There are many things that I don't like about living on an Island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Among these things are bad tasting milk, driving at 21mph in a ridiculous car and waiting three days for my dry cleaning. However, one of the things I really do like is the 15 minute journey to the airport, the usually relaxed check-in and sitting outside the terminal building, looking at the ocean before going through security [y]
We had checked in on-line the previous evening and bagged 12B and 12D. We had decided that we both wanted to be in forward facing seats and didn't mind being separated by the aisle. Having left home at 6.15pm, we were sitting in the BA lounge by 6.45pm, waiting for a 20.05 departure. Not bad [8D]
This was my first time in the BA BDA lounge. It really isn't anything to get excited about, but it is preferable to sitting in the main lounge that is a bit dowdy. To gain access to the lounge you have to ring a bell. Thankfully they let us in, deciding we weren't going to lower the tone! As we entered reception there was a small area to the left that was for F pax. There was a small self-service bar with wine, spirits and water. There were also trays of sandwiches, crisps and other snacks. Having been lucky enough to use the VS CH many times in the past, no other lounge comes close to it. I really should except that all other lounges are inferior. Note to self, do not compare other airline lounges to the CH [B)]
We were called before 8pm for the short walk through the departure gate and onto the aircraft. On boarding the aircraft we were directed to our seats and started to settle in. Drinks were offered and we pushed back at 8.15pm. There is no such thing as traffic at BDA so we were airborne at 8.25pm. I dont recall a flight time announcement being made at the time. The seat belt signs were off quickly and the cabin service began. Hot towels and the menu card were handed out, followed by the amenity kit. The amenity kit had Elemis products in it with socks, earplugs, toothbrush and toothpaste. It was certainly better than the UC kit. It looked like BA had at least put some effort into it [y] I was also given a customer satisfaction form to complete by the FSM.
I had a glass of champers pre dinner and settled down to peruse the dinner menu. The menu was as follows:
Starter: Carpaccio of portobello mushrooms
Main: Grilled fillet of beef with maitre d' butter, green beans and crisp roast potatoes.
Mark Edwards' halibut in black bean sauce with bok-choy and egg fried rice.
Arugula ravioli in roast red pepper sauce with grated parmesan cheese.
Goodnight Express: Warm olive bread filled with Turkey, portobello mushrooms, tomatoes and Provolone cheese.
Dessert: Belgian chocolate cheese cake
Mature cheddar and English Stilton cheese with crackers.
I opted for the beef as did MrG. This was good but a little over done for my taste and the roast potatoes werent crisp, this must be virtually impossible to achieve in the air? The chocolate cheese cake was delicious though. This was washed down with a Bianchi Particular Malbec 2004, Mendoza. Overall the food was tasty and the presentation was good. I wasn't offered any water with dinner so had to ask. I finished off with a peppermint tea and completed the customer satisfaction form being bedding down for the evening.
The 777 that serves this route has four separate cabins F, J, WT+ and WT. This aircraft was not fitted with the NCW seats but I found the old CW seats comfortable enough. The foot stool requires a little patience to raise as you have to do this manually. My next door neighbour had chosen to pull the fan across between us early on in the flight and this afforded a reasonable degree of privacy. I managed to doze for a couple of hours but not really sleep. There was no pax in the middle seats in row 11 so I didnt have some one attempting the high jump over my legs throughout the flight[y]
Breakfast was served around an hour before landing and it was very good. I had a large bowl of fruit, a croissant and a fruit smoothie that was a nice touch. Bacon rolls were offered but I declined.
I must apologise as I forgot to note the landing time but I think it was around 6.15am. We waited less than 10 minutes for our luggage and immigration was empty, all fairly impressive stuff.
So, TR wise this flight was fairly dull but I thought in the interests of comparision it was worth posting.
BA old CW wins for me over a couple of areas. Firstly food. The quality and presentation was much better than any food I have had in UC this year.
Secondly the CC. They were highly efficient in their duties and appeared customer focused. The FSM was very visible throughout the flight and helped with the Dinner and Breakfast service.
The CW seat is not as comfortable as the UCS and has less privacy. Unlike the UCS you have to be in upright mode for take off and landing and there appeared to be less storage than in the UCS.
So, am I a BA convert now? [:0] Not quite.[;)] With BA you know that they will get you from A to B and that the cabin service is usually going to be as advertised and nothing more. I dont look forward to flying BA as much as I do VS. I didnt realise how used I got to a VS CH, an in flight bar and massage.
If VS could improve on the quality of their in flight food and CC service, it would be no competiton.
Assuming VS can produce some decent UC fares for my trips next year then they will still get my vote and I may have some chance of holding on to my Au card![:D]
