Dragonair A330-300 Business class
Published: 14/01/2010 - Filed under: Tried & Tested » Airlines » Tried & Tested » Tried & Tested » Airlines » Dragonair »
BACKGROUND Dragonair alternates its A320s, A321 and A330s on this route so seating configuration can vary. Dragonair flies the Hong Kong-Taipei route four times daily. The route is also served by China Airways, Eva Air and Cathay Pacific as well as Thai Airways.
CHECK-IN I checked in online and chose seat 18K – a window seat in the last row of business class. Dragonair has a bag-drop counter for internet check-in at Hong Kong International Airport. I picked up my boarding pass and lounge invitation and headed through immigration.
THE LOUNGE I arrived at the airport earlier than expected so I took off for the lounge for some breakfast before the 0815 flight. While it’s possible to use sister airline Cathay Pacific’s lounges, The Pier or The Wing, the Dragonair lounge, one floor up from departures and near Gate 16, is usually the best located for this flight. Aside from the usual selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and cold snacks, there was a noodles stall doing brisk business and another stall offering bacon and boiled eggs for those that wanted a hot breakfast. One of the advantages of this lounge is that it is open, so if you sit along the edge of the lounge you can peer over and watch your gate from your seat. I had a great view of boarding queues at Gate 19 and so was easily able to judge the time I needed to leave the lounge.
BOARDING The flight was called at 0745 and I sauntered down. The flight was boarded by rows for Economy and there was a separate queue for Business class and the upper tiers of Oneworld’s frequent-flyer classes. I was shown to my seat and offered a choice of water or fruit juice. Breakfast menus and Taiwan landing forms were given out. We took to the air at 0837, 22 minutes late.
WHAT SEAT TO CHOOSE This variation of A330 is a Type 2 model with 42 Business class seats and 273 Economy class seats. On this type, 18K is a window seat at the back of the business class cabin next to the galley. The cabin configuration is 2-2-2. Business class seats on this aircraft are in rows 10-18. There are no rows 13 or 14. The new Business class seats are quite an improvement with better seat and leg rest controls. There are some other nice touches such as the tray table having an integrated book holder and a cocktail table in the front of the inner arm rest. The seats also have in-seat power supply, video monitor in the inner arm of the seat, a personal reading light and the chair even has a massage function.
You can see the seatplan for this aircraft here.
FOOD AND DRINK Breakfast was a fresh fruit platter followed by a choice of omelette, sausage and bacon or stir-fried spaghetti with chicken and Chinese dim sum. There’s also a bread basket and a good choice of teas, coffee and fruit juices.
ARRIVAL By the time breakfast service was complete it was almost time to touch down. We made up some time but were still about five minutes behind schedule when we landed at Taiwain Taoyuan International Airport.
VERDICT Good service and competitive pricing but Dragonair’s timekeeping is often a problem.
PRICING A return Business Class flight between Hong Kong and Taipei costs HK$4,340 (US$560).
CONTACT dragonair.com
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