37A (Economy)
    Gate: 44

    My Purple Boarding Pass


    Gate44, It's 12:07 now, but where is the plane?


    Some minutes later, HS-TNF is coming......
    When I booked the ticket, I hope TG would use the newest A346, and the night before the flight, I checked though the BKK airport site and it showed HS-TNF will do TG600 on 24 June, I was really excited to have this 8 months old baby!!


    Engines off, everybody in position!


    Boarding started as 12:40, a bit delay.
    And here is my seat 37A


    Seating pitch is quite good, believe it is 34"


    But the IFE box occupied whole under seat area


    13:00, ready to push back


    Safety Card

    Last edited by sutrakhk; 5 July 2009, 04:04 AM.

  • #2
    After the long take off, we have approached to the 31000ft, once the seat belt light was gone, time to eat
    The table is rather thick, but I like it!


    I have pre-booked the Seafood Meal


    See what's inside......
    Hey, is this the starter only, and the main course serve seperately?
    Sorry........no.....It is what for your lunch
    In addition, although mine one is special meal, I found that all others meal are the same as mine.


    Front Economy Cabin
    The load was 70-80% in Economy


    Arrived the gate in 14:40, and my next departure would be 18:00, so I decide to visit the Aviation Musuem

    Taking free shuttle bus


    Outside the Museum, Admission fee is NTD30


    View from the museum tower, can see both runways on the left and right. Middle is the new Metro connecting the City and the Airport.
    There are some excibitions about Civil and Military Aviation about Taiwan and the world, it can spend you about 1-2 hours


    It's time to go!!
    Last edited by sutrakhk; 5 July 2009, 03:55 AM.

    Comment


    • #3
      24 June 2009

      Hong Kong (HKG) -- Taipei (TPE)
      Airline: Thai Airways
      Flight: CI 607
      Aircraft: A340-600
      Registration: HS-TNF
      Seat: 51A (Economy)
      Gate: B5

      Shocking Pink Boarding Pass, I'm Loving it!


      Gate B5 to Hong Kong


      Oh, most of the people on board already! But it was 17:30 only


      Welcome onboard


      Passed through the empty business class


      Finally arrived my 51K


      17:40, the first officer was telling us that two were missing.
      They appeared 10 minutes later, and the monster was ready to help us to leave


      Seating pitch of 51K, seems better than 37A.
      Note the seating pitch of left hand side (SeatA,C)of rear cabin is only 32" while right hand side is 34"+


      After a powerful take off, crusing at 38000ft.
      Love that huge engine

      Comment


      • #4
        Meal time......but...what was inside is not as the cover say, it was a vegetarian meal inside


        After asking the FAs what happened, they tried to find my meal but unsuccessed, I accept the normal meal, the FA gave me two.
        But in my opinion, the meal sucks. Only 3 pieces cold cut with some salad, and the cake was dry.


        I tried to return the extra meal to the FA, and he said he found my seafood meal finally. He went back to the galley and take it back to me, however, the meal was even worse than the normal meal. Tasteless overdone salmon with some vegetable.......
        I asked the FA is that the meal was load at Hong Kong CPCS rather than Taipei's. He said yes and he don't know why too. It is so strange that I was having the meal loaded in BKK for HKG-TPE sector while haveing the meal loaded in HKG for the TPE-HKG sector. Isn't the meal from Hong Kong is more expensive than Taipei?



        View from the rear, load was 20% in economy


        Approaching to HKIA, my home is just under the wing.


        Last photo before disembark


        Bought it from the Gift Shop of the Aviation Museum
        1:200 China Airlines 747-400 with Boeing Livery


        Comment:
        The A340-600 was good, clean and new, but it will be better if it is A340-500.

        The meals was bad comparing with China Airlines and EVA Air as CI normally provide dim sum and BR normally provide hot meal in the same route. TG one feel like in the domestic flight (Although HKG-TPE is even shorter than some domestic service).

        FAs were quite bad. They like to stay in the galley all time once the door was closed. They don't even check the seat belt of passengers and make sure all the seats were in up-right position. Moreover, on the return sector, I asked two FAs for the seat belt extension once I am onboard, but still nothing to come during push back. Then I pressed the service button, still nobody came and they cancel the light from the galley for twice. The third time I pressed, someone's come from the galley finally and we were on the way to the runway already! I asked myself afterwards, am I too demanding? or I just use to the service from those 5 star airlines......?

        Comment


        • #5
          Thank you for sharing - that IFE box is awful though! The whole legroom area is taken by that thing.

          Comment


          • #6
            Comment:
            The A340-600 was good, clean and new, but it will be better if it is A340-500.
            Thanks for sharing.

            Always wanted to know what the inside looked like.

            From your pictures, I think you may have been in an A340-500.

            I checked seatguru. A340-600 is 2-4-2 throughout Y cabin.

            The Y front cabin has 2-3-2 seating.

            The Y rear cabin has 2-4-2.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
              Thanks for sharing.

              Always wanted to know what the inside looked like.

              From your pictures, I think you may have been in an A340-500.

              I checked seatguru. A340-600 is 2-4-2 throughout Y cabin.

              The Y front cabin has 2-3-2 seating.

              The Y rear cabin has 2-4-2.
              It's a 346 I think. The Y cabin on the 345 has 36 inch pitch, and this doesn't look like 36in.

