Review of Korean Air flight Seoul → New York in First

Greetings Flight-Report Community. Thanks for stopping by and having a look at this report. This marks the fifth installment of the trip outlined below.

For this report I will finally be sharing a recent adventure. This trip took place in July 2015 so depending on when you're reading this I would consider it recent! This is also the first trip that I set out on with the idea of reporting at this site. With that I tried to use the tips I've learned by reading so many of your great reports on Flight-Report to take more detailed pictures.

The reports will be broken down as follows:

SEA AMEX Centurion Studio, The Club at SEA, and Delta SEA-NRT (Business)http://flight-report.com/en/report-10926.html
Narita Airport, Delta NRT Skyclub, and Delta NRT-SIN (Business)http://flight-report.com/en/report-10950.html
Singapore Airlines T2 Silverkris Business Lounge and ANA SIN-NRT (Business)http://flight-report.com/en/report-11006.html
JAL Sakura Lounge HND and Korean Airlines HND-GMP (First)http://flight-report.com/en/report-11022.html
Korean Airlines First Lounge ICN and Korean Airlines ICN-JFK (First)(This Report)
Delta Skyclub Terminal 4 JFK, AA Flagship Lounge JFK and AA JFK-LAX (First)http://flight-report.com/en/report-11132.html

I experienced several firsts on this adventure:

My first time on Korean Air in any class.
My first time on American Airlines in any class.

*Warning* I feel that I should warn you about the length of this report. But then again it is a long flight. I seem to have been a little click happy with the camera. Luckily I brought a lot of film ;-)

The hotel provided a shuttle to ICN and I opted to arrive early to explore the lounge and airport.



The First Class check in area was busy when I arrived. A very average First Class check in experience ensued and no information was given to direct me to any lounge or priority security.



Security and immigration was efficient and I located the KAL First Lounge upon a left turn after exiting security.



Again, a very un-first class greeting and I was admitted into the lounge.



My ride in a few hours time.



Nature.



Let's a have a look around the lounge. Down the mail hallway you'll find a dining area on the left and the main room just beond. Food buffet is to the left and lounge seating to the right.



Some good tarmac views, but not photo friendly.



The food offerings.



At this point I was seriously convinced that I was in the wrong lounge. This cannot be a First Class lounge. Alas I was in the correct lounge. The food and beverage offerings were pathetic. The decor was perhaps more laughable. It was like being in the home of an elderly couple who haven't updated their furniture in 25 years.

This isn't passable as a Business Class lounge in this region much less First Class. The lounge was consistent with the First Class product that I flew the day before on the 777-300 from HND-GMP. It was decidedly Business Class but sold and marketed at First.

I sampled some of the food offerings. Congee and dry terrible dumplings.



Low quality fish and processed cheese.



The highlight of the lounge was the TV in the dining area that I was able to change to a live MLB game. I think with Jung-ho Kang playing for the Pirates there is a lot of interest in their games here.



I enjoyed an espresso from the machine.



The lounge is completely laughable. Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines and Turkish Airlines have Business Class lounges that make this look like a United Club. Needless to say I was expecting more. Underwhelmed by the lounge I took a stroll around the gates.

My aircraft for KE81 today.



They must get some pretty cool visitors here at ICN. They're ready for MD11, DC10, 747SP, and IL62M!! I guess I came on the wrong day because I didn't see any of these special guests.



Soon it was time to board. I do like that many airports are going to the glass jet bridges. I'm pretty sure it's not for the avgeeks so what's the business case for switching form cheap aluminium to glass? I don't know but I'm pleased with the choice.



I was greeted by two lovely flight attendants at the door and shown to my seat. The day before I looked at the seat map and I was the only passenger in First. At the time I boarded I was the first ot arrive however another passenger arrived prior to push so we went out 2/12. I had a chance to chat with the other passenger later in flight and it turned out to be a real treat to get to meet him. A very impressive gentleman. More on that later.

I selected 3J however when the other passenger boarded an took up residence in 1J I switched to 3A to balance the cabin. ;)



While not fully enclosed I found the space to be very comfortable and well appointed. There was ample storage.



Intuitive seat controls.



Bose noise-canceling headphones, pajamas, slippers and ammenity kit were provided.



With one half of the cabin to myself there were no issues with privacy but here are the views from the seat.




I was offered a beverage and various reading material. I asked for champagne but I think I knew that Korean didn't serve champagne on the ground. Perhaps I had read that in a Flight report. Anyhow the F/A said OK and departed but then returned with the information that the champagne wasn't cold and was there anything else I would enjoy. I requested sparkling water.



Several volumes of paper were distributed.



