ronerone From Jordan, joined Aug 2004, 1541 posts, RR: 54 Posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 18 hours ago) and read 13363 times:
I N T R O D U C T I O N
The 'rise to power' of the 787 seems to have taken a more subtle incline in comparison with the sudden bangs we've seen with the A380. I am not sure what I was expecting here, but I was never really in a mood for the Dreamliner until a mere few weeks ago.
In my eyes, it didn't justify any 'inaugural mission' especially after seeing ANA's and JAL's more subtle variants. But when the likes of –and in no particular order- Air India, Ethiopian, United, LAN, Qatar Airways, and LOT received theirs, the curiosity progressively manifested as we went along. Maybe it was the eclectic mix of airlines, or maybe it was something else, I just knew I had to give this one a casual go. And of course, there was no way my first Dreamliner was to happen without a binge on Ethiopian Airlines.
An ideal fit for Ethiopian's high-tech fleet, the Dreamliner -with its ability to avoid that notorious Rome stop in one direction- can also complement the B777-200LR for seamless capacity allocation, allowing both aircraft to carry similar missions. In fact, the 787 seems to be so versatile here that it can work around the 767 and even the 757 missions as well. Today Ethiopian may send a 757 and a 767, and tomorrow a double dip Dreamliner. And so on.
Similar to its interesting mix of aircraft, Ethiopian's destinations are equally as 'high-tech'. Spanning its reach to over 80 international and domestic destinations, Ethiopian's incredibly vast African coverage easily allows it to be the largest airline on today's most prominent trade route; China to Africa and v.v. With direct services to Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, and Hong Kong, Ethiopian's catchment between these two regions via Addis Ababa puts the other competition to shame, including Emirates and Qatar Airways. And with destinations such as Bangkok, Brussels, Cairo, Frankfurt, Johannesburg, Stockholm, Toronto, and Washington, it is just like this airline painted its route network to perfectly fit the needs of Star Alliance. All too incredible!
With all this, the 787 can be deployed virtually anywhere on Ethiopian! Distance shouldn’t be an issue be it Dubai, Beijing, or even Sao Paulo. And I wouldn’t be surprised to see this Dreamliner touch every Ethiopian international destination at least once if not more. An aircraft that I am sure will demonstrate champion results, couldn't be more perfect a fit for this champion airline, as the A380 is for Emirates.
This will continue to tell me a good story no matter how many times I hear it. Ethiopian is one of the most fascinating airlines in the world that today I am finally able to experience. And with Africa's first, is my first Dreamliner story.
Melkam Addis Amet / Happy New year!
CONTINUED BELOW
A Stop Away From One-Stop, Is Non-Stop : Airbus A340-500
ronerone From Jordan, joined Aug 2004, 1541 posts, RR: 54 Reply 1, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 18 hours ago) and read 13383 times:
WELCOME TO MY 41st TRIP REPORT
This TR will cover my first trip on the Dreamliner, in Ethiopian's beautiful Cloud Nine flavors. The focus here will be on Ethiopian's Frankfurt service, but with a touch of Cairo thrown in for a good measure.
B A C K G R O U N D
I had been pondering a joyride on a Dreamliner for a short while, but each of the several initial plans never really materialized. Air India, Ethiopian, Qatar, Ethiopian again, and so on and so forth were discussed and planned, but later on canned.
Except one random day just a few weeks ago, I found myself on Ethiopian’s great website not only exploring, but clicking ‘Purchase’ to a Business Class itinerary that involved an origin from Cairo and a connection on the 787 to Frankfurt. So simple.
As my initial contact with the Ethiopian brand, I am quite impressed with the website. Perhaps the general information is a tad too simplistic and innocent, but the newly revamped Internet hub did in fact provide Star Alliance quality functionality blended in with that seductive Ethiopian marketing. A few simple clicks and I was able to check schedules and equipment, know a bit about the service, scroll through fares, and of course make a ticket purchase. Selecting my seats was also equally as easy, but surprisingly I was not able to change my seat selection later on using the ‘Manage my Booking’ functionality. This is a feature I expected an airline like Ethiopian to have.
With my ticket in hand, it was time to head on out to Cairo and onwards to my Dreamliner, before heading right back home to prepare for Christmas with the family.
INBOUND FROM CAIRO
Apart from a less detailed summary, I will not go through the Cairo portion here. I prefer to leave that for a future report on Egyptair, which is relatively high on my must-joyride list.
I had a 14-hour transit in Cairo, and instead of spending it at a hotel or at the airport, I caught up with a friend of mine in Heliopolis. I spent most of my time at City Stars Mall, catching up with friends of friends over enough cups of coffee to last me until my flight to Addis. Egyptians are so freakin’ cool and very hospitable, so needless to say, it was transit time well spent here.
Fast forward to the airport, at 11:45pm I was at Cairo’s pure-breed Star Alliance Terminal 3. Ethiopian’s counters were open by then but weren’t in full swing yet. No one was manning the Cloud Nine section, whilst one counter was barely processing a queue that formed for Economy Class. The station manager was furious and gave Egyptair –the ground handlers here- quite the bullocking for not staffing all his counters at exactly 3 hours prior to the scheduled departure time of his flight. Frankly, he had every right to do this as it is certainly no excuse for a Star Alliance partner operating from a massive Star Alliance terminal to be taken for granted like that.
It also did take some time to get my boarding passes as for some odd reason, my passport had to be photocopied –which took an awfully long time- since my ticket was purchased using a credit card. Could not a simple credit card verification type of thing work here? It works with CX, UL, and SQ, so why not here?
Boarding pass to Addis
Lounge card
CAI departure card with ET logo
Terminal 3’s lounge scene is quite unique. As Egyptair is the dominating operator here, there shouldn’t be any need to have a non-MS lounge in this terminal. So, there are at least 5 (if not more) lounges here that are strictly for Egyptair / Star Alliance, as MS prefers to have several smaller lounges scattered throughout the terminal. It is an interesting concept that reminded me of Thai Airways at Bangkok, and I took an instant liking to it upon discovering that one of those lounges was themed ‘Smoking Only’!
But soon enough it was time to board ET453, and I had to leave Cairo and its million lounges for a future Egyptair report. At the gate, a queue of very sleepy passengers had already formed, but in no time boarding was called shortly after we were let inside the holding area.
Welcome to Ethiopian Airlines
The purser, who was dressed in a deep-green Ethiopian Airlines uniform, welcomed me on board and had a wild, fluffy hairdo streaked with semi-blond highlights over dark brown hair. This hairstyle is much less dramatic than what I am used to seeing in the USA, but it is quite the fashion amongst Ethiopian females. Tonight, she was very sleepy, but she had this motherly vibe to her that I was instantly made comfortable even before turning right to head to my seat.
At my seat, Kalkidan, the second crew working in the Cloud Nine cabin offers me a welcome drink. Unlike the purser, she seemed wide-awake and smiling at almost everything and everyone.
Champagne for me
Cabin
After takeoff, the cabin lights remained off since breakfast was to be served 1.5 hours before landing. Until then, drinks were offered.
The scene for most of the flight
Bloody Mary for me
Served with Kolo, an Ethiopian snack
At breakfast time, the purser gently woke me up and offered me a choice between the omelet and the Belgian waffle, in which the omelet was –and will always be- my obvious choice. Taste-wise, the meal was of good quality with the exception of the fruit, which seemed to have come straight from a can along with its heavy syrup.
Breakfast is served on Ethiopian
Orange juice
Coffee
I fell asleep for the remainder of the flight, only to wake up to some breathtaking scenery whilst on final approach into Addis.
