Review of American Airlines flight Dallas/Fort Worth Hong Kong in Business

Airline American Airlines
Flight AA137
Class Business
Seat --
Aircraft Boeing 777-300ER
Flight time 16:50
Take-off 25 Dec 15, 11:45
Arrival at 25 Dec 15, 18:35
AA   #69 out of 96 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 591 reviews
KévinDC
By SILVER 5475
Published on 25th January 2016
Hello and welcome to the second leg of this 4 segment routing from Washington, DC to Sydney, Australia. This report will cover my recent flight from DFW to HKG in Business class on AA's Flagship 777-300ER. Scheduled at 17 hours, this is currently the longest flight in the American Airlines system.

Here is full routing:

Washington Reagan National DCA ✈ Dallas - Fort Worth DFW : American Airlines, B737-800, Domestic First class [HERE]
Dallas - Fort Worth DFW ✈ Hong Kong Check Lap Kok HKG : American Airlines, B777-300ER, Business Class [THIS REPORT]
Hong Kong Chek Lap Kok HKG ✈ Singapore Changi SIN : Cathay Pacific, B777-300, Business Class [HERE]
Singapore Changi SIN ✈ Sydney Kingsford Smith SYD : British Airways, B777-300ER, Premium Economy [HERE]
Melbourne Tullamarine MEL ✈ Sydney Kingsford Smith SYD : Qantas Airways, B737-800, Business Class [HERE]
Sydney Kingsford Smith SYD ✈ Christchurch Airport CHC : Qantas Jetconnect, B737-800, Business Class [HERE]
Queenstown Airport ZQN ✈ Auckland Airport AKL : Air New Zealand, A320-200, Economy Class [HERE]
Auckland Airport AKL ✈ Sydney Kingsford Smith SYD : LAN Airlines, B787-9, Business Class [HERE]
Sydney Kingsford Smith SYD ✈ Singapore Changi SIN : British Airways, B777-300ER, Business Class [HERE]
Singapore Changi SIN ✈ Tokyo Narita NRT : Japan Airlines, B767-300ER, Economy Class [HERE]
Tokyo Narita NRT ✈ Chicago O'hare ORD : American Airlines, B787-8, Business Class [HERE]
Chicago O'hare ORD ✈ Washington Reagan National DCA : American Airlines, B737-800, Domestic First Class [HERE]

We had about 2 hours in DFW and I was excited to check out the new Flagship Dining Room in the Terminal D Admirals club. DFW was one of the few legacy-AA hubs without a Flagship lounge for First class and oneworld Emerald passengers. Recently, AA opened up the Flagship Dining Room, within the International Terminal's Admirals Club–it is not a full Flagship lounge as in other hubs, but nevertheless, I was interested to check it out.

Upon checking in at the Admirals club, oneworld Emeralds and International First class passengers are given an invitation to the Flagship Dining Room.

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The Flagship Dining Room is located just across from the bar area. An attendant outside the door took our invitation upon entering.

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My first impression is that the dining room is small, with only tables for two. This was fine for us, and it was not crowded on this Christmas day, but I would imagine that it gets packed during peak business travel days. Another downside of this section is that it feels a bit claustrophobic with no outside views–the windows you see in the below picture are frosted,

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The food offering is about the same as I've had in the JFK Flagship lounge. That is to say, good for a U.S. lounge, but not on par with other oneworld First class lounges around the world.

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The food is more on the level of non-U.S. carriers' Business class lounges.

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I was still a bit hungry after a light-ish breakfast on the DCA-DFW leg.

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The one pleasant surprise in the Flagship Dining Room is the champagne. Taittinger!
The Flagship lounge in JFK was serving Chandon Napa the last time I was there, so this was a welcome improvement.

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There was only Champagne, beer, and wine in the Flagship Dining Room. For cocktails and spirits, you have to go across the way to the bar. There were also waiters who came around regularly to refill glasses.

