Emirates

12/6/14 EK355 SIN-DXB. Boarding very orderly by zones. Interior well maintained despite plane being 7-8 years old. IFE as usual very good with ICE being top notch. Too many things to watch and do. There's even a customer service survey under the C component. I didn't like that there were no drink runs done after take off not even a tray of drinks like SQ and CX does. Dinner service 1.5 hrs after take off and drinks another 30m later. People's throats were parched by then. People then begun pressing call buttons this could have been avoided if a simple drink run was done. Food was really good with choices between sweet and sour chicken and beef with mashed potatoes. I had the former and dessert was good too. Drinks service was really generous and there was no limit on the number of drinks both alcoholic and non alcoholic that you could take. No drink runs nor snacks provided after that although menu said so that was disappointing so 1 star less for F&B.

21/6/14 EK354 DXB-SIN. Boarding not by zones this time and some confusion occurred at the gate. Middle aged aircraft by EK's standards 4.4 years old well maintained interior but my seat pocket had a bit of uncleared rubbish. Full flight. IFE as usual very good with ICE being top notch. Too many things to watch and do. There's even a customer service survey under the C component. I didn't like that there were no drink runs done after take off not even a tray of drinks like what SQ and CX does. Due to this passengers kept pressing call buttons to ask for drinks. Snack service 1h15m after take off and drinks another 30m later. Breakfast was 3h before landing. Snack consisted of a roasted chicken sandwich and chocolate chip pecan cookies same as DXB-CDG. This time the sandwich was rock hard and the cookies weren't as good they were soft and weren't baked enough. Breakfast was really good with choices between omelette with creamed spinach (Same as DXB-CDG) and fried noodles with siewmai. I had the former. Omelette didn't taste like airplane stuff but was more bland this time creamed spinach bad this time. There were also fewer potato wedges and they were soggy. Fruits were fresh. I like that they provide croissants in addition to normal bread. Drinks service was really generous and there was no limit on the number of drinks both alcoholic and non alcoholic that you could take. Even during breakfast drink service you could ask for alcohol and no questions asked. Staff service was good on this flight. Smiles during service call buttons answered promptly and drink trays brought around twice after meal service for people who turn thirsty quickly like myself. I went to the galley to ask for my bottle to be refilled and they obliged. Landing was smoothest of 4 legs. After landing during disembarkation I requested to a cabin crew to allow me up to business and first class to have a look. She asked the chief stewardess and got a nod. She then enthusiastically showed me around the upper deck and I was amazed at how luxurious it was. I thanked her profusely after that. Good service from her. As usual EK is really good if you get a good crew. Only disappointment this flight was the food.

Beirut-Dubai. Seats were comfortable check in was smooth food was normal and crew responded on time.

Flew BKK/SYD 21 June 14. Flight was on time and boarding was efficient and well handled. Staff were professional and friendly with regular water/juice "runs" during the night flight. IFE Restroom cleanliness and food quality were at the top of what you expect in economy. Couple of little things that overall left a sour taste from the experience: Arrival cards weren't handed out until exiting the aerobridge on deboarding. Possibly an oversight. The 3-4-3 layout is a real impediment to them living up to their (often announced during the flight) award winning service. 17" width is simply to little and the extra seat makes the aisles ridiculously narrow to navigate for staff and passengers. My experience is a 3-3-3 format in a 773 is a far more comfortable experience for all. Most budget carriers have the 3-4-3 format however at least on them you don't have further discomfort of impeded foot room ( no IFE boxes under seats.) I guess the extra 50 (?) in carrying capacity is the overarching criteria. Cant help but think the contingent negativity created among passengers overrules the benefits of being able to move the maximum number of people.

