AY A350 HEL to HKG

Another week, another flight out from blighty to HKG, this time my erstwhile TMC, Tim gave me 2 well priced options. EK out of BHX which is a normal one for me but this time on the new A380 service or AY’s brand new 350…decision decisions. I am a big fan of EK’s 380 seats and service converting over from QR as my Me3 carrier of choice since QR decided being in OW meant charging OW prices. However, I have never flown in the A350 so at similar pricing I decided to give it a go, that and it lands at 2.30 in the afternoon so I can be in a car across the border to the mainland and propping up the bar by 7pm where as Ek get in around 9pm so meaning a night stay in HK`
LHR to HEL, there are enough reviews around on this leg so no need to add to it except to say the BA lounge was enjoyable and had some very nice belly pork in some apple Jus stuff on offer, was good enough for a second helping
HEL, I will say it now, I like HEL and always have. Since my last flight here about 18 months ago it has changed, much better F&B facilities, more shops if you like that sort of thing and a new lounge, or at least a remodeled one. I had a 2.5-hour layover so plenty of time to explore this small but relaxing terminal. At 9.30 at night it is a ghost town with from what I could see just 2 flights due out, mine to HKG and a later SNG one. I am fairly sure if I wanted to play hide and seek only the CCTV would see me. After a quick smoke I wandered into the Finnair lounge. Its bright, airy, comfortable seating and there were only about 6 other passengers in there from I would guess a capacity of 80. Unfortunately, the lack of customers meant that AY must then have economized on the food as all that was on offer were some jacket potatoes that were dried out and a soup that was tepid at best. So, no food for me which was disappointing. There was a good drink selection, too good in some ways! Help yourself beer on draft is nice, but only if you actually know how to pour a pint which judging from the mess around the taps most customers do not. Having a wee establishment myself I do know how to pull one, but even for me it was a gentle affair as the flows were not set correctly. And wine should never be on tap either
Boarding came around quickly after catching up on my mail and was a controlled smooth affair. So let’s see what the A350 is like. In décor I would say underwhelming, all white and grey tones. Reading the in-flight article, I understand this is to that the fancy LED lighting system that can show the 10 million or so tones in the spectrum they have for mood lighting. This does work, however its more of a gimmick than any comfort aid as, let’s face it, not sure about you but tend to sleep on an overnight flight with my eyes closed, and sleep I did! The seats all have isle access angled approx. 30 degrees towards the bulkhead. It is a true lie flat and comfortable without the hard edges where the seat changes that you find on some similar ones, maybe they will develop over time. Bose headphones are provided so I saved the battery power on mine and the IFE is sharp quality android based system, quick and responsive if a little lacking in content for the frequent flyer. Storage space is a little tight and I can imagine on a full flight there will be issues as there are no overheads in the middle and the seats only have a small side bin and area under the foot cushion.
Despite the small niggles that may be of personal choice I have to say the A350 is the quietest aircraft I have ever flown in, I have heard more road notice driving some cars that inside the cabin. If quietness is your thing you will love, it. The down side is you can hear every single burp, fart, cough and snore from your fellow travelers!
Service was good, I would not say exceptional but was much improved on this flight compared to the last AY I took. This I would give a KLM level, the previous was China southern level. I can see they have put more training into the predominately Asia crew. Food, perfectly ok, nothing special and perfectly edible as you expect from a European flag carrier.

Would I recommend, yes at the price point they had which was just under 2K.

EK or Finnair next time? I do like the departure time and arrival of AY, meaning I can get a mornings work done in UK and be at my place in china to sleep and get into the office at 8am the next day. So if the prices were the same I would choose the AY for convenience…unless of course the return next week is a disaster!

My recollection of Finnair from a few years ago, were bright cabin lights being kept on during a very slow dinner service on night flights. I also remember delicious food.

Have things changed?

@John, I presume that as the technology is advancing so quickly, the next new aircraft will probably make the 350 look inferior…

BTW, what will the next new aircraft launch be??

Snoring is becoming a real issue. Just done a couple of trips on BA 787 and the lack of engine noise meant the snorers got to keep the whole cabin awake. I think CC need to be charged with prodding snorers for the sake of the rest!!

Not flown on A350 yet, but 787 felt very plasticky (-8 more than -9) though not sure they are materially different. Interior was a bit underwhelming. Especially as BA haven’t opted for a high ceiling entry way and the CW cattle pens block out the additional light from the larger windows.

I have flown the 787 just the once (BA club from India) and was impressed with how quiet it was. Other than that I was pretty underwhelmed too. I look forward to trying the A350 sometime in the future (nothing booked) but am now rather worried. MrsM assures me I do snore and somewhat loudly at that. Perhaps the answer is for the aircraft to carry some of the anti snoring nose thingamebobs. Crew can then give the snorers a good prod and insist they insert them……so to speak!

I was booked on the Finnair BKK/HEL last month and on checking in at 06.30 was told that the flight had been rescheduled for 03.30 the following morning, fortunatly I managed to get on a very tired old BA 777 after jumping up and down. Have flown on the Finnair,Qatar and SIA 350’s and Singapore’s is just fabulous, BA take note for when you get yours.

MartynSinclair
So it’s not just me that gets bothered by the endless discussion on last trips, rosters, allowances and rest periods. I’m now an expert on all of these, with zero desire to be such! Not that my water-cooler conversations are any more interesting but I don’t generally expect others to pay to listen to them or keep them awake in the process!
RFerguson/Handbag – what are we to do to make it stop?