Genuine F class experience, what is that for you?

[trekkie]

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[Kiwi]

The issue is achieving the right mix such that revenue is constant.

I disagree. You could maintain revenue by heavy discounting, cheap upgrades etc in the short term but longer term this strategy leads to difficulty in restoring revenue when demand improves, and ultimately a degraded premium experience.

That said, I don't think SQ has it right either.

[emperorsr]

hi

have not read all the opinions here. but would like to chip in. just had an interesting chat with an sq crew member that said pax tend to have higher expectations with SQ. i guess that is to be expected since the pricing also tends to be higher than other airlines. you want to believe you should be getting what you paid for. do you get that in SQ F?

just my two cents worth:

Skydining, i love it that your opening question is what do we think makes it a notch above. am not sure it is a notch above everyone else to be honest.

but here is the breakdown based on your list:

-connectivity (internet, phone, work)

nothing much to say here. inflight, i suppose with the in seat power supply you can work. on the ground, even in TPR, i could not access the web via my iphone. and no one really went out to find out why. not the first time.

-exclusivity (limited number of co-travellers in lounges, airplanes)

love TPR at changi. it was interesting to see how during some of my morning flights, other pax were looking at me as i was being escorted in.

lounge in other stations highly depends on the contracted lounge sq uses. in FRA, the F lounge is so bad. you have to pay for internet if you opt not to use their own pcs.
in terms of planes, the 744 seems more exclusive. one door, turn left. no one else then walks past you to get to other classes. romance of travel lives on in the 744s. not so true for the 77w where control of other pax can get tricky.

-Privacy (seat layouts)

77w: you do get a sense of being cut off from other pax. however if you are in the K side, sometimes it can be an expressway for crew members who need to get to the galley, even from other classes.

seats do feel cramped with the smaller seat pitch, compared to the 744.

seat layout on the 744 feels more expansive.

side note: love the fact that you can control your degree of comfort on the 744 skysuites.


-Arrangements (check-in, limousines...)

check in in changi is wonderful. check in anywhere else is a hit and miss. check in in JFK is always underwhelming.

limo? what limo? pales compared to EK for example. so much for the experience starting from the ground.

there is an interesting meet and greet service for disembarking pax in FRA though. outsourced. and frankly such a joy compared to service received in some other stations.

it is nice though that in changi, they will buggy you to the gate. always thought it is a nice thing. other airlines like TG does that too.

i wish though that sq would fast track F pax through immigration. you don't get this even in changi.

-Dining (The quick tray or a unique dining experience found in top restaurants)

hit and miss. i have compared the menus from other airlines. sq needs to review. again food from JFK, one of my bases, is just bad. the rolls for breakfast can cause depressurization if you throw them to the walls. how can sq serve such bad food for F pax that has forked out a premium for the flight? btc veal tasted ex-JFK tasted like paper. ive learned to eat at the VS lounge before boarding the flight. by comparison, EK limos you to a restaurant for dinner before bringing you to the airport. oh wait, that is for business class.

presentation is also highly dependent on crew. i noted details such as the alignment of the cutlery on the table. some do it, some don't. IFS have confirmed it is part of their training.

snacks list is sorta shared with other cabins. unlike some airlines where the list is specialized. kit kat? i mean seriously...kit kat??

the one meal deal on red eyes because they want to give you more time to sleep is just a terrible thing. even the crew have told me they are so embarrassed they have to subject their premium pax to that sort of cost cutting. cost cutting in F does not equal exclusivity.

i would like a la carte dining, with the option to pick and choose from a spectrum of dishes. oh and a sky chef is a good idea.

-Amenities (from perfume to flip-flops...)

no complaints for the amenity kit. do prefer the slippers given on 77w flights. PJS however, are another story. sleeves are way too short. when you wash them, they shrink to a size suitable for kids. sq should take a look at Qantas and Jet's PJs for example.

