Review of United flight Shanghai Newark in Economy

Airline United
Flight UA87
Class Economy
Seat 36a
Aircraft Boeing 777-200ER
Flight time 15:15
Take-off 20 Apr 15, 15:25
Arrival at 20 Apr 15, 18:40
UA   #76 out of 95 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 444 reviews
Daniel00
By 7283
Published on 9th May 2015
FIXED REPORT! Sorry about the photos not working last time!!

Well here we are! The much awaited finale! I apologize for the delay, my computer has been acting up… A reminder of the routing:

4/10/15: UA89 EWR-PEK (http://flight-report.com/en/report-10026.html)
4/14/15: Beijing to Xi'an on a train (this isn't train report haha)
4/16/15: MU5021 XIY-TAO (http://flight-report.com/en/report-10032.html)
4/19/15: MU5514 TAO-SHA (http://flight-report.com/en/report-10057.html)
4/20/15: UA87 PVG-EWR (THIS REPORT)

First, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on my time in China, and share some pictures. If you're not interested, just scroll right past, there'll be planes eventually :).

What an amazing experience. It's so interesting to get out of my stereotypical American lifestyle in my stereotypical American town, and see new parts of the world. China really is so unique. Everyone seems to be so friendly, you can strike up a conversation with a taxi driver like you've known him for 10 years (someone translated for me). Everything is SO cheap! A 12oz sprite for only 5 yuan (less than a dollar)! Then again, we learned in Beijing that 1 square meter is $30,000, so maybe not. I'm really lucky to be able to travel to so many different places in the world, and it's something I really recommend to everyone, even if it means being without cell phone service for 10 days ;) Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip.
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I couldn't resist putting this in, this was in a mall. Why don't we have these in America?? lol
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Anyways, onto the planes. 3:25pm seems like a weird time for a flight, but it just prevailed for a lazy morning. We hung out at our hotel until around 10:00, then went to lunch, and took a bus to the airport afterwords. Pudong is SO far away from the city. Our restaurant was in the city center, and it was over an hour journey.
Scenes from the bus ride
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We arrived at the airport around 13:00, 2.5 hours ahead of time.
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Pudong is just like every other airport we saw. Very open, very clean, and very crowded.
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When we got to the check in line, we opted for checking in one by one, and I got very nervous once I saw the line. Here's a good example of a bad thing about United. There were 10 check in counters for First, Business, Star Alliance people, Mileage Plus people, etc etc etc, AND ONLY 5 FOR ECONOMY! How does this make any sense. Anyways, check in took forever, we weren't airside until 14:30.
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We walked over to gate 65 to find out lovely Star Alliance 777-200ER, only 5 years old! I checked the reg, N76021, turns out it's the same Star Alliance plane I saw on the way out (see my report from EWR to PEK)
I can't describe how much fun I had spotting in Shanghai. T2 has an amazing view of the runways and taxiways, and I saw tons of new airlines.
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Our flight was at gate 65, the star alliance plane in view was ours, I couldn't get any closer, but still a great view regardless!
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We boarded, again with United's boarding group lines. It was really chaotic, as the roped off sections for each line weren't long enough, so everyone sort of merged into one blob (Oh hey, an SQ A380 photobombed!)
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Lots of people had bought drinks for the flight back, but little did they know, there was another security check in the jetway. So much for all the money they'd spent, as all liquids just got taken away. (I luckily avoided this, I had blown the $45 I brought with me on day 1 of the trip…lol whoops). Anyways, we moved along and boarded. It was nice to not have dark, HSBC themed jetway like in America, but instead a nice open one.
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Aaaand I settled into 36a for the next (spoiler alert) 16 hours-more on that in a bit. All 4 flights (and the train ride), I managed to switch from an aisle seat to a window. What luck!
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As I mentioned earlier, this plane was only 5 years old, and compared to the 16 year old bird I flew out on, you could really tell the difference. The TVs were super responsive, even a different color. The armrests were much slimmer (no remotes here), and there was a single pronged headphone jack (yup, double on the way into China).
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I prayed for these seats to stay open, but a Chinese couple settled in next to me, some of the last people to get on board (more on them later as well). Damn. You can see the armrests I mentioned here.
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I was in my seat by 3:10, 15 minutes before scheduled departure. An FA came on and announced You can buy an economy plus upgrade right here on board for $248. No way I was gonna pay $250 for 4 extra inches of legroom, I did fine with my 31 inches on the way out, thanks though!
We sat. And we sat. And we sat. It seemed like forever, many of my fellow classmates joked that they had finished a movie before we had even pushed back. This was a bit of an exaggeration. With all the extra time, I did some experimenting with the screen. Again, we had the same phenomenal selection of movies as the way out.