Inside one could find the menu and list of wine. Many of the wine selections are unavailable on this flight. Again, very un-first class to have a one size fits all menu.



Eventually we pushed from the gate and lifted off. I do love the view of the wing on quad jets!



It took quite a while for service to commence after takeoff and climb out.

Map on after cruise altitude. I was quite disappointed that the IFE was unavailable until altitude. There was no access to the map or cameras until that time.



The picture below is to illustrate an interesting phenomenon I observed. The flight attendant you can see in this picture was glued to the passenger in 1J. She was there to chat with a High Value Customer (HVC, to borrow a Delta term), laugh at his jokes, and listen intently. Quite honestly I don't think she left that position for the first 2 hours of the flight. This left me somewhat dejected as she was not only the loveliest of the flight crew that I encountered but she had the best command of English. The F/A that served me was very sweet and eager to please but the language barrier changed the dynamic between us to only basic communication.



When asked for a beverage selection in flight I reiterated my desire to enjoy the champagne but there was still quite a delay in delivery. When it did arrive it was presented in a nicely and worth the wait. The temperature was perfect, too. ;)



Meals were manifested and no mention of any dine on demand program were offered. I'm sure it would have been OK to defer the meal but I appreciate when that is made clear by the F/A.

The meal service started with the amuse. What it lacked in creativity it more than lacked in flavor.The mango was too sweet and the dish was flat in both seasoning and texture.



Next the table was set for lunch.



The Perrier-Jouet Belle Epoque is a lovely wine. I found it very enjoyable to sip and also food friendly.



Garlic bread, of course.



This little dialogue box in the menu was highlighting the beef from a specific farm. I appreciate this care in sourcing meat.



Next up was the foie-gras terrine. It was sensational and easily the highlight of the meal.



I decided to venture deeper into the wine list and requested the Garrus rose. I have been enjoying a range of French and California Roses this summer at home. This one didn't suit my palate so I moved on.



I found the Chablis much more to my liking.



The salad trolley came next and it was a beautiful display of colors. The salad is constructed to your liking. I went with a generous anchovy garnish.



A red wine seemed appropriate next. I opted for the 2010 Lascombes from Margaux in Bordeaux. This was a rich and balanced wine that I enjoyed.



The main course followed. It was unsuccessful on almost every level. First the appearance is sad. The beef is overcooked and the flight attendant knew this and offered to replace the beef even before I tasted it. A boiled potato, in First? Anyhow, I wasn't in need of more food so I simply tasted the beef. The meat was tender and it was quite good in flavor. The potato and tomato were left untouched.



The fruit and cheese trolley were next to pass. I took the port too but I don't know why, it wasn't anything special.



Finally a quick look at dessert. This didn't move the needle at all. had a bite or two for research purposes.



After a mostly unremarkable meal it was time to walk about the airplane and explore the other amenities on board!

On the A side just past the curtain was this workstation for controlling the environment on the airplane. You can see on the screen here what it playing on the screens located in both bars upstairs.



This is the first class bar area.



The duty free shop in the rear of the main deck.



Next up I visited the Celestial Bar on the upper deck in the rear of the aircraft.



This is truly a great feature. It's not as impressive as the Emirates or Etihad bars but it is a nice space and I appreciate the effort to innovate the space rather than just cram more seats.

The drinks on offer are sponsored by Absolute vodka and are all of the sweet variety. Of course I had to sample a couple in order to provide a complete report. The first bar tender was a bit of a stiff. She seemed really sullen and almost sad. My lame attempts at conversation and humor did not prove to be successful.



I was the only patron at this time but later in the flight the bar would get more active when I returned with the other Fist Class passenger who proved to be a fantastic person to speak with and had a great life story.

I wanted to stop by the bar/lounge in the forward part of the upper deck but I know the beverages on offer would be more of the same so I made a pit stop downstairs to obtain a proper drink and then went back up. This is when I encountered Mr. Kim and we ended up chatting for the better park of 2.5 hours. Delightful gentleman who is a self made entrepreneur of great success.



After staying in the bar too long and meeting new people it was time for some proper food and a sleep. I requested the ramen and a beer and while this was being prepared seat 3D was setup for bed. The ramen was satisfying and I slept for a few hours.



The pre-arrival service started about 90 minutes from the destination and I opted for the chicken. The chicken was quite good. The potato with sweet jam was off putting. The garlic bread was average at best.



A clear day on approach to JFK. We were assigned the VOR Canarise approach to 13L! This was quite a thrill in the big A380.



Taxi to terminal 1 and a breeze through Global Entry and Customs and I was off to the next adventure: My first ride on American Airlines. I'm impressed if you made it this far. It was a long report. Thanks for reading.