-professional anticipating crew (butlers or waiters)

in TPR, the wait staff are faultless. inflight, at the point of boarding, crew sometimes have to be prompted to lend assistance. mealtimes however, they tend to be good at refilling and suggesting drinks etc. not so different from J.

other notes:

-IFE

krisworld has a lot of options. however the 'new' hardware lets it down. slow, sometimes unresponsive. i have struggled with the controls in the past. really quite bad. albums not showing up properly. movies not scrolling. one may think it is a fact of life in other cabins. but in F??

-inflight service

service needs to be discreet and unobtrusive. i have had a green kebaya use my seat as storage for her luggage (before i even boarded). i could not even use any other seat to keep my carry on because she had hers EVERYWHERE. her reasoning: sq may have protocols but she is working in the real world and has to adjust accordingly. surprising? no kidding.

ive had meals rushed even though the pace and timing is the prerogative of the pax. ive had birthday cakes thrusted at me with no thought about timing. ive seen a senior crew member sleeping in the C cabin on an empty seat.

ive had on some flights, many crew members in F, while on others, just 2 with the IFS.

this is exceptional of course. generally sq crew members are outstanding across all cabins. so how do you make your service in F noteworthy? that is a hard one. but surely personalizing their service could be something. noticing pax quirks. doing the small things that add up to a lot. that is something you can't train at airline house. that is something that is born out of interest and commitment for the job. hard to prescribe such a code of behavior but if you want f to be really a notch above, maybe this is something to emphasise.

coming back to my chat with the crew member. we both agreed sq is in a pickle right now. with the economy the way it is, people are going out to experiment. ive tried 9W and OZ recently just completely due to cost considerations. and i have to say they are excellent. if you double dip your miles into other programs like M&M and BD, the cost and mileage returns can be attractive.

so. is sq F a notch above? it is good. is it great? most say yes, ill give it a few more runs before deciding.

[SkyDining]

Skydining, i love it that your opening question is what do we think makes it a notch above. am not sure it is a notch above everyone else to be honest.

I meant a general F class, not in particular SQ, I would have nothing much to do if SQ was the notch above!

Although I have to say (in a defensive mode ) that SQ has always and I strongly believe still will do everything possible to stay at the absolute top and compete with other great carriers!
Getting ignorant and relying on reputation is not enough, especially with competition as good as they are today, thats my personal criticism...
As they say in Singapore that losing your face is an absolute no no, at least thats working on our side!

Your opinion and experiences are great though, it sums up the consistency issue, which is for any airline the biggest pickle.

I love the fact as well you like the "culinary professional on board" idea!
It seems more and more are starting to get convinced by the extra potential, both experience and consistency.

The boarding issue and doors used;
the front doors on the 777/A330/A340 should indeed stay closed for these purposes, I know exactly what you mean. You are defenitly not the first one to bring this up, I personally hate it! First the comfort issue, but second the amount of damage on hardware caused is intense...

Concerning the lounge staff, in an audit I performed it is very obvious how good the lounge staff know the passengers passing trough there by previous encounters, while crew tend to have no idea if they have seen this passenger before.
Off course a few hundreds of crew who rotate on all flights compared to a dozen lounge staff members makes no surprises.

Most of the time the lounge staff know exactly what to expect from the guest, what he/she desires.

Why not start from the lounge with these "culinary specialist" crew members where they can already establish your needs for the flight...

Concerning the connectivity issue, there are a few guests like brokers and currency traders who contantly keep requesting these amenities, It's defenitly some interesting terrain to explore. I guess there are more people around who simply cannot afford to "disconnect".

Thanks for the opinion!

[flyingfox]

To me, F class is nice because you have to interact with fewer people and have a greater chance of being left to yourself.
The greater the privacy, the better.
The same applies to the cabin - the new F on the 777 should have had a tad more privacy. You get to look at your neighbour's feet. I mention this because JAL in their new F suites on the 777 do not have this problem.