Intro: Earlier in 2012 my friend and I were at SFO about to catch out UA flight to ICN. Whilst walking through the airport we noticed a sign for Air Berlin. We both said "they fly here"? Turns out they do. I guess what you could consider summer service. They fly their A330-200 3x weekly (Mon/Wed/Fri) from Mid April to mid October. Immediately thought i'd like to try them out when the opportunity presents itself. So later on in the year when I decided I wanted to go to the Faroe Islands (seperate trip report) I needed a way to get from San Francisco to Copenhagen. Having flown LH and LX previously in my life I thought i'd give AB a try if prices were the same. Turns out they were all within a $100 of each other. So on to booking it was. Flight was booked at www.airberlin.com Booking was easy. Selected my seats and was good to go. Also turns out that all of their A330's were getting a new interior with new seats and IFE. But would I get to experience it? We'll see later. On to the report!

Routing for the flight



As most of my reports will always start. SFO. Never get tired of this place.



Bags in hand time to find the check in counter





After about 5 mins my boading passes were in hand. Bag checked and ready to start the journey.





They have a lot of displays/exhibits at SFO. This one featuring various types of bicycles



I had some Colombia Pesos from my last trip so after exchanging those it was on to security



Quick look at the FIDS. Looks to be on time



Passing a small engine display on my way to security. 4pm was peak time on A-Side so about 45 minutes to geth through. No body scan either  

Finally airside I had a good 2 hours before departure.



Peeking out the window. Not too much activity



The EK flight to Dubai. 7th or 8th longest commercial flight?



EK lounge here at SFO. No access for me





Come 5:30 PM it was time to board my flight.

SFO - DUS
AB 7393
D-ALPF
Airbus A330-200
Seat 22k
Load - Maybe 75%



Down the jetway



And then my heart sank. All this build up and looking at pics of the new AB interior and IFE and what do I get? Old interior! Argh! Needless to say I was upset. Reading on other forums I was lead to believe the whole fleet was updated but apparently not. But oh well what can I do. At least the seats are comfy. Legroom is tight though. Me being 6'0



A look out the window hoping I make it through the 10 hour journey in comfort



Nice winglet



The climb out over Castro Valley



Soon after ammenity kits were handed out. Socks, toothbrush, eye mask



Meal service started after. Chicken or pasta was the choice. I went pasta



Since I had no IFE the trusty iPad helped me through



Crossing into Canada



Cabin view



About 2 hours before landing and somewhere over England breakfast was started. Cold cuts and a muffin



I since moved seats to stretch out a little. Notice the incorrect safety cards



AB Magazine



After touchdown I was my way to B terminal for my connecting flight



Nice here at DUS



View of our plane from SFO



The AB flight to Cancun I believe





Everywhere you go EK



Now at B-Side I decide to have myself a beer



When in Germany Dub-Techno





Activity outside



Sweet smoking room. Probably none of these in the US



6:00 PM rolled around and it was soon time to board







Settled in and ready for the 1hr hop to CPH. Legroom is ok





As you can tell it was a rainy day in DUS



Climbing out of DUS. One of my favorite pics



View of the cabin



Winglet



Touchdown in CPH



Pulled up to gate. Looking forward to my few days in Copenhagen



On to baggage claim





With bags in hand it was into town. Quick hop on the metro









Opera house



Nyahvn





Did you know Lego's come from Denmark?



After a great trip to the Faroes and Copenhagen it was time to head home



Self check-in for SAS/ Star Alliance



Terminal 2 for Air Berlin



After I grabbed my boarding pass it was through security and time to wait. All the planes I dont see back in the states



Catch up on some A.net





FIDS. Flight looks on time

IMG]http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r508/mikeology85/IMG_0803.jpg[/IMG]

Last gate at B for Air Berlin



Oh my. Old livery. No winglet. AB doesn't want me flying anything new



Good to know



Old seats too



Leg room is meh



A view out the window. Never heard of NEOS but it looks cool



Showing signs of wear



Coming into DUS



Touchdown. Weather looks better than a week ago



Make my way through B to A Side





I like the look of this Ethiad plane







Another beer before I say good bye to Germany



Thats me!



DUS - SFO
AB 7392
D-ALPh
Airbus A330-200
Seat 22A
Load - Maybe 80%



Since I was looking forward to going home I just assumed i'd get another plane with old interior which I did. Oddly this one felt roomier. Also I had nobody sitting next to me so even better



Hey look they put the correct safety card  

Bye Germany!





