DeltaDAWG From United States of America, joined May 2006, 620 posts, RR: 1 Posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 5 hours ago) and read 4479 times:
I am getting ready to book another flight to UK/Europe for upcoming business. I am a loyal DL/SkyTeam flier but I keep getting e-mails from Maxjet and offers in the mail to try them.
I looked at the website but have not booked anything but thought I would ask here for insights into Maxjet about the service, experience, food, etc.? Also, I have flown mostly into LGW,LHR and MAN in the UK but never Stansted, how is STN and its services, ground transport, etc.?
HS748 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 2, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 5 hours ago) and read 4476 times:
Try a search in the trip reports forum and you'll find at least three reviews, all of them somewhat more helpful than than previous response to your question!
LHUSA From United States of America, joined Aug 2005, 553 posts, RR: 3 Reply 4, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4408 times:
Quoting IFEMaster (Reply 3): Sorry about that. The experience was so harrowing that I'm mentally scarred. I have a hard time talking about it. I'm in therapy.
Can you at least give us a brief overview of what happened? I'm sure we're all interested to hear a good story.
From what I've heard, MaxJet is actually a pretty good value. Definitely not up to par with a typical legacy's business class, but much more comfortable than coach. Service and seats a bit generic, but overall worth the money.
IFEMaster From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 5, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4331 times:
Quoting LHUSA (Reply 4): Can you at least give us a brief overview of what happened? I'm sure we're all interested to hear a good story.
LOL. Sure.
Perhaps it was the general nature of my trip that served to remove enjoyment from the flying part of it, but in any case, I won't fly with them again.
I was on a quick turn around business trip for a new contract in London that my company had signed. It was literally a case of fly in, work for a day, and fly back. I'd wanted to give Maxjet a try, so I booked AA from LAX to JFK in first and then JFK to STN on Maxjet.
My primary objective on the outbound flight was to sleep. That didn't happen because I found the seats quite uncomfortable, and the recline didn't allow for a good sleeping position. I found my neighbour to be somewhat noisy in his various coughing fits that he had from time to time. I had eaten before I left so declined the meal, but I had a glass of wine from a bottle that was corked. I asked for a replacement from a fresh bottle, and that was better. I also didn't check out the IFE system as I was favouring darkness and sleeping. Arrived in London an hour late due to headwinds and a holding delay over London in bad weather. The captain said it was due to Heathrow traffic needing to clear the area, which I thought was really unusual. Arrived after having no sleep, and went to work for a day in London. Slept pretty good that night at the hotel.
The return flight was were I made most of the evaluations. The STN lounge is nice, I'll grant them that, and staffed by friendly folks. One of them was telling me about some of the planned changes to the lounge etc. He said it was an ex-SAS lounge, and it certainly had that Scandinavian look and feel, but I sometimes felt like I was in an Ikea showroom. Still, a pleasant place to relax. Boarding was a bit disorganized as it was a pretty full flight and they called all seats for general boarding. Weird. Again, I found the seat uncomfortable. The food wasn't bad, but not what I would regard as international business class standard. The wine was much better this time. In flight service was somewhat lacking - it took me three attempts to get an attendant to my seat to compain about the IFE system they gave me. And bear in mind that IFE is my industry and my job. They use these personal players called DigEPlayers, which while they are a nice idea in theory, just feel like a cheap option. Mine developed a fault and was skipping scenes and had video/audio sync problems right from the start. I asked for a replacement, but they had no spares on board. That just seemed a bit silly. Where's the forethought? Landed late in JFK due to headwinds. Fortunately I had a fantastic flight in AA first back to LAX.
I know they're a cheaper option, but they're still not cheap. I don't feel that their service lived up to their advertising, and for the money that my company spent, there should be some bases covered that weren't.
HS748 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 6, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4292 times:
Well, IFEMaster, having giving you a hard time for your first response it's only fair that I now congratulate you on your detailed and helpful report! To be fair to Maxjet, I thought they were targetting premium economy travellers rather than full fare business class travellers. Isn't Eos more suited to those used to full fare transatlantic business class travel?
LHUSA From United States of America, joined Aug 2005, 553 posts, RR: 3 Reply 7, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4269 times:
Sorry to get off topic, but my curiousity is getting the best of me. How were the loads on your flights IFEmaster?
IFEMaster From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 9, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 3 hours ago) and read 4140 times:
Quoting HS748 (Reply 6): To be fair to Maxjet, I thought they were targetting premium economy travellers rather than full fare business class travellers.
I think you've hit the nail on the head there, but their website and certainly the literature that appeared at my company sometime in January certainly looked like it was touting a business class service. Having said that, premium economy is a good comparison. It's certainly better than my only premium econom y experience; BA's WT+.
Quoting LHUSA (Reply 7): Sorry to get off topic, but my curiousity is getting the best of me. How were the loads on your flights IFEmaster?
Outbound was probably at 70% to 75% at a rough guesstimate. On the way back it was higher...probably 85%ish. I was sat in the 3rd and 7th rows, to I never really took much note of what loads looked like towards the rear of the aircraft. It's also kind of weird trying to guage loads in the lounge. Whenever I fly economy, I try and guage how full the aircraft will be based on the size of the lounge crowd. But when flying Maxjet, it was quite difficult to do because there are fewr seats, and the smaller crowd was quite deceiving!