Beautiful
CONTINUED BELOW
A Stop Away From One-Stop, Is Non-Stop : Airbus A340-500
ronerone From Jordan, joined Aug 2004, 1541 posts, RR: 54 Reply 2, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 18 hours ago) and read 13364 times:
ADDIS ABABA TRANSIT
Arriving Addis Ababa Bole International Airport at 7:15am, we quickly taxied past a gazillion Ethiopian jets and docked at a remote stand. The scene was so busy with 77L’s, Dreamliners, and 767’s scattered everywhere that it reminded me of an African mini-DXB.
ET-ALN at Addis
After the seatbelt sign was switched off, everyone assumed their positions in the aisle as we waited for the door to open; but that took forever to happen. A separate bus for Cloud Nine passengers –mostly resembling nothing more than a mini 15-seater large vehicle- finally makes an appearance and takes us to the main terminal whilst the driver was announcing which flights departed from which terminal.
Apparently Bole International Airport has two passenger terminals, which seem to be neutrally mixed. Ethiopian domestics, and the likes of Yemenia, Egyptair, and Sudan Airways operate from T1, while the rest from the more grandeur T2. After a few minutes of buzzing through the ramp we arrived at my stop where I headed to find my Frankfurt connection.
Boarding pass to Frankfurt
As I followed the general crowd and a couple of ‘Transit’ signs, several ground agents were proactive enough to approach me and ask where I was going. With that, I was able to swift myself through the rather low-lit and dingy ground level of this terminal, and up through an escalator to the main airside departures hall.
I had to stop and absorb this for a few moments!
As one of the busiest airports in Africa, double-digit passenger growth is a very common achievement at Bole International Airport. With Ethiopian Airline’s aggressive plans, 6.5 million passengers recorded in 2011 at a 30% growth over the previous year should not be too surprising for this Star Alliance hub. And to add icing on the cake, this airport is already capable of accommodating the A380, which I would consider to be significant for the African region.
As such, the scene this morning definitely demonstrates a sample of what this is all about. As we were in one of Ethiopian’s main morning banks, the airport was quite congested. Not quite like Dubai obviously, but Bole International Airport was congested enough for its size, with passengers from all ends of the world and all shapes and sizes frolicking from each direction heading to wherever it was they needed to be.
Likewise, I am also headed to find the Cloud Nine lounge, and along the way I take notice of the airport’s feel and design. Tons of retail and F&B outlets occupy most central spaces of this rectangular 7-gate terminal structure, making it seem a little too ‘busy’. Furthermore, the piped ‘ceiling-less’ type of structure gives this terminal a warehouse feel rather than an actual airport. But on the positive side, Bole International Airport does offer all the typical airport amenities (lounges, restaurants, WiFi, tons of seating area etc) in quite the modern setting that it easily outshines many other airports of the world.
Airside at Bole
Duty Free at Bole
ET ads like this were scattered around the terminal
Entrance to the Cloud Nine Lounge
At the entrance to the lounge, there was a fast-moving queue of passengers. When I had arrived at the reception, the lounge warden asked me to proceed to the other Cloud Nine Lounge as this was had apparently reached its cap. Star Alliance carriers seem to love their multiple lounges I suppose!
Not much farther from this one, the second lounge was more accommodating, and a rather cheerful receptionist welcomed inside after a quick glance at my boarding pass.
Cloud Nine Lounge # 2
The lounge was a little disappointing and offered minimal comfort that probably wouldn’t last over a couple of hours. At the time I was there it was rather full, and with the congested seating arrangement I could only sit quite close to others, which meant that there was no privacy-feel at all. Furthermore, the lounge is located in the centre part of the terminal, which meant that views of anything really –let alone aircraft on the ramp- were nonexistent.
Inside Ethiopian’s Cloud Nine Lounge
But to be fair, this Cloud Nine lounge did offer very friendly staff, WiFi, computer facilities, a smoking room, a relaxation area, a limited buffet spread, a small self-service bar of alcoholic drinks, a tall fridge of soft drinks and water, and a small fresh juice station. At the buffet, which at the time was serving a hot breakfast selection of sausages, potatoes, spinach, and scrambled eggs, I helped myself to a serving. Other than that, a small selection of bread and cold-ish pastries were on offer, and a rather bland selection of raw vegetables that seemed to resemble a weak salad bar.
Buffet spread
My breakfast
Whilst the meal was at room temperature at best, the scrambled eggs were quite tasty. The potatoes however were too crunchy and undercooked, and the rubbery sausages felt a tad iffy. The tomato juice on the other hand was standard fare, and that is always good.
At 9:35am, I made a head start towards Gate 8 in an attempt to be there early and try to board before other premium passengers. However, a glance at the FIDS revealed a delay on my flight to Frankfurt by one and a half hours. I was hoping this wouldn’t turn into a dramatic affair as I had a connecting flight in Frankfurt and my transit time had been reduced to just over two hours as a result.
FIDS showing my delayed flight
Back inside the lounge, which was now occupied mostly by Frankfurt passengers, the lounge agents made an effort to pass around each passenger and ensure that all connecting flights affected by this delay were attended to. In my case, I was advised that 2 hours and 15 minutes in Frankfurt should not be a problem at all.
I left the lounge for Gate 8 again at around 11am. The Gate area at Bole’s Terminal 2 is separated by several security screening points, and is only accessible when the gate area for a flight is open before boarding. Unfortunately it is also the more interesting part of the terminal as it is closer to the ramp views, which would otherwise be difficult to see and enjoy.
Passing through security, friendly agents –which seemed to be plenty around here- process me through without a hitch, and I am finally inside the holding area by 11:10am. The majority of the passengers today were German holidaymakers, and I presume they were mostly interlined by the Lufhansa codeshare on this flight.
Gate 8 holding area
After a quick document verification at the podium, I am waved through by a friendly Ethiopian Airlines ground staff. Looking outside, I see no aircraft at our respective parking bay and instead, I spot one Dreamliner docked at the adjacent gate, which was totally cordoned off from our area. This arrangement requires an unnecessary logistical mess to get to the aircraft from where we were, so I simply assumed that another Dreamliner should be pulling up at our gate soon, I hope.
At 11:45am -15 minutes away from our rescheduled departure time- with no sign of any Dreamliner at our gate, we hadn’t boarded yet and passengers were beginning question the possibility of a further delay. But at 11:50am, a ground agent appeared near the Gate 8 podium and yelled out to us to proceed to the adjacent holding area as boarding for flight ET706 was to commence soon.
This meant that everyone had to bottleneck through the single-lane entrance to Gate 8 by the podium, and head towards another single-lane entrance to the adjacent gate. Why they didn’t announce a gate change in the first place to avoid all this was beyond me, and seemingly many other passengers as well.
At the new gate, barricades were already set up to streamline the boarding process for Cloud Nine, Sheba Miles/Star Alliance status, and Economy Class passengers. We were first asked to queue up at the start of those barricades, which created a huge mess of people everywhere. But when boarding had still not commenced, the staff again requested us to find a seat and sit down until boarding was announced.
Messy queue
As some of the passengers were losing their patience, they began to question the ground agents for additional information.
“Maybe you need to inform us about the additional delay please”
“Madam, we will be boarding soon, after the cleaners are finished”
I was not sure why the cleaners were still cleaning the aircraft, but it was safe to assume that this Dreamliner had arrived late from a previous mission. Soon enough however, boarding was finally called at 12:05pm.
Things became a little more organized during the boarding process as the staff ensured that everyone boarded when they were called. With my turn at the podium, my boarding pass was ripped and was waved through with nice smile.
