Finnair A350 XWB to Helsinki

[yflyer]

I had a trip planned for Helsinki and the USA in late October this year. This was the perfect opportunity to check out Finnair’s new A350 WXB, which Finnair began operating on the SIN-HEL sector last month, on 17 October.

The A350 WXB replaces the A340’s which Finnair previously used on this sector. This is currently also the only nonstop flight from Singapore to Helsinki.

My onward flight, HEL-JFK, was operated by an A330, which meant that I was able to spend time in Finnair’s Premium Lounge in Helsinki, and also compare their latest A350 hard product with their A330.

My flights were all flown in economy class, with the whole itinerary SIN-HEL-JFK-HEL-SIN on a single, very attractively priced ticket, which included a stop in Helsinki on the return leg.

While in Helsinki, I headed outside for a couple of runs around the city, one of which was done in zero degree weather just after the first snowfall of the year. I also took the opportunity to taste both traditional and modern Finnish cuisine in several notable restaurants in Helsinki. The usual warnings about not reading this TR on an empty stomach apply!

[yflyer]

Finnair operates out of Changi T1. The designated Finnair Lounge is the Dnata lounge, which is a fairly new lounge also used by CX.



I’ve previously covered this lounge here.

My departure gate was D47. There was a separate priority queue for security screening.



The aircraft at the gate was OH-LWD, an A350-900 WXB that was less than a year old.

[yflyer]

Finnair as an airline does not have a first class product. They offer Business and Economy class, as well as an enhanced Economy product called Economy Comfort.

Business Class on the A350 uses the familiar Cirrus fully flat business class seats, in a 1-2-1 herringbone configuration.







These are very comfortable, state-of-the-art seats, that recline into fully flat beds and offer direct aisle access.



The overall cabin theme is white and grey, with pillows, blankets, amenity kits and tableware in bright, colourful designs from Marimekko, which I found very attractive and cheerful.



Amenity kits and slippers for each J passenger. Also visible are the in seat USB port and A/C power.

[yflyer]

The Y cabin was also in a white and grey colour scheme, with Marimekko accents, laid out 3-3-3.



The 2nd row window-side aisle seat in the Y cabin has no seat in front of it.



The first section of the Y cabin comprises Finnair’s Economy Comfort product, with greater legroom than regular Y, and better amenities such as noise-cancelling headphones and a small amenity kit, but otherwise it is similar to the Y product.



For comparison, this is the seat pitch of regular Y…





The rear of the Y cabin, with a large galley and restrooms in the rear, as well as crew access to a crew rest area above the rear of the aircraft.

[yflyer]

Earbud headphones, lime green pillow with fabric cover, and large blanket on each seat.



Very attractive pillow and blanket designs from Marimekko.



The headphones are the two-pin airline variety. You need to use an airline headphone adapter if you want to use your own headphones.

No underseat obstructions…



Very good recline, with a seat that pivots forward as you recline.



Slimline armrests that can be raised.



No issues with full recline in the last row of the cabin.



Full LCD cabin fasten-seat-belt/no smoking indicators. No adjustable air vents, though.



Wifi internet was available for a fee (Time-based).

Y seats had a USB charging port, but there was no A/C power in Y cabin – just USB, which I thought was an interesting design decision on Finnair's part.

[yflyer]

I had a great Y seat on this flight in the 2nd Y cabin: A window seat set one row back from the emex row, with no seat in front of me.



I had both a window, as well as a lot of legroom and direct aisle access.



My seat had a tray table which folded out from the armrest. (The regular Y seats have conventional fold down tray tables.)

[yflyer]

Pushback, and taxi for take-off…



Take-off on Runway 20C…





After take-off, I explored the IFE on a high resolution widescreen touch panel.





There was a small controller in the seat, but I did not need to use it, as all functions were on the touchscreen.



The Finnair IFE user interface is one of the most user friendly designs I have used. It displays information in a very clear and useful way, and looks exceptionally well integrated with other systems and onboard products. A superbly designed system.