After a few glasses of Taittinger, I was in the Christmas spirit :-)

Security was mostly empty, so I went outside to get some fresh air before boarding my 17 hour flight.

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Boarding started right as I got back to the gate with First and Business class.
Very warm Christmas greeting by two cheerful Flight Attendants at the door.

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The now familiar 77W Business cabin with Reverse herringbone Zodiac Cirrus seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.

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My seat for the next 17 hours.

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A few more views of the cabin before it filled up.

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Love these seats. Super comfortable and private for long flights.

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Legroom is great, of course!

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AA's heritage amenity kits are really cool for AvGeeks. Today, I got PSA.
Slippers are also provided.

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As you may have noticed from the first picture of the seat upon boarding, Menus were already available on the center console.

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There will be 3 meals on this flight, along with snacks available at anytime at the bar.



The IFE is a very good size and comes in many different languages, including Catalan surprisingly. I suppose that comes in handy for flights to Barcelona.

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These seats have tons of space and storage.

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As people settled in, Flight Attendants were in the aisles to offer Pre-departure drinks.
Champagne for me!

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And it is actual champagne, unlike my previous AA long-haul which had only Prosecco.

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Decent list, but it's missing Sauternes for Dessert IMO.

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As boarding finished up, the mood lighting was turned on.

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AA plays the airshow on the overhead monitors throughout the flight.

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But if you're a geek like me and you like that sort of thing, there's a really good airshow on the IFE.



As I was playing around with the IFE, the Safety video came on.

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Notice anything weird? Keeping in mind that this is a flight to Hong Kong…

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Yep, it's in Spanish! The FAs noticed the error immediately and switched it off.

The airshow came back on. One cool feature is that it shows you the route we'll be flying along with the flying times.



After a few minutes the correct Safety video came on.



And after a short taxi time we were off.

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Just under 16 hours flying time today, shorter than my previous time on this flight where we were just shy of 17 hours.

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Playing around with the IFE.

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WiFi is available, however, it barely worked over water the last time I took this flight so I decided to stay disconnected. It's nice to disconnect sometimes.

Interesting feature, there are some e-books/magazines in the IFE, though nothing terribly exciting.

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I was feeling the Christmas spirit and wanted to see something cute and sweet so I went for Frozen.
I know how nerdy, Right? :-P

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Oshibori before drink and meal service.

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And the cuteness continues with Christmas cocktail napkins.

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I continued to watch my Kid movie with my adult beverage :-)

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The movie title shows on the touchscreen IFE remote. Yes, I watched it in French. I'd already seen it in English so it changes things up a bit, lol.

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Nice looking appetizer course–good presentation. Also, it looks like AA no longer has an aversion to protein in the appetizer!

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For the main course, I chose the beef. From experience, I know that I always regret choosing the beef on airplanes as it's usually tough and overcooked. But not this time. It was tender and juicy–and surprisingly pink in the middle!

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The blue cheese potatoes were delicious. The Côtes du Rhône went well with the flavors.

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Nice amount of pink for airplane beef!

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Here's a look at the Coconut crusted chicken option.

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By dessert we were getting close to the Canadian border.

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Cheese course and a tasty Cappuccino mousse cake with a Sherry for dessert.

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Here we are over Esteban's favorite part of the world!

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Listened to some music and relaxed after the meal.

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Decided to watch another movie. After starting off the flight with a cartoon, I went for something with a little more testosterone :-P

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Red Flower Products in the Business class lavs

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Hung out in the cool bar area for a bit to stretch out. There is a nice variety of sweet and savoury snacks as well as beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages. AA is the only U.S. carrier with an onboard bar area in the premium cabin.

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Took a snack back to my seat.

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Afterwards I took a little nap. Here are some pics of the seat in bed mode. Very comfortable.

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I woke up as the FAs were coming down the aisles with the mid-flight snack.
Linens were only laid for the first meal.

I chose the Seared chicken Asian option. It has good flavor.

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The Western other option was a Tuscan Turkey sandwich.

