After 5 days to visit my family in Beirut, its time to go back to Belgium.
Arrived at 4 am at the airport, Checked in, security pass then passport control and off to the gate 19.
Our metal bird for today was the A321-Neo.
At 6:20, Boarding started at it was a very smooth process. I was 2nd person to board the plane so I took some photos of the cabin. Welcomed by a nice hostess and accompanied to my 40A seat (before the last row near the window).
MEA's A321 neo cabin is simply stunning. Super chic, comfortable and amazing for short-medium haul routes with fairly quick responsive touch screens and IFE.
On the seats, there were soft and warm blankets wrapped in Nylon. It was a nice touch.
We departed on time at 7:05 am with a full flight in business and economy. Most people on the flight are connecting to USA via Brussels as I noticed.
Legroom is very generous (I am a small person and I was able to cross my legs even. Its really great legroom feature on this amazing plane.
What I hate about MEA, is the fact that they force us to watch like 10 minutes of cheesy ads before you can start using the IFE. This is simply ridiculous. I know that they need extra income but at least add skip-add feature, it really makes no sense.
The IFE movie selection was good but could be better and more diverse but still sufficient for a medium haul route. The music selection is great if you are in year 2005, not 2022. No modern hits or music at all. All are oldies and such (seems they didn't want to pay copy rights or something but anw….). I watched the Matrix.
45 minutes into the flight, Meal service started. Boy oh boy, Catering on MEA puts many airlines to shame…. Even turkish airlines that are known for their catering, in my opinion, MEA smashes them big time. Food out of Beirut is always top notch and that makes me proud of being half Lebanese and our food is our pride.
There was Knefe or Omlette with veggies, it took the later. It was very delicious, generous portion and well presented. Before they used to provide juice with this meal and also there was a menu but not anymore lately, still not complaining though.
I heard a lot about MEA's Labneh dish and I am happy that I tried it, its really great :D
Time passed and I enjoyed the views outside over Europe while laying my head on the headrest covered with the warm blanket for extra comfort.
Finally we landed 10 minutes earlier and the smooth flight came to an end….
Wohoooo. Honeyyy, I am homeeeeee :D
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Verdict
Middle East Airlines
8.3/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew8.0
Entertainment/wifi7.5
Meal/catering8.5
Beirut - BEY
7.1/10
Efficiency7.0
Access7.0
Services7.0
Cleanliness7.5
Brussels - BRU
8.1/10
Efficiency8.0
Access8.5
Services8.0
Cleanliness8.0
Conclusion
MEA makes me proud. With all what Lebanon is passing through, to maintain this level is exceptional. MEA is so underrated as an middleeastern airline and they have a great potential. This flight I can really say, they best I've ever had so far. For Europe and short haul routes, they are highly recommended and puts many airlines to shame with this hard and soft product. The A321 neo is stunning and MEA is my go to between Belgium and Lebanon ... No other airline at all.. Mark my words. Bravo.
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Very cool to see a review on the MEA 321neo! A beautiful aircraft inside and out in both cabins! I agree it’s annoying when carriers have a bunch of ads in the IFE system. It always feels kind of cheap, but considering the mostly short routes MEA fly I suppose the fact they have IFE at all is better than the competition most times. The meal looks really good for a 4h flight!
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4 Comments
Thanks for sharing!
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