Please Review Domestic (only) Business Class (Only)

[Rod Hagen]

No International airlines please. Business Class: Let's discuss what each of the 4 or 5 Major Domestic Airlines (United, AA, Continental, Delta, NW) offer in CROSS COUNTRY, ie more than 3 hour long, flights in Business Class.

 

Specifically:

1. How much success do you have upgrading to Business Class when there are 2 of you? Just you?

2. How often do you receive complimentary, surprise, treat upgrades that don't require that you use your mileage?

3. How many courses, and containing what, do you receive during Morning, Afternoon, Evening and Red Eye flights? What do you get PRE-Flight

4. How is the food?

5. How is the wine?

6. How are the seats? Leg room, Fully Reclinable? Almost fully? INdividual Entertainment screen?

7. What kind of Desert do you get? Cookies, Sundays, Godivas?

8. How is the entertainment?

9. How quick is the separate check-in?

10. What do you like about the Business Class? Who is it?

11. What do you hate about the worst Business Class? Who is it?

 

THANKS

 

-Frustrated customer on United who is tired of not being upgraded very often, and then being seriously disappointed when he is.

[Rod Hagen]

>10. What do you like about the Business Class? Who is it?

 

"About the BEST Business Class?" Sorry.

[Guest Ant415]

Rod,

 

 

AA does not charge or require upgrades to reserve a seat in the business class section on many flights... SFO-ORD... LAX-ORD... DFW-SFO.... MIA-DFW. But to book and reserve seat in biz class on AA you must be gold or platinum member. They fly many 767's between city pairs above. 90% of time I get a business class seat on AA from SFO to Chicago, Dallas, Miami. However, they dont call it business class, so no extras with food and drink. Just hte better seats -- is all I really care about. With all things equal, I usually select the flight based on the aircraft type instead of time.

 

UA will charge biz class rates or charge upgrades for a busines class seat from SFO to Chicago. So I dont fly them.

 

The best chance for upgrades are weekend flights with less business travelers, and on a 757. 757 usually has 24 first class seats, and are often used on medium or long flights that don't demand a 767.

[Guest]

Delta is the only airline I know in which Business Class is better than First Class. I'm a "Gold Medallion" member on Delta, so I can upgrade within North America more often than not as long as I don't travel on promotional fares (Medallion members use something called "800 mile certificates" rather than actual miles). When one can get a Business Class seat across the country, it's very nice. The seats are definitely larger and more far apart than any other business class. The seats adjust 6 ways and have individual viewing monitors. There is a fairly good wine selection (not as good as before Sept. 11, but the wines seem to be in the $18/bottle range), and desert consists of a selection of cheezes, fruit, and sundaes with the option of chocolate syrup, carmel, nuts, marshmallows, or all of the above. In fact, Delta's "Business Elite" class is the main reason I concentrate with it rather than with United or Delta (it requires only one upgrade).

[bluenix]

I'm that apparent rarity, a perfectly satisfied United Airlines customer. But it looks like this may be because my expectations are lower than yours.

 

1. I don't ask for upgrades at the airport. I do upgrade, using miles, when I buy my tickets.

2. Never. But I don't like leaving this to chance. As I say, I make these arrangements when booking. (It's my understanding that their Premier and 1K customers automatically bump others for stand-by upgrades, regardless of the time the request was made.)

3-5 & 7. Meals, I believe, are a function of the profitability of that particular route and have little or nothing to do with the time of the flight.

6. Isn't this dependent on the age of the equipment? I'd say I get the individual entertainment screen one flight in three.

8. I rarely use airline entertainment. Though I do get a kick out of the map animations on the individual screens.

9. Not perfect but generally good at larger hubs. Anyone, btw, can improve their check-in experience by using the new automated process. It's faster than using a ticket agent, much like using an ATM is faster than standing in line for a bank teller.

