World's Longest Commercial Flight: SIN-EWR-SIN on SQ's A345

[9V-SIA]

Introduction

Firstly, sorry I couldn't make LD#6.

I very much wanted to be there.

To make amends, I present this TR, my excuse for non attendance.

I made this trip to see colleges on the East Coast with my wife & daughter: 10 colleges in 10 days.

A very exhausting schedule.

Why not SQ25/26?

Originally I had booked SQ25/26 so that my daughter flew in Y.

But I figured SQ21/22 would have less chance of disruption by volcanoes, terror threats, bird flu etc

Besides, I...

1. prefer the schedule
   
2. dislike using FRA & JFK
   
3. had miles to burn

This flight was sufficiently different from SQ21/22 I took last year so I will also highlight the differences.

And as a bonus for SQTalk, I decided not to sleep the entire way ( trying a new method to get over jet lag faster )

& give you an hourly report on the flight. Hope it won't be too boring!

Check in

After all these years, I'm still filled with a sense of anticipation on departure day.

Mum drove us to Changi on an overcast Saturday morning.

Do you share my feeling of excitement as you drive up the ramp to the Departure Hall?

Check in went smoothly. Our 3 bags weighed about 10 kg each. Double that on our return flight!



Lounge

I use this lounge because:

1. Quieter
2. Booked my comp limo on my return
3. They have Macs ( 24/7/2010 Edit:actually just discovered that so does SQ )
4. For breakfast, nice carrot cake. Served to you.

Living Room




Dining Room




Computer Room




Mezzanine

I left my wife and daughter in the lounge to explore the Mezzanine level. I'm glad I did.

Apart from SQ's premium lounges and *Alliance lounge, I found it great for plane spotting.


Krisflyer Gold/*Alliance Lounge Overlooks Departure Hall & tarmac




Departure Hall



And if you don't have lounge access, look for this place on the Mezzanine level for great views of the tarmac. Has anyone tried the food?

[9V-SIA]

Views of the Tarmac

Views from the Mezzanine level are somewhat spoilt by the heat reducing glass & louvres

Does this remind you of a Roy Lichtenstein poster?



This would be a brilliant picture without the "spoilers".

My favorite plane in SQ' s fleet: Airbus Industrie's A340-500 Leadership.

Only 5 of them, serving SIN-EWR & SIN-LAX.



I went downstairs to get these shots through clear windows.



9V-SGE. But she wasn't my ride today..



Boarding

It was a long walk to the departure gate A15.

Eh? Am I in the right place?



Yes indeed. It's a code share flight with US.



Last year, when loads were low, there was no waiting in the holding room.

After clearing security, I walked straight onto the plane through door 1L.

This time, there was a short wait.

When it was time to board, there was no boarding sequence.

However, boarding went smoothly through doors 1L & 2L.

We're talking 100 PAXs boarding through 2 aerobridges


She's a bashful one and I had difficulty asking for her number



Finally got her number: 9V-SGA.



Boarding last year through door 1L...



.. and a walk through the front galley. Door 1L only used when boarding in Singapore..



This year, I used door 2L. The door usually used to board in EWR and, I imagine, LAX.

That's row 18 to the right of the corridor.

[9V-SIA]

1100h H Hour

Pre take off

Once I got on board, I changed into my PJs, took out my Seinheisers,

stored my carry on in the overhead locker and made myself comfortable

Pre flight drink was served together with a hot towel.

They also took my drink order for after take off

In contrast, I flew SQ22 last year during H1N1 crisis and got this...



Push back at 1046h

Pilot came on to give us flight details and to tell us that there was to be no congregation on board during the flight ( TSA ruling? )

We were no.4 to take off. I would have thought that we get priority seeing we had a long way to fly.

And we were pointing the wrong way on take off..



1110h Finally it was our turn.. note the vapor trail over the wing



Low cloud ceiling but I managed to take this picture before we were in the clouds



We made our 180° turn and flew over Changi. Trust me, Changi is under those clouds..



Our 18 hour flight had begun...

