Review of United flight from Washington to Chicago in Domestic First

check in and security

I arrived at IAD at around 5:30 a.m. for my 8:30 a.m. departure because I was connecting onward to an international flight to London Heathrow, and needed to arrive early to get a document check. I also arrived extra early because the past few times that I’ve arrived at IAD at 6:00 a.m., the lines for security have been horrendous.

All airlines check in at the same terminal at IAD, and United’s check in facilities are located all the way down on the end of the terminal. United hin the as a few different options for check in. There is the Economy check in area, a Premier Access Check In Area, a global services check in area, and in the back part of the terminal, there is a separate lane for Premier 1K and Polaris Check In. Many people don’t know that exists, so there’s usually very little to no line in this area. Because I was flying in Polaris, I had access to this area, and I was the only one there.

I then proceeded to security, and there was nobody in line for PreCheck or Clear. I was through security in a matter of two minutes.

I then took the train to concourse C, because the Polaris lounge is located across from gate C17. It took quite some time for the train to show up, but once it did, I was on my way.

iad polaris lounge

Because I was connecting onward in Polaris to London Heathrow from Chicago, I had access to the Polaris lounge at Washington-Dulles. The lounge is located across from gate C17. I arrived at the lounge at around 5:53 a.m.

The lounge itself is located one level up from the main concourse, so you’ll have to take an elevator or a small set of stairs to get to the lounge area. The fact that I arrived early in the morning meant that there wasn’t more than 5-6 people in the lounge tis morning, and afforded me the opportunity to take pictures of the lounge.

Immediately upon exiting the elevator or stairs, you are welcomed into the lounge by a mural featuring Washington, DC and the cherry blossoms. Just next to that, is a large seating area with armchairs and the Polaris lounge working style chairs.

Immediately to the left of the entrance, you’ll find the restrooms with the signature Polaris star lighting.

Just beyond that is more seating and a few phone booths.

As you walk deeper into the lounge, you’ll find the massive bar area.

Just beyond that, you’ll find the windows with some more seating, offering views of the tarmac outside. 

There is also a self-service drink/coffee station as well as the buffet.

On the other side of the bar, you’ll find the “library”. An area that is themed and supposed to reminiscent of a Washington, DC library. Though, I don’t know how quiet this area would be given that it’s right next to the bar and the dining room.

Around the corner from that, is the dining room.

Big surprise- I was the only one in the dining room this morning. I know- shocking right? Although the dining room is nice, I much prefer the dining room of the Newark Polaris lounge as that one has natural lighting and offers views of the tarmac. This is just a room with artificial lighting in the middle of the lounge, and although decorated nicely, kind of reminds me of sitting in a hospital waiting room!

Here are pictures of the Dining Room menu for today.

I ordered the mushroom toast and the Challah French toast, just so I could sample both options.

The mushrooms on the mushroom French toast lacked flavor. They really should have been seasoned a lot more. The Challah French toast was good but nothing to write home about.

The server I had was attentive! She came around a few times to ask me if I needed anything.

After that, I went into the seating area near the window and just hung out there until my flight was ready to board. I was able to get a view of this ERJ-175 pulling into a gate near the window.

boarding

I arrived at the gate at 7:45, about 5 minutes ahead of our 7:50 boarding time.
 
We were out of gate C17 today which was right across from the Polaris lounge, so it took me about 10 seconds to walk from the Polaris lounge to the gate.

We began boarding right on time at 7:50. I boarded and was greeted by a friendly female flight attendant, who handed me a sanitizing wipe.

seat and cabin

The seat is your standard United domestic first class seat and the seats in the first class cabin are arranged in a 2-2 configuration. 

The seat features 37 inches of pitch, 5 inches of recline, and 20 inches of width.

The seat features a center console where drinks can be stored. The tray table is located in the left armrest. There isn’t any other storage other than what’s under the seat in front of you.

Because this aircraft wasn’t quite retrofitted with new seats, the seats are extremely comfortable and well padded. Yes, they look old and as if they’re wearing out, but extremely plush and well padded.

the flight

At 8:07, The flight attendant came around asking if anyone had a coat to hang up, which is something I haven’t seen much on a regular domestic flight.

At 8:11, the flight attendant came by to offer a pre departure beverage of orange juice or water. I declined as I spent the past hour in the Polaris lounge drinking orange juice and water!

At 8:15, boarding was completed.

At 8:19, the captain came on to welcome us onboard an announce our flight time of 1 hour 47 minutes.

At 8:25, the safety demonstration began.

We pushed back at 8:26, while the safety demonstration was still going.

At 8:39, we took runway 30 for departure.

At 8:44, we reached 10,000 feet and were well on our way to Chicago.

At 8:55, the flight attendant came around to ask about drink orders. I went with a coffee with Bailey’s.

At 9:05, we reached our cruising altitude of 36,000 feet.

At 9:14, my coffee with Bailey’s arrived. 

By 9:30, I finished my coffee and a flight attendant came by to take our cups and ask us if we wanted anything else.

arrival

9 minutes later, at 8:35 am Chicago time, I felt the aircraft start to descend.

At 8:50, the captain came on to announce that we would be landing in Chicago in approximately 30 minutes and that he would be turning the fasten seat belt sign on in about 10 minutes, and that it would remain on for the rest of the flight.

We had some nice views of Chicago as we approached in from the east.

We touched down on runway 27C at 9:22 am

We arrived at gate B5 at 9:35 am, approximately 8 minutes ahead of our scheduled arrival time.