Here she is!
At Door 2L of the aircraft, and right in front of the glistening baby blue mood lighting that was piercing through the Dreamliner’s door, an absolutely stunning Ethiopian cabin crew –also known as Tigist- was conducting the boarding welcome wearing a traditional white Ethiopian dress patterned with a single thick greenish streak. While she was a little on the reserved side, she still maintained her professionalism with all the boarding passengers.
“Halo, welcome on board sir”
“Please this way to your seat”
“Thank you”
By 12:10pm, I was on board my first Dream)liner!
CONTINUED BELOW
A Stop Away From One-Stop, Is Non-Stop : Airbus A340-500
ADDIS ABABA TO FRANKFURT
ADD-FRA Scheduled Departure: 10:40 Actual Departure: 12:40 (Pushback)
Scheduled Arrival: 16:30 Actual Arrival: 17:30(Touchdown)
Selamta 787!
Things got a little confusing and overwhelming for me after boarding. Everything was new to me –airline and aircraft- and I did not know what I needed to focus on. Everything about the Dreamliner was so current, it was like something from a few steps into the future. The large windows, the spacious cabin, the feisty mood-lighting, the fiery red seats, and even the beautiful cabin crew, all created this futuristic vibe in the cabin that it felt like we were inside something other than an aircraft.
Passing through the galley, I notice several Ethiopian Airlines crew prancing all over the place trying to quickly get settled. But they had some time for a quick “Hi, welcome on board” before I turned left to the Cloud Nine cabin.
The cabin
24 seats make up the Cloud Nine cabin on the 787, between Doors 1 and 2. The basic elements are more or less what we have all seen in every aircraft before. But, the slick enhancements are definitely noticed in the huge windows that come with automatic light control technology, the bigger and more curvy designs of the overhead bins, the mood-lighting system, and the sound system. Some type of Ethiopian instrumental/jazzy boarding music was blasting from the speakers and the sound was simply amazing. If anything however, the cabin did have this sterile feel to it and that would definitely not make me feel too ‘homey’.
The seat
At my seat at 4L, a freshly packed yellow blanket and a green pillow were neatly placed over the seatbelts. However, leftover breadcrumbs were found on the seat, which meant that the cleaning job was a half-hearted express measure in an attempt to minimize the delay to this flight.
Across from me, the seat pocket –stacked with the usual inflight literature- was located under the IFE screen, and several storage areas were located between the two seats for shoes, headsets, and loose items. I was able to stow away my shoes, lenses, and notebook, which meant space was plenty enough at least for me.
The seat itself was quite spacious, and I believe it resembled that of LOT’s Business Class product. Padding was soft –but not soft enough- and legroom was more than adequate for even an ULH to Washington.
Blanket
Sorry, but this isn’t a Business Class quality pillow
Headsets
Leg space
No smoking is now a given!
New air control and lighting
More of the seat and cabin
At 12;25pm it was announced that boarding was complete, and this meant that the seat next to me was unoccupied. But that was to be only until two ID staff –presumably working for Ethiopian Airlines- trickled into Cloud Nine where one sat next to me. Surprisingly, the other staff –dressed in jeans- popped over to the galley to assist the crew. She even served a passenger a drink without her uniform which seemed a little too homey for my liking.
The crew seemed a little too busy as they were still in a semi-manic mode trying to set everything up. But eventually one appeared in the aisle with a tray of water, juices, and empty glasses. Behind her, Tigist followed with a bottle of champagne neatly wrapped with pure white linen.
“Welcome on board, may we offer you something to drink? Orange Juice, water, or champagne?”
“Champagne for me please”
An empty glass was placed near me, then Tigist gently poured the champagne then quickly wiped off the tip of the bottle with a napkin as she raised it back up.
Welcome drink
At 12:35pm, an announcement was made by the crew in both Amharic and English, and we were advised that today’s flight time was a quick 6 hours and 45 minutes. Shortly afterwards the doors were closed, and an animated safety demonstration was played on the screens.
Safety demo
As we pushed back at 12:40pm, the infectious jazzy music was played again while the engines spooled up. The 787 seemed quieter than its older sister, the 777, but it really wasn’t much of a drastic difference. I was more into that seductive music anyways, and if anyone knows where I could find ET’s boarding music, I would very much like to know!
After a ten-minute taxi past the terminal and to the active runway, we lined up and then began our roll for takeoff. As the engines powered up, they yanked a high-pitched hum that reminded me of the 747, so at least that aspect of the jumbo can remain for years after it retires! At 12:50pm we lifted off –with quite some power too- and began our daylight afternoon commute towards Frankfurt.
During climb: the cabin is definitely nice for taking pictures
During the climb, and just as I realized that no one bothered to apologize for the delay and explain what it was all about, the captain came on the PA and did just that. After welcoming us on board Ethiopian Airlines, he explained that it was due to a late arrival of the aircraft from a previous flight, i.e. the standard response.
As we reached cruising altitude, the seatbelt sign was switched off, and the crew was released to begin the service preparations. The mood lighting continued to flicker and at that moment it was displaying some form of an afternoon calm type of mood. Coupled with the differing blue shades of each window, the scene became seriously futuristic.
During cruise
After a quick visit to the lavatory, I was quite disappointed to see that it was nothing out of the ordinary. No ‘premium’ amenities were available, and it could have easily been a standard loo used by Economy Class passengers. However, interesting to note is the lavatory doors had a new design to them, where part of the door goes inside the lavatory as you open it. This initially proved to be quite annoying, as I did not know which direction to pull the door at first.
Basic lavatory
Until the service began, I explored the contents of my seat pocket, only to find an interesting ‘booklet’ that contained all the typical inflight literature items in addition to a Sheba Miles application form, a comment card, and some writing paper with envelopes. While this booklet was very flimsy, it was a very nice touch.
Cloud Nine booklet
Contents
Paper & envelopes
inflight magazine
Hmm .. This isn’t a 757!
Soon enough, the crew rolled out a beverage trolley. This was manned by Tigist and Tadese –a male cabin crew also operating Cloud Nine today- and it was neatly set up with alcoholic/soft beverages and glasses on the top side, with snacks on the bottom side. As they approached the passengers, they began to address everyone by name, but for some odd reason that ball was dropped half way along the cabin.
“Can I offer you something to drink?”
“May I have a Bloody Mary please?”
“Yes”
I also noticed that no menus were handed out today, which is rather strange because in previous Trip Reports, Ethiopian seemed far from stingy at giving them out! For a flagship route on a flagship aircraft, a simple Business Class menu should be very typical.
My Bloody Mary was served with Kolo
I wasn’t expecting the Bloody Mary on Ethiopian to be loaded with the usual frills, and true to that expectation, it was quite average indeed. Too much vodka overpowered the drink, and there was nothing else apart from tomato juice. That does not a Bloody Mary make!
After the empty glasses were cleared, amenity kits were distributed quite randomly, but at least these weren’t also missing from the flight. After which, the crew then dressed our tables with linens in preparation for lunch.
Amenity kit with beautiful ET logo
Another trolley was then rolled out for the meal services, and it included all the meal trays, water, wine, and a breadbasket. Tigist was on my side of the cabin whilst Tadese was working on the opposite end.
Meal trolley
The crew continued to randomly address certain passengers by name, and this time around I wasn’t missed out.
