South African Airways

7 day London - Johannesburg return. What has happened? From someone with over 40 years experience of flying 'The Springbok' these 2 flights were just terrible. Outbound: Aircraft A340 was clean and tidy left a little late and arrived a little early. Crew - no smiles no interest no service! Food was ok and apart from the 'map' not working IFE was good. 4/10. Return: Check-in staff had no uniform making it difficult to tell who was who. Aircraft was for some reason an A320 but was clean and as far as I could see in very good condition. Flight was far from full capacity. Crew were ok with prompt service but virtually no passenger interaction between meals which on this particular flight were far from being tasty. IFE was good and again apart from the first few hours there was no 'map'! 4/10. They really need to improve their product if you want to compete in today's' marketplace.

JFK to JHB return on 12/29/12 and 1/13/13 and was very satisfied with the business class service. The flight attendants on both flights were very friendly and pleasant and attentive during drink and meal service. It is true that the attendants then disappear for the majority of the flight but since most of the passengers are sleeping I think passengers would be very annoyed to have service carts going up and down the aisles during this time. If one wants something one can ask and it will be supplied. The seats were very comfortable as beds and I slept well. I have no complaints at all.

LHR-JNB return. What I experienced especially JNB-LHR leg was excellent. Flight attendants were attentive and courteous with even the most basic request. The food itself was excellent. The pilots made regular announcements notifying passengers before meals of the choices as well as apologizing beforehand if we don't get what we want because of the meals being made in a 'ratio basis'. When I last flew SAA the only source of entertainment were small screens every few rows but now was offered a good selection of AVOD. The seating was comfortable and was equivalent to the Economy Plus offered by United (which you have to pay extra for) for leg space which I experienced with my connecting flight from LHR to ORD. Overall a very pleasant trip. Would gladly fly again.

IAD-DKR-IAD. Both outbound and return flight were on time. Lie-flat seat is a little hard in seating position but very comfortable if you use the blanket as a mattress in the bed position. Dakar-IAD leaving at 2am the entire flight is by night. IAD-DKR is overnight as well. Food is ok but nothing special. Breakfast was not served before arrival in Dakar which is odd particularly in C class. The video system is not very easy to use but the screen is adequate and the earphones are good. In all SAA's business product is very correct. I would recommend the airline at least for this class of service.

Port Elizabeth-Johannesburg on a quite old 737-800 flying with a packed Economy. The service was pretty good: nice cabin crew a tasty and complete breakfast was served as this was an early morning flight. Good selection of beverages. Comfort of the seat quite good. Landed ahead of schedule in JNB. Johannesburg to Cape Town: this second flight was a different story. Flew on a pretty new and well-maintained but empty Airbus A340-600 which was surprising to me as flight time is only two hours on this route. Cabin crew were not good: quite rude kept chatting among them for the whole trip in the back of the aircraft ignoring some requests from a group of Dutch passengers. A poor sandwich was served as lunch with the usual selection of beverages. The entertainment system was not running but I could notice it is not the new touch-screen version. Space for legs good with the usual 2-4-2 configuration for the A340. Overall the price paid was too high for what you get back aboard.

SA 288 3 January Johannesburg - Beijing Business (Premium) class Seat 7K. Uninspiring mediocre and ordinary in every respect. Flight empty in business class cabin 8 passengers with 42 seats on A340-600. Departure at 00.30 drinks service canapés main meal service. Crew just going through the motions with a complete lack of enthusiasm. Lots of loud chatting and laughing in the galley. Such an ordinary product. In flight amenity kit best left behind - apparently a new product line - just the very basics. Requested coffee twice and staff happily complied served in a paper cup with a serviette. Duvet and over seat mattress placed on empty seat next to me - no offer to make the bed? One blessing on such a long flight is that the IFE is good with a large selection of movies and series.

Flew from London to Johannesburg in economy. Love the new seats and the staff were great. The French airspace was closed and the pilot kept us informed and offered to fly the next morning with free accommodations despite the fact many others were just sitting on the tarmac we did have a vote and choose to stay and then went over Poland. Fantastic airline.

LHR-JNB. Was switched from LHR-ZCH-JNB when Zurich airport was closed by heavy snow. Despite the late switch SAA managed to get my wife and I on adjacent seats. SAA always scores well on flight attendant service and the excellent bed cover and duvet. Used the Arrivals Lounge and as usual this was quiet and well-staffed.

Flew Johannesburg to Washington route on 1st December 2012. I was on economy class and there were no amenities whatsoever. The least SAA could have done was to send out a notice that they do not hand out any amenities because why would I pay so much and not get an amenities bag.

We were on A340-300 from Dulles to Johannesburg. The seats were impossibly small. I am 5'6" and could not cross or move my legs. My husband is 6' and could not move at all. The layover in Dakar only made it worse. The flight was long enough without adding a stop. A340-600 could have made it non-stop. If you are ever on the 300 change your route. We travelled extensively by air in Africa on BOAC planes that were twice as roomy as the SAA. The worse part of the trip to Johannesburg was knowing we had to do it again to get home.