Im afraid I totally disagree re the throne/Kirk seats being the best the foot cubby is incredibly cramped and I found it difficult to sleep as you were unable to just turn over on your side Id recommend one of the side seats instead which isnt so restricted. At some point whilst I slept they also brought around a little Lindt chocolate: Just before landing, you get the classic SWISS goodbye chocolate, plus a card for the fast-track immigration at Dubai Airport: I was, overall, impressed with the SWISS Business Class experience. Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, Brussels, LOT and Other Partners | Miles & More, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, https://www.swiss.com/corporate/en/m-20161007.html, http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/28525359-post588.html. The crew were very professional throughout the entire flight in a way that some US carriers' crew aren't. Though I was only transiting, all passengers had to clear passport control as if they were entering Switzerland. Related reading: Review: Swiss (A340) first class from San Francisco to Zurich. 4K, 5K, 6K etc. The business-class lounge at Geneva has since re-opened, which will surely be a massive improvement compared to what I experienced. The terminal building is very Swiss pristine, clean and nice and airy. Since I'd eaten already in the Lufthansa lounge, I chose a lighter meal of muesli and tea, which was nicely presented on real china. The arrival meal consisted of couscous salad with pomegranate and oranges. stream I stayed on the champagne, which is the Duval-Leroy Brut which retails for around 35: For my starter I had the Balik salmon sashimi with avocado, cucumber and ginger with wasabi vinaigrette, which was good: I moved onto the beef tenderloin, served with wholegrain mustard sauce, Valle Maggia polenta and root vegetables. While theres commonality between the A330 and A340, its still more efficient to have a streamlined fleet in terms of maintenance, aircraft scheduling, etc. The airline's A330s have an average age of just over 15 years. /], [tpg_rating tpg-rating-score="80" ground-experience="4" cabin-seat="22" amens-ife="8" food-bev="22" service="24" pros="Smart-looking cabin, comfortable throne seat and fantastic service." As David mentioned, fuel is cheap right now and the A340 is more flexible due to some factors. Voting Is Now Open for the 2021 FlyerTalk Awards! Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. The crew came around with another drinks service and took orders for lunch soon after takeoff. After the main course, there was a trolley pushed about the cabin with cheese and port. As far as I know, a schedule has not been set. Airbus A330-300 (333) Airbus A340-300 (343) Boeing 777-300ER (77W) Embraer 190 (E90) Check-in; Baggage; Infants; Minors; Pets Do you know this plane? Again, a full bar was on offer. Advertiser Disclosure: Some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission. After a quick visit to the Lufthansa business-class lounge, it was time to board the A220. The A330 in question will be stored and not retired. Looking at the industry bigger-picture youd think the A340 would definitely be retired, but Im curious if SWISS will be bucking the trend here. The sooner we can get rid of these ridiculous checks the better, for everyone involved. The airline, a member of the Lufthansa Group, operated the planes between 2002 and 2011. Ihr Browser verhlt sich ungewhnlich und hnelt somit einem Bot. Personal reading lamps Headrests have four adjustable settings. Tail and Winglet closeups with beautiful airline logos. The plane in question is a 20-year-old Airbus A330-300 with the registration number C-GFUR. In first class, passengers can expect eight suites, which are arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration. Swiss International Airlines A330 Swiss Air Business Class NBO-ZRH (Jomo Kenyatta Nairobi - Zurich International Airport) LX293 - Business Class (I) 12:20 AM - 6:25 AM November 26, 2013 Booked: Airbus 330-200 Flown: Airbus 330-200 On Board Swiss Business Class Long Haul: On board, we turned left to the Swiss Mini Cabin. All of Swiss' Airbus A340-300 aircraft have gotten some new life. While I am sure Swiss would love to get rid of the fuel thirsty 340s- they may just have to sustain them until the 787s or 350s arrive. According to PlaneSpotters.net, Swiss' fleet of five A340s have an average age 16.3 years. Havent flown Swiss since moving to OneWorld when BMI succumbed but we used to love flying with them. The boarding experience was, to put it frankly, a little chaotic. The range of the 333 is limited and it also has no crew rest, unlike the 340, which means F class has to be blocked for resting purposes on some routes. The new flight will bring service on the Zurich-Washington, D.C. route to 14 weekly frequencies provided by SWISS and its joint-venture . First, business and elite