“Mr. Hawi, I am so sorry we are out of the shrimp starter, and I only have vegetarian”
“That’s fine”
Meal tray
The tray was nicely set up with salad plate, salad dressing, bread, butter, salt/pepper shakers, a glass of water, silverware/napkins, and a starter plate. The vegetarian starter consisted of mozzarella cheese, with a tomato-based sauce with olives, and slices of green pepper, zucchini, and eggplant.
While it looked rather average, the starter was reasonably tasty, and that tomato sauce easily blended in with everything else on the plate. The bread on the other hand, was soft, warm, and not overly microwaved. Likewise, the salad was fresh and crispy and had nothing to complain about.
Starter plate
Salad & bread
I asked for a second on my Bloody Mary, which was brought to me without hesitation, and my plate was cleared as soon as I was through with my starter. Next in line, was another trolley that was rolled out to serve Injera.
Injera is a traditional Ethiopian and Eritrean food and it consists of a type of soft bread that is usually eaten with some form of a stew. Today on offer with the Injera were three types of items that included a spicy minced meat stew, full pieces of spiced chicken, and a stew made from beans.
“Sir would you like to have some Injera?”
“Yes please”
“What would you like to have with it? Or I can give you a little bit of everything?”
“A little bit of everything is fine”
“Question, how do you I eat this please?”
“With your hand. She will show you”
Tadese was referring to the ID staff that was sitting next to me. That was basically the icebreaker and we quickly got into an Injera lesson after that. I made a total mess all over my tray and both my hands as I tried to eat this meal, whereas my seatmate was neatly using one hand with not a singe drop of food outside of her plate. During our conversation, I explained to her that I was here just for Ethiopian’s 787 and that is why I have been taking pictures of everything. And boy did she smile with relief! At least I wasn’t too weird she must have thought!
Injera
Injera –and its accompaniments- many not look like the most appetizing of dishes, but in all honesty it did conform to the usual things I like in food. It was spicy, a tad on the sour side, and infused with some intense flavors. I couldn’t fault its authenticity, but I was quite satisfied with the overall taste. Similarly, I noticed that almost all the foreign passengers on board also took an interest to it, as we all opted for the Injera course.
My messy plate was cleared once I was through, and just when I thought that Injera was the main meal course, it wasn’t as the crew was offering a choice between the chicken or fish.
Randomly however, a new crew –presumably the hidden galley operator- appeared by my seat to offer my seatmate and I the fish.
“Who ordered fish?”
“Not us”
Shortly afterwards, Tigist returned to explain that they only had fish available, but then changed her mind quickly.
“Mr. Hawi, would you like the fish for main course?”
“Is there a choice?”
“I am sorry but we are out of … well yes I also have beef. Do you want?”
“Beef?”
“Yes”
“Sure”
I am not sure where this mystery beef dish came from, but at least the crew was nice enough to offer me something even when the main course options had run out.
Beef dish
This course seemed like it was beef stroganoff served with rice. Sauce-wise it may have been too dry for a stroganoff, but taste-wise it was exactly the same. The beef was tender but a tad on the fatty side, and the rice was too oily. But overall, the dish was quite tasty and since I had been craving some beef Stroganoff lately, it was duly enjoyed.
To conclude the service, a final trolley was rolled out for the dessert, cheese, and coffee/tea. I had it in mind to have both the cheese followed by the cake for dessert, but I was strangely not offered any dessert even though they hadn’t run out of it.
“Can I get you some cheese?”
“Yes please”
“Any coffee or tea?”
“No thanks”
Cheese
The plate consisted of a selection of cheese –including Halloumi, which was unique- served with crackers and prunes. I am big on cheese, so there definitely was no complaint here.
After lunch, the cabin lights were slightly dimmed so everyone could zone out into their private moods. By then, things turned rather neutral and non-eventful.
Cabin after the meal service
I was feeling quite sleepy by then, but I thought to give the IFE a quick browse before passing out. As always, my specialty is definitely not IFE but from what I could see, options were rather limited. However, it is full AVOD, and navigating through the interface was quick and easy. And since neither Family Guy nor King of Queens weren’t on offer here, my interest definitely hopped over elsewhere.
IFE
This seems to be the standard route map nowadays
Converting my seat into its fully flat position, it was your standard angled flat seat, which never seems to be the most comfortable. However, it was adequate enough for a few hours of sleep, though I wouldn’t imagine it being too comfortable on a Washington via Rome flight.
I also blackened out my window with a touch of a button, and I was surprised to notice that the light from outside was completely blocked off.
In bed with Ethiopian! Finally!
During my sleep, a second service was conducted which wasn’t much apart from coffee/tea and muffins. The crew attempted to wake me up for it, but I declined on the offer and continued on sleeping.
I must have been quite exhausted as I only woke up seconds before the seatbelt sign was switched on for landing. I barely had time to freshen up and quickly visit the Economy Class cabin.
Time to wake up!
Arriving Frankfurt
Economy Class cabin
Back in Business
Our seats after 6hrs and 45mins
The cabin crew made their final preparations and secured the cabin, before taking their seats for landing.
Landing soon
Cabin lights dimmed again
DESTINATION FRANKFURT
At 5:30pm, we touched down at Frankfurt Airport bringing this flight to a complete end. It was all nice and quiet during landing, until the reverse-thrust was applied. That’s when this 787 became as noisy as any 777.
At the gate, the seatbelt sign was switched off, and we all gathered our belongings as we prepared to deplane. I thanked the crew for their efforts on this flight, and proceeded to quickly find my Emirates flight back to Dubai.
C O N C L U S I O N
I had a very enjoyable experience on Ethiopian Airlines, and I think they have come a long way to be a very special and leading carrier in Africa. It is definitely an achievement to form an integral part of Star Alliance, and no doubt Ethiopian shines its way through in that area.
In terms of the overall experience, Ethiopian Airlines proved to be a very professional carrier. Apart from the slightly messy handling of the delay in Addis, the ground agents –especially those at the lounges- were very helpful. However, the poor lounge facilities were a bit of a setback, as an airline like Ethiopian could definitely do much better than what is currently on offer.
The inflight experience was equally as good, but there still is no excuse to miss out on important things such as menus and lavatory amenities in premium cabins. Some of the most seasoned travelers strictly fly premium, and they take small things like this very seriously. As for the cabin crew, they were extremely courteous and professional, and they ensured all passenger needs were attended at all times. The overall service may however require some polishing, as I couldn’t quite understand why we were all addressed by names at very random sequences. Either you do it or you don’t. The same applies for handling the availability of meal choices but that would have been less messy had menus been available.
As for the Dreamliner, it is a beautiful aircraft that I can see will be very successful in its life cycle. It offers the most modern comfort levels never before sen on other aircraft, and I definitely appreciated its spacious feel and fierce mood lighting. But maybe it was because the aircraft was factory-fresh that it did seem a little too sterile, and resembling a feeling similar to that of being at a hospital of some sort.
As for Ethiopian, they have always been a very special airline to me, and I am glad I finally got to fly them. Given the chance again, I will not hesitate to be on board another Ethiopian Airlines flight in the future.
This concludes my Trip Report. I hope that you have enjoyed it; your comments are always welcome!
SR 103 From United States of America, joined Sep 2000, 1702 posts, RR: 42 Reply 4, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 16 hours ago) and read 12916 times:
Absolutely fantastic trip report as always Roni. I am amazed that you managed to put all of this together so quick.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): I had been pondering a joyride on a Dreamliner for a short while, but each of the several initial plans never really materialized. Air India, Ethiopian, Qatar, Ethiopian again, and so on and so forth were discussed and planned, but later on canned.
