Hello Flight-Report #avgeeks. This is the 2nd half of my Singapore Suites flight from New York to Singapore.
jetBlue A320 Ecomomy service ORD-JFK
Singapore Airlines A380 Suites Class JFK-FRA / JFK Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse
Singapore Airlines A380 Suites Class FRA-SIN / FRA Air Canada Lounge
Thai Airways A350 Business Class SIN-BKK / SIN Private Room
Thai Airways B747 First Class BKK-SYD / BKK Thai Royal First Lounge and Spa
Air New Zealand B787 Business Class SYD-AKL / SYD Air New Zealand Lounge
Air New Zealand A320 Economy Class AKL-WLG / AKL Air New Zealand Domestic Lounge
JetStar A320 Economy Class WLG-AKL
Emirates A380 Business Class AKL-BNE / AKL Emirates Lounge
Qantas B737 Business Class BNE-SYD / BNE Priority Pass Lounge
American Airlines B777 First Class SYD-LAX / SYD Qantas First Class Lounge
Virgin America A320 First Class LAX-ORD
When the door opened after arrival of SQ25 at gate B46 of Frankfurt's International airport, first class passengers were escorted off the aircraft before any other passengers and met by a Singapore agent in the jetway. The agent walked us to the Lufthansa Senator lounge which was only a short distance. I asked to go to the Air Canada lounge and the representative insisted he walk me there. It's just past the Senator lounge on the upper level.
Air Canada's pride, the 787-9 decked out in their new livery.
First order of business was a shower. I was told to take any empty room. At 10:30AM I had my pick.
Due to the previous evening's delay leaving JFK, what typically is a an hour and 50 minute layover was shortened by at least 30 minutes. Time for a coffee and a few photos. The front room was shaped as a square outlined with bench seating that shared some small tables and single chairs. The artwork reminded me of lava lamps from yesteryear.
The more popular area was the back room with conventional lounge seating.
The lounge had a nice view of the gate areas and I believe the east side runway.
Food selection was limited but hearty, offering sandwiches as well as some hot items. For those who missed out on breakfast sweets they remained along with cookies and cupcakes.
I headed back to the gate where my timing was precise as Suites boarding commenced the minute I arrived.
I snapped this one-handed photo of an LH A380 upon entering the ramp to the jetway.
As I walked down the jetway a couple cabin attendants were waiting at the door. One of the attendants whose name was Angie walked up the jetway to meet me halfway. She introduced herself and escorted me onto the plane. While we had exited through door 2, we boarded through door 1. On the table next to Suite 1A was reading material.
Angie lead the way to my seat and then offered to show me around the aircraft once I was settled. I said I'd love to see the upper deck. She stored my carry-on and I placed my duffle bag under the ottoman. She returned and we were off.
I found it interesting that this aircraft had premium economy as well as new first class suites recently installed, but the old business class seats were not updated. Maybe they were new, but definitely the old seat.
Angie explained the differences of Singapore's A380's with this aircraft having a full upper deck of business class seats, 86 to be exact. She asked if I wanted to see the back cabin but since it was filling up with passengers I declined. Angie turned out to be one of my all-time favorite cabin attendants. She was perfection the whole flight.
So it was back to my familiar home for the next 12 hours.
This time I received a set of blue pajamas. There wasn't a second amenity kit, which was fine especially considering how much space these items take up when traveling. And of course the lavatories were stocked with everything you needed in flight.
Behind the suite is a small closet to hang your clothes.
We pushed on time, then with a short taxi the massive A380 was airborne.
Book the Cook for this flight didn't excite me. After poking around on flyer-talk I found a number of positive comments on the Bresse chicken so that's what I ordered.
The inflight menu was also posted on the website furthering my lack of excitement towards any offering.
So here is the problem with SQ25. Beforehand the expectation is incredible. 20 hours in Singapore Suites. What could be better? Then reality. The 6 1/2 hour air time from JFK was enough to have too many glasses of spectacular champagne and incredible wine along with a memorable meal. Then a couple hours of sleep and it's time to arrive. And you're arriving at around 4:30AM your body clock time, or at least mine. And this body wasn't ready to enjoy all the things that are great on SQ25 Suites Class. I passed on champagne.
I did nurse the same Margaux, but I don't think I finished it.
On this flight they served the famous Singapore satays. They did not disappoint.
I don't understand why they don't place the tablecloth on the tray for this course (Thai did that same), but they didn't until the course was complete.
A second round a caviar within 10 hours without champagne didn't appeal so I went with the smoked salmon appetizer.