For example, this is the home screen:



At a glance, it tells you where you are in the flight, with a progress bar starting on the left with SIN to the right, with the destination HEL, and along the progress timeline, it gives you the time in both departure and destination cities, and what inflight service (e.g. dinner, in-flight shopping, breakfast) is available, and approximately when this happens. A marvel of clarity!

You can also choose to see an inflight map, high-res cameras mounted on the tail and under the fuselage, and also access arrival information.

The moving maps also have multiple views and are zoomable and rotatable with finger swipes and pinches.









SQfanatic would love the 3D maps on this system!

[yflyer]

Wifi-based internet was available on a time-basis, either 1 hour or for the full flight.

[yflyer]

Shortly after take-off, dinner was served. The two choices were announced over the PA, along with an announcement that beverages, beer, wine, and hard liquor were complimentary (On some other sectors, Finnair charges for these if ordered after the 1st meal service).

Meal service proceeded from the front of the cabin to the rear.



Today’s choices were fish with potatoes, or a noodle dish.

I chose the fish.



Plastic cutlery…



Salad starter, served with salad dressing on the side…



A tasty main course…



I had this with a glass of wine, served from glass bottles into plastic cups…



I asked my seatmate if I could snap a photo of her noodle main course casserole (Which was the other option), and she kindly agreed…



Chocolate cake for dessert…



After that, coffee and tea, served in colourfully designed Marrimeko paper cups.



A G&T after dinner, served with a lemon slice...

[yflyer]

During the flight, snacks and beverages were available from the rear galley. These were outlined in a Sky bistro menu, but were also listed in an online menu on the IFE, along with prices. EUR 5 for cup noodles!



Complimentary beverages, except for Champagne at EUR 12 a pop…









The menus indicated that all of these were available from the rear galley.

Throughout the flight, the call button was seldom heard. If anything was needed, most folks headed to the rear galley to get it.

[yflyer]

Entertainment selections included Movies, TV series…





… and audio playlists, although there weren’t music CDs or Albums on demand.





The range and number of movies and TV shows were also not as wide as SQ or even other airlines, but you had a reasonable set of options.

I watched Independence Day: Resurgence…



Not as exhilarating a movie as the original Independence Day movie, but as a sequel it was entertaining in a mindless sort of way.

On the bright side, it did include a role for Singapore’s very own Hollywood star, Chin Han…



…and eye candy in the form of young Hong Kong actress Angelababy…

[yflyer]

Sleek bathrooms in brushed aluminium and light wood tones…







Very flowery Chinese font used for some of the signage…

[yflyer]

I asked for a whisky as a night cap…



…before reclining my seat...



…and settling in to sleep…



And sleep I did. The 9-abreast A350 seats were wide and comfortable -- wider than a 9-abreast 787, and seat recline was superb.

This was a very comfortable Y product and cabin. As good as any in terms of seat comfort and recline.

[yflyer]

Breakfast was served 2 hours prior to arrival…



Service began with lights turned on, and a round of hot moist disposable paper towels…



Cabin ambience…a spacious and open cabin…



You could have any breakfast you wanted, as long as it was egg frittata…



A decent breakfast, served with fruit, yogurt, a croissant, coffee/tea and a choice of juice.

[yflyer]

I flipped on the map to see where we were…



The route overnight took us over India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and various Central Asian nations…





The city maps in the map view zoom down into very detailed street maps…





…which included information on sights and attractions…



The arrival and connections information in the IFE was also exceptionally useful and well presented.

You were shown a map of the terminal, your gate, and where your connecting flight would be



For example, folks connecting to Tenerife would need to get from gate 32 to nearby gate 28…just a 4 minute walk…



…whereas folks connecting to Vienna had a longer 10 minute walk to gate 17…



As I mentioned, this was an exceptionally well designed system from the perspective of clarity and usability.