BA A319 taking off before us



Climb out



Once again meal was chicken or pasta. I went pasta



Of course Baileys. My flying drink of choice



Lavatory shot



Later on second meal came around. Some kind of beef thing with a curry potato salad. Actually really good. And the Office. Love Michael Scott





Somewhere over Sacramento. Nice Pratt & Whitney engine



On final to 28R passing my home town Foster City





Then it was through immigration and baggage claim



Home sweet home!





Conclusion:

AB was great. Although a huge let down in getting the older interior I had no complaints. All flights were on time. Seats were comfy. Service was great. And first time on an A330 was nice. For the same price would I have rather flown LH or LX? Yeah maybe. But it was nice to sample something different and a rare flight for SFO. Hopefully next year their plane to San Francsico will be updated as I may be tempted to fly them again. Thanks for reading. Comments welcome as always


My other trip reports:

The Faroe Islands & Atlantic Airways (by mikeology Oct 10 2012 in Trip Reports)

Colombia Part 2 W/ Jetblue And LAN SMR-BOG-FLL-SFO (by mikeology Aug 1 2012 in Trip Reports)

Colombia Part 1 W/ JetBlue And LAN SFO-FLL-BOG-CTG (by mikeology Jul 31 2012 in Trip Reports)

SFO - ICN Round Trip On UA Business Pics (by mikeology Mar 12 2012 in Trip Reports)

Great trip report. Love your succinct writing style.
Always interesting to read about AB's longhaul services, especially from someone not from Europe/Germany. Always thought AB doesn't attract too many customers at their destinations. Great bummer you got the old interior though. Then again kinda surprising you still rated your experience great. The service of the crew must have been really good then huh?!

Totally agree, love your succinct trip report style. I don't really want to know the whole conversations that occurred during check-in until baggage claim lol

Not often that I see AB longhaul service. Living in Phuket, AB is operating code-share flight HKT-AUH on behalf of EY.

Maybe next summer you can try SAS with their new service SFO-CPH? Their 340-300 interior ain't bad giving that the products are out for a long while. Just remember the BOB concept on their intra-Europe flights lol

Anyway, thank you so much, enjoy your trip report for a quick European fun!!
Cheers,
net-hkt

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Whilst walking through the airport we noticed a sign for Air Berlin. We both said "they fly here"? Turns out they do. I guess what you could consider summer service. They fly their A330-200 3x weekly (Mon/Wed/Fri) from Mid April to mid October.

WOW, San Francisco seems the place to be- also Arkefly started their new S.F./Oakland-Amsterdam service this year: http://www.arkefly.nl/ustravelers.aspx

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Having flown LH and LX previously in my life I thought i'd give AB a try if prices were the same.

OMG! LX is a totally different league, how can you compare AB/LH & LX?!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): And then my heart sank. All this build up and looking at pics of the new AB interior and IFE and what do I get? Old interior! Argh! Needless to say I was upset.

Very sad to see, but a huge problem with AB. This summer was total chaos, sometimes the new A330 flew intra-European runs, leaving the "old" A330's on the long haul to the US- despite being PREMIUM routes (OneWorld & ETIHAD code-share which MUST be op. by the refurbished A330's).

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Never heard of NEOS but it looks cool

Italian charter carrier- as you can see ex TUIfly-memeber /baby-blue colors)!

Nice TR! AB seems decent. Not unexpected for a hybrid carrier.

Smoking rooms do exist in the US, on the air-side. The design of that building is cool, but its purpose turns me off as I am very anti-smoking.

Thanks for the report!

IrishAyes

Quoting gjunnar (Reply 1): Great trip report. Love your succinct writing style.

Thank you. And yes I try and keep it simple

Quoting gjunnar (Reply 1): Always interesting to read about AB's longhaul services, especially from someone not from Europe/Germany. Always thought AB doesn't attract too many customers at their destinations. Great bummer you got the old interior though. Then again kinda surprising you still rated your experience great. The service of the crew must have been really good then huh?!