DXB-CMB First Suites B777-300ER. Connected from a BA flight in DXB. EK is not efficient anymore if transferring from another airline with very few staff at the transit desk in Terminal 3. Thankfully a staff member at a non- transfer counter across the corridor saw me waiting and called me over. Although the process was slow he politely issued my boarding pass after confirming that my bags had transferred from BA to EK. The EK First Class Lounge was excellent with attentive staff a nice business center and very good buffet or menu dining options. Boarding was somewhat disorganized as usual. Staff welcomed me at the door showed me my suite and took my welcome drink order. There were two staff members for the five passengers (out of eight suites) with one very attentive and the other indifferent and inexperienced. The suite is very well designed if rather garish but is comfortable and functions well except for the rather awkward sliding doors. No amenity kit is given on the 4.5 hour night flight and no duvet/comforter is offered except for a thick blanket. I had booked a seafood meal online and it was insulting to be served an omelette that looked as though a child had cooked it and contained about a teaspoon of salmon! As one who uses CX and BA First Class and recalls what EK used to do a few years ago this is a huge disappointment. This is a very profitable route for EK yet it is cutting back even in First despite rising fuel costs not yet affecting UAE airlines. As a loyal Silver Tier Skywards EK customer I am concerned to this once outstanding airline is slipping especially when the competition is trying harder on this route. My bags were on the carousel in CMB after I cleared immigration.

20/6/14 EK88 ZRH-DXB. Boarding very orderly by zones. Pretty new aircraft of 1.3 years old. 85% Full flight. IFE as usual very good with ICE being top notch. Too many things to watch and do. There's even a customer service survey under the C component. This time drinks came with salted biscuits 40m after take off. Dinner service 2h30m after take off and drinks came 30m later. This left many passengers parched and kept asking crew for drinks which they weren't very happy to oblige on this leg. There was no menu as well not sure if crew forgot or there was insufficient. Dinner was really good with choices between salmon with saffron risotto and grilled chicken breast with mashed potatoes. I had the latter. Chicken breast a little dry but went well with the sauce. My mother had the salmon and the risotto was really delicious. Dessert of lemon torte was really good and I could have had multiple servings. Drinks service was really generous and there was no limit on the number of drinks both alcoholic and non alcoholic that you could take. Staff service was terrible on this flight the worst flight out of the 4 legs I flew with them. Hardly any smiles during service which honestly does not matter call buttons by other passengers went unanswered. No drinks service after the meal service. I went to the galley to ask for my bottle to be refilled and they obliged. I asked for 2 boxes of playing cards as souvenir and a rude male crew told me to get back to my seat and ask for it later. Not recommended this time. On a positive note a family of passengers who ordered Indian vegetarian meals didn't have their meals loaded and a female cabin crew were extremely helpful even going to business class to get a sandwich for them.

Flew Copenhagen-Dubai-Seoul and back. The seat in economy was rather large. The food was quite good - not the best I've had on a flight but definitely not the worst. There was apparently no limit on how many drinks and snacks you could ask for - a major bonus especially on long flights. There were lots of movies on the inflight entertainment and many of the English-language movies also had subtitles which is really nice because it's difficult to hear everything due to the noise from the engines.

Flew to Los Angeles in April. Food on the 04.30 am flight from Bangalore to Dubai was terrible as usual. The flights on the double decker A380 aircraft from Dubai to LAX and back was very comfortable. The massive queues to board the aircraft long queues at check-in and the scramble for the baggage at LAX airport will deter me from choosing this aircraft in future. It took me 2 hours to get my baggage at LAX airport and with 500 pax searching for their suitcases it was a total mess! Food portions on the flight were very small and food was disappointing. For a 16 hour flight the in between meal snacks were just fruits and chocolates which vanished soon and were never refilled. The crew were unfriendly. Ask for a drink and it never comes until you remind them thrice. Very disappointed. The food on the Dubai/Bangalore sector was excellent.

More food please! On a trip from SYD to London we were only served 2 meals and one "light bite". That's over 23 hrs flying with just 2 measly meals. Meal service is appalling. No drinks or snacks served. No pre-drinks served before meals or at any time during the flight. Drinks (tea coffee juice wine etc) served over 30 mins after meals are delivered. No second round of tea /coffee served Service is slow milk and sugar need to be requested and served separately and this takes forever By the time tea is served it is cold and too late after the meal has been eaten.

Vastly overrated. The staff may be good at delivering food but have very little idea of what service means. I did 5 sectors in first and met one Purser and one person who claimed to be in charge of the first class cabin. On two sectors I was addressed by my name on three I was just another person. Staff seem to not want to engage with passengers or communicate with them except to take food orders. On two sectors I had to go and search for cabin staff - none seemed to be around when found they were all talking in the galley and appeared upset that I had interrupted them. As best I can determine there is only one first class lounge and that is in Dubai all the others are business class shared with first. On the plus side the suites are great and the beds excellent.