After a long day of lounge hopping at Hong Kong Airport, it was time to continue my long journey to Abu Dhabi, flying Cathay Pacific’s Airbus A350-1000 business class from Hong Kong to Singapore.
Continue reading: Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class Airbus A350 (HKG-SIN)
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Great review Ben! The product is holding up very well, the cabin looks stunning. Food and beverage looked solid as well. Cathay are definitely having a staff morale issue, hopefully things improve as they get back on their feet.
Flew Cathay HKG-DPS in September. There was a two hour+ delay at HKG announced at the gate so we had to trek back to the Pier First lounge. Best case scenario for a flight delay. I could not agree more with your recent review of that lounge.
Plane type was changed so we did not get these lie-flat A350 seats, but instead an A330? with seats similar to US domestic first. The review about the service perfectly describes our experience.
I think you may have to amend your Bottom line explainer. 'the crew wasn’t unfriendly, but also wasn’t very polished, and paled in comparison to what I’ve experienced on carriers like Cathay Pacific and EVA Air'. It's all about attention to detail!
I totally concur with you regarding the assembly-line service on Cathay Pacific business class. Since post-pandemic, the Cathay Pacific business class flight attendants are no longer willing to go the extra mile to provide excellent service.
I wouldn't be surprised if the A350 eventually gets the Aria Suites once the 779s start rolling out. The A350s will be around 10 years old by the time the 779s start getting delivered and that's usually when CX starts to update their business class. While I think it'd make sense if they transfer the A350 seats onto the regional 773s and A330s, that's out the window as the A330s are expected to get new recliners. And you lose a lot of real estate with these seats. You also have deal with dimensions, etc.
I'm sure a lot of readers would agree with me, but it'd be really helpful if you can provide a speed test screenshot when using Wi-Fi.
Anyhoo, Happy Holy Days to everybody!
Is Cathay now serving Häagen-Dazs out of Hong Kong again? I thought Swire had some exclusive distribution rights for Mövenpick in Mainland China and Hong Kong, which is why Cathay serves Mövenpick.
Nice review. What’s the link between being an AV geek and the ice cream?!
“As an aviation geek, couldn’t help but select the Biscoff flavored ice cream”.
Biscoff cookies are common snacks given to passengers on Delta and United flights (not sure about AA), so frequent flyers of those airlines get a lot of those cookies. Hence picking that ice cream.
Hi Ben, it's not a problem of juniority, but rather a morale issue.
From my observations, the crew is dissatisfied with the pay cuts and they express this by providing minimal service to passengers. They seem indifferent and sometimes even encourage passengers to file complaints. This is because (1) they want the issue of understaffing to be reported and (2) they are often not fired or penalised due to the difficulties CX is facing in recruiting new flight attendants (hence the expansion of recruitment from mainland China).
A crew member can be junior yet well-intentioned, but I find it rare to encounter a well-intentioned CX flight attendant these days. The moment you step on the plane, they make it a point to show you how busy they are, and they repeatedly walk down the aisle at the speed of light to avoid any additional requests.
What I find even more ridiculous is that the majority of the crew avoids asking "What would you like for dessert?" when they clear your main course. Instead, they ask "Would you like anything else?" to prevent passengers from ordering dessert or coffee on regional flights. On more than one occasion, I've had crew members who simply cleared my main course along with the tablecloth without saying a word, and I had to flag down the ISM to ask if dessert was being served.
Cathay won't be able to fix its service problem until it can resolve its staffing issue. So, don't expect the CX service to improve anytime soon.
You fail to mention how CX ruined the A350 cabin by turning down the cathedral ceiling option and instead installing those crushing needless bins in the center of the cabin.
The difference between the cabin on SQ or QR and CX is striking.
Am I the only person whom the CX Business lounge (visited in Feb-2020) left cold? In terms of food selection and ambience, I'd pick JED or BAH over HKG every time.
I really have to say that since you started posting "preview" articles for each upcoming review, I have been much less inclined to then actually read the full review...
The TV screen seems very small if compared to other business class airlines. A large screen makes the difference !
The meal also is small. I remember better days on Cathay Pacific
Merry Xsmas
CX is not what it used to be. On my flight from HKG-SFO a few weeks ago service was pretty bad, there was no hot towel, no mixed nuts with drinks. The crew disappeared after meal service albeit it was a daytime flight, there was no topping off of drinks and no one checked on the pax. I finished a mid flight snack and no one cleared my tray even though they could see it walking by, they finally cleared it when they brought my breakfast hours later. The crew was very green, as you mentioned in your review. The lavatories were disgusting, it’s obvious that no one cleaned them the entire flight. I had the exact inflight experience from LHR-HKG. The only reason why I would still consider flying with them is their lounges in HKG, that’s probably the only good thing going for CX these days. In terms of service they’re not even close to the likes of EVA, ANA or SQ.
Not sure if you notice, on CX A350 reverse herringbone seat. There are no airbag seat belt or should straps seat belt. I have always thought that was the single most unique and best feature of that seat (where every other reverse herringbone seat with have airbag seat belt or should strap seat belt which are both annoying to sleep or for take off and landing). The CX A350 airbag are located on the panel in the seat in front of you above the magazine rack. Which help makes this seat even more comfy in the sleeping position.
No the mixed nut service should be offered separately from the meal. It was totally unacceptable and you should email CX. I have a feeling that even the purser was "junior," as he or she allowed such a misstep from happening. HKG to Singapore is a three hours flight and it should be plenty of time to carry out the full three courses dinner along with a pre-meal drink and mixed nut service.
Cannot agree more. I flew CX business class from HKG to Tokyo in Oct 2023. When invited to comment by email, I wrote, “the meal was distributed rather than served.”!
I'm sorry but I have to disagree with your comments over the crew. I have never had an issue with them or their inflight service. I am lucky to be able to choose who I fly with and the class of cabin and as such will choose a Cathay Pacific A350 wherever possible. Yes they have had problems recovering from Covid but in my eyes they and their crew are doing a great job. Then again it could be I fly to enjoy myself not to find fault!