• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
  • Advertising Disclosure
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
  • Advertising Disclosure
Home  >  Copa • Flight Reviews  >  Review: Copa Airlines 737 MAX Business Class
CopaFlight Reviews

Review: Copa Airlines 737 MAX Business Class

Matthew Klint Posted onOctober 11, 2021October 11, 2021 10 Comments

My journey from Panama City to Los Angeles onboard a Copa Airlines 737 MAX in business class represents a big step forward for the Panamanian carrier. A lie-flat bed in business class and upgraded soft products make Copa far more competitive than it ever has been.

In This Post:
  • Copa Airlines 737 MAX Business Class Review
    • Transit In PTY
    • Seats
    • Dirty Cabin
    • IFE + Wi-Fi
    • Meals + Drinks
    • Service
    • Amenity Kit
    • Lavatory
  • CONCLUSION

Copa Airlines 737 MAX Business Class Review

I booked my one-way ticket from Guatemala City – Panama City – Los Angeles for $327, which I thought was ridiculously expensive considering nonstop flights were half the price, but allowed me to use my United Airlines Plus Points to upgrade the PTY-LAX flight.

I requested the upgrade here on United’s website, and it confirmed immediately, deducting 40 PlusPoints from my MileagePlus account. However, it took Copa three days to re-issue the ticket. In fact, Copa proactively did nothing. I knew the reservation and ticket were out of sync and called Copa to re-issue three days before my flight. The agent said it would be done within 24 hours. It wasn’t. I called again 24 hours before and the agent told me not to worry and it would be done soon. It wasn’t. Finally, four hours before my flight I called and insisted I wait on hold while the ticket was re-issued. It finally was, allowing me to check-in online.

Lesson learned: hound Copa until your ticket is re-issued.

Transit In PTY

Panama City is such an easy airport to transit it. My scheduled layover was only 63 minutes and while I knew I would easily make the flight, I was not sure if I would be able to be first onboard to secure pictures of Copa’s new business class.

But my flight from Guatemala City arrived early and I my connection to Los Angeles was only a short walk away. In PTY, you clear security at the gate, so I had to go through security once more and even remove my shoes since this was a USA-bound flight.

I skipped the lounge, but would have had access to the Copa lounge (which is really nothing special).

About 50 minutes before scheduled departure, boarding began (even though my boarding pass said boarding would begin one hour prior to departure).

Copa Airlines (CM) 302
Panama City (PTY) – Los Angeles (LAX)
Wednesday, August 11
Depart: 6:35PM
Arrive: 11:27PM
Duration: 6hr, 52min
Aircraft: Boeing 737 MAX 9
Seat: 3A (Business Class)

I was stopped from entering the aircraft on the jet bridge because there were two mechanics onboard fixing a business class seat. Finally, I was given the green light to board and immediately impressed by the new cabin.

Seats

Copa’s chosen seats for its “Dreams” business class cabin are not unique – the B/E Diamond can be found on American, Delta, and United as well as many carriers outside the USA. But the 2-2 cabin of 16 seats really makes a difference on a flight scheduled for nearly seven hours. Seats are 21 inches wide, recline 180º, and seat pitch is 60 inches.

I was more impressed by the “Dreams” branded bedding, including a plush pillow and blanket that helped me to take a nice nap after the meal service. The personal air nozzles also helped.

Seats controls were located in the center console, power ports on the other side of the seat, and foot space was quite narrow.

Dirty Cabin

While the cabin initially appeared clean and fresh, it was not carefully cleaned. I found trash in the small storage compartment below the in-flight-entertainment screen.

I also found a generous buildup of crumbs in the seam of my seat when I placed it into lie-flat mode.

Frankly, this seem to be an issue across multiple airlines and I did not bother to report it. But there is no excuse for it.

IFE + Wi-Fi

Despite the brand new aircraft, wi-fi internet as not available. There is a wi-fi network called Copa Showpass that offers streaming videos and music, but no internet connectivity.

Meanwhile, the built-in IFE system is very easy to use and responsive, with movies, TV shows, music, games, moving maps, connecting gate information, and even the Copa magazine. The only thing missing was the selection: less than 30 movies were available, none of which I wanted to watch or had not already seen.

IFE could be controlled by touching the screen directly or via a handset.

Noise-cancelling headphones were provided and worked well.

The lack of movie selection or TV show selection gave me a perfect excuse to take a long nap.

Meals + Drinks

Just a week before my flight, COPA finally brought back a modified meal service to flights over three hours. Real glasses, ceramic plates, and reusable cutlery were back, and that itself makes a huge difference.

Meal service began with a choice of beverage and packaged almonds. I ordered a glass of red wine and sparkling water. The wine bottle was not shown and I could not tell you what kind of red wine it was other than dry and acceptable.

Every business class passenger was also provided a bottle of water.

Main course choices were chicken or beef…no menus were provided and the flight attendant did not go into detail about the two choices. I chose beef, which turned out to be a beef stew served with saffron and green beans. On the side was asiago cheese crackers with an artichoke cream dip, a green salad, and a dessert of yellow cake with cream and chocolate icing. The meal was served with every course covered.

