ZASpringboks From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 1, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 23 hours ago) and read 4139 times:
Not sure, but I got back from SA last Thurs night. I took the 340-600 down from ATL and the 747 back to JFK. What happened to the "great" comfort level the 340 was supposed to have? YIKES!!!!! It was torture on that airplane. 4 days later I flew back on the 747. I'll take the Boeing any day!
Sorry I cannot answer your question. I just thought I would throw my 2 cents in.
Jetblue15 From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 273 posts, RR: 1 Reply 3, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 23 hours ago) and read 4115 times:
Im really love watcing the A340 land everyday then the 744. You always see the 744 at jfk. Big article in Airway a couple months ago. Do you work for SAA?
Warren747sp From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 1132 posts, RR: 0 Reply 4, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 23 hours ago) and read 4085 times:
Take the 744. Why would you want to suffer in a widebody-wanna-be when you can have the real thing?
Andz From South Africa, joined Feb 2004, 8298 posts, RR: 11 Reply 5, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 23 hours ago) and read 4070 times:
I don't work for SAA I'm just a fan My wife has worked for them for 25 years, in flight performance engineering, flight safety, as a flight attendant and is currently the chief pilot's secretary.
After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says WTF...
Jetblue15 From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 273 posts, RR: 1 Reply 6, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 23 hours ago) and read 4058 times:
Roberta From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 9, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 22 hours ago) and read 3965 times:
Take the 744. Why would you want to suffer in a widebody-wanna-be when you can have the real thing?
becaue you are nearer the aisle at window seats
becasuse its quieter
because everyones flown on millions of 747's and want to try something new
because it too is a widebody
+
Dont trust the SAA website they have not updated there fleet information for ages StarlionBlue they got the A343 recently.
Starlionblue From Hong Kong, joined Feb 2004, 15871 posts, RR: 66 Reply 10, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 22 hours ago) and read 3959 times:
I will not trust in anymore!
"widebody-wanna-be"? I agree with Roberta there. The A340 layout is nicer. Fewer "prisoner" seats in the A340 since you are never more than one seat away from the aisle compared to two on the B744 (the window seats in monkey class).
"There are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of inquisitive idiots." - from Citadel by John Ringo
Andz From South Africa, joined Feb 2004, 8298 posts, RR: 11 Reply 11, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 20 hours ago) and read 3862 times:
SAA's webmaster needs their ass kicked... the website is so out of date.
The A340-300e seating configuration is 38 business lie flat and 231 economy, the best seat in economy (apart from exit row) is 76D as there is no seat in front of you.
SA006 From South Africa, joined Sep 2003, 1883 posts, RR: 56 Reply 13, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 14 hours ago) and read 3670 times:
744 with SAA any day over the A340-600. Flew CPT-JNB on a -600 and it was hell. If you have an economy ticket DONT FLY THE A340-600!! Buisness is OK though
@ Andz my mother worked for SAA for 27 years as a flight attendant. Maybe your wife knows her . Send me her name via instant message on my profile
AA787 From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 610 posts, RR: 14 Reply 14, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 14 hours ago) and read 3649 times:
SA006 From South Africa, joined Sep 2003, 1883 posts, RR: 56 Reply 15, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 14 hours ago) and read 3614 times:
Apparently (heard this from an SAA F/A) DKR cannot hold an A346. Now wouldn't mthis be a problem because SAA have dropped Sal, Cape Verde as a stop to ATL and we fly the A346 to ATL. Can anyone comfirm this true?
ZASpringboks From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 16, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 13 hours ago) and read 3585 times:
Like I Said, I just got back from flying on the SAA 340-600 and the 747 last week. The lighting on the Airbus is so much more pleasing to the eyes. Important feature on such a long flight in my opinion. Also, the airplane is by far more quiet than the 747. It seems more solid, too. It doesn't shake rattle and roll when we takeoff or land. In fact, the takeoffs and landings on the 340 were sooooo smooth! The PTV's were also way better on the Airbus.
Wait......I thought Recaro was supposed to be the best seating in the world. Recaro is written all over the seats on the 340. Those were NOT comfortable seats. The 747 seats were much more comfortable. There is NO leg room on the Airbus, as well. OUCH.
Foxecho From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 724 posts, RR: 19 Reply 17, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 12 hours ago) and read 3527 times:
There was something in the Star.co.za the other day, Funny this thread came up.....
Andz- did I meet you at Lebombo Handover...I was the guy from Kansas City-
Andrew
JFK/MEM/MCI
--------------------------------------
Ouch! We'll avoid SAA from now on
April 2, 2004
We had the misfortune to fly our annual business trip to Frankfurt aboard the pride of SAA's new fleet. It is our company policy to fly economy and over the past 40 years I have made hundreds of flights worldwide with my staff.
Passenger complaints abounded. The purser was hounded by dissatisfied passengers who no doubt experienced the discomforts as we did. I made many observations:
The seating configuration of 2.4.2 is uncomfortable and congested.
