A few weeks ago I finally got to fly in the new 77W on Air New Zealand.  Over the past year Air NZ has well publicised the various improvements they introduced (space seat, skycouch), while downplaying the negatives (10 across in economy, less legroom in economy and premium economy).

They’ve already decided to make some adjustments.  Premium economy is having a row removed since the existing configuration gives passengers sore knees if they are tall (even slightly).

I was flying in business class which had relatively few changes.  One improvement was supposed to be the induction ovens which opens up much more dining options as more food can be cooked instead of reheated.  Unfortunately there are still some bugs to iron out.

My beef was the incredibly slow meal service.  More than 3.5 hours for a dinner on a late night departure is inexcusable.  It took 90 minutes after take off to be offered any drink or nibbles, compared to the usual 30 minutes or less.  The starter followed shortly after the drink.  Once the starter tray was cleared it took an hour to receive a mains course.

I gave Air NZ feedback to highlight that the meal had badly let down what would otherwise be a great flight (as usual).  On late night flights passengers expect to sleep most of it.  The response I got back was ridiculous.

“Passengers have loved the new food and beverage offering but it has sometimes taken longer to serve than we would like.”

There was more, but like the above sentence it appeared to be a copy and paste response.

Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand has compassionate fares to those needing to travel to Christchurch, oneway for $50 domestic (on standby basis until 31 March 2011) and other confirmable fares for those travelling to funeral or memorial services.  They are available by calling Air NZ.  In addition those with existing bookings to Christchurch for travel until 31 March 2011 have change fees waived – tickets can be rebooked to later date (fare difference may apply), an earlier date or another destination (fare difference will apply).

For more information please refer to Air NZ Christchurch update page.

Emirates

Emirates Christchurch disruption notice

Passengers flying to Christchurch are asked to provide proof of living in Christchurch or onward travel arrangements.  Failure to do so will result in denied boarding.

Fees are waived for cancellation or changes of travel booked to Christchurch up to 10 March 2011.  Change of dates is limited to 7 days.

Singapore Airlines

Period for rebooking waivers has passed. Normal terms & conditions apply.

Qantas

Qantas Christchurch disruption notice.

Travel between 1 March and 25 March 2011 can be rebooked to a later date, rerouted or held as a credit withouth change fees – no refunds.

Jetstar

There has been some media criticism of Jetstar’s handling of customers seeking rebooking.

Jetstar Christchurch disruption notice. 

Travel between 3 March and 25 March 2011 can be rebooked to a later date, rerouted or held as a credit withouth change fees – no refunds.  All changes must be made within 14 days.

Pacific Blue

Pacific Blue Christchurch disruption notice.

Travel until 25 March 2011 can be rebooked to any date up to 30 June 2011, or cancelled (for a credit not a refund) without fee.

Air Asia X

First flight to Christchurch is still due 1 April 2011.  I’ll update if this changes.

A short note on accommodation

Most inner city hotels are within the cordon and are closed until further notice, and some have suffered major damage.  There is a significant accommodation shortfall due to emergency personnel and displaced residents.  For travel to Christchurch in the next month or so, please check if your accommodation is available and strongly suggest to stay outside the city.

Air NZ has been running significant extra capacity through Christchurch as part of the air bridge taking people out of the damaged city and bringing relief supplies in.

• 23FEB11 - 4 new flights from & to Auckland, 3 on 747 and 1 on 777
• 23FEB11 - 3 new flights from & to Wellington, 1 on 777, 1 on A320 and 1 on 737
• 24FEB11 – 2 new flights from & to Auckland, on 747
• 24FEB11 – 1 new flight from & to Wellington, on 737
• 24FEB11 – 2 new flights Auckland to Christchurch to Wellington to Auckland, 1 on 777 and 1 on A320
• 25FEB11 – 3 new flights from & to Auckland, 2 on 747 and 1 on 777
• 25FEB11 - 2 new flights from & to Wellington, 1 on 737 and 1 on ATR
• 25FEB11 – 1 new flight Auckland to Christchurch to Wellington to Auckland, on 737
• 26FEB11 - 2 new flights from & to Auckland, on 747
• 26FEB11 – 1 new flight Auckland to Christchurch to Wellington to Auckland, on A320
• 27FEB11 – 2 new flights from & to Auckland, on 747

Air New Zealand has offered compassionate fares to those needing to travel to Christchurch, oneway for $50 domestic (confirmed until 25 February 2011 and on standby basis until 6 March 2011), $50 + tax for Australia and South Pacific, and $400 + tax for longhaul. They are available by calling Air NZ.  In addition those with existing bookings to Christchurch for travel until 25 March 2011 have change fees waived – tickets can be rebooked to later date (fare difference may apply), an earlier date or another destination (fare difference will apply).

