Checking out Thai Airways' A380 first class...

Talking about A380s, when do we get to read an AirFrance a380 F report? Also, I'd love to see what ground service looks like in CDG, I heard it's pretty nice.

I have to agree with you. The cabin itself is very nice although the seating area is wasted space other than people sitting waiting for the use of the lavatory.

The food needs improvement, you never know what you're gonna get because the description of the item is rarely accurate. I ordered a special meal and the FA showed me the chicken breast still in the foil container to ensure that's what I had ordered.

I think where Thai excels is at BKK. With the personal buggy ride, excellent F lounge and Spa.

Whats the buggy ride?

That's a very strange flight plan! I've flown NRT-BKK perhaps 50 times, on UA (mostly), TG, NH, and JL, and every one of the flights has been over Taiwan, then abeam DaNang, and to BKK. I'm wondering if there was a typhoon or other major weather system over the South China Sea that necessitated this routing.

I know I'll be in the minority here, but I've flown Thai's A380 in F and J... I felt like the service was much better than expected in J - had a 2 hr flight HKG-BKK, and I had a full lunch, and even after dinner drinks.

That said -- really jealous about that Rimowa kit!

Lavatory looks like LH 380 F.

i have flown thai in first on a340 and i agree the service and food really does feel like a decent business class... but it really is sub-par compared to other airlines' first.

Thanks for the recap; We are flying TG to cdg in F on the 380 in November... Good to know what we can expect.

what's so great about the rimowa? hardcase = takes up more space. and the thing can't fit a tablet like the AA eames case...

Interesting...you used to enjoy the service and food on Thai. Though it is interesting that Thai and Malaysia both on their 380s have a seat in FC that's the equivalent of what SQ uses on their non-380 first class planes...

Nail on the head. However, I do enjoy interacting with Thai F/A's a bit more as they don't have nearly as much of a character they play. Having said that, their service definitely needs a shoe shine.

Great report Lucky. I have mixed feelings when it comes to TG.

I've never had a awful flight with them, but I've had some flights where the meals and service in F were at J level.

I've also had the best crew of my life on a TG flight in F from ZRH-BKK. Consistency is not TG's strongest points, but when I lower my expectations i'm usually pleasantly surprised.

There was a typhoon hitting Hong Kong when I was just there; reason for the strange flight path

I too did HKG-BKK last year in the A380, just a few months after it launched. Was quite impressed with the OZ QS-style seats, and the 4 course meal (on a 2.5 hr flight!) was pretty good.

Great, can't wait for the entire report.

I have flown that route and thought we flew over water most of the time.

From what I have flown, read or seen, LH FC A380 and Emirates FC A380 ( never flown) feel like true FC cabins. The rest feel like plastic office cubicles. No appeal and quite claustrophobic. I was expecting Thai to be a leader in food catering. I find Thai cuisine to be the best in Asia (close tie with Malaysian cuisine).

Not sure why but I don't like that magenta light in the cabin, not sure who invented that concept but it is not soothing to me. It reminds me of some cheap brothel in Bangkok ! 🙂

Do they give out the rimowa amenity kits in buisness class? Im flying the A380 NRT - BKK in Buisness class in november and i'd love to score one!

@ Kmyle -- Should be marking KE and CZ off my A380 list soon, so that leaves just AF first class. That's the toughest to get into at a reasonable cost.

@ Mike -- In Bangkok you get a buggy ride all the way from check-in to the lounge and then from the lounge to the plane, so you have to do virtually no walking.

@ wxguy -- Yep, that's exactly right. Bad weather enroute and we had to reroute as a result.

@ Allen -- The funny thing is that I don't actually like Rimowa luggage, but I'm addicted to collecting the amenity kits. I guess I like that they're all so similar except the colors and the airline logos. Makes for a fun thing to display in your living room, if you're as nerdy as I am.

@ JRL -- That's another great point, the crews really are "natural," so what you see is what you get -- it's not an act.

@ Jorge -- The funny thing is that Thai cuisine is probably my favorite in the world, so I really don't get why Thai can't serve just "simply" Thai cuisine. I'd be in heaven.

@ Scott -- Sadly only in first class.

Hi Ben, I have around 240k us airway miles that I would like to use for a trip in first class to North Asia for August of next year. Do you recommend any first class cabins to aim for that might have availability for 2? I was thinking ANA,United,Thai and maybe Asiana.

@ Dan -- Well two ANA seats can be very tough to come by, though it shouldn't be too tough on Thai, United, or Asiana.