That all sounds vaguely familiar, sorry about the part I played in that!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): It also did take some time to get my boarding passes as for some odd reason, my passport had to be photocopied –which took an awfully long time- since my ticket was purchased using a credit card. Could not a simple credit card verification type of thing work here? It works with CX, UL, and SQ, so why not here?
Thats really odd...
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): It is an interesting concept that reminded me of Thai Airways at Bangkok, and I took an instant liking to it upon discovering that one of those lounges was themed ‘Smoking Only’!
So if we are ever in CAI together, I take it there is no lounge hopping?
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): At breakfast time, the purser gently woke me up and offered me a choice between the omelet and the Belgian waffle, in which the omelet was –and will always be- my obvious choice.
I so would have taken the Belgian waffles. Eggs on a plane are just so rubbery and plastic.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): The potatoes however were too crunchy and undercooked, and the rubbery sausages felt a tad iffy. The tomato juice on the other hand was standard fare, and that is always good.
That does not look appetizing by any means! I think I'll have to skip the buffet when I am there.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): As some of the passengers were losing their patience, they began to question the ground agents for additional information.
This sounds like a complete mess! Then again it does not sound as bad as what I went through in ATL back in November.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I also noticed that no menus were handed out today,
Thats kind of odd. Maybe ET has a bit of polishing to do on their service standards.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): “A little bit of everything is fine”
The best way to do it. Injera can definitely get a bit messy but it is so worth it! Glad to see you enjoyed it.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): but I was strangely not offered any dessert even though they hadn’t run out of it.
What was on offer?
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I had a very enjoyable experience on Ethiopian Airlines, and I think they have come a long way to be a very special and leading carrier in Africa. It is definitely an achievement to form an integral part of Star Alliance, and no doubt Ethiopian shines its way through in that area.
Excellent, this makes me want to give them a try.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): It offers the most modern comfort levels never before sen on other aircraft, and I definitely appreciated its spacious feel and fierce mood lighting. But maybe it was because the aircraft was factory-fresh that it did seem a little too sterile, and resembling a feeling similar to that of being at a hospital of some sort.
It does have a bit of a sterile feeling, even the one I was on felt the same.
gabrielchew From United Kingdom, joined Aug 2005, 2512 posts, RR: 13 Reply 5, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 15 hours ago) and read 12399 times:
Very nice report Roni as always! ET looks good, although there seemed to be quite a few minor issues. Still, glad that you enjoyed your first 787 flight.
Hm, that doesn't look much better than the pokey T1
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter):
The lounge was a little disappointing and offered minimal comfort that probably wouldn%u2019t last over a couple of hours
Again, the T2 lounges look about a dreary as the T1 lounge
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): This meant that everyone had to bottleneck through the single-lane entrance to Gate 8 by the podium, and head towards another single-lane entrance to the adjacent gate. Why they didn%u2019t announce a gate change in the first place to avoid all this was beyond me, and seemingly many other passengers as well.
Ha, they did exactly the same with my flight to ZNZ....get everyone to one gate, then change it just as boarding begins.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): I also noticed that no menus were handed out today, which is rather strange because in previous Trip Reports, Ethiopian seemed far from stingy at giving them out! For a flagship route on a flagship aircraft, a simple Business Class menu should be very typical.
I guess they didn't load them in the rush to get the plane out? Both my KGL-ADD and ADD-ZNZ flights had menus.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Too much vodka overpowered the drink, and there was nothing else apart from tomato juice. That does not a Bloody Mary make!
I think this is standard SOP on ET to make drinks very strong. My G&T was almost undrinkable
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Injera %u2013and its accompaniments- many not look like the most appetizing of dishes, but in all honesty it did conform to the usual things I like in food. It was spicy, a tad on the sour side, and infused with some intense flavors. I couldn%u2019t fault its authenticity, but I was quite satisfied with the overall taste. Similarly, I noticed that almost all the foreign passengers on board also took an interest to it, as we all opted for the Injera course.
Looks tasty and messy! Shame they didn't offer them on the shorter African flights.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter):
Other than that, a small selection of bread and cold-ish pastries were on offer, and a rather bland selection of raw vegetables that seemed to resemble a weak salad bar
Could pass as a 777 lavatory, nothing special for the Dreamliner
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter):
Until the service began, I explored the contents of my seat pocket, only to find an interesting ‘booklet’ that contained all the typical inflight literature items in addition to a Sheba Miles application form, a comment card, and some writing paper with envelopes. While this booklet was very flimsy, it was a very nice touch.
It's obviously cheaper than putting all the articles in one by one, although a branded booklet with 'Cloud Nine' beats the plastic sleeve often seen.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter):
I also noticed that no menus were handed out today, which is rather strange because in previous Trip Reports, Ethiopian seemed far from stingy at giving them out! For a flagship route on a flagship aircraft, a simple Business Class menu should be very typical.
Very poor, and elements of your meal service had a Y feel with the whole beef or fish thing. The menu lets carriers add value by explaining the dishes and making them sound more restauranty than just chicken or beef.
I think that Ethiopian is doing great for Africa, but there's still a lot of work to do on the service. Although a nice fleet of 787s helps.
Burj From United States of America, joined Nov 2007, 838 posts, RR: 4 Reply 7, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 9 hours ago) and read 11380 times:
As always a very cool trip report and I am super impressed with how quickly you put this together!
I must say I am HUGELY disappointed in your choice of footwear! The one time you could have worn your red sneakers and had them MATCH the airline seat....and you went with lame grey sneakers!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): That was basically the icebreaker and we quickly got into an Injera lesson after that. I made a total mess all over my tray and both my hands as I tried to eat this meal, whereas my seatmate was neatly using one hand with not a singe drop of food outside of her plate.
I'm SO confused as you should of had this down easy....You've had South Asian food before, haven't you? The mechanics of eating injera is just the same as as eating with a chapati! In fact that first time I went to an Ethiopian restaurant the waitress looked at me and asked "Are you Pakistani or Indian? It is like a spongy chapati!"
That is exactly what it is like too...eating a spongy chapati!
It is really great that they offer some local food....but again printed menu's would have been a good idea as they could have put a description of the food (and how to eat it) in the menu...
Thanks for your insight an reaction to the 787. Is the lav really as small as your photo makes it look? It really does look like I standard lav, and if anything it looks SMALLER than most wide body lavs!
PlaneHunter From Germany, joined Mar 2006, 6191 posts, RR: 79 Reply 8, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 10592 times:
Hi Roni,
a truly fantastic piece of work from the "Master of Trip Reports"! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your ET Dreamliner experience. That carrier offers an impressive product, even though I'm not a fan of the seat colors. ET is high on my list, maybe I can try it later this year.
debonair From Germany, joined Jan 2004, 2098 posts, RR: 4 Reply 9, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 10582 times:
Outstanding TR -as always!
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): An ideal fit for Ethiopian's high-tech fleet, the Dreamliner -with its ability to avoid that notorious Rome stop in one direction
Fuel-stop in FCO? I also flew ET from/to FRA on their B767 and their was no stop. AFAIK, the only fuel stops are FCO ob the B757 from ARN and CAI on the B738 also from ARN.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): So, there are at least 5 (if not more) lounges here that are strictly for Egyptair / Star Alliance, as MS prefers to have several smaller lounges scattered throughout the terminal. It is an interesting concept that reminded me of Thai Airways at Bangkok, and I took an instant liking to it upon discovering that one of those lounges was themed ‘Smoking Only’!