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After the snack it was getting to be night back home in DC and I fell asleep again. I slept most of the rest of the flight. One nice thing about these long Transpacific flights is that you can have a full night's sleep–or two full nights' sleeps even! That's not the case on the short Transatlantic flights that I often take.

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I have a knack for waking up for meals :-P
I stayed with the Asian option, Char Siu Duck with curry lo mein noodles.

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It was very good with some really nice flavors. I like that AA often serves duck–you don't find duck too often on many airlines.

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The Western option was an omelet, nothing too exciting, but it looked good.

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Almost there! It's amazing how fast a 17 hour flight goes by when you're enjoying it. I'm sure if I were having a bad experience it would drag on forever.

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The mood lighting comes back on during the descent.

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We landed early and got to the gate about 20 minutes ahead of schedule.

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Our beautiful 77W at the gate in HKG.

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Welcome to Hong Kong!

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Thanks for reading and see you soon for the next leg on Cathay Pacific!
See more

Verdict

American Airlines

8.9/10
Cabin9.5
Cabin crew9.0
Entertainment/wifi9.0
Meal/catering8.0

Flagship Dining Room at Admirals Club D

7.0/10
Comfort7.0
Meal/catering7.0
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Services7.0

Dallas/Fort Worth - DFW

8.0/10
Efficiency7.5
Access8.0
Services8.0
Cleanliness8.5

Hong Kong - HKG

9.4/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.5
Services9.5
Cleanliness9.5

Conclusion

This is as good as it gets as a Business class experience on a U.S. carrier! Awesome seat, great IFE, very good catering with good options, a cool bar area to stretch your legs and enjoy a drink and chat, and a cheerful and attentive crew. The Business class experience is not always consistent on AA with so many aircraft types and seat models, but the 77W is a guaranteed good ride! Another enjoyable flight on the American Airlines flagship.

Information on the route Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Hong Kong (HKG)

39 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 156129 by
    Nick 171 Comments
    Nice! I think we've all been looking forward to a business class review on this route. The flagship dining experience is definitely a step up from most US lounge offerings, but not as good as the high end foreign airlines like the ME3. That being said, AA's hard product on the 77W is pretty nice.
    • Comment 333537 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for the comments! This is actually my second review in Business class on this route, though the Flagship dining room didn't exist last time I took this flight so I opted for the Amex Centurion lounge that time. AA is behind the times on lounge offerings, DL has several hot dishes in Sky clubs these days, so almost as good as AA Flagship offering for a Business class lounge level. AA's 77W hard product, on the other hand, is by far the best hard product of any US carrier. Yes, DL does have Cirrus seats on A330s and 747s, but the AA Cirrus seats have more features, better padding, and AA paid more attention to little details whereas DL's seats are the plain base models. Thanks for stopping by!
    • Comment 333541 by
      Nick 171 Comments
      Ah! Sorry I missed the earlier one, I'll have to look it up.
    • Comment 333544 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      No worries. it was like a year ago. There are only 2 FRs on this route and they're both mine :-)
    • Comment 333542 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for your comments Adan! Yes, it was a great Christmas present, and my Honeymoon at the same time, so it was doubly special!

      It's about time that AA opens a Flagship lounge at its main hub.
      - Yeah it is! Too bad they didn't go all the way and do a full Flagship lounge. The D Terminal Admirals Club is big enough that they could have done it IMO.

      I'm surprised to see a protein appetizer for a change.
      - I was definitely pleasantly surprised. Not sure if this catering was specific to this route or if it's reflective of the overall catering improvements. I got the Japanese meal on my return flight so I'm not sure if the Western meal had a protein appetizer. I'll have to look at the pics of the menu.

      To be honest, one can skip the mid flight snack and just eat from the bar.
      - That's the beauty of the bar buffet. You can make your own schedule and not have to worry about missing meals because you know that you can have something substantial to eat at any time. IMO this is very premium and much better than what the other US3 offer on long-haul.

