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MARCH 2019 businesstraveller.comINBOX YOUR COMMENTS
➜ SWISSDIVER
I hate A330s as much as
I love the upper deck on
B747s. So I think you are
very fortunate and hope
you will love your trip.➜ GIVINGUPBA
My favourite aircraft are- A380; 2. A350; 3. B747
(upper deck if possible); 4. DC-10.
I haven’t flown on the B787 so can’t
comment. I have a soft spot for
two more – the B707 and
Russian IL-62 (not for
comfort though!). And, of
course, Concorde
(enormous fun and a great
experience, although not
very comfortable).
➜ WINDOW-SEAT
When booking flights to places like New
York there is such a choice of metal that
I sometimes decide by aircraft type as
well as departure time. I have a soft spot
for a BA B747 upstairs or seat 1A/K.
Space on an A380 is also nice.➜ MARTYNSINCLAIR
My only interest is the seat and the real
estate around the seat (long haul is
business and BA). I will avoid the B777
like the plague. I did Hong Kong once in
a B777, but when you have the choice of
more real estate on another aircraft the
choice is easy to make.➜ CANUCKLAD
How travel has evolved in a relatively
short period of time. As a child, I vividly
remember feeling like the bee’s knees
the first time I travelled in first class. It
was on a CP DC-8 over the Pole. Huge
comfy seats in a 2-2 configuration with
tables in the armrest. Brilliant food and
in-flight service. And many years later,
my, how I was wowed by Air Canada’s
Executive Class cabin and the service
on board, which by comparison wasFAVOURITE AIRCRAFT
POST: BULLFROG
We would all probably agree that our
preference is to fly as comfortably as
possible – ie, first or business class.
However, I’m heading to Barbados
shortly with Virgin Atlantic (and
delighted to be flying Upper Class) but
the real buzz for me seems to be that I’m
booked on the B747, rather than an A330.
I wondered whether I’m the only “nutter”,
or do others share my thoughts?➜ CAPETONIANM
I completely agree with you and
although aircraft type isn’t my first
criterion, it is certainly one of the main
ones and more important than food or
IFE. My favourite for long haul is the
A340 and my last and next few flights
between Cape Town and Europe are on
Austrian Airlines and Swiss/Edelweiss
using that aircraft, on daylight services,
which is another big plus for me.➜ ALANRED13
My first long-haul flights were on B747s.
When I went on an A330 I was surprised
by how much quieter it was than the B747.
However, I did like the Club seat upstairs
on the B747, rear of the cabin and port
side (64A). The floor area was eight-feet
long plus side storage, really spacious and
private. The only downside was that it was
the seat with the bassinet, so if there was
a booking with a baby you’d get bounced.➜ FRUSTRATEDFLYER
I am a fan of the upper deck of the B747
(64K) on BA. The refurbished ones with
the new IFE are fine (I flew one last week
from New York JFK), but the ones they
are pensioning off in the next couple of
years have seen better days. I like the
A380 but it is huge and the luggage wait
can sometimes put a downer on the trip.truly a different world. Yet
if British Airways was to
plonk that proposition into,
not First, not Club World,
but its premium economy
cabins, I’d bet there would
be quite a few keyboards
hot with disgust.
Now, my anoraky answers.
I’ll stick to long haul “Y”
[economy] nowadays.- Emirates’ front cabin on the
A380; 2. Cathay Pacific’s
A350. Historically, B747s are
definitely my all-time favourite;
VC10s a close second; back cabin
of DC8-63s. As GivingupBA
mentioned, the DC10 was also a
favourite despite its bad reputation.
➜ POINTYMARK
Aircraft type is key to my booking plans.
I love to be on an A380, for the space,
(including larger washrooms and the
onboard lounge on Qatar Airways) and
the smooth and quiet flight. It also
benefits from 6,000ft cabin pressure by
way of the composites used in
construction. The A350 also has this
cabin pressure and larger windows
owing to composites. But my favourite is
the B787 because it ventilates the cabin
with fresh air directly from outside.
Other aircraft cabin air is taken from an
engine bleed, which many argue
contains oil particles, which are bad for
health. Clean air plus 6000ft pressure
(which contains more oxygen and
humidity than 8,000ft aircraft) means I
always feel better when I get off a B787
than when I boarded.Join the debate
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FORUM‘Historically, B747s
are definitely my
all-time favourite;
VC10s a close second’