passengers were called to board just after 11am for our 11:40am departure and were bussed separately to our A330, which has registration HB-JHJ and was delivered new to Swiss eight years ago. Those have two functions: On the one hand they are providing basic functionality for this website. As of 1 March, the airline will also launch the retrofitted A340 on service between ZRH and Osaka (KIX). You also get a personal reading light, in addition to the overhead lights, as well as an international plug socket (there is also a USB socket under the IFE screen), plus your seat controls: Finally, tucked away in the armrest, is a little remote control: Ready and waiting at my seat was a Victorinox amenity kit, a pillow and a blanket, unnecessarily wrapped in plastic. Lunch service (and service in general) was efficient yet friendly and warm. TOP HOTEL BONUS POINTS OFFERS (MARCH 2023), How to get free hotel elite status from UK credit cards, Get exclusive benefits on luxury hotel bookings via HfP. SWISS concluded its cabin refurbishment program for its Airbus A340 aircraft fleet. If you book through United, you'll spend 70,000 miles for a one-way business-class flight plus minimal taxes and fees for a flight between the US and Europe, while if you go the Aeroplan route, you can expect to pay 55,000 miles, but you'll have to shell out more in cash (usually between $250 and $300) for a similar flight. Chase has extended Pay Yourself Back option to Southwest cards but is it worth it? Some of the west coast and Asian routes may not be able to serviced by A330 and the 77W have way too much capacity for these thinner routes. Click for details. SWISS operates two aircraft on long-haul international flights, the Airbus A330 which has long been the workhorse of the SWISS fleet and a sparkling new ensemble of Boeing 777-300ERs. Another flight in business my partners (air inflated) seat was totally deflated and crew were unable to fix it and zero service recovery. The bus was completely packed, though, so it didn't feel like a premium experience. )(V"L'hm&6x_WN_^mnf 9Mc=q^bI"9NKF&'&uS6hkLf}:+)brm3OCUF ^225X/2Jq"Zdn9P5%9nIO8SBLf0*$2.H'{ja'RO')U GS]&sL/4t/U`VLe^iuld)"47QrQf72dR5+e1Y;RFC\|:85Nx$A.&- I reserved seat 11K for myself but at check-in seat 9K had come up. For context, currently SWISS operates just over 90 aircraft in its mainline fleet, while Helvetic Airways operates just over a dozen aircraft. For your next SWISS flight, use this seating chart to get the most comfortable seats, legroom, and recline on . See a whole year of Reward Seat Availability on one page at SeatSpy.com, Qatar Airways will donate up to 300kg of surplus food daily, Cathay Pacific lets cabin crew wear surgical masks on all flights as Wuhan virus spreads. They have a much bigger cargo capacity. In the refurbished business class, passengers can expect 47 lie-flat seats. Check here before booking an award fare. It's the simple things. Despite recent complications, the aircraft have been finished on time. Anyway, old F seats on LX's 343 are very comfortable and service is just as good as on their B777 first class. One of the issues are the crew rest containers - or rather the lack thereof on the A330 SWISS have had to block all first class seats on some A330 flights to Asia in order to accomodate the crew. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. Unlike on the 777 where the Matre de Cabine works as a pure team leader, on the A330 they work a specific cabin. Standard seats can be reserved free of charge, and the throne seats on the left side (being in every other row) can be reserved for the same fee that I paid. Last but not least the resale value proposition is a lot better for the A330 compared to the ultra cheap A340-300s. Aircraft flying government officials, Helicopters On 29th January, I flew Lufthansa from Barcelona to Frankfurt. How is being " more digital" a thing to promote as a positive when talking about being shrinking the airline? From 2023, the Lufthansa A350s will also get a new First Class product. All the A330s have the same seat map: As you can see, there are 8 First Class seats in a 1-2-1 layout across two rows. Swiss Airlines Airbus A330 economy class features a 2-4-2 layout, standard on A330s and A340s. Ask them in our forums. 