Review of Singapore Airlines flight from Jakarta to Singapore in First

We flew this flight on Monday 21 October 2024.

This is the second flight report in my miles redemption trip. Flying Singapore Airlines First Class is probably a dream to many people in this website, mine included. To be able to do it is a dream come true for me.

Once again, my flight routing takes me from Jakarta to Singapore and onwards to London in the next report.

This flight from Jakarta to Singapore was redeemed because it costs the same number of miles to redeem CGK-SIN-LHR as SIN-LHR. Why not have an extra First class flight for the same number of miles?
After flying both flights, I'm glad to have made this decision!

Before flight: Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport

In eager anticipation for our very first time in First Class, we left our hotel early and made our way to CGK via Gojek.
Singapore Airlines operates flights from CGK Terminal 3, the newest terminal in CGK. It is modern and generally pleasant to be in.

The exclusivity and opulence of the First Class service started here. The check-in agent issued our boarding passes, then got out of her post to escort us through security and through customs. She then gave us directions verbally to the Plaza Premium Lounge and bid farewell to us.

The Plaza Premium Lounge is a third party lounge that can also be accessed via Priority Pass and other credit cards. However, Singapore Airlines has their own vast section of the Plaza Premium Lounge, presumably due to the big number of flights operating daily from CGK (6 at that point in time, to become 8 soon).
The lounge has a calming tranquil design that made good use of sunlight.

There is also a children play area, where parents can neglect their children for a couple of hours while having a drink at the bar.

The Singapore Airlines section of the Plaza Premium Lounge is past these sections, where lounge staff will inspect the boarding passes again.
The lounge has plenty of seating and does not get overly crowded.

The Singapore Airlines First Class passengers get to enjoy a lounge within a lounge within a lounge, with a door in the Business class section leading to the exclusive and intimate First Class section.

The food and beverage offerings were adequate but not premium. I observed better food and beverage in the Krisflyer lounges back in Singapore, to be mentioned in the next report.
I took a few nibbles of a few cakes and ordered a beef rendang main course. This was to save precious stomach real estate for the food and beverage offerings in First Class.
The Golden Sparkling tumeric and tamarind drink is tasty.

The beef rendang I ordered was mediocre compared to what I had in Jakarta. Moreover, I suspected that this dish gave me food poisoning the next day, as coconut cream goes bad quickly.

Inflight Experience

We boarded SQ965, operated by 9V-SWU. I did not manage to get pictures as the gate was not friendly for plane photography. The pampering had just begun for us, who were virgins in flying First Class.
I sat on 1F while my wife sat in 1A.

We were then offered a hot towel to freshen ourselves.

The cabin of 4 First Class seats was full that evening.
Despite so, it already felt like a very exclusive experience with such an intimately small cabin.
We had 3 cabin crew to wait on 4 people, and 2 toilets for 4 people.

Having done lots of reading about Singapore Airlines First Class, I ordered Krug for my pre-departure drink.
I was amazed at how pleasant it was to drink, despite not being much of a drinker back in my ordinary life. No wonder people pay top dollar for bottles of these.

The menus were then distributed. A light dinner was to be served on this short 1h 15 minute flight back to Singapore.

The light dinner was served on one tray due to the short flight time. I opted to imbibe in more alcoholic drinks by getting another glass of amazing Krug and a cocktail that I forgot the name of.
The lobster salad was delicious and fresh. The dressing complemented the lobster meat well.

A bread basket was offered and I took 2 slices of garlic bread. Singapore Airlines does have good garlic bread. The reviews on this site and Youtube vlogs are true!
I opted for the Ayam Bakar Bumbu Bali for my main course.
Despite the appealing appearance, the taste was just average.

The dessert of chocolate and banana cake was a delicious way to end the meal. I could have eaten a second one!
The dessert was balanced and not overly sweet. The chocolate and banana flavour worked in harmony rather than cancelling each other out.
I would pay to eat this on the ground!

We landed in Singapore Changi airport uneventfully.
Being First Class passengers, we were ushered to leave the aircraft first. We had a 3 to 5 minute lead compared to the business class passengers and below. Why the extra lead time? We hypothesised that loaded people love their privacy so the 3 to 5 minute lead time allows First Class passengers to enter the terminal and blend in with other passengers.

After leaving the aircraft, we went to the Private Room, where we spent our 14h layover before our flight to London the next afternoon.

The opulence continues the next flight report. Thank you for reading!

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