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Since there was no remote, pressing the power button under the screen gave these options.
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Unfortunately, my screen froze, and I got this screen after I asked a crew member to reset it for me, we he did with a smile. This ended up happening 3 or 4 times throughout the flight, but I didn't mind as the FA was very nice and apologetic about it each time.
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This didn't have a negative impact on me, but this is a HUGE minus for international flights. The TVs ONLY work in English, although there are many language options for all of the movies. This made it IMPOSSIBLE for the Chinese couple next to me to do anything! MAJOR FLAW UNITED!! I had to help them out, and eventually got them where they wanted to go.
We didn't end up pushing until 4:15, already 50 minutes late. Luckily, the taxi to runway 34L wasn't too long.
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Takeoff (finally) was at 4:33, almost 1 hour 10 minutes late. Yikes. (I'm not complaining though, I got stuck in Gatwick Airport on Christmas Eve once for 17, yes SEVENTEEN hours, only to have my flight cancelled, but that's a story for another day :))
The view we got reminded me of the pictures you see of the TBIT at LAX, so many different airlines!
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We went up to 31,000 feet, but I quickly realized that the airshow wasn't working. This was present on all screens…
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I only knew what altitude we were at thanks to the wifi. It actually worked on this flight! Access for the entire flight was $17, but access to United.com and a mock airshow was free.
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Our first meal came around about 1 hour 20 minutes in. We had the option of either Chicken with Rice or Beef with Potatoes. Since I had the Chicken on the way out, I figured I would try something new (my friend did tell me that the chicken was different from the one we had on the way out…).
The beef itself was good by airline standards, mediocre by all other standards. It also came with veggies, another tasteless salad (although the dressing was nice), an amazing brownie and your typical airline roll. Best of all, there was MAC AND CHEESE. I vowed on my way out I wouldn't have any western food while I was in China and stuck with it, so this was a really nice surprise. Overall, a nice meal.
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The above photo's lack of quality can be explained by none other than turbulence. I've never been on such a bumpy flight before. I tried at least 5 times to get a clear picture, but each time… *Click* *BUMP* I eventually gave up. The captain came on and said (these are exact words) Sorry about the bumps folks…we should be able to find some clear air in about *pause* 3 hours. I laughed at a while for that. At one particularly bumpy point, I put both hands up in the air, which got a few chuckles from some people around me.
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I watched another movie, and once it was over, the airshow had started to work. You can see by the map where it finally kicked in.
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I tried really hard to stay awake until the second meal (snack) came around, but I conked out. When I awoke, the Chinese couple pointed at it sitting on my tray table. It had come somewhere between 4 and 7 hours into the flight, probably closer to the latter. This was probably the best meal I had on a plane the entire flight. A mini sandwich, banana crisps, and an Oreo wafer thing that I had seen lots of in China, but never in America. Yum!
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We went up to 39,000 feet and I went to sleep again. I got about 9 hours of sleep total on this flight, a new record for me haha.
The third round of food came around about (what should've been) 1 hour 30 minutes before landing (keep reading to understand).
We had a choice of Eggs or Noodles. Noodles for me- it was noodles with more beef, green tasteless veggies and a greasy pastry with the tiniest dash of cream in the center.
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We started descending at 6:15, about 25 minutes before our scheduled time of arrival. We had made up some time, but not a lot. The captain came on and announced it's gonna get bumpy again. Yay! I actually really like turbulence, makes it more exciting.
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We went down and down, approaching to runway 22L. It was mega foggy with almost no visibility. I didn't even see the lights of the runway when I heard the engines starting to whirr again. My initial thought was Oh crap, we're pulling an 'Asiana at San Francisco', our pilot screwed up the approach because of the lack of visibility. Then I heard the gear go up. Go around!! I'd never experience one before, so this was really cool for me. We were back up above the clouds, resequenced ourselves, and landed uneventfully on runway 22L at 7:25, 40 minutes late. The delay wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for the go around, but in all honesty, I think it was worth it. After a short taxi to the gate, we hooked up to the jetway at 7:31.
Last view of our plane
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Woah, just realized as I'm writing this that we departed from Shanghai from gate 65, and arrived at Newark at gate 65. Cool!