I agree that they probably don't. Never seen advertising for them in the states, let alone SFO. I felt like one of the few americans on the flight. The service was very good. Just wanted that new interior

Quoting nethkt (Reply 2): Totally agree, love your succinct trip report style. I don't really want to know the whole conversations that occurred during check-in until baggage claim lol

Haha yeah thank you. Never been one myself to car about the conversations had between passenger and airport worker

Quoting nethkt (Reply 2): Maybe next summer you can try SAS with their new service SFO-CPH? Their 340-300 interior ain't bad giving that the products are out for a long while. Just remember the BOB concept on their intra-Europe flights lol

Most definitely. I'd love to go back to Copenhagen and Faroe Islands. Will be nice to have a stright shot from SFO to CPH

Quoting debonair (Reply 3): WOW, San Francisco seems the place to be- also Arkefly started their new S.F./Oakland-Amsterdam service this year: http://www.arkefly.nl/ustravelers.aspx

You think so? Haven't seen too many reports from SFO recently but it does come up in discussion quite a but. I'd love to see a trip report on Arkefly from Oakland. Haven't talked to anyone that has flown it. Mostly dutch I assume

Quoting debonair (Reply 3): OMG! LX is a totally different league, how can you compare AB/LH & LX?!

Hope it doesn't come off as a comparison. Just trying something different. Of course LX and LH are above AB. I guess i'm fortunate that I can sample different offerings to mainland Europe from SFO. If I go back LX for sure

Quoting debonair (Reply 3): Very sad to see, but a huge problem with AB. This summer was total chaos, sometimes the new A330 flew intra-European runs, leaving the "old" A330's on the long haul to the US- despite being PREMIUM routes (OneWorld & ETIHAD code-share which MUST be op. by the refurbished A330's).

Yeah it was weird. You would think International long-haul would get the new planes. Call me crazy but I guess not. If anything in their defense the loads weren't at or near 100% so maybe they don't see SF as a premium route. Even though they've been flying it 3 years now

Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 4): Smoking rooms do exist in the US, on the air-side. The design of that building is cool, but its purpose turns me off as I am very anti-smoking.

Thanks. I had no idea they had em in the states. I'm also anti smoking myself so high five to that

Nice report. I've been tempted to try AB for several years but have always been reluctant due to their inconsistent onboard product. I've become spoiled with PTVs on other airlines such as AF, KL and LH. Now that they are in Oneworld more people States-side will take notice and give them a try. Their loyalty in Germany is quite high.

Nice review, AB long-haul reports are quire rare here. The product looks decent, but the lack of PTVs is certainly annoying.

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Soon after ammenity kits were handed out. Socks, toothbrush, eye mask

Not bad - not even LH offers those.

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Meal service started after. Chicken or pasta was the choice. I went pasta

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Once again meal was chicken or pasta. I went pasta

How did all that taste?

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): I since moved seats to stretch out a little. Notice the incorrect safety cards

Major screw-up, I'd say.

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Oh my. Old livery. No winglet. AB doesn't want me flying anything new

Why do you complain? You got a rather new 73G on the other flight.


PH

Hi Mikeology,

Nice to see your TATL flights online now too. Nice and entertaining report, well done!
Unlucky that you moestly got old AB interiors, especially with no PTVs that would have been an looong flight without your ipad  
ABs service looks quite ok overall, have had a couple of enjoyable flights with them myself too!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): 7th or 8th longest commercial flight?

9th

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Legroom is tight though. Me being 6'0

I wouldn't have survived at 6'5

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Soon after ammenity kits were handed out. Socks, toothbrush, eye mask

A nice touch!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): When in Germany Dub-Techno

How can you listen to that garbage haha  

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Climbing out of DUS. One of my favorite pics

Great picture! well done

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Did you know Lego's come from Denmark?

Yes  

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Self check-in for SAS/ Star Alliance

SAS changed there SSKs to that blue color. Reminds me too much of KLM my home airline

cheers,

Brendan

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 7): Nice review, AB long-haul reports are quire rare here. The product looks decent, but the lack of PTVs is certainly annoying.

Thank you. PTV's would have been nice. Hopefully by yeas end all the A330's are updated

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 7): Not bad - not even LH offers those.

Likewise. Not many airlines offer kits in Y class

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 7): How did all that taste?

Really good. I tad bit oily though

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 7): Major screw-up, I'd say.

True. I had a little laugh when I saw it

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 7): Why do you complain? You got a rather new 73G on the other flight.

I'm not. Just funny how both A330's were of the older type and then I see that. My sarcastic sense of humor I guess

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): Nice to see your TATL flights online now too. Nice and entertaining report, well done! Unlucky that you moestly got old AB interiors, especially with no PTVs that would have been an looong flight without your ipad ABs service looks quite ok overall, have had a couple of enjoyable flights with them myself too!

Thanks adamsotter. Yeah I was hoping for the new ones but hey what can I do. Service was good which helped and don't know what i would have done without the ipad

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): 9th

Hey top 10 not bad.

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): I wouldn't have survived at 6'5

Oh man that would have been rough.