      Personally I think the last meal service could be better with the addition of a small appetizer like a side antipasto, mozzarella or prosciutto with melon brochettes instead of salad.
      - I totally agree. Salad is boring, but I don't expect perfection from AA. The catering was well above my expectations as it was. The catering just keeps improving so maybe soon we'll see these types of things.

      PD. Wow, KA already reflects its new name Cathay Dragon. Talk about quick updates.
      - Haha, yep, we're fast. I think the AA logo was also changed on the day the new branding was introduced IIRC.

      Thanks again for your thoughtful comments!


    • Comment 333547 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thank you :-)
  • Comment 156138 by
    K2World 2191 Comments
    Thank you for this report Kevin.
    A flight I'd love to fly :)
    Missed the first leg, but that's a quite impressive routing :)
    How did you book it ? At once for the OW flights ? Any redemption of miles ? I can see this BA Y+ flight in the middle ...
    • Comment 333543 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for your comments Kevin!

      A flight I'd love to fly :)
      - I absolutely love this route. Always an enjoyable experience and 17 hours to enjoy it!

      Missed the first leg, but that's a quite impressive routing :)
      - you didn't miss much, it was just a run of the mill 737 Domestic F flight.

      How did you book it ? At once for the OW flights ? Any redemption of miles ? I can see this BA Y+ flight in the middle ...
      - The only mileage redemption is the MEL-SYD-CHC flights(17.5K per person one-way), everything else was paid. I bought several tickets separately and strung them together. I worked out the different tickets based on the best CPM ratios. The BA tickets were bought on their own SIN-SYD-SIN. I;ve always wanted to try this 5th Freedom route. Same with the LAN AKL-SYD.

      Thanks for stopping by!

  • Comment 156162 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
    I assume you weren't talking about my real home town of Rodez, Aveyron hahaha
  • Comment 156169 by
    lsmick3 35 Comments
    Really enjoyed reading this!

    Had to chuckle when I saw that you watched Frozen with an adult beverage...that's the only way I can watch that film. We're just grateful that its still in the IFE because that movie works like children's benadryl...it keeps them quiet on flights.
  • Comment 156181 by
    socalnow 976 Comments
    Hello KevinDC and thank you for sharing this fantastic series.

    I must say it looks like American Airlines is finally catching up to the competition. The seat and IFE are up to standard and the meal offerings are well on their way. I guess the benefit of lagging the competition is to copy what's best and have the advantage of newer model seats, etc. I would still prefer the meal to be split into one additional course but credit where credit is due. Hopefully these amenities will become fleet standard and not just reserved for the 773ERs.

    Thanks again and looking forward to the remainder of the series.
    • Comment 333622 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Hey there, thanks for your comments!

      I guess the benefit of lagging the competition is to copy what's best and have the advantage of newer model seats, etc.
      - Very true. US Airways was the 1st airline to install the Cirrus seats, but those are not nearly as nice as AA's more advances model.

      I would still prefer the meal to be split into one additional course but credit where credit is due.
      - Agreed, but it's definitely an improvement over what used to be served.

      Hopefully these amenities will become fleet standard and not just reserved for the 773ERs.
      - With the different fleet types and the merger to complicate things even more, it's definitely going to take a while for AA to offer a uniform product but they're well on their way. The 77W, 787, and retrofitted 77E fleets offer similar seats and amenities and the retrofitted 767s have a 1-2-1 configuration so the day is coming!

  • Comment 156187 by
    aussenrist 225 Comments
    Thanks Kevin for sharing this detail report with nice pictures!
    For this route AA plays very well in all aspects and IMO even better than CX i.e. the catering and wifi services.
    So it explains why AA is making $$$ on it and totally defeat DL in HK :P (Once DL and AA had a very huge advertising battle in HK while both of them launched new ex-HKG routes to the US and their advertisements could be seen EVERYWHERE in the town!)
    One of my friend also flew on it last year in Y and he highly recommended to try it ^^
    I should find chance to try it in the future~

    Look forward to your next report!
    • Comment 333624 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Hi, thanks for your comments!
      For this route AA plays very well in all aspects and IMO even better than CX i.e. the catering and wifi services.
      - A lot of people have said that. Perhaps the main thing missing from AA is the high level of refined service you get on CX.