Leg room is inadequate.
Every second seat has restricted movement due to the placing of a large box under the front seat. This, we believe, is to house the personalised entertainment system. You can only sit with one leg extended.
Ergonomics have been abandoned for economy - the seating is hard and has a lot of exposed hard metal edges.
Arm-rests have recessed cavities to access sound controls and are very uncomfortable. We filled the recesses with balls of rolled paper to achieve a semi comfortable flat surface on which to rest our arms.
Seats don't recline as far back as those of a Boeing, nor does the back-rest offer equivalent support.
The seating configuration has resulted in very narrow aisles - it's difficult to pass fellow passengers let alone avoid the refreshment carts. Passengers on aisles complain of arms and legs being bumped.
The galley areas are small and difficult to work in ... staff comments.
Overhead lockers seem smaller and storage space is a problem.
Toilet numbers have been reduced per passenger conveyed - queues congregate outside toilets. One toilet was out of order.
Toilet/wash-basin design is hardly ergonomic. It's very difficult to access a basin with one's face without dripping water all over the floor. It's design is to accommodate short people, and necessitates wiping up floors after moderate use.
My observations are based on thousands of flights over the years. The bad flights - few stand out. This one was, however, the worst I or my staff have experienced.
We are loyal SAA passengers, but even as SAA Voyager members, we would rather have sacrificed voyager miles for comfort on an alternate carrier.
Airbuses are not unfamiliar to me. They are adequate substitutes for Boeing, but the latest con-figuration in economy class is an absolute disaster. Many passengers, including ourselves, will obviously avoid booking SAA where alternative comfortable economy facilities are available.
The Airbus A340-600 is a very economy class passenger-unfriendly aircraft.
Robert ******
Johannesburg
SAA responds: SAA has taken a strategic decision in offering the leg room it currently has on its aircraft in order to match its major competitors in the markets it serves.
This not only maintains SAA's competitiveness but also follows a global industry standard. Compared to airlines across the world, taking into account SAA's major competitors flying into South Africa, one finds they all follow the same seat pitch in economy, which is 31 inches (78,74cm).
As the airline industry developed primarily in the United States, seat pitches are measured in inches. This standard is not compulsory and very slight variations, if any, will be found. Our major competitors into South Africa all offer a 31-inch seat pitch, while one or two offer a 32-inch pitch maximum.
In business and first class, a similar strategy is adopted, with competition offering a lie-flat seat. By the end of May, SAA will have fitted its entire Airbus fleet with a complete lie-flat product in the premium section as well as in the 747-400.
Andz From South Africa, joined Feb 2004, 8298 posts, RR: 11 Reply 18, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 12 hours ago) and read 3457 times:
DKR can't take a 346? With an 11,450ft runway? I doubt that very much. At JNB the 346s stand at Delta apron and the pax are bussed to the terminal so lack of airbridges can't be the problem.....
I agree the economy seating in the 346 isn't too hot but it's no different from Emirates 330 or any other Airbus I've been on. Seems to be the standard, but compare a 346 to a 744 to a 743 or a 742 or go back as far as you like and economy class has been getting gradually worse over the years. Luckily my flight JNB-CPT on Thursday is on a 744
Foxecho, no we didn't meet, I'm sure I'd remember you!
After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says WTF...
Moolies From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 21, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 12 hours ago) and read 3421 times:
On the upper deck of SAA 744 you get 34 inches in economy and the Sony Passport system.
Saa currently have 6 different business classes in the air. There new lie-flat on there Airbusses is phenominal. The 743 is crap but will be gone soon. They have 2 744 with flat business class and they are used only on LHR-JNB, first flight in each direction. There other 744 business is quite nice. Their first is one of the best in the air. There 342 business is Lufthansa old one and it is acutally quite nice. They have some "old" business on some of their 346 which will be gone by the end of this month and some different one of TAM on their leased 332.
They only use a 346 to ATL. JFK rotates between a 744 and 342, we have a shoratge of 744 as some alitalia pilot recently drove a alitalia 767 into one of our 744 on its way to JFK so untill that is fixed no good. Give it a few more months and everything will be in order and fully operational, untill then a word of advice, if you fly on any saa 744 in economy make sure your on the upper deck.
Moolies From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 22, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 11 hours ago) and read 3401 times:
I never knew saa is replacing the business class on their 744 with the new lie-flat thing, oh well another way to waste money i suppose that is why SAA holding company has just had to give them $1 billion to recapatilise it.
Gigneil From United States of America, joined Nov 2002, 16215 posts, RR: 88 Reply 24, posted (9 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 9 hours ago) and read 3267 times:
EDIT: Roberta...take a look at some Iberia A340-600 interior shots....Proves it's Airbus' fault
Unrelated. Try looking at the economy class of a more comfort oriented airline that operates the A340-600. Iberia isn't the best comparison.
I don't understand why people don't get this. Airlines order their own seats and interiors, and they don't order them from Airbus. Same goes for engines. Airbus installs them for a fee.