People with non-essential travel to Christchurch in the near future are requested to not travel.

For more information please refer to Air NZ media page.

A year ago I blogged about the launch of Air New Zealand’s new longhaul products on the brand new 77W aircraft.  There are some minor changes in business class, a radically different premium economy seat (which Air NZ has since said it intends licensing to other airlines), the revolutionary skycouch seat in economy class, and other changes including in-flight services.

Last month the first commercial 77W flights commenced.  I haven’t yet flown on it (but will within a couple of months), but have received some rather negative feedback from several who have flown on it.  Recently Air NZ has had open days to selected frequent flyers, media and limited numbers of general public.  Naturally I was interested to see for myself how the reality compares to the hype from the mockup at hangar 9 a year ago.

This post summarises my notes on the products comparing to the launch material.  This comparison is based on observations while on the ground – so I cannot comment on food & beverage for instance.  I also note the seats I think are best in each cabin – refer the seat map for more info on seat layout.

Services

The in-flight entertainment was switched on, so I did a few quick tests.  It was fast and responsive.  There are options to order food and drink from your seat with the availability varying by class of travel (and business class drinks are available to buy in economy class).  The wine selection seemed wider than normal, with about 20 options in business class.  There is also an option to request an ipod/ipad connector.

Economy class and skycouch

The first impression is an incredibly cramped cabin.  The aisle is very narrow – certainly too narrow to roll rollaboards along to your seat and likely to narrow to easily carry a heavy carry on or a second item (eg laptop bag). If you are sitting in the aisle I suggest you do not board early as you may get battered, and watch out during meal services also.  I’ve had comments from some people who’ve flown it that they also get disturbed by passengers walking by to and from the toilets, as the aisle really is very narrow.

Trying a seat out for size and it feels much more cramped than Air NZ’s leading economy class seats on their 747 aircraft – noticeably less legroom (my knees touched the seat in front even when it was upright) and also noticeably less width thanks to a 10 across seating layout.  The small tray table is now bifold, but if you are big you may struggle to fully open it.  There is a small pillow fitted over the headrest.  In the blog post on the launch I mentioned the armrests fully raise.  This was not the case on the non-sky couch seats, which is a big surprise to me.

The skycouch seats have a nice “mattress” applied.  The length of the 3 seats is very much insufficient to stretch out properly. Not a surprise as anyone moderately tall needs 4 economy seats to lie across comfortably.  Combined with the narrow aisles, this means tall people either can’t lie down on the skycouch (which is really the main purpose) or have to wedge themselves against the cabin wall to avoid their feet sticking out into the aisle. 

In all the seats the pocket is smaller and located lower down.  There are other touches to aid the traveller – nooks, more sockets, and a cup holder.  IFE boxes under the seat intrude on the limited space for feet on some seats.

Best seats in economy?  In non sky-couch the second set of 2 in the front & side of the cabin (35A/B/J/K), plus the sets of 2 in the rear and side of the cabin (57-59A/B/J/K).  I don’t fancy sitting for 13 hours in any of the other seats in economy.

Premium economy (space seat)

I, like many others, gushed over the design at the launch.  Now, I take back some of the praise.  The space seats had gotten the most negative comments from those who’d flown in them, and I agree with some of those comments but there are some good seats.

The beanbag footrest is a waste of space if you are tall – even inch of the footwell is needed for your legs.  The seats have a hard shell and so passenger in front reclining is no issue (the seat slides forward inside the shell).  However, I found I had to be careful to recline slowly otherwise my knees would whack into the shell of the seat in front.

There is a little swivel sidelight on the side of each shell, but it is positioned very poorly and will not illuminate any book or newspaper on the seats I tried. Instead I got a spotlight onto my upper arm.

The window seats have far more legroom than any other seat.  However, once you are in the seat it is difficult to get out (will certainly require the aisle seat passenger to move out of the way) and is a bit claustrophobic due to how the aisle seat is slightly offset to provide more privacy and the high walls of the seat shell.

The outer aisle seats have terrible legroom (equivalent to a good economy seat rather than a decent premium economy) and will also have the annoyance of cabin crew reaching past you when window passengers are served food and drink.  Being tall I also found I was tempted to stretch my legs out into the aisle, but this is difficult as the seat is angled away from the aisle.  Anyone not skinny will have problems with the tray table.

So, for long flights I’m likely to choose an inner seat, which is always an aisle (layout is 2-2-2).  The legroom is not good here, a bit more knee room than economy class but less foot room (unlike economy you cannot slide feet forward due to the hard shell).  Couples can sit angled towards each other and use the large middle armrest as a table.  Sounds good but the space for legs under this “table” is very small for one tall person, let alone a couple.