      So it explains why AA is making $$$ on it and totally defeat DL in HK
      - Very true. DL seems to be failing in HK. I've flow DTW-HKG and this route was pulled years ago. The NRT route was the only one left. Now there is the SEA route, but I hear it's not doing well.

      One of my friend also flew on it last year in Y and he highly recommended to try it ^^
      - I've also flown this route in Y before and it was perfectly pleasant. Except that with the 3-4-3 configuration, the seats are small and tight, but sadly 3-4-3 is becoming the norm and even CX is considering it!
  • Comment 156188 by
    indianocean SILVER 7572 Comments
    Well, even if the new Flagship Dining Room is an improvement to what we are used to see, I cannot say it's a real success.

    My first impression is that the dining room is small, with only tables for two.--> looks more like a Business Class lounge.

    The food is more on the level of non-U.S. carriers' Business class lounges.--> but as a US lounge, c'est Byzance

    What a nice ride for a 17-hour flight.

    Champagne for me!--> in a plastic cup again (sighs!!!)

    OMG, you are just like me, non-stop eating...
    But I cannot blame you as the catering is quite interesting.

    Thank you Kevin.
    • Comment 333626 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Merci pour tes commentaires Bernard!

      Well, even if the new Flagship Dining Room is an improvement to what we are used to see, I cannot say it's a real success.
      - Yes, it was disappointing, but I applaud the effort. Baby steps...lol

      but as a US lounge, c'est Byzance
      - C'est clair! En plus il y a du vrai champagne...c'est rare

      in a plastic cup again (sighs!!!)
      - I never understood why DL can manage to serve PDB in real stemware, but AA can't. AA needs real stemware period, I'm not a fan of the Godet though the large volume they hold is convenient! haha

      OMG, you are just like me, non-stop eating...But I cannot blame you as the catering is quite interesting.
      - I'm just doing my duty as a Flight-Reporter ^^

      Thanks for stopping by!


  • Comment 156209 by
    KL651 TEAM 4534 Comments
    Thanks for this FR.

    Wow this 16hour flight looks like it went by almost like an eastbound TATL !

    The lounge has nothing really First class, but it's btter than nothing.

    The catering is interesting indeed, AA seems to have upped its game on intl flights recently.

    Were all seats taken in J class?

    I also like watching kids movies when flying, I guess I'm getting a bit conne when I get on a plane :-D

    I don't know how you managed another flight after that one. But maybe that's because I'm a coach class b*tch ^^
    • Comment 333628 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Wow this 16hour flight looks like it went by almost like an eastbound TATL !
      - That's how it felt! granted I slept twice, so that does make it go by fast.

      The lounge has nothing really First class, but it's btter than nothing.
      - That's my mentality when it comes to lounges in the U.S. I have low expectations so to me it's always better than being bored sitting at the gate or paying exorbitant prices for low quality food in the terminal. I like my low-quality food to be free in the lounge! haha

      Were all seats taken in J class?
      - Mostly, there were only 3 or 4 open seats in my cabin. I didn't go into the smalled cabin behind F, but it's the most popular cabin so I'm sure it was full.

      I also like watching kids movies when flying, I guess I'm getting a bit conne when I get on a plane :-D
      - Mon dieu qu'elle est conne :-P I didn't include a picture I took of my Name I put in the chat feature on the IFE because it was C*nnase :-P I thought that might be offensive, as much as you'd appreciate it!

      I don't know how you managed another flight after that one. But maybe that's because I'm a coach class b*tch ^^
      - I slept so much I wasn't tired at all, plus I took a shower in HKG which was revitalizing! Haha, you Y-class Mama! You need to use those FB miles for some upgrades/J awards!