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): How can you listen to that garbage haha

Not a fan?   Ever since I saw this German duo play a live underground show here in San Francisco i've been hooked

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): Great picture! well done

Thank you I got lucky. Not a pro with a camera in any way

Quoting adamspotter (Reply 8): SAS changed there SSKs to that blue color. Reminds me too much of KLM my home airline

At first glance one might think that. Don't know why they didn't go with the navy blue or red

Hi Mikeology!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Having flown LH and LX previously in my life I thought i'd give AB a try if prices were the same. Turns out they were all within a $100 of each other

I would have never thought AB prices would be the same as LH and LX.....those are the more expensive carriers, are they not?

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Quick look at the FIDS. Looks to be on time

Very confusing FIDS, as it shows the Air China flight from presumably the next morning. Yes it is better to locate a flight by it's destination but listing by time makes more sense I guess.

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Meal service started after. Chicken or pasta was the choice. I went pasta

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): About 2 hours before landing and somewhere over England breakfast was started. Cold cuts and a muffin

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Once again meal was chicken or pasta. I went pasta

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Later on second meal came around. Some kind of beef thing with a curry potato salad

Very trifle offerings for such a long haul flight. I guess I'm just pampered with Etihad offering three seperate runs each of sandwhiches, ice cream and popcorn in between two full meals on a 14 hour flight. Maybe you should have gone with the chicken for the return flight just to see how it tasted.

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Notice the incorrect safety cards

Fortunately there was no need to consult them in the event of an emergency!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): The AB flight to Cancun I believe

Why the strange nose?

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Everywhere you go EK

Yes they are everywhere...but don't underestimate the little Turkish jet close by who is slowly spreading her wings across the globe, and about to take on the likes of the giant EK, QR and EY

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Sweet smoking room. Probably none of these in the US

Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 4): Smoking rooms do exist in the US, on the air-side. The design of that building is cool, but its purpose turns me off as I am very anti-smoking

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Thanks. I had no idea they had em in the states. I'm also anti smoking myself so high five to that

And proudly sponsored by Camel themselves. Add me to the club of anti smoking...High five guys!!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Climbing out of DUS. One of my favorite pics

Gorgeous pic!!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Did you know Lego's come from Denmark?

As does IKEA and ABBA out of Sweden lol....Now what comes out of Norway?

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Never heard of NEOS but it looks cool

Those winglets on those 767 make them look super sweet. Like botox of the aviation world for these older aging jets!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): I like the look of this Ethiad plane

And a partner with Air Berlin of course!!

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Now at B-Side I decide to have myself a beer

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Another beer before I say good bye to Germany

Cheers....I guess no better place to enjoy a good German beer than in Germany itself.....Not sure how you say Cheers in German...

Quoting mikeology (Thread starter): Of course Baileys. My flying drink of choice

Hmmm mine too....especially on an aircraft!

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): I would have never thought AB prices would be the same as LH and LX.....those are the more expensive carriers, are they not?

At the time or purchase and dates I was flying they were all within $100 US of eachother

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): Very trifle offerings for such a long haul flight. I guess I'm just pampered with Etihad offering three seperate runs each of sandwhiches, ice cream and popcorn in between two full meals on a 14 hour flight. Maybe you should have gone with the chicken for the return flight just to see how it tasted.

Lucky you   And yeah I somewhat regret not switching it up

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): Why the strange nose?

Someone please correct me if i'm wrong but I believe its referred to as a nose cone and reduces glare

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): And proudly sponsored by Camel themselves. Add me to the club of anti smoking...High five guys!!!

Growing in numbers

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): Gorgeous pic!!!

Thank you!

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 10): Hmmm mine too....especially on an aircraft!

I know Gin and Tonic's are popular here on A.net but you really can't go wrong with baileys

Great report. Wonderful pictures.

Did AB charge for alcoholic drinks and headsets? Did you have to pay to reserve your seats? I've wanted to fly AB MIA to TXL since they started a while ago, but the 30" pitch and all the extra charges have dissuaded me. LH's usual 31"pitch is difficult enough. And, I concur that LH/Swiss give no amenity kits. With such a tight pitch now days it would be difficult to take off your shoes and put on the socks anyway!

Quoting CoachClass (Reply 12): Great report. Wonderful pictures. Did AB charge for alcoholic drinks and headsets? Did you have to pay to reserve your seats? I've wanted to fly AB MIA to TXL since they started a while ago, but the 30" pitch and all the extra charges have dissuaded me. LH's usual 31"pitch is difficult enough. And, I concur that LH/Swiss give no amenity kits. With such a tight pitch now days it would be difficult to take off your shoes and put on the socks anyway!