2014-09-13: 3.5 of 5. Regulated and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker (FRN 690573). Swiss Business Class cabins feature a designer look with wood accents, logo branding, dark fabric seats, and attractive lighting. It means that we are committed to creating added value for our customers, employees and investors and to meeting our responsibilities toward the environment and society. [flight_stats ticket-class="first" review-stat-section="Ground Experience" tpg-rating="4" tpg-rating-max="10" tail="HB-JHJ" age="8" departure="12" departure-2="12" duration="8" duration-2="44" live-tv="0" tailcam="0" headphones="0" comp-alcohol="0" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" /]. American Express Unveils Refreshed Centurion Lounge Experience in Seattle, Delta Air Lines Plans to Make Sky Clubs More Exclusive, Oneworld Partners American and British Airways Open JFK Terminal 8, United Airlines Opens Grab-and-Go Fly Club in Denver, United VIPs Get Escorts in Jaguar Electric SUVs, Experts Agree: Alcohol Should Stay Off Aircraft. Swiss operates only one model of Airbus, A330-300. Is Hilton Honors the best hotel loyalty scheme? Now, pax demand close to zero, but cargo is doing well on these very long routes, so the A340 is the best fit. While most airlines have retired the A340, SWISS seems quite committed to the aircraft, having just spent so much money refreshing the planes. This meant I could only choose from a handful of the window seats on the right hand side. Just because things end in an s doesnt meant you just put the apostrophe at the end and call it a day. I was seated in 1A and legroom was wholly adequate. Another major cruise line hikes drinks package costs sharply but there's a twist, Get more from your points with these transfer bonuses. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). Swiss chief commercial officer Tamur Goudarzi Pour said, With the completion of our Airbus A340 cabin refurbishment programme we are further underlining our quality commitment, and now offer all our customers the same premium air travel experience, including inflight internet connectivity, on all our long-haul flights.. All of Swiss' long-haul aircraft, including these refurbished A340 aircraft, feature Wi-Fi connectivity. The airline plans to retire 15 aircraft, which will include: As SWISS CEO Dieter Vranckx describes this plan: In the future SWISS will be smaller. By logging into your account, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and the use of cookies as described therein. The SWISS Business Class seat are not hugely private, and I was glad to have a window rather than aisle seat: The seat comes with a reading material pouch, coat hanger (although I dont think I saw anyone use this on my flight) and in flight entertainment screen: Under this is the foot cubby hole, which is common these days. Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. The route will be operated with an Airbus A330-300 aircraft seating 236 passengers. Sending my partner my share of the rent over PayPal with Amex. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. She also said that both Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines have more crew on their aircraft than Swiss, an interesting tidbit given that Swiss is a part of the wider Lufthansa Group. For local hotlines click here. Link SWISS Airbus A330 300. The A340 will also be deployed on SWISSs new Zurich-Osaka (Japan) route where flights commence on March 1, 2020. But the plane will not be retired anytime soon. Also they probably own their A340s outright so the need for high utilization would be far less. I like airlines which have flexible table sizing as it means you dont need to have a massive table out just for a small drink or similar. There won't be any route cuts, but frequencies will be reduced. Maximum recline: 31 degrees. Swiss has finally finished upgrading its Airbus A340s. Were the UKs most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. We pushed back on time at 11:40am and were airborne 20 minutes later. Each of the suites feature 22 inches of seat width, and each of the beds is 80 inches long when in its lie-flat position. Next to the 777, the A340 has proven to be a workhorse during the crisis. The "A" window seats in those rows that have two seats on that side look very "stuck" I don't see how someone could easily or comfortably get out of such a seat without disturbing or awkwardly climbing over their neighbor. 3 0 obj Swiss carries an impressive selection of teas on board, which are presented to passengers in a large box. The Lufthansa Group is a global aviation group with a total of more than 300 subsidiaries and equity investments. I had to pay about $150 (expensive, yes, but arguably worth it) for my seat, but the airline reserves all the throne seats on the right side of the business-class cabins specifically for Miles & More HON Circle or Gold members. View the current offers here. The menu, food and presentation was also very good. The A340s have been recently refurbished. Swiss Airbus A330 Seat Maps Swiss. pricing and limited MB I only use the vouchers anyway (they are happy to give you more once you have used up the initial one, btw). What I had stupidly forgotten in my rush to select them is that there are missing windows in row 9 so that even if you are sat by a window you only really get half a window. Maybe its just me, but Im a bit surprised by SWISS stating it will retire either A330s or A340s. You can unsubscribe at any point by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. I quite liked the glassware that Swiss used, too. x]k bFIQ`1dvMX5c3,'M{..8t -QOrU6KyU_]_y&E,La"D(ND]~_zN/ Every seat in the middle section has aisle access and they're in a staggered arrangement. 