10-11 Don't have enough experience to comment. As I say, I typically use miles to upgrade to 1st. My travel schedule is flexible enough that I can usually pick another flight if upgrades on another are unavailable.

[Guest pressyourluck]

I am a Continental Elite Member. They give free space available upgrades for me and my traveling companion. I say 75% success for upgrades (domestic) for myself, a bit less for 2 people. If there space avaliable, you can upgrade a complete stranger if you want. I usually get the upgrades at the airport cos the automated upgrades never seem to work. International upgrades are expensive.

Northwest and Continental have reciprocal agreements so you can get upgrades with either airlines. Continental recently dropped America West so Continental is weak on the west cost. Their hubs are Houston, Newark and Cleveland. Traveling from hub cities is harder to get free upgrades because their are many more "elite members" I have never used miles for upgrades cos to me, it's not worth it. I rather ask for the bulk head or the emergency room seat for leg room.

 

With regards to the benefits, they are better since 9/11 cutbacks. For me, I don't care too much at the food or the entertainment which is what you would expect from a half-way decent resturant. I don't believe I have seen personal entertainment systems on domestic except for Jetblue.

 

Favorite thing about first class.

I like to board first, settle down and have something to drink while everyone else is shuffling their luggage and walking around in the aisles. I like being off the plane first. I like the leg room.

 

Preflight:

The lounge is fine, nothing special ... just a place to have something to drink and relax before a flight.

 

I think, you are stuck with United if you are in LA unless you fly a lot to another hub center like Houston and Continental. Atlanta and Delta, etc.

[Guest Tomcal_]

I am exec. Plat. on AA and Plat. on Continental. I get upgraded almost 100% of the time. On most of the flights there is only coach and fisrt. American has 3 classes of service on their International flights. there business class is great if you are on a Boeing 777, better then first on a 757,767, DC10, the first class seats in a 777 are sleeper beds. Very little difference in food, wine between a business and first class seat. They upgrade you 100 hours before your flight if you are Exec. Plat., but it is hard to get a traveling companion upgraded as that can only be done 2 hours before the flight, and the Gold, Silver, Plat. flyers have got all the seats by then.

[+ deej]

<<I'm that apparent rarity, a perfectly satisfied United Airlines customer.>>

 

Living where we do, it's almost impossible to avoid United. I wouldn't describe myself as "perfectly satisfied", but mostly satisfied works.

 

I don't get upgraded very often on any airline, but I also don't go out of my way to bring it about. I'm only flying in the first place because it's faster than Greyhound. ;-) I'm certainly not going to expect four-star ammenities given the space they have to work with. (That's what the hotel I generally have booked is for.) For me, flying is a mechanism to get to the good stuff, not the good stuff itself.

 

That said, as I mentioned in another thread, Midwest Express in coach is better than most airlines' first class or business class. TWA was OK last time I was on it, but not that great. United is OK if you have a terrific flight crew. (They really DO make a difference.)

 

One of the definite benefits of first class or business class is fewer seats across, which means more room in the overhead bins. You don't have to go hunting for space even if someone stuffed a steamer trunk up there. (One of my pet peeves when traveling: I travel VERY light. It amazes me what people try to carry on an airplane. If you can't lift it over your head, CHECK IT! x( )

[FrancoDiSantisxxx]

United - Continental

 

><<I'm that apparent rarity, a perfectly satisfied United Airlines customer.>>

>

>Living where we do, it's almost impossible to avoid United.

>I wouldn't describe myself as "perfectly satisfied", but

>mostly satisfied works.

 

 

I would agree that I am mostly satisfied with United, particularly now that the Shuttle service is history and I leave on the flight I am booked on if that is the flight I want to depart with. However, I rarely fly across country now that I am no longer in Atlanta. My experience is that Continental, post-bankruptcy, is far superior on cross- country travel on numerous levels, including food, leg room, overhead storage, etc.