I forgot to mention before that the aircraft also seemed a bit old. The bathroom in particular seemed like it could have done with a refit. I'm not sure where they got their aircraft, but I would bet they're probably 15+ years old.
Alaskaqantas From New Zealand, joined Dec 2005, 900 posts, RR: 5 Reply 10, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 3 hours ago) and read 4104 times:
I haven't flown maxjet, but I've heard that EOS is better, and if you look at the seats, it definitely looks better!!! flat bed... etc.
check out eos
~Cheers-
~~Kyle H.
to some people the sky is the limit, to aviation enthusiasts, its home!
Travatl From United States of America, joined Mar 2001, 2172 posts, RR: 11 Reply 11, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days 2 hours ago) and read 4090 times:
Hmmmm.... interesting. Several folks that I work with have flown MAXjet, and had nothing but accolades about them.....
ANNOYEDFA From United States of America, joined Dec 2004, 451 posts, RR: 0 Reply 13, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days ago) and read 3888 times:
So basically there wasen't anything wrong with the flight for you to be so dramatic about. IFE breaks sometimes, the seat's by your standard's were unconfortable but plenty of people seem to deem them just fine and the late arrival's were not their fault. So once again a crying fit from another passenger for NOTHING.
Irobertson From Canada, joined Apr 2006, 601 posts, RR: 4 Reply 14, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days ago) and read 3865 times:
You know, IFE, with all due respect, I understand you were expecting premium service, but most of these gripes (which you overly dramatized in the beginning) seem to be either random problems which could happen to anyone on any airline, or just common things everyone has to put up with on flights, like weather delays. I can understand you not liking the seats perhaps (though their website advertises that they have new lie-flat seats, so perhaps that criticism has since been heeded), but you didn't book on an all Premium First Class airline either; it was business class, not quite first class, better than economy. Perhaps you might reconsider the severeity of your claims since I'm sure delays, broken IFEs, and re-corked wine could happen on the best of airlines. I was expecting a story of broken down aircraft, rudeness, terrible food, things that really made it horrible. I would most certainly give them a try given the chance.
IFEMaster From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 15, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days ago) and read 3864 times:
Quoting ANNOYEDFA (Reply 13): So basically there wasen't anything wrong with the flight for you to be so dramatic about. IFE breaks sometimes, the seat's by your standard's were unconfortable but plenty of people seem to deem them just fine and the late arrival's were not their fault. So once again a crying fit from another passenger for NOTHING.
Wow. Someone really is an annoyed FA. Do you lack positivity in your disposition, or are you just generally a judgmental person? When you work a job as demanding as mine, I'll discuss what standards I should accept as a paying passenger with you in a non-assuming and open minded manner. Until then, shut your pie hole about "crying fits". There was no crying fit involved. I merely thought that they didn't live up to their promises and wasn't worth the money spent. I'm doing nothing more than exercising my right to choose another airline. My guess is that you work for Maxjet and don't like that I didn't like the service.
IFEMaster From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 16, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 4 days ago) and read 3835 times:
Quoting Irobertson (Reply 14): You know, IFE, with all due respect, I understand you were expecting premium service, but most of these gripes (which you overly dramatized in the beginning) seem to be either random problems which could happen to anyone on any airline, or just common things everyone has to put up with on flights, like weather delays. I can understand you not liking the seats perhaps (though their website advertises that they have new lie-flat seats, so perhaps that criticism has since been heeded), but you didn't book on an all Premium First Class airline either; it was business class, not quite first class, better than economy. Perhaps you might reconsider the severeity of your claims since I'm sure delays, broken IFEs, and re-corked wine could happen on the best of airlines. I was expecting a story of broken down aircraft, rudeness, terrible food, things that really made it horrible. I would most certainly give them a try given the chance.
That's fair enough, but at the price I (well, my company) pay for premium tickets, any new airline I try gets one chance and one chance alone to get it right. Common problems or not, for similar money I can fly a handful of other airlines that have pretty much always got it right whenever I've flown them. I flew Maxjet to try something new and also because STN was the convenient side of London for my work. Didn't like and won't try them again.
Wjcandee From United States of America, joined Jun 2000, 4557 posts, RR: 17 Reply 17, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 23 hours ago) and read 3776 times:
Quoting IFEMaster (Reply 3): The experience was so harrowing that I'm mentally scarred
You know what? I totally agree with ANNOYEDFA in this thread.
The guy says, yelling, avoid at all costs.
Then he condescends about the other passengers, the wine, the friendly-but-not-sufficiently-luxurious lounge, the general boarding (which is now being done on several American carriers) and the seat which didn't recline far enough.
Dude...respectfully...you're paying what you'd pay for short-term coach, and less than premium economy. The seat is wider and reclines further than you'd get for that money. If you're important such that your company will spend $4500 for you to go to London in Club World or on EOS, then do it. But for like $1750 r/t, you can't beat the MaxJet product with a stick.