[9V-SIA]

1200h H+1

North-West of Brunei & East Malaysia

Altitude: 30,941 ft
Ground Speed: 550 mph
Outside temperature: -21°F
Distance Traveled: 571 miles
Head Wind: 30 mph

Her tanks full of fuel, we start at FL320 till we lose some weight




The Cabin

The A345 has 4 doors on each side, 2 forward & 2 behind the wing.

The galleys are at either end...next to doors 1 and 4.


Doors 2 and 3 divide the aircraft into front, middle and rear cabins ( or zone A, B and C respectively )

The toilets are arranged 1-0-1 behind door 2 & 1-2-1 in front of door 3.

Two middle toilets in front are removed and replaced by seats row 18DF.

So 6 toilets on board. Rarely a queue to go.. even during peak periods


Door 3 Rear cabin on right.



Rear Toilets




Door 2 middle cabin on right / front cabin on left



Front Toilets




Front Cabin

From door 1..





From door 2..



Note: crew seat by door 2 at bottom left of picture


Middle Cabin



The drawn curtains at the front mark the end of the middle cabin


Rear Cabin


From door 3..




From row 38. Last 2 rows - 37 & 38 - are 1-1-1 seating.



Warm nuts and Diet Coke were served as we waited for lunch to be served


Notice anything interesting about the cabin?

They may have changed the seats but the overhead lockers are original.

Think about it... designed for 60J + 117Y. Now, for 100 PAXs. That's a lot of space!

You can store your kids up there......

........ Only kidding... no seat belts..

[9V-SIA]

1300h H+2

East of Vietnam

Altitude: 31,952 feet
Ground Speed: 563 mph
Outside temperature: -27°F
Distance Traveled: 1061 miles
Tail Wind: 7 mph

Little tail wind. Haven't hit the jet stream yet..



Lunch was served around 1pm as we flew over the Spratley Islands

The Table

I like the design. You press on the table..



.. it pops up...




.. and flips down. Also height adjustable & for forward / backward. Smoothly, which is always sign of good design.

Note the gap between the seat & wall...





The Menu

Starter

Japanese style marinated prawn, salmon tataki and California maki roll garnished with mixed salad and tomato
Choice of shiso or creamy sesame dressing

Main

Tournedos of beef with black pepper cream, chunky vegetables and lyonnaise potato

Thai style deep fried garoupa served with green mango salad and steamed rice

Chicken Kiev
Breaded chicken breast stuffed with herb butter, steamed vegetables and crushed potato with olives

Roast "char siew and siew york" style pork served with assorted vegetables and steamed rice

Finale

Ben & Jerry's banana walnut ice cream

Haagen Dazs classic vanilla ice cream
Garnished with granola and raspberry sauce

Fruit in season

Gourmet coffees & selection of fine teas, with pralines

So my choices were...

Starter



From the bread basket

Always a challenge to get good bread on board. The dry, cool air makes it harden too fast.

Best bread I've ever had was on OS. I think they bake it on board.

That was a few years back. Wonder if they still have a chef on board?



I had BTC'd Lobster Thermidor




Finale

Haagen Daz

Melted nicely instead of frozen solid like in the past..



Hot towels before & after the meal ensured I was squeaky clean.

And gave me some humidified air to breathe when I cover my face with it.

Interestingly, the crockery appears to me to be smaller & lighter than on other aircraft. My imagination?

[9V-SIA]

1400h H+3

West of Philippines

Altitude: 31,955 feet
Ground Speed: 574 mph
Outside temperature: -25° F
Distance Traveled: 1,527 miles
Tail Wind: 12 mph




Which cabin to fly in? Forward, middle or rear?

I prefer the rear cabin out of habit.

The front end tends to fill up first. Conditioning I guess.


This is a twin-aisle plane with 100 seats ( less seats than a single-aisled A320 / 737 ). Disembarking is never a problem.

And, in my experience, EWR CIQ is a breeze as we are the only flight arriving at that time.


Last year, during the H1N1 scare, I flew on flights with 30 to 50% loads.

