First Class: Good, But Not Great.
Two uneventful flights … the best kind … both landing ahead of schedule. Hawaiian Airlines from Maui to San Francisco; American from there to Chicago.
The Hawaiian plane had the flight information displayed on the screen in the first class section for the entire time and I always find it interesting. In particular, we had a tailwind for the first half of the trip that fluctuated between 61 and 8 miles per hour, and at one point, our ground speed was 600 mph. Whee! Then, a couple of hours before landing in San Francisco, we had a 12 mph headwind. I don’t know why, but that kind of surprised me.
A few days ago, I posted that for 37,500 Aadvantage miles, American booked me in first class all the way from Maui to Chicago and that seemed like a great deal. And flying in first class with the extra leg room and the wider, more comfortable seats does make a big difference, especially on a five-hour flight. Makes you wonder: Wouldn’t there be room in the panoply of airlines for someone to configure their planes–the entire plane, front to back–with wider, more comfortable seats and extra legroom … then charge 20-30 percent above the normal economy fare? In other words, the whole plane would be “comfort class”, or whatever the airlines are now calling their step-up-from-coach class. I dunno … makes sense to me.
The contrast between the two flights was quite apparent, even allowing for the fact that the Hawaiian Airlines flight left Maui at 3:00 p.m. and the American flight to Chicago was a red-eye, departing San Francisco at midnight. On Hawaiian, I got a glass of champagne before we took off and a reasonably nice dinner en route. On the American flight, I got a small dish of mixed nuts and a glass of ginger ale (I had to ask for a refill). Yes, yes … I know: it was a red-eye. Still … nothing in the way of a simple breakfast? A couple of pastries and coffee prior to our 6:00 a.m. arrival? Really? In first-class??
And my final grumble for the day: checking in at the Maui Airport, I was not required to take my laptop out of my small carry-on suitcase; in San Francisco, I was. So why can’t the TSA be consistent with their security procedures? Or is inconsistency, in fact, a security procedure?
Ironically, the U.S. trunk carriers attempted Business Class (B) in days after de-regulation (by folding down middle Y seat); quickly gave up save for the transcons.
To realize the abject failure of U.S. carriers overseas, I offer my favorite as evidence–Lufthansa. The very best B and F classes over the Atlantic! But even more so, their combined F/B Class on intra-European flights is fantastic. On a mere 40 minute flight between Frankfurt-Geneva or Frankfurt-Prague, one receives a full cocktail, wine, and meal service, or, full hot breakfast-typically better than in the U.S., other than on the transcons. Indeed, my daughter is en route tonight back home to Spain–on Lufthansa.
As an old English teacher of mine occasionally scribbled on some of my weaker creative efforts, “It is to weep!” Wouldn’t you think, since as we are often told, this is the greatest country in the world, we could do a little better at this kind of stuff??
Indeed, you are quite correct. However, our culture and ethics have changed in parallel to our service standards and expectations. We are a society today with an incongruent mindset–we want the highest salary and best benefits; yet, we shop at Wal-Mart, the largest importer from China. So much for supporting American industry and jobs for about 20% more cost. Our mindset is now focused on the lowest cost denominator, and to hell with quality or service. We have closets full of shoes and clothes, but no books in our homes.
Accordingly, to fill this pathetic vacuum, that is why Lufthansa and VIA Rail Canada stand-out so resolutely!