Sorry, don't agree at all; as none of the lounges is to international (* A) standards! None of the lounges is offering showers, wide buffet food choices etc.! I wish MS would have opened ONE (maybe two) big premium lounge(s) with all amenities for a *A hub!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): Apparently Bole International Airport has two passenger terminals, which seem to be neutrally mixed. Ethiopian domestics, and the likes of Yemenia, Egyptair, and Sudan Airways operate from T1, while the rest from the more grandeur T2.
Nope, in my case the international connection to Tanzania was also from T1! Very sad to see, that T1 is not up to the standards of T2 at all. An urgent renovation & upgrade is needed!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): But on the positive side, Bole International Airport does offer all the typical airport amenities (lounges, restaurants, WiFi, tons of seating area etc) in quite the modern setting that it easily outshines many other airports of the world.
Sorry, don't agree at all. The worst part, within the security area, there is only ONE bathroom for all gates! Also, restaurants are available, but the service & quality is not to international standards.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): The majority of the passengers today were German holidaymakers, and I presume they were mostly interlined by the Lufhansa codeshare on this flight.
Nope, most of these tourists are package holiday makers from Kenya & Tanzania - as nowadays quite a lot German travel companies choose the cheaper ET flights over the Condor non-stop flights from Germany!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): The inflight experience was equally as good, but there still is no excuse to miss out on important things such as menus and lavatory amenities in premium cabins
Well, in my case - I did several sectors in different classes- the service was very indifferent. E.g. on my ZNZ-ADD flight on the DASH8Q400 in J, no pre-flight drinks were offered. But the biggest problem (at least in the past), nearly every B767 is having a different J class configuration and seat type. It was time that ET is streamlining their product- what now happened with the B777 & B787!
The777Man From United States of America, joined Jul 1999, 6088 posts, RR: 56 Reply 10, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days ago) and read 10343 times:
Hi Roni!
Thanks for another fantastic report with fantastic pictures !
Glad to see you tried the 787 and with Ethiopian !
Your experience with ET reminds me of mine (although I flew in Y and IAD-FCO); some things are like meal and IFE but other things like ground handling and IFE selection is somewhat lacking. Also VERY bad in my opinion to have an angled lie-flat seat in J. Should be horizontal flat especially on a brand new aircraft like the 787.
Very much looking forward to your next report !
Quoting debonair (Reply 9): AFAIK, the only fuel stops are FCO ob the B757 from ARN and CAI on the B738 also from ARN.
ADD-IAD also has a technical stop at FCO due to the altitude of ADD. IAD-ADD is nonstop.
The777Man
Need a Boeing 777 Firing Order....Further to fly....GA, T5, CI and LX 777s
aerdingus From Ireland, joined Dec 2006, 2486 posts, RR: 18 Reply 11, posted (4 months 2 weeks 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 9803 times:
I think the lady helping out in her jeans is a funny touch! Good work ethic, helping colleagues, but maybe not such a professional look. Although did you not feel that this counteracted the sterile feel somehow? The ET 787 looks beautiful & colourful. I can see what you mean about the lack of consistency, maybe a bad day for the crew!
Thanks for sharing.
BA EI FH FR LX RE SK TS VY ZB 3K 5G A300 A310 A319 A320 A321 A333 ATR72 B735 B738 B744 B772 MD82 BCN BOH BRU CPH CRL DUB
"cake" and it was on the trolley too. I saw it, but they did not offer it to me.
Quoting SR 103 (Reply 4): So what is planned for your next adventure?
SXM in 4 days!
Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 5): Very nice report Roni as always! ET looks good, although there seemed to be quite a few minor issues. Still, glad that you enjoyed your first 787 flight.
Many thanks Gabriel. Glad you enjoyed.
Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 5): Ha, they did exactly the same with my flight to ZNZ....get everyone to one gate, then change it just as boarding begins.
Why all that hassle though? I'd love to know.
Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 5): I guess they didn't load them in the rush to get the plane out?
I would assume so. But still no excuse.
Quoting themit9 (Reply 6): Brilliant report as usual and great reading about the 787 in Africa.
Thanks themit9.
Quoting themit9 (Reply 6): The colour scheme of the seats is excellent
I totally agree
Quoting themit9 (Reply 6): Do they have the arch/dome with mood lighting at the entry?
Yes they do. that's probably what was shining through the door at boarding.
Quoting themit9 (Reply 6): Very poor, and elements of your meal service had a Y feel with the whole beef or fish thing. The menu lets carriers add value by explaining the dishes and making them sound more restauranty than just chicken or beef.
I think that Ethiopian is doing great for Africa, but there's still a lot of work to do on the service. Although a nice fleet of 787s helps.
I think ET needs more solid competition in Africa. Perhaps then they will focus on tweaking their product, otherwise why should they? Kenya and Arik just don't cut it much, and SAA and Egyptair are of course somewhat of partners.
Quoting Burj (Reply 7): As always a very cool trip report and I am super impressed with how quickly you put this together!
Thanks Burj! I am also quite surprised myself
Quoting Burj (Reply 7): I must say I am HUGELY disappointed in your choice of footwear! The one time you could have worn your red sneakers and had them MATCH the airline seat....and you went with lame grey sneakers!
My red sneakers were in AUH, and it would have been a logistical nightmare to grab them before this trip
Quoting Burj (Reply 7): I'm SO confused as you should of had this down easy....You've had South Asian food before, haven't you? The mechanics of eating injera is just the same as as eating with a chapati! In fact that first time I went to an Ethiopian restaurant the waitress looked at me and asked "Are you Pakistani or Indian? It is like a spongy chapati!"
LOL. I was trying to pester the crew
Quoting Burj (Reply 7): Is the lav really as small as your photo makes it look? It really does look like I standard lav, and if anything it looks SMALLER than most wide body lavs!
The lav wasn't too big at all. But i wouldn't say it was smaller than the norm.
a truly fantastic piece of work from the "Master of Trip Reports"! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your ET Dreamliner experience. That carrier offers an impressive product, even though I'm not a fan of the seat colors. ET is high on my list, maybe I can try it later this year.
PH
Many thanks PH! Glad you enjoyed.
ET is quite special, and your view on them would be interesting!
Quoting debonair (Reply 9): Fuel-stop in FCO? I also flew ET from/to FRA on their B767 and their was no stop. AFAIK, the only fuel stops are FCO ob the B757 from ARN and CAI on the B738 also from ARN.
Yep. Enroute to IAD to ADD. The other direction is non-stop. Same applies to the 77L.
Quoting debonair (Reply 9): Sorry, don't agree at all; as none of the lounges is to international (* A) standards! None of the lounges is offering showers, wide buffet food choices etc.! I wish MS would have opened ONE (maybe two) big premium lounge(s) with all amenities for a *A hub!
I haven't really given an opinion on the quality of the CAI lounges (yet), but i do like the idea of several smaller lounges throughout a terminal. After all, one big lounge can get too congested like in Dubai.
Quoting debonair (Reply 9): Sorry, don't agree at all. The worst part, within the security area, there is only ONE bathroom for all gates! Also, restaurants are available, but the service & quality is not to international standards.
I haven't noticed the restroom issue in the airside facility, but if you are comparing ADD with FRA, then of course you will be disappointed But i still find ADD to be miles ahead of the current AMM terminal for instance.
Quoting The777Man (Reply 10): Thanks for another fantastic report with fantastic pictures !
Thanks Lars. Glad you enjoyed
Quoting The777Man (Reply 10): Also VERY bad in my opinion to have an angled lie-flat seat in J. Should be horizontal flat especially on a brand new aircraft like the 787.
Well if LOT's seats are full flat, then so should ET's! The same should apply to their 77Ls actually.
