As we enter a new decade, how has first class changed over the last decade?
I’m in Israel this week and trying to relax a bit with my family. At the same time, Live and Let’s Fly never goes on vacation. In an attempt to find a happy medium, I am going to publish a new style of trip report from a trip I took around this time in late 2010 and early 2011.
Surprisingly (or perhaps unsurprisingly), parts of the trip report are still relevant even in 2020. Other parts, as you’ll see below, are certainly not. I’ve never published this trip report…I’ve also never written about (most of) it. That means a full narrative will be hopelessly short on the sort of the detail that is necessary for a comprehensive trip report.
But the pictures are still interesting. So in the interest of time and clarity, I will offer limited observations from the flights followed by pictures. The reviews will largely be photo-based.
Here’s what you have to look forward to:
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- United Airlines 757-200 First Class Los Angeles to Chicago
- Lufthansa A340-300 First Class Chicago To Munich
- Turkish Airlines 737-700 Business Class Munich To Istanbul
- Turkish Airlines 777-300 First Class Istanbul to Bangkok
- Fifth Freedom Flashback: Bangkok To Ho Chi Minh City On Qatar Airways + Lufthansa
- Thai Airways 747-400 First Class Bangkok To Beijing
- Park Hyatt Saigon + Exploring Ho Chi Minh City
- SWISS A340-300 First Class Shanghai To Zurich
- Lufthansa A340-300 First Class Frankfurt To New York
- United Airlines 757-200 First Class New York JFK To Los Angeles
CONCLUSION
I think this will be a funny walk down memory lane for many, myself included. Already, I’ve smiled looking through the photos from what turned out to be one of my best all-time trips.
I like it!
I’m sure this will bring out the trolls complaining about vintage reports, but I for one am REALLY looking forward to this!
Vintage reports are great. What would also be great is if you added a new section for these trip reports, called maybe “Then & Now”, comparing the overall product from back then to more recent flights you have taken with them. I imagine in most cases the difference will be in the hard product though, since you do seem to enjoy the soft product in all of these airlines.
Good idea Aaron. I will do so.
Some things have not changed at all. Thai are still using the seats in the business cabin pictured at the rear of the pic above on the 744 and on some key routes i.e. BKK-SYD and then wondering why business travelers use other airlines.