It was decidedly business class, but good.
Next was the Oxtail soup with Wolfberries. I knew I'd heard of Wolfberries but couldn't place it. Goji berries of course, as we call them here in the states. The soup was nice, a rich beef consomme. But I never would have thought of goji berries to be in a soup.
The salad was excellent.
With the ingredients it reminded me of a salad I often make home, minus the presentation.
The Bresse chicken was a beautifully presented dish.
But in the end it's just a chicken thigh and leg.
Yet it was an interesting dish. The sauce was fantastic, the meat perfect inside but dry around the edges. While no asparagus as the menu suggested, (Lufthansa probably gave me all the asparagus in Germany on one of my recent LH flights) I didn't miss it. Would I get it again? Probably but if something else looked better I'd not hesitate to switch. I did finished it and thoroughly enjoyed it.
For dessert I ordered the baked rhubarb cheesecake.
While unusual looking it was quite good. All in all the meal was very good. While one could nitpick, one could also be in economy. The presentations and quality of the food were what you would expect in a first class cabin on a world renowned airline. Personal taste is another matter. My mistake, no caviar and champagne!
During the meal the couple in row 3 who were headed to Hong Kong ate together with the male sitting on the ottoman. We probably hit some turbulence and a little wine spilled from one their glasses. Attendant Angie INSISTED she change the table cloth. I mean we're talking a ring around the wine class base. The couple said it was fine. No, Angie replaced the table cloth instantly without upsetting the couple's meal. First class service.
It was time to sleep. Angie prepared my Suite. Unfortunately the cabin was pretty full so 3A it was.
The bedding includes a thick mattress pad along with a soft silky like duvet and multiple pillows.
A thoughtful side table and tray for glasses along with a bottle of water. (Or a bowl of noodles)
The Suite has blinds on either side of the door for complete privacy.
I slept fairly well, and the term fairly had no implications towards the bed, more like my body clock. After probably 6 or 7 hours I awoke and watched some shows from the extensive movie/TV/documentary library that was in excess of 500 items.
I didn't order anything from the snack or anytime menu preferring to wait for breakfast.
Book the Cook for breakfast.
Deliciously Wholesome is a concept Singapore Airlines introduced in 2016. The idea is to eat cleaner, or healthier foods. I'd read rave comments on this breakfast salad of farro and avocado. You could get the salad with chicken or a red lentil soufflé. I booked the later.
From the Breakfast menu I also ordered the fruit and granola.
Fruit was first, United's version is a distant memory.
Then instead of granola they had muesli. While not soaked Bircher Muesli it was still delicious with the berry compote and greek yoghurt.
Next was the farro and avocado salad with red lentil soufflé.
I wholesomely second the rave reviewer's opinion.
What an interesting dish! The farro salad is cold and avocado wasn't prominent. But the flavor was outstanding and the red lentil soufflé was delicious. I would get this again in a heartbeat.
Sadly daybreak was at hand which meant the 7AM arrival was at hand.
We were on the ground before the sun would appear. A glorious 20 hours on Singapore Airlines A380 Suites class has landed.
Flight Path
Thanks Mark for this fantastic tale of an exemplary flight.
"I asked to go to the Air Canada lounge and the representative insisted he walk me there."
-I made the same deviation. The massive line to enter the Senator Lounge turned me off immediately. Did you bother to check it out? Probably no time with your truncated transit (tt).
"I headed back to the gate where my timing was precise as Suites boarding commenced the minute I arrived."
-A proper separate boarding then. Better.
"One of the attendants name was Angie who walked up the jetway to meet me halfway. She introduced herself and escorted me onto the plane. "
-To me it is an experience like Angie that sets SQ apart from their peers. What savvy service experience to catch on to your excitement and interest in the aircraft and tailor the experience so that it is memorable for you. Singapore Airlines: High expectations exceeded.
"I found it interesting that this aircraft had premium economy as well as new first class suites recently installed, but the old business class seats were not updated."
-My understanding of the "new first class suites" is that it was just a change in the seat covers to the two-tone style. Was there more to the refresh?
" I passed on champagne. "
-I'm sorry, what?
"A second round a caviar within 10 hours without champagne didn't appeal so I went with the smoked salmon appetizer. "
-Excuse me, I don't understand. ;)
"The Bresse chicken was a beautifully presented dish. "
-I'll say! It even looks like it retained crispy skin, could this be?
"Next was the Oxtail soup with Wolfberries. "
-Intrigued by this. Glad it was to you liking.