 

The comments on Delta are true, but more so for flights to and from Hartsfield to their hubs than for cross-country travel I took, such as Atlanta - PDX, Atlanta - SFO, Atlanta - LAX or any number of the other combinations. I still have enough free miles for two trips on Delta and I have been reluctant to book them for that reason above-all, though I may fly Delta to Montreal this year for pleasure travel.

 

>I don't get upgraded very often on any airline, but I also

>don't go out of my way to bring it about. I'm only flying in

>the first place because it's faster than Greyhound. ;-) I'm

>certainly not going to expect four-star ammenities given the

>space they have to work with. (That's what the hotel I

>generally have booked is for.) For me, flying is a mechanism

>to get to the good stuff, not the good stuff itself.

 

United is OK if you have a terrific flight crew.

>(They really DO make a difference.)

 

Full agreement. But then again you are talking about a man who does not own a microwave, dishwasher or have a maid. If you like luxery, I would say go for it, be very clear when booking your flight that this is what you are looking for, become familiar with the aircraft and the food service, not just the times of departure, and be prepared to pay extra or to otherwise earn these benefits. Always go for non-stop, direct flights and make sure there are no significant labor problems in your particular carrier. A happy crew is a crew that will please you the best.

 

 

>One of the definite benefits of first class or business

>class is fewer seats across, which means more room in the

>overhead bins.

 

Totally in agreement. However, frankly the smaller carriers, such as Air Tran, and who are more interested in getting, keeping and therefore pleasing the business class customers, and these carriers work harder at this particular market segment. My personal experience is such that I refuse to fly Southwest again though they are not solely a commuter carrier, but more a low fare one.

 

I also now make my own travel arrangements when working with out-of-town clients or with travel for and with clients and simply give the client the record locator and reservation information and ask them to make the actual purchase. There are other, obvious benefits to an escort to such an arrangement.

[chrismac]

RE: United - Continental

 

Try Delta's BusinessElite for cross-country flying; SFO, LAX, SEA - JFK nonstop. By far the best service and most comfortable/roomy cabin for domestic transcon service.

[chrismac]

Rod,

 

Check out these sites for more info:

 

http://www.delta.com/prog_serv/biz_elite/tour/index.jsp

http://www.ual.com/site/primary/0,10017,1133,00.html

http://www.aa.com/content/travelInformation/duringFlight/businessClassCabin.jhtml

http://www.continental.com/tis/

 

These will answer most of your questions.

[thewheel]

I flew DL Business once, on September 6 2001 from LAX-JFK. We left around 10am. They served lunch with sundaes. The portions were smaller than what I get on US, and the salad and entree were served together. After dessert there was no pre-arrival snack, which US served prior to 9/11 on morning eastbound transcons, and there was little else to eat too, even after looking in coach. The seat was nice, but found it a little cramped in terms of width.

 

US's service transcon was 2nd to none pre-9/11 and is getting back to where it was. Pre-departure open bar, except on the 321, and if you were lucky enough to get the 767 domestic then you got the Envoy seat.

Hot towel service post takeoff and pre-landing. Dinner includes appetizer, usually shrimp or seafood, nice salad with choice of 2 dressings, and a choice of 3 entrees: filet and 2 others. Bread basket too. Dessert prior to 9/11 was sundae's, changed to cheesecake and is now fresh baked cookies. They also served a pre-arrival snack on East and Westbound morning departures, usually a fruit and cheese plate. Of course the drinks flow for the entire flight. (One night going west we ran out of wine before she was able to get the 1st main coarse out of the oven!) They always have the snack basket available too.

 

If you take a red-eye there is a choice of 2 snacks. Depending on the station it is a smoked salmon platter (my personal favorite) with 2 very large pieces, a chef salad, or a chicken and pasta plate.

 

Morning service featured fresh Sarah Lee pastries and muffins pre-9/11, as well as a choice of hot entrees as well as cold cereal option. The bar is always open as well. Think it pretty much remained unchanged.