              The Y+ cabin in front of it is as you say, 2-3-2 with 42 inch pitch.

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by sutrakhk View Post

                Front Economy Cabin
                The load was 70-80% in Economy

                At the risk of sounding anal,

                I think this picture is the 2-3-2 at the rear of the cabin.

                ( Row 56 seen on the overhead locker )

                I'm particularly interested in trying A346.

                Does A346 have Premium Economy?

                Not on Seatguru, though I know they have been known to be wrong before.

                Looking at TG website ( our aircraft ), A346 doesn't even appear on list! Seat map.. nada.

                Academic I guess, because 34" in normal economy is really generous
                Last edited by 9V-SIA; 5 July 2009, 10:53 AM.

                Comment


                • #9
                  whiuu,
                  when I saw your meal from TPE-HKG,
                  I was about to think that the meal from TPE sucks!

                  You said it was actually from HKG, as a Taiwanese, now I feel better
                  But I believe the meal sucks has nothing to do with TPE and HKG.

                  I am surprised you have this trip just to experience Thai and Aviation Museum!
                  I wish I can do this someday, too.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
                    Thanks for sharing.

                    Always wanted to know what the inside looked like.

                    From your pictures, I think you may have been in an A340-500.

                    I checked seatguru. A340-600 is 2-4-2 throughout Y cabin.

                    The Y front cabin has 2-3-2 seating.

                    The Y rear cabin has 2-4-2.
                    It must be a A340-600, you see it is this loooooong, with 5 exits. In addition, TG have First class in A340-600 but A340-500 do not.

                    Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
                    At the risk of sounding anal,

                    I think this picture is the 2-3-2 at the rear of the cabin.

                    ( Row 56 seen on the overhead locker )

                    I'm particularly interested in trying A346.

                    Does A346 have Premium Economy?

                    Academic I guess, because 34" in normal economy is really generous
                    A346 do not have the Premium Economy, therefore I want to experience the TG A345

                    Just look at the list once again, there is A340-600, or you can go to this page, click A340-600 at the bottom, you can see a coloured seatmap.

                    Anyway, 34" is very good if the IFE boxes are not occupied the whole area under than the windows seats

                    Originally posted by vincent0720 View Post
                    whiuu,
                    when I saw your meal from TPE-HKG,
                    I was about to think that the meal from TPE sucks!

                    You said it was actually from HKG, as a Taiwanese, now I feel better
                    But I believe the meal sucks has nothing to do with TPE and HKG.

                    I am surprised you have this trip just to experience Thai and Aviation Museum!
                    I wish I can do this someday, too.
                    You are quite right, everything have to pass the QC control in TG, Hong Kong CPCS just supply what TG pay for. According to the insiders, the meals of SQ in Hong Kong are also supply by CPCS, it is far better than the meal in other airlines (even CX) due to SQ choose the highest price meal...so I think it is all about $$$$$.
                    But the meal from TPE-HKG was far worse than the one from HKG-BKK is unaccecptable in my opinion!

                    Actually I have done some turnarounds recently, like HKG-TPE in BR for the Premium Econ seat in 747-Combi and 77W, SIN-CGK for the SQ A340-500, HKG-BKK in EK

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I thought TG is famous for its meal.
                      (maybe not in economy)

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Cutback

                        Well TG has cutback much...

                        I will like to inform you that even in business class, only a cold light meal is served, but at least there is a warm roll there.

                        Carfield

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by vincent0720 View Post
                          I thought TG is famous for its meal.
                          (maybe not in economy)
                          I've had some of the best economy meals on TG...outbound from BKK though.

                          Originally posted by Carfield View Post
                          Well TG has cutback much...

                          I will like to inform you that even in business class, only a cold light meal is served, but at least there is a warm roll there.

                          Carfield
                          Which includes:
                          - cheap disposable earphones
                          - Sawasdee magazine is now bilingual, instead of having a separate Thai-language Kinnaree
                          - economy meal decreased in quantity

                          Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
                          At the risk of sounding anal,

                          I think this picture is the 2-3-2 at the rear of the cabin.

                          ...
                          As the rear cabin tapers, middle rows get one less seat, making the 2-4-2 arrangement into a 2-3-2. I believe this is standard on all Airbus widebodies.

                          Further, the premium econ product has exactly the same seat as EVA Deluxe. So the Econ and Premium Econ products can't have identical seats.

                          Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
                          ...

                          I'm particularly interested in trying A346.

                          ...
                          I thoroughly enjoyed the A345 flight to LAX, but the A346 is a bit tricky. As the TS stated, the left side only has 32" while the right side has 34" seat pitch!

                          Originally posted by 9V-SIA View Post
                          ...

                          Academic I guess, because 34" in normal economy is really generous
                          Another inconsistency...TG A345s have 36" pitch in economy. The A346s have 32" or 34" on certain seats. The A346s do not have premiym econ.
                          Last edited by fuu99; 16 July 2009, 01:24 PM.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Thanks for sharing...always wanted to try this sector on TG...wonder how is the load? Do they sell F on this sector?

                            Rgds,

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              They do serve this route with the 747 on some days. Am booked into F for tonight's flight TG607 from TPE-HKG
                              Last edited by zander; 16 July 2009, 02:46 PM.

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