Background This report covers the first leg (Mumbai-Singapore) of my journey to Melborune. The options for the flight to Melbourne included Malaysian Airlines, Air India, Jet Airways with the Singapore-Melbourne leg on their codeshare flights with Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways and the middle eastern carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways. While the fares on Jet Airways/Qantas, Emirates, Qatar were all on the higher side, it was still a lot of options to choose from. My preferred choice out of past experience was Singapore Airlines which also offered an added incentive of using my accumulated miles to pay partly for my ticket. I resisted the temptation to try Cathay for the first time since reading of reviews online helped me to conclude that overall, SQ offers a far better and a reliable Economy class product.
Check-in, Terminal, and Boarding Web-check in facility for SQ flights out of Mumbai does not offer self printed boarding passes. SQ also offers the facility of pre-booking seats at the time of reservation. I had enrolled my grandfather for the wheelchair assistance due to his inability to walk long distances. We reached the airport 2.5 hours before departure. The design of this swanky new Terminal 2 is immensely influenced by India's national bird - peacock. Be it the grand foyer or the pillars or the peacock feather shaped sky-lights, this airport stands out amongst its modern age contemporaries. The spacious drop off zones cater to the need of large groups of accompanying well-wishers.
Main Entry gates at Terminal 2
Our luggage was slightly overweight but considering limited hand baggage we were carrying and the age of my grandfather, the staff at the baggage drop counters were kind enough to let it pass. Our bags were checked in through to MEL. The process was quick, efficient and the staff was courteous.
SQ check-in counters where they mention A380 - First to India
A few shots of the terminal area after immigration and security:
The design is quite symbolic of a peacock's feather
The waiting area at the boarding gates:
There was a slight delay in the arrival of the incoming aircraft. That gave me sufficient time for some spotting around though the airport wasn't that busy as it is post midnight.
My ride to SIN arrives as inbound SQ 424 (Aircraft Regn: 9V-SKC)
Some spotting around:
Boarding was about to commence when their staff came up to us and asked us to board the aircraft before they announce the boarding for others. The three attendants at the door extended a warm welcome and helped my grandfather up onto the aircraft. Further, the leading stewardess (in green kebaya) personally guided us to our seats in the economy section of the spacious upper deck cabin. Crew would greet the kids with great enthusiasm asking them their names.
View of the aircraft while boarding
SQ Flight experience: When travelling economy in A380, I always preferred the upper deck- The small cabin means personalised service and also the side compartment which was large enough to fit in my laptop bag. The seats, as usual, were comfortable and a legroom was 32' which is almost standard nowadays on SQ. Set of cozy pillow and a blanket were already placed on the seat along with the set of earphones. SQ would provide headphones for economy a year back which they seem to have discontinued for economy(unless may be on ultra long haul flights). I prefer the headphones anytime over these earphones. Lot of passengers have complained on a few forums about the change from headphones.To my surprise, no amenity kits were distributed considering it was an overnight flight.Last year on the same route, they were distributed. Cost-cutting measure may be?
The legroom shot
10.6 inch IFE monitor
The earphones provided
Side compartments in the upper deck are large enough
The service commenced with a piping hot oshibori towel followed by distribution of the menu cards.
Menu for the flight
As always, a wide selection of beverages
International selection
The Indian option
Menu in Hindi language
Crew then distributed the arrival immigration cards for Singapore. The captain welcomed us onboard informing us of a delay of 5 minutes in pushback. The IFE was available soon after the safety demonstration.
After a short taxi, we took off from the primary runway and banked towards the southern Mumbai which made for a great viewing.
Flying parallel to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link
The Queen's necklace lit up in white
City that never sleeps looks fantastic at night
Once we were cruising, the drinks service commenced. I opted for the orange juice along with two packs of 'Murukus' as munchies.
15 minutes after the drinks service, special meals were distributed followed by the regular meal service. My experience tells me the Indian selection is always delicious on SQ flights. Naturally, I opted for that along with the trademark Singapore Sling as my drink.
My meal tray that came along with a bottle of water as well
My favourite drink on SQ- Singapore Sling
The supper was very delicious especially the Malai Kofta Curry. I love the fried papadums that they serve in Indian meals. The portion of the meal was quite filling. The dessert (Halwa-coconut semolina pudding with strawberry coulis) was delectable too. Another round of drinks service was conducted while the food trays were being collected.
The dessert
Krisworld Entertainment system worked perfectly fine and offered a range of options for movies, television shows, games, music, etc. Flight Path on KrisWorld
Reading options
Washrooms were clean and well-stocked with amenities including perfumes,mouth fresheners
One run of water was conducted. The crew would switch off the IFE monitors of those sleeping. Some shots of the dawn outside:
The captain came on the PA informing us of the conditions at Singapore and expected arrival time into Changi.