  • Comment 156223 by
    NGO85 SILVER 1963 Comments
    Thanks for sharing Kevin!

    The Lounge doesn’t look very premium in the seating area. The tables are pretty close together and have a cafeteria feel. The food offering is good for US standards. As you said, it’s on par with international business lounges. I think the hot food options you had shown on the least DCA-HKG trip at the Centurion Lounge looked better.

    “so I went outside to get some fresh air before boarding my 17 hour flight”
    - LOL, when I stepped outside in LAX, it smelled of trash and urine. Can’t imagine DFW smelled much better…

    “Very warm Christmas greeting by two cheerful Flight Attendants at the door.”
    - A little camera shy on the entrance shot after my OZ debacle?

    “Boarding started right as I got back to the gate with First and Business class.”
    - I completely forgot they still had F on the B77Ws. I haven’t been on the AA Cirrus product yet, but it looks very similar to the CX Cirrus so I’m sure it’s a great seat. The layout looks identical with a bigger ottoman than AY/AF based on the pictures I've seen.

    “Menus were already available on the center console.”
    - Disappointing since usually a good chance for the purser to welcome passengers personally later on.

    Macau speaks Portuguese, so the Spanish wasn’t “too” far off, lol^^

    “it looks like AA no longer has an aversion to protein in the appetizer!”
    - I was going to mention that when I saw the menu, finally a meat! Decent portion size of beef on the starter too. So why not continue with more beef for the main too? Very nice presentation by AA on the meals. I will also point out that the jus is served in an actual dish and not the cheap metal tray they often include, so that is a nice improvement. There looks to be no shortage of food and I think AA has very strong catering on the flights into HKG, much better than CX. With a comparable hard product now, AA’s TPAC presence should be better.

    “One nice thing about these long Transpacific flights is that you can have a full night's sleep--or two full nights' sleeps even!”
    - I normally sleep twice for 4-5 hours during the long TPACs, and you still have 6+ hours to watch movies and eat, lol.

    Your AA experiences have always been much better than mine so far, maybe one-day I’ll find the AA unicorn… Excellent FR Kevin! See you for the next leg!
    • Comment 333631 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for your comments!

      The Lounge doesn’t look very premium in the seating area. The tables are pretty close together and have a cafeteria feel.
      - Yeah, it felt like an IKEA restaurant, lol. Actually, I believe those tables and chairs may BE from IKEA!

      I think the hot food options you had shown on the least DCA-HKG trip at the Centurion Lounge looked better.
      - They were. By far.

      A little camera shy on the entrance shot after my OZ debacle?
      - After all the stories I've been hearing of FA's in the US trying to call the cops and forcing people to erase pics taken on board, I'm VERY careful to be discrete when taking pics on U.S. carriers. Don't need no trouble!
      http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2016/01/25/taking-pictures-on-planes/

      The layout looks identical with a bigger ottoman than AY/AF based on the pictures I've seen.
      - Yeah, I believe the AF and AY models tried to squeeze in more pax, so are smaller.

      Macau speaks Portuguese, so the Spanish wasn’t “too” far off, lol^^
      - Hah! Now that's some logic!

      I will also point out that the jus is served in an actual dish and not the cheap metal tray they often include, so that is a nice improvement.
      - Absolutely. Last year when I took this flight it was still the cheap aluminum cups.

      Thanks for stopping by!