I concluded dinner with coffee, which was strong and somehow did not inhibit my sleep. I asked about decaffeinated coffee and was told it was not available (no espresso either).

Service

Service was lovely and attentive for the first portion of the flight. Drinks were refilled and the meal service was prompt. Passengers were not addressed by name, but the flight attendant smiled and seemed to like her job.

After the meal service, I nodded off to sleep, but woke up several times over the next few hours. I noticed the front galley was empty. Passengers were not proactively asked if they wanted anything more to drink, despite the long duration of the flight.

While the flight attendant call button was available, I would not call the service proactive.

Amenity Kit

Copa offers amenity kits to business class on flights over six hours. The bag included a stylized Copa logo on the bag itself (or was that a Union Jack?), on a tag, and on the zipper chain.

Contents included:

  • socks
  • eye shade
  • mouthwash
  • toothbrush
  • toothpaste
  • lip balm
  • hand lotion
  • info card on 737 MAX

I liked the socks!

Lavatory

The lavatory includes the latest generation Boeing narrobody sink, which is too small and causes splashing (hence the instructions to clean up after yourself). In addition to hand soap, hand lotion and facial mist were available.

CONCLUSION

I give Copa mixed marks. The seat marks a huge improvement over its 737-800 business class seat. Compared to Avianca, Copa also offers a far superior soft product on longer flights. But I didn’t like the dirty cabin or the lack IFE selection or internet. While that’s tolerable for a late-evening or overnight flight, it would be much harder to endure for daytime flights.

I won’t go out of my way to fly Copa again, but I would be happy to fly Copa again (as long as the flight is over three hours).

Previous Article Cowardly Captain Throws Man Off Flight Over Fear Of His Medical Equipment
Next Article Is Southwest Operational Meltdown Due To Looming Loss Of Accrued Sick Days For Those Who Refuse Vaccination?

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

  • Avianca 787-8 Business Class Review

    Review: Avianca 787-8 Business Class

    March 20, 2023
  • Gulf Air 787-9 Business Class Review

    Review: Gulf Air 787-9 Business Class

    March 18, 2023
  • Gulf Air A320-200 Business Class Review

    Review: Gulf Air A320-200 Business Class

    March 16, 2023

10 Comments

  1. Aaron Reply
    October 11, 2021 at 2:07 pm

    No pre-arrival meal or snack?

    Also you had saffron rice, not saffron…

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      October 11, 2021 at 4:25 pm

      Correct! Thanks. And no pre-arrival meal. Not even a beverage.

    • Jorge Paez Reply
      October 11, 2021 at 5:32 pm

      I was wondering about that! Sort of related, growing up in Laredo, Texas in the 1960’s there was a local rock band named Saffron Mist. I was wondering if the mist in the lavatory was such…..

  2. John Reply
    October 11, 2021 at 2:12 pm

    Great reviews as always! This really has become my favorite travel blog as not many of the other bloggers have consistently traveled internationally and reviewed different and hotels and you’ve definitely inspired me to go to Belgrade soon!

  3. hbilbao Reply
    October 11, 2021 at 8:22 pm

    I can’t believe they keep serving the exact same food for years and years… That yellow rice with beef should be Copa’s logo (no compliment intended).

  4. Kelly Loeffler Reply
    October 11, 2021 at 9:39 pm

    So incredibly sad people like you are traveling pointlessly during a freaking pandemic… shows what kind of people we are surrounded by!

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      October 11, 2021 at 9:39 pm

      Running again Kelly?

  5. emercycrite Reply
    October 11, 2021 at 11:58 pm

    The socks are great.

  6. Ksa63 Reply
    October 12, 2021 at 5:21 am

    I see that lavatory sign on virtually every plane I fly. Its not 737 specific.

  7. Jef Reply
    October 12, 2021 at 11:58 pm

    It has been
    My experience that after the meal service is served, except for cleaning up nothing else is offered. No refills on water or any beverages at all and little to no contact with the FA’s. And this was pre-pandamic.

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Recent Posts

  • Avianca 787-8 Business Class Review
    Review: Avianca 787-8 Business Class March 20, 2023
  • Color Blind Pilot Sues United Airlines For Firing Him March 20, 2023
  • Ryanair Twitter
    Ryanair Savagely Trolls Passenger On Twitter March 20, 2023
  • hyatt all-inclusive hyatt zilara rose hall
    Hyatt Acquisition Provides Hints About All-Inclusive Future March 19, 2023

Categories

Popular Posts

  • American Airlines unaccompanied Minor Predator
    American Airlines Flight Attendant Freaks Out After Man Offers His First Class Seat To Child February 25, 2023
  • United Airlines Polaris Lounge Chicago Review
    Review: United Polaris Lounge Chicago (ORD) February 21, 2023
  • Bankman-Fried Alaska Airlines
    Poor Sam Bankman-Fried “Downgrades” From American Airlines Business Class To Alaska Airlines First Class February 20, 2023
  • There’s A Pilot In My Seat! February 21, 2023

