Finnair

Delays outbound on my latest trip and now I am sitting in Helsinki with another a 10.35pm flight has now been rescheduled for 2.30am. Planes on the way out were dirty and you had to ask for toilet paper. Inflight entertainment systems did not work and flight attendants hung on to water as if it was rationed. The terminal is full of families the delay has produced a couple of blankets 3 security guards and 8 euros a passenger. We have of course missed our connection in Hong Kong so there will be more problems to come. Attendants are short with some of the passengers and seem to care little for the situation.

After reading the review I was quite sceptical about taking Finnair but due to the low cost I booked it anyway. I check in with zero expectation and I was pleasantly surprised. The inflight entertainment from SIN-HEL worked fine with some new movies. The food was typical airplane food. The service was generally good. The transit in Helsinki was a breeze and I was off to Paris. The service on the HEL-CDG sector was very good however in terms of meal they only serve a sandwich and non alcoholic drinks. All in all if I would continue to receive such services I would continue flying Finnair.

I recently flew BRU-HEL-ICN (Seoul) and was very satisfied. Transfer in Helsinki was a breeze and with good cafes shops and completely free wi-fi the time passed quickly. The 9 hour flight to Seoul was packed but fine - staff were friendly and attentive food was great and they brought water round regularly during the night. The choice of films was fairly limited but this is only a minor grumble. Will certainly use them again.

HEL-ICN-HEL: Traveled Finnair for the first time and was pleasantly surprised. As advertised their quick connections in HEL and short flight times to North-East Asia made for a comfortable journey. Food quality was not fantastic but was decent enough on the whole while service was attentive and friendly in both directions. PTVs had a limited selection of movies and shows but I guess it was good enough for a 9hr flight.

Would not recommend Finnair after our experience on two recent flights. Budapest to Helsinki we were given seats rows apart when our booked seats were unavailable due to downsizing of aircraft. Helsinki to Singapore discovered dirty headphones in seat pocket then found entertainment system did not work for the duration of our long flight. It appears from previous reports this is a regular problem. Amazed they are still members of One World Alliance.

As a Finn I have to regret that our national carrier is not quite as it used to be. It is less reliable with increasingly frequent delays. No consistency in service quality anymore. Some connections are significantly worse than others. My recent flights between Beijing and Helsinki and Hong Kong and Helsinki both economy and business indicated major differences between the two routes to China. The Beijing route is no frills in an old and run down jet whereas the Hong Kong one has more recent equipment. The former had completely dysfunctional entertainment system with tiny blurred screens for example and no flight information (time distances etc.) but a single picture placing the plane over Asia. The poor staff were constantly asked about time by the passengers. Both flights had poor meals in the economy and the Hong Kong one excellent ones in the business. Overall the service is not bad but the recent out sourcing and other such measures shows.

DEL-HEL-HEL. October 2012. Finnair uses leased A340s from Air France on this sector and it is very visible with the blue tray table and leg rests. Efficient check in and boarding. Finnair is strict on weight of cabin baggage - they actually checked it. During the Delhi - Helsinki flight an additional round of drinks were served between the two meals which was welcome. Crew seemed friendly and efficient but not as warm as other airlines. Quality of food was very low - greasy and small in quantity probably because Finnair sells snacks in between meals. Return flight of six hours in the night was packed and crew did 4 hours of service for dinner and breakfast interspersed with announcements so ensured passengers did not get sleep. Cabin lights were not dimmed prior to take off and during landing. Average airline and not the best. Helsinki Vantaa airport was a breeze.

SIN to HEL and on to LHR. Priority boarding for business but my heart sank when I saw the plane was the tired old chartered ex Air France A340. Seats were bearable the old lie flat type but after 20minutes we were told that the entire entertainment system didn't work and were offered an insulting EUR 20 voucher. For a flight of 12 hours this was totally unacceptable and the second time the system hasn't worked on the same plane (May 2012). Finnair please address this. Transfer to BA for next leg which was 10/10.

YUL (Montreal) to SVO (Moscow) via JFK and HEL + HEL to YUL via JFK. Everything went smoothly from the first to last flight. We were afraid to miss our 35 min connection in HEL (going to Moscow) but the airplane was waiting for us on the tarmac. Very professional and courteous staff. Food pretty good as well. A baby was crying during 4 of the 8-hour flight from New York to Helsinki but that's not their fault I guess! I recommend Finnair for the very good service and the fact that every flight was on time!

BKK-HEL-WAW in Business class. Big disappointment. I had trouble with two seats in business class that would not recline to fully flat position. While Cabin crew very nice and tried to fix a plane this new (A330) should not have these kinds of problems. When I contacted Finnair to complain they offered me a 20 Euro voucher for eight hours of standing around. Safe to say that I will never fly them again due to fear of seat failure.