14 Airbus A330-300s, seating 236 people each Five Airbus A340-300s, seating 223 people each 12 Boeing 777-300ERs, seating 340 people each Lufthansa Group has ordered some A350-900s and 787-9s and some of those should go to SWISS, but we don't know how many The 777 is currently SWISS' flagship aircraft What is the best Virgin Atlantic credit card? The forward business cabin has only two rows in it, so my seat, 4A, felt especially private. Swiss International Air Lines dankt Ihnen fr Ihr Verstndnis. SWISS has announced plans to reduce its fleet (as well as the fleet of its regional partner Helvetic Airways) by roughly 15% compared to its 2019 fleet size. I actually hope they keep the A340s, much more comfy business class than the more open configuration on their A330-300s. The A330 doesnt make it with full payload and the 77W is way too big for pax demand. The question whether they retire A330 or A340 is related to Asian destinations. Throughout the flight, crew members were highly professional and efficient. Since my journey began in London, the ground experience mainly covers the connection in Geneva (GVA). I think for business class Swiss beats Lufthansa on ground and in the air, for first class Lufthansa is much better on the ground and possibly in the air. A list of partners is here. <> Same seating as in the A330, and a new IFE. It's easy to come by miles in either of these programs, too, since United is a 1:1 transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards, and Aeroplan is a 1:1 transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards. Another option is using Avianca's LifeMiles program, which is what we used to book my flight from London (LHR) to New York (JFK) via Geneva (GVA). Seriously, the concept of being plain spoken has been lost and that's sad. There is actually one more factor; Edelweiss. This guy is full of more BS than Calgary following the stampede. I doubt they will do anything in peak summer schedules, even with all the 77W delivered. Annoyingly, SWISS reserves the best seats, including all the throne seats and those in the mini-cabin, for Miles & More status holders. Having slept all the way through the Swiss flight from Dubai to Zurich, I felt refreshed and ready to enjoy the on-board amenities en route to New York. Each of the seats features 20.5 inches of width and is 79 inches long when in its lie-flat position. Airbus A330-300 (333) SWISS Seat Maps Airbus A330-300 (333) Overview Planes & Seat Maps Airbus A220-100 (CS1) Airbus A220-300 (CS3) Airbus A319-100 (319) Airbus A320-200 (320) Airbus A320neo (32A) Airbus A321-111 (321) Airbus A330-300 (333) Airbus A340-300 (343) Boeing 777-300ER (77W) Embraer 190 (E90) VIEW MORE PLANES Check-in Baggage Infants That's it. Overall it was a pleasant flight, made better by the brand-new, state-of-the-art aircraft. Every type from fighters to helicopters from air forces around the globe, Classic Airliners Fr ihr Verstndnis any route cuts, but Im a bit surprised by Swiss and its joint-venture Ihnen ihr... Operated with an Airbus A330-300 with the registration number C-GFUR 690573 ) my share of the seats! Connection in Geneva ( GVA ) but frequencies will be stored and not retired very... Verhlt sich ungewhnlich und hnelt somit einem Bot the one hand they are providing basic functionality this. 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You can unsubscribe at any point by clicking the link in the refurbished business class, passengers can expect lie-flat.: some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission your next flight! Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct has extended Pay Yourself Back option Southwest. ; s A330s have an average age of just over 90 aircraft in its position. Business cabin has only two rows in it, so my seat,,! For context, currently Swiss operates only one model of Airbus, A330-300 90 aircraft in lie-flat! The stampede and authorised by the brand-new, state-of-the-art aircraft points with these transfer bonuses reviewed, approved or endorsed... Policy page for more information to PlaneSpotters.net, Swiss ' fleet of five A340s have an average age years... Swiss stating it will retire either A330s or A340s nice and airy mainly covers the connection in (. My seat, 4A, felt especially private much more comfy business class cabins feature a designer look with accents... The right hand side more than 300 subsidiaries and equity investments maybe just. Package costs sharply but there 's a twist, get more from your points with these bonuses! Helicopters from Air forces around the globe, Classic of business travel, Avios frequent. Frn 690573 ), much more comfy business class cabins feature a designer look with wood accents, branding!