Quoting aerdingus (Reply 11): I think the lady helping out in her jeans is a funny touch! Good work ethic, helping colleagues, but maybe not such a professional look. Although did you not feel that this counteracted the sterile feel somehow?
Hi aerdingus,
It was quite funny. I could see non-duty crew helping out in the galley out of uniform, but to be prancing around in the aisle in jeans? I'd think she was a rude passenger trying to steal my drink for no reason
Cheers,
Roni
A Stop Away From One-Stop, Is Non-Stop : Airbus A340-500
It was quite funny. I could see non-duty crew helping out in the galley out of uniform, but to be prancing around in the aisle in jeans? I'd think she was a rude passenger trying to steal my drink for no reason
Hahaha! I suppose it just doesn´t look right. Meanwhile I now want to go to Ethiopia to try injera...it looks GOOD! Or maybe find an Ethiopian restaurant....somewhere...
BA EI FH FR LX RE SK TS VY ZB 3K 5G A300 A310 A319 A320 A321 A333 ATR72 B735 B738 B744 B772 MD82 BCN BOH BRU CPH CRL DUB
Has that scenery been digitally altered. It does look a bit unreal.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): ET ads like this were scattered around the terminal
ET's FAs have got to be the prettiest out there, I mean the entire compliment can be beautiful, not a smack of just one or two.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): Entrance to the Cloud Nine Lounge
They could have at least spruced up that paint missing at the bottom right.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 2): At Door 2L of the aircraft, and right in front of the glistening baby blue mood lighting that was piercing through the Dreamliner’s door, an absolutely stunning Ethiopian cabin crew –also known as Tigist- was conducting the boarding welcome wearing a traditional white Ethiopian dress patterned with a single thick greenish streak
Ah the lovely and unique Purser uniform. How regal it looks like it was from the courts of the Queen of Sheba herself!! From what I recall EK initally used to have their crew in premium cabins dress in traditional Emirati gear but then again I could be wrong. However, it is really nice that ET's Pursers stand out in this awesome uniform, very much like EY's purser's in their wonderful outfits, especially the red gloves which I have been turned down twice while requesting it to be photographed. Hopefully in a few weeks I will make another desperate attempt lol
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): At my seat at 4L, a freshly packed yellow blanket and a green pillow were neatly placed over the seatbelts.
Interesting that the colours of the logo have been implemented into the seats in the J cabin with the green, yellow and red. I guess due to the wider seats and the lower number of seats in J class it does not look too over the top. In economy it might have resembled MH.
Hmm the green laces match the colour of the pillows....was that intentional lol.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): She even served a passenger a drink without her uniform which seemed a little too homey for my liking.
Oh no, no...not in J class, no matter how busy it might have been. Might have shown the sprirt of teamwork but really not something that would be appropriate. It's like being served in a rush hour cafe by the student helping out between courses at the local college!! Behind the scenes she could have helped as much really!!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): ET’s boarding music, I would very much like to know!
And I would like to hear it too
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): Coupled with the differing blue shades of each window, the scene became seriously futuristic.
With the different colours it must really be futuristic
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): As they approached the passengers, they began to address everyone by name, but for some odd reason that ball was dropped half way along the cabin.
Memory loss, or maybe the card with the names suddenly disappeared lol
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): Amenity kit with beautiful ET logo
Were these all the same red colour or did they also come in the green and yellow colours as well.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): With your hand. She will show you
Hilarious...could not the injera be broken by hand as well. I know one can eat a chappati/roti/naan by just breaking pieces will still continuing to eat the rest of the meal with a fork or spoon, and then following by eating the rest of the pieces of the broken bread.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I thought that Injera was the main meal course, it wasn’t as the crew was offering a choice between the chicken or fish.
Nice that they had this extra offering.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I also blackened out my window with a touch of a button, and I was surprised to notice that the light from outside was completely blocked off.
That last blackened feature should always be option for a passenger to control. I would be very disappointed if ever on a 787 flight the windows were darkened completely.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): During my sleep, a second service was conducted which wasn’t much apart from coffee/tea and muffins
Wow, they really do feed passengers on this super short haul flight....well compared to YYZ it is a short one. I wonder what they offer on the YYZ sectors in comparsion.
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): As for the cabin crew, they were extremely courteous and professional, and they ensured all passenger needs were attended at all times. The overall service may however require some polishing, as I couldn’t quite understand why we were all addressed by names at very random sequences. Either you do it or you don’t.
Glad to know the ET crew's are great!! They definitely need to address the issue of addressing passengers by name!!
PS: Do we expect the return on EK report from you? lol
767747 From United States of America, joined Jan 2005, 1750 posts, RR: 26 Reply 16, posted (4 months 2 weeks 5 days 5 hours ago) and read 8622 times:
Another excellent report, Ronerone!
Great to see your report on the 787 with Ethiopian. The colors on both the 737 and the 787 look really appealing, and your cabin photos are just awesome!
Food looks good, but I almost think the meal looks better on the 737 flight down to Addis. That is surprising they ran out of so many dishes on an inaugural flight?!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): However, leftover breadcrumbs were found on the seat, which meant that the cleaning job was a half-hearted express measure in an attempt to minimize the delay to this flight.
Not a good first impression!
Food looks pretty good. What is that (fried?) thing next to the mushrooms and olives on your CAI-ADD breakfast?
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): “Mr. Hawi, I am so sorry we are out of the shrimp starter, and I only have vegetarian”
“That’s fine”
I can imagine what your thoughts would have been if it was the other way around!
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I asked for a second on my Bloody Mary
Even though the first one was horrible, you continued with seconds? Haha I'd be onto something else, even if it was just tomato juice; or coke if it was me..
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): I made a total mess all over my tray and both my hands as I tried to eat this meal
Were you trying to christen the plane?
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): That’s when this 787 became as noisy as any 777.
Possibly a point of great excitement by all A.Nutters!
ba319-131 From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2001, 8267 posts, RR: 56 Reply 18, posted (4 months 2 weeks 5 days ago) and read 8325 times:
Hi Roni,
Another superb report, thanks so much for taking the time and effort to share your travels with us.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Selecting my seats was also equally as easy, but surprisingly I was not able to change my seat selection later on using the ‘Manage my Booking’ functionality. This is a feature I expected an airline like Ethiopian to have.
- At least they have that function, the one on the MH website is still under construction!
- Interesting, not seen that on any of the various departure cards I have filled in around the world.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Taste-wise, the meal was of good quality with the exception of the fruit, which seemed to have come straight from a can along with its heavy syrup.
- Indeed, looks just like tinned fruit, not very premium.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): I take notice of the airport’s feel and design. Tons of retail and F&B outlets occupy most central spaces of this rectangular 7-gate terminal structure, making it seem a little too ‘busy’. Furthermore, the piped ‘ceiling-less’ type of structure gives this terminal a warehouse feel rather than an actual airport
- Yes, looks just like a warehouse that has been converted. I imagine this was the cheapest and easiest way to construct and fit out, shame there are no ramp views to pass the time away.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): The lounge was a little disappointing and offered minimal comfort that probably wouldn’t last over a couple of hours. At the time I was there it was rather full, and with the congested seating arrangement I could only sit quite close to others, which meant that there was no privacy-feel at all. Furthermore, the lounge is located in the centre part of the terminal, which meant that views of anything really –let alone aircraft on the ramp- were nonexistent.
- Dull looking lounge, hardly a place where your are I would want to spend an extended period of time.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): At 11:45am -15 minutes away from our rescheduled departure time- with no sign of any Dreamliner at our gate, we hadn’t boarded yet and passengers were beginning question the possibility of a further delay. But at 11:50am, a ground agent appeared near the Gate 8 podium and yelled out to us to proceed to the adjacent holding area as boarding for flight ET706 was to commence soon.