Arguing that 2-4-2 is a congested and uncomfortable arrangement is assinine. They could have been put on a 744 with 3-4-3 or a 777 with 2-5-2, then they could have experienced congested and uncomfortable.
I admit, IFE boxes have become a problem on many airlines.
N
25 Eddieho: Are you sure the best seat is 76D? I thought it's 74D. Can't check the seatmap because the seatmap on SAA's website is too blurry. Yes... blame their
26 DfwRevolution: how can you blame Airbus for the uncomfortable seats, that's SAA's fault Roberta, calm down... no one is bashing Airbus for the A340-600. SA006 said-
27 Andz: Eddieho I checked in the latest printed timetable, 74D on the 346 and 76D on the 343....go figure, the shorter aircraft has higher seat numbers! I'll
28 Jaysit: "The seating configuration of 2.4.2 is uncomfortable and congested." What an idiotic comment ! If this person finds a 2-4-2 economy class layout uncom
30 Starlionblue: 2-4-2 is as good as it gets. Only one seat away from the aisle wherever you are.
31 Starlionblue: The reason for the discrepancy in numbers is that rows are skipped between Biz and monkey class.
32 ZSSNC: DfwRevolution, neither the VS or LH 346s are more comfortable in Economy Class than SAA's. SAA offers the same seat pitch as LH and double armrests in
33 Eddieho: Is there anyone who can get photos of the inside cabins of both the 747 and the A340s (all types) and publish them onto the internet? (on Airliners.ne
34 Moolies: They will fix it in a bout a month or two when they have there new fleet and seats. Go to www.saa.co.za and on there you will find the correct and exa
35 Andz: I'll take pics next week and put them on Myaviation.net, I'll also be going to FRA at the end of the month on an SAA 346 but business class Also want
36 Eddieho: Yeah that sounds great! What's this infamous seatbelt airbag I've been hearing about all the time? I mean - if one did not have the seatbelt on - does
37 Andz: It is terrible off or on, if you keep it on you can't get the tray table close enough to you and if you take it off the belt won't fit next to you in
38 Moolies: Andz come into chat, www.saa.co.za also works.
39 SA7700: As mentioned in reply 12, I flew on the A346 yesterday: JNB-CPT (Seat 75A); CPT-JNB (Seat 4A) The Y-class seats have a nice appearance, but are very u
40 Eddieho: No individual air outlets? Sign of sardine / passenger packing? (obviously they arranged the seats different from the way it was 'designed' - yes/no?)
41 AF330: is the ATL CPT route now nonstop with the 346?
42 PA110: To answer AF330, and the original question posed by Jetblue15, SAA has experienced unanticipated delivery delays from Airbus. They transitioned to a n
43 Aviationwiz: is the ATL CPT route now nonstop with the 346? On Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday, SA212 goes ATL-JNB-CPT On Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday's, SA210 fl
44 Eddieho: With all the leases, delayed deliveries, etc, This brings me to another question: Are all the A340's have the same 'dreadful' economy seat everyone's
45 SA7700: Eddieho I flew on ZS-SNA from JNB-CPT in Y-class. The seats looked the same as on ZS-SNB and ZS-SNE in these photos. At first glance it does not seem
46 Andz: Great seat pics and finally a shot of the infamous seatbelt airbag! Look closely at the pic of the economy bulkhead seat top right and you will see th
47 EISA: Just returned from trip to London. Went up on 346 on 31st March and back yesterday on 744, both economy. Frequent traveller on SA and others' 747's an
48 Eddieho: For a second there I thought those 'airbags' were leather pouches that stored in flight anemities (toothpaste, socks, etc) :P Guess not!!! OK - here's
49 ZSSNC: Eddieho, I thought that you managed to get seat 74D on the 346? In that case you'll be better off on the 346 than on either the LH 744 or the SA 744.
50 Leskova: I'm a bit surprised about hearing the complaints about "hard seats" - I still haven't had the chance to fly on an SAA A346, but at least in the case o
51 Andz: I can't say I've noticed the seats on the 346 being any harder than a 744's, after an hour or two in the air they all feel like park benches anyway! (
52 Roberta: surely it cannot be airbus' fault that the seats on the 340's suck Cant an airline just take the seats it uses for the 744 and put them in the 340
53 Eddieho: Of course - it's definately not airbus's fault. Hey - are there not different companies and manufacturers that actually make these seats (and not the
54 ZSSNC: Eddieho, SAA would only change your seat if you sat in a seat reserved for WCHCs (which 74D isn't) or in case of an aircraft change. But that is very
55 Andz: Eddieho, I flew SAA 342 yesterday and the seats are made by Recaro, they were okay on the 2 hour flight CPT-JNB but this is an ex Lufthansa aircraft s
56 EddieDude: Guys, could anybody post here the link to the thread that discussed the arrival of the A340-300E to SA's fleet? I am looking for that particular threa
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