Best seats in premium economy? Either an inner seat, or the front row outer aisle seat (23B/J) which has much more legroom than any other outer seat.

Business class

Minimal hard product changes.  Colour scheme white instead of brown.  A thicker matress. Repositioned plugs/sockets for easier access.  Table can slide closer.  Ottoman has seat belt fully flush when unused and more space under the ottoman (due to moving the lifejacket to underneath the little drinks tray).

Summary

I’m not overjoyed at the seeming victory by beancounters over those trying to come up with a world leading product.  I feel Air New Zealand has missed an opportunity for a truly fantastic hard product to match their great soft product by squeezing in too many seats.  Whenever I have to fly on their 77W I’ll be sure to book as early as possible and try to select the few good seats when flying in premium economy or economy class.  I’m disappointed that hype doesn’t appear to match reality.

One of the things I love about flying all over New Zealand is the amazing, and highly varied, scenery that can be seen out the window.  It seems I’m not alone. To mark the arrival of the All Blacks painted domestic A320 Air NZ has provided a game to “fly” all over New Zealand with Google Earth imagery for the views.

For those who missed it, here is a video of the special livery A320 being built and painted.

Air NZ All Blacks A320 build and paint

There are some airlines serving NZ for the first time in 2011, ahead of the rugby world cup (and also some airlines returning after years of absence).  Announcements to date include:

• China Airlines – from Taipei to Auckland via Brisbane starting January
• Low cost airline Jetstar Asia – from Singapore to Auckland starting March
• Skyteam member China Southern Airlines – from Guangzhou to Auckland via Melbourne starting March
• Low cost airline Air Asia X – from Kuala Lumpur to Christchurch starting April
• Star Alliance member United Airlines (Continental) – from Houston to Auckland starting November (maybe)

The trans-Tasman flights will, as usual, have 5th freedom rights meaning they can be bought standalone.  Typically there is good award availability on these “tag” flights, and fares in premium cabins are low as the airlines try to win customers off more well-known competition (Air New Zealand, Qantas/Jetstar, Emirates and Pacific Blue).

Starting 15 December, Air NZ charges $2 per person per one-way journey for domestic flights paid for by credit card, $5 for short haul and $10 for longhaul.  Round the world and circle fares are treated as return journeys (i.e. charged $20).

The other day I flew the newly reconfigured Air NZ A320 across the Tasman.  Business class has been removed and so has space+, the much prized section at the front of economy with extra legroom.

On the new configuration, seat pitch is 30″ which is the same as low cost airlines.  As someone who is fairly tall this means my knees graze the seat in front when it is upright and I’m in pain when the person in front decides to recline – which they did the moment we were airborne.  There is a design flaw in that the tray table cannot unfold (or be folded back up) when the seat in front is reclined.

Further, if you are tall and the seat in front is reclined there is no chance of being able to view the in-flight entertainment as the seatback personal screen is just in front of your chin.  The design also rules out being able to do any work on a laptop or reading papers.

I can’t remember a flight as uncomfortable as this one was – even Jetstar domestic flights are better because they are shorter and no-one reclines on domestic, thus there is a feeling of more room.  I didn’t expect to ever say that Jetstar is more comfortable than Air NZ. Oh dear.

Buried amidst the announcement of upcoming service changes for Air New Zealand Tasman, Pacific and domestic travel is news that a much valued perk of elite status is being removed.  Space+ seating on domestic and shorthaul international flights is considerable extra legroom and is a greatly appreciated status benefit.  On 737s there is currently an extra 5″ legroom (about 35″ total) and similar on A320 and 767.

The new offerings (still called space+) will be about 31-32″ pitch on all three aircraft (and also the domestic configured A320 which arrive soon to replace 737s) and limited to a handful of seats.  Regular shorthaul economy seats are about 30″, although some competing airlines offer considerably more (eg Emirates).

Note there remain a small number of 777 and 747 trans-Tasman and Pacific shorthaul flights which will continue to designate premium economy seating as space+.

A little over a year since Qantas withdrew from the New Zealand domestic market in favour of their low cost subsidiary Jetstar, comes news that Pacific Blue is also pulling out (source NZ Herald).  The last flights are on October 17, less than 3 years after they commenced domestic flights in NZ.  It isn’t an unexpected moved as Pacific Blue has been in a difficult market position – worse frequencies and fewer routes than Air New Zealand thus difficult to win over business travellers, and more expensive than Jetstar for the most price sensitive flyers.

Passengers with bookings are being rebooked on Air New Zealand.  Pacific Blue’s flights between Australia and New Zealand will have a modest increase in frequency.

I flew on the very first Pacific Blue domestic flight in New Zealand, and the last Qantas flight. I’m tempted to fly the last flight too – the reduction in competition cannot be good for travellers.