All at the front! I used to have the whole rear cabin to myself!

Privacy & safety from catching any bugs.


It doesn't hold anymore because flights are more full.

Load factor for this one was 96/98. ( 2 seats are kept for crew? )


Which seat?

Well this is my favorite seat: 30A..




Note my stash of newspapers & magazines on the floor. I'm a happy camper!



2 crew seats by door 3L. Occupied at take off & landing.

The newspapers and magazine trolley occupies this space during boarding.

Can you see trolley? Self service.




View from seat 30A

I'm buffered from the toilets by door 3 emergency exits. No noise or smells get to my seat.

Well, I use eye shades usually.. so no light shines on me when the lights are out. There are curtains too.




Looking across row 30..

[LionCity]

Thanks for the hourly updates. How was the jet lag after trying the new method?

We have the pepper crab and chilli crab from Famous Crab King plus an invoice for your contribution.

[9V-SIA]

Thanks for the hourly updates. How was the jet lag after trying the new method?

No good. Sleep as much as you can on flight is still the way to go.

Let's say you can sleep 10 hours.

That still leaves you 8 hours of IFE!

1500h H+4

Altitude: 34,940 feet
Ground Speed: 602 mph
Outside temperature: -41° F
Distance Traveled: 2115 miles
Tail Wind: 55 mph

Off The Taiwan Coast




Comparing the 77W to A345 Seat


A345

OK not strictly comparable because mine is a bulkhead seat. But you can notice the missing shelf




77W

The 77W cabin is wider & the seat reflects this.

The tray table pops up from the triangular beige strip, flips down & rotates clockwise to straighten out




There is extra space between the monitor & wall for a shelf




A345

There is an empty gap between the seat and the walls




77W

The headphones are hung between the chair and the wall.




The extra space also gives you a covered locker ( where you see my fanny pouch crammed in! ).

[9V-SIA]

1600h H+5

South of Kyushu

Altitude: 34,947 feet
Ground Speed: 643 mph
Outside temperature: -45° F
Distance Traveled: 2719 miles
Tail Wind: 90 mph




By this time, I'd given up watching movies. It was too much effort to pause the movie to take pictures of the Flight Plan.

Luckily, the TV programmes proved quite entertaining and never lasted more than an hour.

Try and catch Michelin Stars: The Madness Of Perfection in Lifestyle section

This guy...



.. in this restaurant..



.. and the work to get Michelin stars..




June edition of Silverkris magazine has an article "a slice of nature" by Sudi Pigott I found very interesting.

In essence, molecular gastronomy is dead. Eco gastronomy is the new fashion.

The cuisine is characterized by:

1. super-natural ingredients: natural tastes minimally seasoned
2. ultra-seasonal ingredients: not only using in-season ingredients but at the peak of the season
3. minimal cooking: low heat, barely cooked food

jhm & phaleesy were early adaptors

Their TR: Quest for a salad

[9V-SIA]

1700h H+6

Near Tokyo

Altitude: 34,940 feet
Ground Speed: 663 mph
Outside temperature: -54° F
Distance Traveled: 3,369 miles
Tail Wind: 131 mph

Decent tailwind.. we must be in the jet stream?



Fukuoka

Do you mean that this place in Kyushu is nearer China or Korea than (say) somewhere in Okinawa, e.g. Yonaguni which is about 100km from the ROC ? If so, that's an interesting fact.

Fukuoka is just across the ocean from Busan.

Wish I had an Flight Plan picture to illustrate here but Google Maps shows it's proximity nicely

In fact, my friend likes to fly to Busan for sea food!! Like flying SIN-KUL.

Not considering the minor islands of Japan. Just the 4 big ones: Kyushu, Honshu, Shikoku & Hokkaido.

The Flight Plan illustrates very well how close FUK is to BUS.

FUK-KIX is further than FUK-BUS.


Hakone

Flying so near Tokyo brought back memories of my trip to Roppongi / Hakone last Thanksgiving.

TR here: Thanksgiving in Roppongi

Interestingly, at the time, I wrote..