Descent into Changi:
We landed ahead of schedule but were required to wait for a while to be allocated a gate at Changi Terminal 2.
The air hostess had personally informed us earlier that we were to wait for wheelchair assistance until the rest of the passengers had deplaned. The crew guided us out once the wheelchair was ready at the aircraft door. After a warm goodbye from the crew, it was time to spend some time at Changi before our onward flight in the newest product of SQ to Melbourne on their new Boeing 777-300ER.
(If anyone knows how to rotate the pictures after adding them to upload here, please guide-Thanks!)
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Verdict
Singapore Airlines
9.1/10
Cabin8.5
Cabin crew9.5
Entertainment/wifi8.5
Meal/catering10.0
Mumbai - BOM
9.6/10
Efficiency10.0
Access9.5
Services9.0
Cleanliness10.0
Singapore - SIN
10.0/10
Efficiency10.0
Access10.0
Services10.0
Cleanliness10.0
Conclusion
Cabin comfort: The spacious upper deck never falls short of providing a comfortable experience. I do feel amenity kits should be provided. Clean and spotless cabin and washrooms. Entertainment: Innumerable options but a touchscreen monitor would make it much more easier to navigate the system. I prefer the headphones they provided earlier to the earphones offered now. Hence, the 8.5 rating Meal: Full marks to the meal-was perfect in all aspects Crew: The crew was hospitable, friendly and courteous. They seemed to enjoy looking after the passengers. Since we were transiting, we did not use go through the security and immigration at Changi. The airport had a lot of facilities for a transit traveller and was spotlessly clean as usual. Overall, SQ offers one of the best economy products in the market.
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The new terminal at BOM is certainly an outstanding one! Meal portion was definitely filling, but it was delicious too. Look forward to your trip report too. I'll soon put up the report on the new product of SQ!
BOM has a real local flair and will hopefully allow AI improve its operations out of there.
I resisted the temptation to try Cathay for the first time since reading of reviews online helped me to conclude that overall, SQ offers a far better and a reliable Economy class product. - Spot on assessment.
Crew would greet the kids with great enthusiasm asking them their names. - Things like this are we separate the carriers with 5* service from the rest.
The seat pitch didn't look that great, but I think the newer B77W you'll get next flight will be a better seat and IFE offering. I find this flight a little bit short for an amenity kit to be offered. The catering looks very strong as usual on SQ. A very nice tray and the menu is very classy.
Thanks for your read. True that the flight may not be that long enough to need an amenity kit but being an overnight flight, they would provide the same earlier. They seem to have discontinued that.
Legroom was alright for a 5 hour flight, may be crampy for a long haul flight. You are right - The new B77W did have much better legroom but somehow the websites online mention the same pitch of 32 on both aircrafts.
Very soon the other part of T2 is going to open up with Jet Airways soon shifting their domestic operations to T2. You could let me know when you visit Mumbai :)
The new 77W product was definitely a superior one :)
Yes, SQ offers one of the best economy class experience.
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8 Comments
The new terminal at BOM looks very impressive. The design of the gate area is really attractive.
I was really impressed with the meal. The portions seemed quite generous for economy and the selection was good too.
Thanks again for sharing, happy travels!
Look forward to your trip report too. I'll soon put up the report on the new product of SQ!
BOM has a real local flair and will hopefully allow AI improve its operations out of there.
I resisted the temptation to try Cathay for the first time since reading of reviews online helped me to conclude that overall, SQ offers a far better and a reliable Economy class product.
- Spot on assessment.
Crew would greet the kids with great enthusiasm asking them their names.
- Things like this are we separate the carriers with 5* service from the rest.
The seat pitch didn't look that great, but I think the newer B77W you'll get next flight will be a better seat and IFE offering. I find this flight a little bit short for an amenity kit to be offered. The catering looks very strong as usual on SQ. A very nice tray and the menu is very classy.
Legroom was alright for a 5 hour flight, may be crampy for a long haul flight. You are right - The new B77W did have much better legroom but somehow the websites online mention the same pitch of 32 on both aircrafts.
The service in SQ Y is very consistent indeed, compared to many other airlines. It's a safe bet most of the time.
Great shots of BOM! I'm a big fan of the new T2. Would love to visit Mumbai one day!
The hard product looks pretty decent, the new product on the 77W looks a lot better though.
Flying with SQ in Y is truly one of the best ways to travel in economy, a satisfying experience.
Have a good one, see you!
Very soon the other part of T2 is going to open up with Jet Airways soon shifting their domestic operations to T2. You could let me know when you visit Mumbai :)
The new 77W product was definitely a superior one :)
Yes, SQ offers one of the best economy class experience.
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