It's like complaining about Midwest Airlines because it's not "first class". The rest of us think it's great, but those To The Manor Born will look down their nose at it.
N353SK From United States of America, joined Jun 2006, 739 posts, RR: 0 Reply 18, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 23 hours ago) and read 3749 times:
Also keep in mind how far STN is from London and how long/expensive your trip into london is going to be.
Laxintl From United States of America, joined May 2000, 22062 posts, RR: 51 Reply 19, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 22 hours ago) and read 3705 times:
It seems Maxjet can be summarised as a premium economy plus airline, but far short of world class business product offering by carriers like BA and Virgin.
If you have a few dollars extra to blow above regular economy, and dont care to collect miles nor mind flying to Stansted, Maxjet seems to be a good offering.
However, if you want stronger business product, lots of schedule options, and frequent flyer miles stick to one of the legacy carriers.
From the desert to the sea, to all of Southern California
HS748 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 21, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 15 hours ago) and read 3483 times:
Hey, stop giving IFEMaster a hard time! He's entitled to his opinion and expressed it without resorting to the kind of personal insults others have used. If you've got a positive experience of Maxjet yourself then post it, otherwise probably best to keep your nasty comments to yourselves.
DeltaDAWG From United States of America, joined May 2006, 620 posts, RR: 1 Reply 22, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 10 hours ago) and read 3337 times:
I think I will just stay with Delta and let you guys worry about the rest.
Wjcandee From United States of America, joined Jun 2000, 4557 posts, RR: 17 Reply 23, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 9 hours ago) and read 3225 times:
Quoting HS748 (Reply 21): He's entitled to his opinion and expressed it without resorting to the kind of personal insults others have used.
787KQ From United States of America, joined Mar 2006, 547 posts, RR: 0 Reply 24, posted (6 years 11 months 2 weeks 3 days 9 hours ago) and read 3193 times:
26 MaverickM11: You are in the wrong line of work. Unless you work for Northwest...
27 ArtieFufkin: I just priced JFK-LON leaving on the 15th June returning the 19th Maxjet $2100 EOS $6600 (With lay flat partitions) AA Biz $6800 UA/BA Biz $9000+ Both
28 Nudelhirsch: With AA just being priced $200 more, but offering major airport connections, FF program, worldwide network in OW, codeshares with BA, tight connectio
29 IFEMaster: Corked wine (not re-corked. That's different. "Corked" is of poor quality because the wine has reacted with the cork and essentially gone off), uncom
30 ArtieFufkin: Well the big difference between EOS and AA Biz Class are the seats. AA is still going with the side by side recliners these days. EOS has seats on par
31 Crjflyer35: I've heard that same statement echoed more than a few times. Wow, that's a little harsh... thank you...sheeesh, the guy is asked his opinion on a sub
32 ArtieFufkin: A good field marketing effort could really clean up in NYC for Maxjet and EOS. The premium market to LON has about 6 or 7 big corporate travel agencie
33 MaverickM11: I'm guessing not since BA/AA/UA seem to rarely bother matching fares. Moreover, if you're spending the company's money and you're receiving the benef
34 ArtieFufkin: With these business customers, you are right they are not under preassure to reduce costs. As you say, the company is paying for it. It's really the c
35 Legion242: After comparing just the 2 websites of each MAXjet and EOS, it doesn't look like they are anywhere near each other in the product that they are offeri
36 TOLtommy: Not to nitpick (plenty of others doing that in this thread), but YYZ-STN isn't possible for a US carrier. I think BOS would be a good move, however.
37 Garri767: ive heard much better things from EOS then Maxjet. and their seats look sooooooooooooooooooo much better!!!!!! http://eosairlines.com/cgi-bin/skylight
38 DeltaDAWG: Technically speaking that is incorrect. "Corked" or more commonly referred to "Tainted" or "Cork Taint" is actually a reaction of wine with O2, or ox
39 Britannia191A: And yes, IFE is entitled to his opinion- especially after he tried to defer and not go into details. I guess the devil IS in the details. Absolutley a
40 Wjcandee: I don't think that 2x2x2 seating in a 767, with a steep recline, 60+" pitch, and legrests, is "premium economy" -- at least not on any American carri
41 Wjcandee: Ouch. So, let's see...you could have a suite at the Carlton, a RR limo, and as many female companions as you could handle for the extra $4500. But, h
42 IFEMaster: What a comedian. Did you read any of my other posts. Care to respond to the post where I said... ? That's where my problem with Maxjet lies. The post
43 DeltaDAWG: Yes, you are correct. That is except that my company will not pay for the female companions or the limo. However, it is not the Carlton but I am stay
44 Drinkstrolley: Another self appointed critical "expert" who is full of his own self importance.
45 IFEMaster: Another self-appointed personality expert who is full of his/her own ability to judge others based off one line on an Internet forum. And clearly som
47 Provance: God that sounded like pure hell - how did you ever make it out alive ......... Are you sure that you havent exaggerated. that flight, from your repor
48 IFEMaster: Is there an echo in here? Read the rest of the thread!
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Don't know about the outbound though?
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