Thank you!

Alcoholic drinks were free and they were very generous about bringing more when asked. I did pay to reserve seats on the long haul portion of my flights. If I recall it was around $15 for the seat selection but looking back wish I hadn't since the loads were so low. I've heard with the new interior and slim seats its "roomier" but I got the old config so that remains to be seen.

Nice read.

I love Air Berlin! I used them domestically in Europe several times before I started using their JFK-DUS flight to connect to to TXL when I go to Germany. I haven't had to go over since they started non-stop JFK-TXL, but would definitely use them next time I go to Berlin. Especially, now that DL has suspended JFK-TXL.

I'm not really picky bout having modern IFE, etc. Just want a cheap seat and AB has provided that. The last two times I used them to get to Berlin, their airfares were 50-60% lower than all the competitors during peak season.. Also, their fees for other services are very reasonable. When I moved to Berlin for a year, I brought my cat and a bicycle. The charge to bring the cat was only about $30, and the bike was less than $100! Pretty damn cheap compared to bringing pets/over-sized checked items on another airline!

Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 4): Smoking rooms do exist in the US, on the air-side. The design of that building is cool, but its purpose turns me off as I am very anti-smoking.

The only flight I've ever been on in my life where I was allowed to smoke was an Air Berlin flight from TXL-PMI in November 2003. (It was banned shortly thereafter) Germany is a very smoker friendly country.

[Edited 2012-11-01 11:32:52]

Quoting pwm2txlhopper (Reply 14): I love Air Berlin! I used them domestically in Europe several times before I started using their JFK-DUS flight to connect to to TXL when I go to Germany. I haven't had to go over since they started non-stop JFK-TXL, but would definitely use them next time I go to Berlin. Especially, now that DL has suspended JFK-TXL.

Seeing how they haven't been in the states that long you prefer them over LH? Any major downsides between the two German carriers?

Quoting pwm2txlhopper (Reply 14): I'm not really picky bout having modern IFE, etc. Just want a cheap seat and AB has provided that. The last two times I used them to get to Berlin, their airfares were 50-60% lower than all the competitors during peak season.. Also, their fees for other services are very reasonable. When I moved to Berlin for a year, I brought my cat and a bicycle. The charge to bring the cat was only about $30, and the bike was less than $100! Pretty damn cheap compared to bringing pets/over-sized checked items on another airline!

Thats actually really cheap. Having just flown jet blue an LCC I believe they wanted more than that for a cross country flight to fly a dog

Quoting pwm2txlhopper (Reply 14): The only flight I've ever been on in my life where I was allowed to smoke was an Air Berlin flight from TXL-PMI in November 2003. (It was banned shortly thereafter) Germany is a very smoker friendly country.

Haha that awesome. My travel buddy who is a smoker would have appreciated that

Hello

that's a nice trip report you've got here! Sad to see you didn't log the new interior A330... I hear good things about the new interior. Better luck next time. I really like DUS airport, I hope you've had a nice experience transferring there.

Thanks again and keep the TRs coming!

Photoshooter   

Quoting photoshooter (Reply 16): Hello that's a nice trip report you've got here! Sad to see you didn't log the new interior A330... I hear good things about the new interior. Better luck next time. I really like DUS airport, I hope you've had a nice experience transferring there. Thanks again and keep the TRs coming!

Yeah it was a bummer. But I guess better I got to even fly the route now that AB dropped it. And yes DUS was amazing. Very underrated imo

Quoting mikeology (Reply 15): Seeing how they haven't been in the states that long you prefer them over LH? Any major downsides between the two German carriers?

I've only flown LH long-haul on one occasion. To me, a coach seat is a coach seat! Doesn't really matter which airline I'm on. Or whether that airline has the most modern seating, PTV's/IFE, or whatever other amenities. These days a coach seat on one airline is really no different than one on any other airline. I get on the plane, read the paper or a magazine and sleep. It's all the same.

I'm a leisure traveler who flies maybe a half dozen times per year? All I want to do is get from Point A to B for the cheapest fare possible. Air Berlin has consistently provided that for me, so I'm happy with them. Particularly when it comes to their fees for oversize checked items or bringing animals in the cabin. It's just greed when an airline charges something like $200 just because you have a small 5 Kilo dog or cat in your carry-on bag. (depending on the flight, that could be more than the actual fare paid for the ticket!)

[Edited 2012-11-21 10:18:44]