Once I had boarded & stowed all my stuff, I set about getting some pictures. As I hadn'tdone much long-haul flying as a passenger, I erred on the side of caution & requested an aisle seat. It was a bit annoying as I usually like a window seat for that reason, but the people sitting in my row were nice enough to let me lean over them to snap a few pics.
(The seat layout on the SQ 380 is 3-4-3 on main deck economy- I think it's the same for upper deck as well, though I only got a brief look)
I'd also like to add I really love the seat pockets- not only was there a section for the afore-pictured magazines & safety card, but additional elasticised pockets for iPod, camera, water bottle or whatever else one wants to cram in there. I could fit all the essentials near to hand without having to resort to rummaging in the overhead every 10 minutes.
Another neat feature (sadly forgot to photograph it) was the footrest. I found it a bit awkqard when sleeping, but good when I was awake watching tv,and wanting to take the weight off my feet. I think this might be better than the foot-net that Qantas have, but as I haven't yet tried that I can't be certain.
After take-off, the crew came around with a drinks service. Looking at the menu, I saw they were offering a Singapore Sling. Of course, I had to try it, in honour of my first trip on the SQ A380. I had thought it would be made with a pre-mix, but no, the friendly Singapore Girl mixed it all to order from the drinks cart:
That was really cool, but quite strong, so I also got a lemonade to have with the peanuts.
Next was our meal, which was really tasty. Again with the metal cutlery, which is kind of strange to see after dealing with plastic knives for so long! I ate pretty much everything, and then they gave out some icecream which was small pieces of icecream covered in chocolate. They were really good!
After lunch, most people went to sleep or watched movies, so I took the chance to have a wanfder around and look at the plane. I'm still kicking myself, at the time I felt like I was taking lots of photos but later when I looked at them I realised I didn't have any of the stair case or upper deck. Oh well, next time!
View out of the Right 5 door viewing window. The clouds were really cool, but they also gave us some turbulence. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I found it odd that the seatbelt sign didn't seem to be enforced. An announcement would be made, but after that people still got up and walked around with not really any interference from the crew. (They do things differently I guess!)
The plane nerd in me had to take a picture of this...
Airbus logo on each of the doors.
One for my flight attendant readers:
The door mechanism is a lot different from what we might be used to... although it does have similarities to others in the Airbus family.Just think, it once took a week to make this trip! Now it's under 14 hours.
Getting there...
About an hour and a half before we arrived we also got a supper/dinner. This was chicken with noodles and was really good! Kind of like chicken noodle soup, but without the soup :P
And a few final 'plane geek' photos :)
The Heathrow Express train from Paddington to the airport. It's pretty high-tech, a lot like a plane itself. See the exit-row lighting, and the folding seats near the door which look like crew jumpseats. It even had wi-fi!! Took about 15mins to make the trip, which was well worth 16 pounds. (Hint: If you're crew, show your airline ID, the nice guy at the ticket counter gave me a crew ticket for 8 pounds!!)
The iPod connector on the seatback entertainment console:
The A380 also has AV input for a portable DVD or similar, and also allows you to view content from a USB stick like PDF files and Word documents. If you're not sure about what plane you're flying, or what facilities it has on board, check the airline website or the ever-handy Seat Guru website.
The IFE handset. The reverse side has a keyboard (for seat to seat messaging that hot guy ;) and gaming buttons for the multitude of games such as Mummy Mania and WHo Wants to Be A Millionaire. Hours of fun!
And I found this amusing:
The A380 is so big they give you a map to fiure out where your seat is!!!
Overall, I really enjoyed the flight and the crew were great- nothing was too much trouble. It's true- Singapore is a great way to fly!
Stay tuned for a Singapore Girl pic on the Galley Curtain blog =)
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Great writeup and photos Tray. My only flights on Singapore Airlines that I remember are from Bangkok to Singapore and return. I was and still am very impressed with how superior their service is to any of the other 70 airlines that I've flown over the years.
ReplyDeleteI still have to wonder how so many pax are handled! So far I have heard only good things about Singapore airlines.
ReplyDeleteDid you let the SQ Girls know that you were crew? I guess you'll let us know if you did in your next segment. Really looking forward to more "Geek" photos.
ReplyDeleteWow, what a fabulous report. Thank you so much. The pictures were great. And wow, looking at the food pics made me hungry so I'm off to eat breakfast now. Hehehehehe
ReplyDeleteThanks for narrating your experience & sharing nice pictures. one can get travel ideas, views of different people from here to make his travel unforgetable
ReplyDelete