A few weeks ago Singapore Airlines and Airbus made headlines with the inaugural flight of their A380 Superliner. I read the stories, including the first-hand accounts of some of the First Class passengers, and was duly impressed. I thought it strange that people were paying tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege of riding on the maiden voyage, but as long as I did not have to pay it I figure live and let live.
When I found out in November that I would be traveling to Asia for my new tour I was excited, but not because of the airplane I was to fly. Frankly at the time I did not even know what airline it would be, but assumed that I would likely fly a 747-400 to Hong Kong and from China. The last time I was on one of those it was at the El Al facilities in Lod, Israel – a friend gave me a tour and showed off their new airplanes. Honestly though I am certain I flew 747s as a child, I cannot remember the experience, so I supposed it would have been nice.
Of course I was wrong, and when I got my flight information it turned out that I would be flying Air Canada's new Boeing 777-200 direct to Hong Kong, as well as within Asia. My return flight will be with Air France, from Mumbai to Paris on a 777-300, and across the pond in an Airbus A340.
I suppose I was curious about the prospect of flying in a brand new airplane (they joined the Air Canada fleet in April of this year, and this plane came in August), but honestly how different could it be from every other plane I have flown in this year? The only true up side was that I would be flying the entire trip in Business Class, a relief that those of you aware of my size will understand.
For effect I will describe my day from the beginning; it will highlight the peaks and valleys better.
Jacob (my three month old puppy) seems to have sensed for the past day or so that I was going away; he was overly playful and interactive last night, but when it was time for bed there was no biting, barking, or gnawing… he did not crawl over my face and rush over to Theresa (as has been the norm of late), but rather got onto the bed, made a bee-line for me, nuzzled into my neck and went to sleep, where he spent the night. In the morning he went out to do his business without even a consideration of the dining room floor, and came right back to me. When it came time to put him into his kennel he looked at me with those puppy dog eyes… and curled up to watch me go.
The trip to the airport was a harrowing experience, to say the least. I had planned to take Theresa and Aaron out for breakfast before heading to Pearson, but the weather was uncooperative. The drive to the airport was not a zip down a comfortable six lane divided highway at 120km/h, but rather a 60km/h trek along a road covered by three inches of unplowed snow. It was all any of us could do to stay in single-file lest we accidentally run off the road – a fate that befell several of my fellow early-morning travelers. We skipped breakfast because the forecast had the snow turning to ice, and Theresa wanted to get home before that had too much of an impact on the driving conditions.
Aaron was his usual nine-year-old self; during the hour long trek he shifted several times from singing to making silly comments to asking questions, combining the ones that he was genuinely curious about with a healthy dose of the ones he asks to demonstrate that he already knows something. (Isn't Hong Kong part of China, even though it used to belong to England?) Normally these would have grated on me as they did on his mother, but knowing that I was leaving for nearly three weeks I indulged his questions one and all.
It has become difficult to say good-bye to Theresa when I am leaving for a few days, so knowing that we would be apart for so long made it an especially tough parting. Despite the weather she got out of the car to help me with my luggage, and when we embraced neither of us wanted to let go. But we had to, and just like that they were gone.
The procedures at the airport were routine, and I sat in the Maple Leaf Lounge to write a few e-mails as well as writing the blog article entitled How Many Miles…' I went into a panic when I realized that I had for the first time ever forgotten my BitLocker key at home, and was relieved that I had had the sense to store my recovery code on one of my portable hard disks. I will follow up with an article about that experience later. When they called my flight I sauntered down, bought a Chap Stick (my lips have been parched for the last two days) and walked to the gate.
I was in no rush because I knew that from the moment I boarded the plane it would be a very long time before I deplaned, and no matter how comfortable they try to make it they cannot change the fact that I am trapped for the duration. I strolled down the corridor to the plane, and was not surprised when I was met halfway down by an agent asking me which section I was in. When I told her Business Class she pointed me toward the front of the plane. I did not think this unusual, as many planes have separate entrances for the front and for the rear.
And then I stepped onto the airplane.
More often than not I am a blasé flier. What greeted me as I stepped into the front section was a complete surprise, and it was hard to contain myself. Each traveler in the section basically has his own pod – there aren't walls per se, but the seats are divided so that each person is basically segregated into his own little area. Each pod is angled so my back is at a 30 degree angle from the window, and instead of looking at the back of the seat in front of me I am angled into the aisle.
The seat is hard to describe, and impossible to do justice. In the upright position I have a padded footrest at the end of the pod so that I can put my feet up and relax. However you will not be seated upright for long and the seat has six controls to adjust four settings, plus of course the lumbar massage. The seat will accommodate any position, from fully upright to fully prone – yes, it folds down into a rather comfortable bed!
In the car this morning one of Aaron's comments was 'Wouldn't it be good if they were to put the First Class Lounge into the plane?' Well, in truth they did, but then improved upon it. My tray table folds out, but rather than having to put it away when I get up it will angle out to 90 degrees so that I can easily escape. I have my own entertainment unit with dozens of movies (I watched No Reservations from take-off… I had enjoyed the trailer but missed it in the theatre. I started to watch the latest Pirates of the Caribbean, but got bored), TV shows, and music available on demand. Though I am partial to my own, each seat has a set of noise-reducing headphones, and the flight attendants came around before take-off to distribute pads for them – likely much more economical than the old system of giving a new disposable set to every passenger.
Lunch was magnificent. I chose the Smoked Salmon Mille Feuille as an appetizer, then the Beef Tenderloin with black pepper sauce, gailan, buttered carrots, and jasmine rice. I know one is supposed to drink red wine with red meat but I could not resist the La Fornarina Pinot Grigio and besides, I always prefer white to red. Following the main course (which was worthy of any fine restaurant) they came around with a selection of fine cheeses and porto, followed by a selection of ice creams – pistachio, green tea and mango are definitely too good to pass up.
I am like a kid in a candy store, and it is all I can do to remember that during this flight I have work to do, and if I do not get at least a few hours of sleep I will be a wreck in Hong Kong. So I will close my eyes for a few minutes before editing my article on Exclaimer, and then reviewing my slide decks for the week.
I should mention that I took a look in the rear of the plane, and while they are not enjoying the same hot lunch and pod seats that we have, it does look more comfortable that the planes that I am used to. I am glad that I am flying up front, but the Economy Section looks very livable as well. Unfortunately they have to pay for their wine and port ;)