Thanks so much for reading this, and my first full set of flight reports! Comments are always welcomed :)

I could be going to Europe this summer, but if not, definitely somewhere over the winter. Look out for new flight reports!
See more

Verdict

United

7.9/10
Cabin7.5
Cabin crew9.0
Entertainment/wifi8.0
Meal/catering7.0

Shanghai - PVG

6.5/10
Efficiency4.0
Access4.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0

Newark - EWR

5.0/10
Efficiency5.0
Access5.0
Services5.0
Cleanliness5.0

Conclusion

Shanghai Pudong Airport- Like every other Chinese airport, bonus points for amazing plane spotting! Unfortunately it comes with a cost, a long way from the airport, and slow everything

Seats- Pretty good, nice having a new plane. Legroom and seat with were plenty for me (I'm 5'9)

Food- To quote a fellow student Decently Mediocre, acceptable for airplane food

Crew- One of the best I've ever seen

IFE- Nice selection, but lack of foreign languages is a major no no

Flight took off 70 minutes late, Arrived 50 minutes late.

Overall, the newer plane really helped. United is nowhere near greatness, but if you're going to Asia, I would say United's 777s are a perfectly viable cheaper option!

Related

9 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 135978 by
    Mathieu 2067 Comments
    Hi !

    Your pictures are definitely working now :p
    Thanks for sharing this report on UA.
    I really do appreciate this airlines despite of many of it's aircrafts are very old.
    The first meal is ok but I would so much prefer the last one (noodles).

    See you,
  • Comment 135987 by
    Wingslover 657 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this report with us. Another great UA experience :)

    Everyone seems to be so friendly, you can strike up a conversation with a taxi driver like you've known him for 10 years
    I was in China six months ago and didn't noticed this at all. Most people I met in Beijing and Xi'An, as well as taxi drivers, were rude and unfriendly. However, this changed in Shanghai :)
  • Comment 135991 by
    lagentsecret 12186 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this FR

    Nice tourist bonus

    248 Usd for an Eco+ seat is really too expensive

    THe catering looks decent

    You were lucky enough to sleep a lot so the flight was bearable
  • Comment 136083 by
    NGO85 SILVER 1963 Comments
    FIXED REPORT! Sorry about the photos not working last time!!
    - Don't worry about it, and ignore the people that complained. We appreciate you sharing it with us.

    What section of the wall did you go to, is that Badaling? Beijing looks so much different from when I was there in the dead of winter with no tourists and blue skies.

    Here's a good example of a bad thing about United.
    - That was your perspective, now imagine how the people that go to use those lines felt ;)

    Very nice spotting at PVG. You were lucky to be in Terminal 2, I was in Terminal 1 with MU and there is nothing there.... You seemed to spot well from PVG, I really struggled with the windows they have.

    Lots of people had bought drinks for the flight back, but little did they know, there was another security check in the jetway.
    - Last time I flew from China to the US, there was the same carry-on search for drinks.

    An FA came on and announced You can buy an economy plus upgrade right here on board for $248.
    - That is just classless by UA trying to squeeze some last minute money out of people.

    This ended up happening 3 or 4 times throughout the flight, but I didn't mind as the FA was very nice and apologetic about it each time.
    - Hey, something UA crews do better than AZ crews!

    Catering looks fine. Your dinner service looks okay, never really like the salads they serve in Y. Interesting that brownie was not packaged. Midnight snack looks nice, you should probably thank your neighbors for getting you that since it's normally you snooze, you lose. Serving the danish with the Eastern breakfast looks weird, but whatever, food is food and the breakfast actually does look good (the noodles).

    I've never had an aborted approach before, my pilots have always gone in guns blazing with some terrifying touchdowns.

    Very harsh on-time rating, only 50 minutes late on a 14-hour flight?
    • Comment 315794 by
      Daniel00 AUTHOR 34 Comments
      Thanks for the great feedback :)

      We went to the Juyongguan Pass section of the great wall, but I do think I saw signs for Badaling on the way in.

      Re on time rating, I also factored in the amount of time it took to check in (it was at least an hour), low marks for trying to cram two widebody flights (the flight to ORD leaves at the same time on a 74) into 5 check in lines, as well as the actual lateness of the flight
  • Comment 136187 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this whole series with us. Looks like you had a wonderful time in China! If you think China is inexpensive, you should go to Southeast Asia.

    The Shanghai airport is impressive, maybe a little too big--though not as big as Beijing airport I think. There were 10 check in counters for First, Business, Star Alliance people, Mileage Plus people, etc etc etc, AND ONLY 5 FOR ECONOMY! How does this make any sense. -- yeah, it makes no sense, but it's very common when checking in for only one flight (or just a few). Since Elites and First/Business class people need to be checked in faster so they don't have to wait as long, there are disproportionately more counters.

    Very nice planespotting. Transpacific flights are often bumpy in my experience, probably because of the polar routes. I've never seen mac and cheese on a plane...good idea. I love mac and cheese :-)
    Decently Mediocre smart friend lol

    The IFE only working in English is not very Foreign ---> friendly
    See what I did there? Too easy to make fun of UA :-P

    I experienced a go-around last summer, it is impressive. Though not the part which usually delays your arrival. In your case it looks like your flight made up a lot of time. Considering you left 70 minutes late and only arrived 50 minutes late, with a go-around, I'd say that's pretty good for such a long flight. So I kind of find your 2/10 grade for on-time performance a bit harsh. A 2 would be like a crazy long 10 hour delay in my opinion.

    Thanks again for all the good reports!

    • Comment 315771 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
      P.S. you put the wrong link for your TAO-SHA leg in the beginning of the report
    • Comment 315795 by
      Daniel00 AUTHOR 34 Comments
      Thanks for your kind words!

      Re on time rating, I also factored in how long it took us to check in, at least an hour. If a 2 is a crazy long 10 hour delay, what would you consider a 3 day delay? lol, Yes, this actually happened to me...we sat all day in an airport (literally from 5am to 11pm), only to have them cancel our flight, not attempt to rebook us, needless to say there were no flights for the next 2 days, so we ended up being delayed from tuesday to friday! not fun.

      P.S. thanks for letting me know re TAO-SHA link, I'll fix it right away :)
    • Comment 315826 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
      I'v had 2 day delays before, no fun. Those would be negative if we could give negative grades, LOL. Anything over 1 day is definitely a 0. It all depends on the impact of the delay and the proportion of delay to total flight time.

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