VS004 JFK-LHR 16 DEC 12 (Premium Economy)

This is a Trip Report from the Premium Economy cabin

Ground Staff

Food & Drink

Entertainment

Seat

Cabin Crew

Due to time constraints the following morning we opted to take VS004 (I usually take the VS002 but this lands too late for Mrs H to get to work).

OLCI on Saturday evening was conducted from Morton's Steak House using a friends cell phone we only managed SEQ 20+21.

Following a enjoyable weekend in NYC we checked out of our 7th Avenue Hotel at midday and crossed the street to Penn Station for our journey to JFK a simple enough journey on the Long Island Railway to Jamaica for a change to the JFK air Train but having never used JFK before I wanted to ensure we had plenty of time. We arrived at JFK around 1300 way before check in had opened but as we had printed our boarding passes at the Hotel and had no baggage to drop we went straight through to security which took longer to get through than our journey from Penn Station (there was only one metal detector in use and I think the whole Air India flight was in front of us but we had plenty of time to spare).

Once through security we had a quick look around the Terminal which is pretty small so we headed upstairs to the Clubhouse to use our new found AU membership, both Mrs H and I really liked the JFK CH, we took a pair of lazy chairs in the far corner under the Spa and watched the world go by outside whilst enjoying a couple of Mojitos.
With the flight being relatively short we decided to dine in the CH rather than during the flight to try and get as much sleep as possible (this worked out far better for Mrs H than I),
Mrs H had the Bubble and Squeak starter followed by a very impressive looking Chicken and Leek Pie and the Kitchen Table desert, I opted for the Parsnip Soup, Malayan Prawn Noodle Curry and the Baked Apple desert with Ice Cream, we both enjoyed every mouthful
all the CH staff were fantastic Mrs H also had a Head Massage from the Spa.

Boarding from the CH was announced at 1740 so we made our to gate A4 which is very close indeed, we took our seats 24 H+K as we settled in we were recognized by a member of Crew who had been on our flight to LAS the previous month (also a V_Flyer) and had a quick chat before an on time 1800 pushback.
After we pushed back we were advised that due to our short flight time and landing restrictions at LHR we would take a long taxi before take off, in doing so we lost sufficient time but then were told we were now in a que for take off that was 35 - 40 minutes long (should have used the restroom when I had the chance before sitting down).

Once airborne the friendly Crew came around with Hot Towels after which Mrs H nodded off for pretty much the entire flight, I passed on dinner although it did smell good but decided to have some red wine La Fontain Shiraz I believe, quite enjoyable.
I managed to catch a little sleep after the duty free shopping round as I had pre ordered some cigarettes for one of my colleagues.
We opted out of breakfast as we were planning to use the Revivals Lounge at LHR but in the end just going straight home.
As we landed 30 minutes later than scheduled the immigration hall was quite busy and to my dismay IRIS was not in use , when asked why I was told that it is inefficient! it always seemed pretty efficient to me so we had to use the Biometric Passport line (which I think is very slow in comparison to IRIS).

This was my first time on a A333 and found the overall experience very good the plane was nice and quiet.
The crew were great, it’s nice to see a familiar face and meet another V_Flyer
The PE cabin was comfortable and Vera Touch worked well. I didn’t get to check out the UC cabin as we used L2 both times.

My rating of the ground staff and food are based on my experience in the CH as we didn't check in or drop any bags at JFK or eat on the plane.

I look forward to another flight like this one soon.

[buns]

Thanks for the TR

A nice feeling being able to use the Clubhouse when flying PE isn't it

Coming back from NYC with no luggage Could not imagine it

Thanks once again

buns

Thanks for the TR That really was a weekend trip to NYC!! Hope it was as awesome as I remember it at Christmas
Sounds like a great experience in the CH and on the flight - I hope returning to work wasn't too bad

Thanks for the TR

A nice feeling being able to use the Clubhouse when flying PE isn't it

Coming back from NYC with no luggage Could not imagine it

Thanks once again

buns

You're right it was great being able to use the CH for a PE flight, we're looking forward to doing it again for our next trip in March

We brought a few little gifts for family but all the big shops were crazy, we (Mrs H) will do some real shopping another time

Thanks for the TR That really was a weekend trip to NYC!! Hope it was as awesome as I remember it at Christmas
Sounds like a great experience in the CH and on the flight - I hope returning to work wasn't too bad

It certainly was a flying visit, but great fun. Having never been to NYC at this time of year it was great to see all the window displays, the Tree at the Rockefeller, the Radio City Hall Christmas Extravaganza, we even got to experience Santacon.

The JFK CH was great all the staff were very helpful and the food was awesome .

The return to work wasn't too bad for me but Mrs H ended up working from 1200-2200, nothing a good sleep didn't fix last night though .