  • Comment 156241 by
    dw55 45 Comments
    This flight is on my to-fly list. I would even backtrack from LAX to DFW to take this flight. 17 hours of good service, good food and good sleep. I'm just worried that I would oversleep and get jetlagged in Hong Kong!
    With seats almost identical and catering comparable to CX, I think it's a competitive product. CX gotta catch up with inflight Wi-Fi.
    Thanks for sharing!
    • Comment 333664 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for your comments!
      There's a lot of talk about AA starting up LAX-HKG on the 77W, so hopefully soon you wouldn't have to backtrack. From a lot of blogs I read, it seems a lot of the AA Loyalists in L.A. backtrack to DFW just to take this flight. I would certainly do it, if I weren't pressed for time. The product is definitely competitive with CX, even better in some aspects. The main difference is that CX inflight protocol offers more refined service that AA, but that is also a question of personal preference.
      Thanks for stopping by!
  • Comment 156518 by
    Rl 777 802 Comments
    Thank you for sharing this fantastic FR with us!

    I'm not the biggest fan of that dining room, the chairs and tables are too close to each other for my liking. Thankfully it wasn't so busy that day.

    The business cabin looks really good, this product is a very competitive one unlike the 7-abreast business cabin in EK's 77Ws with angle-lie flat seats.

    AA seems to have done a good job in the catering department, the presentation and the quality looks very good to my eyes.

    Fantastic shot of your bird at HKG!

    Overall it looks like you had a great experience with AA, I have to say that it looks like a very competitive product from your FR.

    Have a good one, see you!

    • Comment 333923 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Hi there and thanks for your comment! Yeah, the new Flagship Dining Room is a bit cramped and IKEA-eque, lol.

      this product is a very competitive one unlike the 7-abreast business cabin in EK's 77Ws with angle-lie flat seats.
      - Or UA 777 Business at 8 abreast! yikes

      Yes, the catering continues to improve! Still some work to be done, but very good overall compared to what it used to be.

      Thanks for stopping by!
  • Comment 156769 by
    eminere™ 271 Comments
    Did you get two choices of meals each time to photograph? That's a lot of food!
  • Comment 156940 by
    East African 1582 Comments
    Wow very nice FR on one of the world's longest route.
    Surely you have enough time to enjoy every aspect of the comfort with this flight duration!
    AA do offer a solid product here from start to finish!

    Thanks for sharing
  • Comment 157893 by
    BombieFlyer 93 Comments
    Kevin, thanks for sharing this flight report!

    Based on this particular experience of yours, it goes to show that American can deliver stellar premium service. From their attention to little details like the holiday napkins, to meal plating, heritage themed amenity kits, it shows that they have the hard products right. They just need to work on improving their delivery consistency. When I compared NGO85's horrible experience in J class with AA from Tokyo, your flight was like heaven on earth :) Like you said, 17 hours passed by so fast when you enjoyed it, it felt like eternity when you hated it.

    I also noted that you took a lot of cabin shots, particularly on the seat and the meal. I wonder, did you get any warning from the flight attendants? Lately, from another blog, I've seen premium passengers being warned (and even threatened) to not take pictures while onboard and to delete pictures that were already taken. I supposed this varies on the FAs and how lenient they are in following the protocol.

    Last but not least, I can't agree more that Sauternes should have been offered. It's one of my all time favourite wines :)

    Looking forward for the next installments!

    • Comment 335441 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6668 Comments
      Thanks for stopping by! Sorry, I didn't see your comment until now...wasn't ignoring :-)
      AA has definitely make a lot of improvements and the festive Holiday touches were really nice and shows that they are paying attention to detail. You are so right that AA isn't delivery a consistent Premium product. There are still quite a few aircraft out there with the old angled-flat seats, but they are being phased out. Having flown the 77W, 787, 767 and 772 new cabins, I can say that once all retrofits are complete, the AA experience will be pretty consistent in the Premium cabins.

      I wonder, did you get any warning from the flight attendants?
      - Luckily no, I try to be discrete when I take pics and ensure FAs are not in the shot or generally around. I don't want any trouble. The 77W cabin is big and FAs are usually standing by the door during boarding, so there is some time to take cabin pics. I've heard some horror stories of FA's demanding that pics be erased, etc, so I really try to stay discrete. AA's policy states that taking pictures inside the aircraft is ok as long as it is for personal use, but many FAs don't seem to know or understand this policy.

      Thanks very much for your comments!

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