"Fruit was first, United's version is a distant memory."
-The presentation and variety, beautiful.
"Next was the farro and avocado salad with red lentil soufflé.
-What a great concept. this sounds like a very interesting and satisfying dish. I've mentally bookmarked this one! Is that a marinara-type sauce on the side or something else..?
"Sadly daybreak was at hand which meant the 7AM arrival was at hand. "
- :-(
"Now it was off to The Private Room for another breakfast before the long awaited flight on Thai's new A350."
-A nice morning indeed.
Thanks again Mark. I now have a crush on Angie and I've never laid eyes on her. Happy flying.
Hello again Christian,
-No, I've been to the Senator lounge and nothing fancy, plus all I wanted was a shower. As we taxied in I saw 2 AC planes departing, so I figured the lounge would be empty, which it basically was.
-Yes, polished and professional and DDG.
-Definitely the old suite pod, but it looked new. Might have been just seat covers, but no chips, dents or any markings of abuse that I could see. And that may have been the case upstairs in business class as well. I don't know if was a new unit or just a cosmetic refresh, probably the latter.
-Haha, you will someday!
-I wouldn't get that carried away with it.
-What a great concept. this sounds like a very interesting and satisfying dish. I've mentally bookmarked this one! Is that a marinara-type sauce on the side or something else..?
-It was a lime/ jalapeño that wasn't too spicy, I don't know if you needed it tho.
-As do I!!!
Thanks for your comments Christian. We do we see ANA and United Polaris from you?
I'm so behind with FRs. I have about 10 segments to catch up on before the Polaris/NH Trip. I know that doesn't answer your question...
Greetings, Rewardflying, and thank you for this FR.
Thanks for the heads up regarding UA's seat upgrade even in Y as the seat width increases. I'm sure that's a change most welcomed by passengers. Though with a cabin width already narrower than the A330/787, should passengers expect more trolley bumps?
"Air Canada's pride, the 787-9 decked out in their new livery."
-Fun fact: AC's 789 has 1 fewer seat than that of Etihad's 2-class configuration, and the same seat count as TG's 787-9. There's probably something you can do with that information? :P
I quite like the interior of the AC MLL @ FRA, especially with the wall pattern. The colour has a somewhat calming effect.
"I snapped this one-handed photo of an LH A380 upon entering the ramp to the jetway."
-Great photo of the whalejet.
Singapore Girl Angie sounds incredibly delightful to have! She sounds like the kind of flight attendant you'd most want to have in your flight, and then some. Although I can imagine some more reserved passengers not taking too kindly to her hospitable and accommodating attitude, I say SQ should be proud to have her as their team member.
"Maybe they were new, but definitely the old seat."
-I'm sorry, I'm not sure I follow. How would they be new if they were the old seats? I now wonder which firm is responsible for making SQ's signature business class sofa, and if it's Zodiac, I wouldn't be too surprised. Then again, they will be introducing new generation seats later this year or early next year I think? So probably not worth the money to retrofit until the new generation seats arrive.
"For dessert I ordered the baked rhubarb cheesecake."
-It reminds me of a cinnamon roll with a dash of cream on top. Not sure I've had one of those before, but keen to try and make one myself. What did it taste like?
"Then instead of granola they had muesli."
-My apologies. I must've eaten all the granola in Europe for that to happen :P
"Next was the farro and avocado salad with red lentil soufflé."
-Creative move by SQ's culinary panel there. Smart concept, and the execution looks good, too!
"Now it was off to The Private Room for another breakfast before the long awaited flight on Thai's new A350."
-TG is the only airline I can think of which, as of the time of writing, owns both the 787 and A350 yet configure them differently. Then again they seem to understand how the 2 planes differ from one another. I've noticed that they use their A350s on long and thin flights, e.g. their 2nd daily flight to LHR. Whereas the 787-8 are essentially replacing their aged A330s and now flying to shorter, regional routes where demand is high but yields are low. I don't know what cost cutting measures (if any) TG has taken, but I'm sure if anything, it will be covered in your next report.
Thank you for the good read over lunch. Cheers!
Hi Razza, based on the comment time stamp and "eating lunch" I suspect you are somewhere warm but have departed the US. Hope you enjoyed your stay here.
trolley bumps?
-Lucky for me I haven't been back there for some time. But the 767 is nice as there are only 2 seats between the window and aisle. United 767 goes 2x3x2 whereas A330 is typically 2x4x2 and 787 is 3x3x3, ugh.