Archives

March 2023
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Feb    

As seen on:

live_and_lets_fly

The new United Polaris Lounge at Washington Dulles The new United Polaris Lounge at Washington Dulles is the most beautiful of all Polaris Lounges. Stay tuned for a detailed look and many more photos on the blog tomorrow. Well done @united.
@malaysiaairlines just announced it would retire i @malaysiaairlines just announced it would retire its A380 fleet. While not surprising, it is sad to see the growing list of carriers retiring this superjumbo jet. On Malaysia Airlines, I flew the #A380 once from Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to London (LHR) and had the entire first class cabin to myself (full review on the blog). It was a beautiful flight that I will always remember.
Welcome to @fly_bur @aveloair! I am so excited tha Welcome to @fly_bur @aveloair! I am so excited that a new carrier, Avelo, has launched, especially from an airport just 12 minutes from my home!
I greatly miss the @lufthansa #747-8 at @flylaxair I greatly miss the @lufthansa #747-8 at @flylaxairport. Hopefully this summer it will return.

.
.
.
.
#Lufthansa #FirstClass #747 #747-8 #StarAlliance #Miles #Points
I recently spent a weekend at the @ventanabigsur. I recently spent a weekend at the @ventanabigsur. This is not only a lovely, all-inclusive resort, but one of the best properties to use your @hyatt World of Hyatt points.
.
.
.
.
#Hyatt #BigSur #California #WorldofHyatt #CA-1 #Points #Hotels
In terms of a spacious first class product, the @E In terms of a spacious first class product, the @Emirates suite on a 777-300ER is hard to beat. My preference is Suite 2K.

.
.
.
.
#Emirates #777 #firstclass
Nearly five years ago, I took a “break” from I Nearly five years ago, I took a “break” from Instagram ahead of the birth of my first child. Goodness, how time flies. While I’ve enjoyed catching up on others over the years, now it is time for me to return to Instagram. In this first post, I highlight two joys in my life, my two children, whom I trust will grow up to be prolific travelers that circumnavigate the globe as ambassadors of love and respect.

.
.
.
.
.

#travel #airplanes #airlines #miles #points #familytravel #human #integrity #honor
United Airlines' new Polaris seat is a huge improv United Airlines' new Polaris seat is a huge improvement over UA's current business class seat. Check out my blog at liveandletsfly.com for 70+ photos of how @united is transforming its entire business class experience starting this December!
The perfect @flysas name tag for #Longyearben! The perfect @flysas name tag for #Longyearben!
Spotted four #polarbear outside of #longyearbyen - Spotted four #polarbear outside of #longyearbyen -- oh, and I love 40°F summer weather!
One of the best crews I have ever had the pleasure One of the best crews I have ever had the pleasure of flying with in all my years of flying. Thank you @flysas SK940 on 11 Aug 2016
Next stop ARN! But dear @flysas , next time if I a Next stop ARN! But dear @flysas , next time if I assign a window seat months in advance, don't move me to a center seat "for my convenience" with no way to get my original seat back... 😞
Ready for #PIA from #MAN to #JFK -- we will be rac Ready for #PIA from #MAN to #JFK -- we will be racing the #Delta flight to JFK at the gate next to us, which also departs at 12:45p. With @onemileatatime
Another room with a beautiful view... #hyattregenc Another room with a beautiful view... #hyattregencycasablanca #cassablanca #hyatt
Enjoying #shanghai with @onemileatatime from the i Enjoying #shanghai with @onemileatatime from the inside of the @grandhyatt_shanghai ... It is 40°C outside! 😓
From my front gate to my boarding gate in 15 minut From my front gate to my boarding gate in 15 minutes flat. I ❤️ #bur #burbankairport
@malaysiaairlines #747 out of retirement and in se @malaysiaairlines #747 out of retirement and in service at #kul -- beautiful livery!
View from my 61st floor room at the beautiful bran View from my 61st floor room at the beautiful brand new @parkhyattguangzhou -- look for a full review coming soon on the blog #hyatt #parkhyatt #guangzhou #parkhyattguangzhou
Will miss the @united #globalfirstlounge at #ord, Will miss the @united #globalfirstlounge at #ord, which closes tomorrow and the Queen of the Skies #747 which will be retired in 2018.
The colonial #architecture of #mumbai is stunning. The colonial #architecture of #mumbai is stunning. If you're ever here, get up at 5am and have a walk around the city before it gets busy. You can hear the birds instead of honking horns.
Load More... Follow on Instagram
facebook twitter instagram rss

This site is for entertainment purposes only. The owner of this site is not an investment advisor, financial planner, nor legal or tax professional and articles here are of an opinion and general nature and should not be relied upon for individual circumstances.

 

Advertiser Disclosure: Some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission. Outside of banner ads published through the Boarding Area network, this compensation does not impact how and where products appear on this site. While we do try to list all the best miles and points deals, the site does not include all card companies or credit card offers available in the marketplace. Please view our advertising policy page for additional details about our partners.

 

Editorial Disclosure: The editorial content on this page is not provided by any entity mentioned herein. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.