SQTalk ( Petrolheads group ): Guess what the black car in the foreground is?

911

Not bad, not bad.

It was actually a Cayman, but when I look back at the pic, it does look like a 911.

Saw red F430 spider & black GTR as well. Lots of convertibles.

I think affluent Tokyoites drive there to run their cars.

So it was funny to read this article in Top Gear

Roads To Try Before You Die: Toyo Turnpike, Hakone, Japan




The lake in the picture is Lake Ashi. And I will be driving there next time along the red route...in a Nissan GTR

[9V-SIA]

1800h H+7

Leaving Asia

Altitude: 36,072 feet
Ground Speed: 664 mph
Outside temperature: -58° F
Distance Traveled: 4,062 miles
Tail Wind: 111 mph




Who takes this flight?

It's supposed to target business travelers between New York and Singapore but it's quite a mixed lot.

6 kids. Pregnant mum with toddler. Oil men. Wall Street types. Big Pharma.

Is there a USAir type? This guy was very excited by the whole experience. At EWR, before take off, he was on his cell reading the menu to his friend in North Carolina.

Told 3 times to switch off his cell.


Passing Time

Apart from IFE, some were working / playing games? on their lap tops. First time I saw Kindle in use too. Sleep of course.

[9V-SIA]

1900h H+8

Satay!!

Altitude: 35,944 feet
Ground Speed: 660 mph
Outside temperature: -60° F
Distance Traveled: 4,657 miles
Tail Wind: 108 mph

The thing to notice about the Flight Plan is that, for the next few hours, the "micro" map disappears.

Only the "macro" map appears. Is it because passengers might worry that all they see is water?



Dinner Menu

Prelude

Satay
With onion, cucumber and spicy peanut sauce

Starter

Smoked duck breast and duck confit, heart of romaine lettuce, shaved parmesan cheese
Choice of aged balsamic or mustard dressing

Main

Chicken roulade in hot and sour sauce, spinach tofu with mushroom sauce and steamed rice

Sauteed prawns and scallops served with creamy shiitake mushroom sauce, buttered green peas and pappadelle pasta

Beef rendang
A popular Singaporean dish of spicy braised beef with vegetables in coconut gravy and turmeric rice

Pan seared lamb loin served with rosemary jus, stewed vegetables in tomato fondue and mashed potato

Finale

Vanilla creme brulee

Black and white sesame panna cotta
Both served with mango sago salsa

Cheese selection
Cambozola, farmhouse cheddar, french boursin
Served with quince paste, grapes, pecan and biscuit

Gourmet coffees & selection of fine teas with pralines

Satay

[9V-SIA]

2000h H+9

Dinner Time

Altitude: 36,995 feet
Ground Speed: 667 mph
Outside temperature: -63° F
Distance Traveled: 5,318 miles
Tail Wind: 126 mph




Dinner is about to start.. Somewhat appropriately, I watch Tom Hank's new HBO series The Pacific over dinner




Duck breast salad..




From the bread basket..




BTC 6oz rib eye




OK it's not medium-rare but definitely not well done..

Tender & juicy. Brilliant!!

[9V-SIA]

2100h H+10

Dessert

Altitude: 36,945 feet
Ground Speed: 618 mph
Outside temperature: -54° F
Distance Traveled: 5,981 miles
Tail Wind: 71 mph




Panna cotta




Selection of cheeses



I normally don't last till the cheese but this is the end of the meal service on this flight so I load up.

I will eat something from the Light Bites menu flying over Canada

[9V-SIA]

2200h H+11

In The Middle Of The Pacific

Altitude: 36,945 feet
Ground Speed: 606 mph
Outside temperature: -65° F
Distance Traveled: 6,622 miles
Tail Wind: 58 mph




1,200 miles later ( and after crossing the distortion in the space time continuum ), dinner is done.

Hot towels & bottled water are given. Then the lights go out. They won't come on again till we start our descent into EWR.


Bed mode




And this is the difference between sleeping in a bulkhead seat vs other seats..

Bulkhead



Non bulkhead seats