-So AC has 30 super diamond (my fav) in business on their -9 and Etihad has 28 what appears to be a modified Solstys (least fav). I haven't seen Thai's new seat map on the 787-9 they got last week but it's supposed to be a Cirrus reverse herringbone seat, which is a huge upgrade from the A350 which I'll show in a couple days. On their 787-8 they have the B/E Diamond 2x2. The Etihad number is according to seatguru and it wouldn't be the first time they were wrong.
-Much preferred over LH Senator, IMO.
-Didn't explain very well. They have a new style business class seat out in 2013 the A350 along with new and retrofit 777-3ER are getting. Instead of spending capital to re-cushion or replace the old style A380 seat curious why they didn't change them out while installing PE and refurbishing the Suites. And yes, another new business class seat is being introduced this fall so maybe that's the plan for the 380. Having said all this I don't know if they did anything to the A380 I was on.
-It was cheesecake, odd looking but good. Not memorable though.
-Next time we can swap asparagus for granola!
I've never ever been disappointed by SQ cabin in Suites/First Class. No wonder Angie was one of your favorite FA.
Was she wearing a green, red or purple kebaya?
Each time I asked to be shown around the aircraft, cabin crew immediately agreed with smile. I definitely feel like a special guest.
Book The Cook choices from Frankfurt are nothing to write home about except the Georges Blanc meal I've also enjoyed quite much.
"My mistake, no caviar and champagne!"=> big mistake, huge...
"Now it was off to The Private Room for another breakfast before the long awaited flight on Thai's new A350."=> if one 's on a diet, never ever fly First class (LOL)
Thank you for this wonderful report. I miss SQ FA First Class service.
part 2 (was crashing on a longer post)
-Vietnam Airlines has the A350 with stock Solstys and B787 with Cirrus. But as i mentioned above, now TG has 3 different seats on their newer aircraft, A350 Solstys, B787-8 Diamond and B787-9 Cirrus. Rumor is they want to fly to US with the 787-9.
Thanks Razza, TG in a couple days.
Hello, rewardflying.
Yes, thank you, I did enjoy my time in the US. Had to go back and forth between Manhattan, Greenwich, and Sag Harbor. Thank heavens for Uber & Lyft, and corporate cards, amirite?
"So AC has 30 super diamond (my fav) in business on their -9 and Etihad has 28 what appears to be a modified Solstys (least fav)."
-Etihad's Business Studio cabin seems to have attracted a mixed bag of reviews. It's probably like marmite and people's respective opinions on it..
"I haven't seen Thai's new seat map on the 787-9 they got last week but it's supposed to be a Cirrus reverse herringbone seat, which is a huge upgrade from the A350 which I'll show in a couple days."
-So the 789's J seat is supposed to be different than that of the 788? And... a Cirrus seat? Talk about consistency (or lack thereof). I guess one's best hope is to not get Thai-ed to a worse seat, eh? Of course from there, one's opinion of which seat is worse may differ.
"So AC has 30 super diamond (my fav) in business on their -9 and Etihad has 28 what appears to be a modified Solstys (least fav)."
-As you can probably tell from my previous reports, I think the Solstys seats are good enough for long-haul flights. Admittedly, one must be lucky to snatch a "true window" seat. Not sure I'd say the same about the seats closer to the aisle and the passenger next to me is a stranger.
"Vietnam Airlines has the A350 with stock Solstys and B787 with Cirrus. But as i mentioned above, now TG has 3 different seats on their newer aircraft, A350 Solstys, B787-8 Diamond and B787-9 Cirrus. Rumor is they want to fly to US with the 787-9."
-Oops. Completely forgot about their SkyTeam neighbour :P. Thailand has been downgraded to FAA Category 2, right? So it's not likely that we'll see TG restart BKK-LAX or BKK-JFK anytime soon anyway. When they do though, I expect that you'll be trying it out?
Looking forward to your TG report. Cheers!
Hi Indianocean,
-Red, she was a 25 year veteran and Chief Stewardess
-Except She asked me!
-Guess I have to go back ;)
-There's a remedy. Book it!!
Thanks again. Happy reward flying.
-Yes, saw a seat map. Looks like Cirrus to me!
-I did not like Thai's A350 version at all.
-Yes they are C2 and unable to initiate new service. I thought I read progress was being made to get to C1. Time will tell. And yes I would be anxious to fly the 787-9 with reverse herringbone seats. Sadly my enthusiasm for their 350 has been defeated.
Have a great weekend Razza!