This meant that everyone had to bottleneck through the single-lane entrance to Gate 8 by the podium, and head towards another single-lane entrance to the adjacent gate. Why they didn’t announce a gate change in the first place to avoid all this was beyond me, and seemingly many other passengers as well.
- This is pretty inefficient, as you noted, why they never announced a gate change prior to this is beyond me.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): We were first asked to queue up at the start of those barricades, which created a huge mess of people everywhere. But when boarding had still not commenced, the staff again requested us to find a seat and sit down until boarding was announced.
- Hmm, quite a messy experience it seems, I never thought boarding a plane was so difficult!
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): If anything however, the cabin did have this sterile feel to it and that would definitely not make me feel too ‘homey’
- Indeed you are quite right.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Sorry, but this isn’t a Business Class quality pillow
- Nope, looks straight out of economy.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): At 12;25pm it was announced that boarding was complete, and this meant that the seat next to me was unoccupied. But that was to be only until two ID staff –presumably working for Ethiopian Airlines- trickled into Cloud Nine where one sat next to me. Surprisingly, the other staff –dressed in jeans- popped over to the galley to assist the crew. She even served a passenger a drink without her uniform which seemed a little too homey for my liking.
- Dressed in jeans serving a passenger, hmm, this is all too relaxed for my liking.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): The crew seemed a little too busy as they were still in a semi-manic mode trying to set everything up. But eventually one appeared in the aisle with a tray of water, juices, and empty glasses. Behind her, Tigist followed with a bottle of champagne neatly wrapped with pure white linen.
- What were they doing during boarding? - they could have done this and pass out the amenity kits whilst boarding was taking place.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): interesting to note is the lavatory doors had a new design to them, where part of the door goes inside the lavatory as you open it. This initially proved to be quite annoying, as I did not know which direction to pull the door at first.
- Yes, it's a great idea, not sure why it has taken so long for this design to be put to use.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): The vegetarian starter consisted of mozzarella cheese, with a tomato-based sauce with olives, and slices of green pepper, zucchini, and eggplant.
- Quite a nice light started, not premium looking mind.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Injera –and its accompaniments- many not look like the most appetizing of dishes, but in all honesty it did conform to the usual things I like in food. It was spicy, a tad on the sour side, and infused with some intense flavors
- There are times when presentation is not important, flavour and spice are most important in my book.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Randomly however, a new crew –presumably the hidden galley operator- appeared by my seat to offer my seatmate and I the fish.
“Who ordered fish?”
“Not us”
Shortly afterwards, Tigist returned to explain that they only had fish available, but then changed her mind quickly.
“Mr. Hawi, would you like the fish for main course?”
“Is there a choice?”
“I am sorry but we are out of … well yes I also have beef. Do you want?”
“Beef?”
“Yes”
“Sure”
- This is all very odd, almost as if the crew were trying to keep the last beef dish back for themselves.
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): This course seemed like it was beef stroganoff served with rice. Sauce-wise it may have been too dry for a stroganoff, but taste-wise it was exactly the same. The beef was tender but a tad on the fatty side, and the rice was too oily. But overall, the dish was quite tasty and since I had been craving some beef Stroganoff lately, it was duly enjoyed.
- Looks a bit of a tired dish that, at least it tasted ok.
All in all a nice read and good overview of ET service, lacking in a few areas but these are relatively easy to iron out.
The 787 itself is a fine plane, however as you point out it lacks a comfort feel, quite stark and sterile, the mood lighting does not really seem to hide that, if fact seems to make it more evident, at least from my experience on two NH 787 flights between FRA & HND.
For economy passengers, comfort has stepped back, the good old layouts of 2-3-2 on a 767 and 2-4-2 on an an Airbus is giving way to 3-3-3 for the vast majority, save JL & NH, a great shame.
ronerone From Jordan, joined Aug 2004, 1541 posts, RR: 54 Reply 19, posted (4 months 2 weeks 4 days 17 hours ago) and read 7952 times:
Quoting aerdingus (Reply 13): Meanwhile I now want to go to Ethiopia to try injera...it looks GOOD! Or maybe find an Ethiopian restaurant....somewhere...
I too would like to try more Injera.
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Happy New Year to you too!! Wow, a trip on ET's 787 but then why am I surprised lol.
Heya flightsim! Thanks for stopping by
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Looks like the Purser's keep the white linen outfit for long haul flights? However I do quite like their dark green outfits
It seems like they do keep it for longer haul flights. But their green uniform is definitely quite attractive.
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Has that scenery been digitally altered. It does look a bit unreal.
Not much at all. In fact, it was the best picture i took for this entire trip
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): ET's FAs have got to be the prettiest out there, I mean the entire compliment can be beautiful, not a smack of just one or two.
Exactly! Whether theyre big, small, fat, or skinny, most of them are really pretty I think their hairstyle too adds a bit of spice too
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): From what I recall EK initally used to have their crew in premium cabins dress in traditional Emirati gear but then again I could be wrong.
Really? That's so unlike EK, but i guess it may have been something they tried in the past!
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): However, it is really nice that ET's Pursers stand out in this awesome uniform, very much like EY's purser's in their wonderful outfits, especially the red gloves which I have been turned down twice while requesting it to be photographed. Hopefully in a few weeks I will make another desperate attempt lol
Same happened with me here. I asked for a picture, and they said it's 'not allowed' which was total rubbish
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Hmm the green laces match the colour of the pillows....was that intentional lol.
Yes Burj should be made aware of this!
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Oh no, no...not in J class, no matter how busy it might have been. Might have shown the sprirt of teamwork but really not something that would be appropriate. It's like being served in a rush hour cafe by the student helping out between courses at the local college!! Behind the scenes she could have helped as much really!!
True. And as a team i think they all worked quite well together.
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Memory loss, or maybe the card with the names suddenly disappeared lol
They had the passenger list on the trolley. It was a matter of looking through it, which only happened sometimes.
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Were these all the same red colour or did they also come in the green and yellow colours as well.
All red on this flight.
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): Hilarious...could not the injera be broken by hand as well. I know one can eat a chappati/roti/naan by just breaking pieces will still continuing to eat the rest of the meal with a fork or spoon, and then following by eating the rest of the pieces of the broken bread.
According to my seatmate, it was all by hand, so i followed suit
Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 14): PS: Do we expect the return on EK report from you? lol
Not on this EK flight, as it was the same as any other EK flight i've done. But i would like to report on the new A380 terminal one time, so it will need an EK trip for that
Quoting Burj (Reply 15): Ah I see....trying to get on their good side by playing the helpless pax....pretty clever! You are just full of tricks!
LOL .. i try
Quoting 767747 (Reply 16): Another excellent report, Ronerone!
Great to see your report on the 787 with Ethiopian. The colors on both the 737 and the 787 look really appealing, and your cabin photos are just awesome!
Many thanks Mathew.
Quoting 767747 (Reply 16): Food looks good, but I almost think the meal looks better on the 737 flight down to Addis. That is surprising they ran out of so many dishes on an inaugural flight?!
The meal out of Cairo was excellent, minus the fruit. it was the 'freshest' of the bunch for sure.
Quoting NZ107 (Reply 17): Fantastic once again, Roni! Looks like it'll take me a little while to experience the 787. Is the 748 somewhere in your plans?
Heya Nicholas. Thanks!
Quoting NZ107 (Reply 17): Where were they expecting you to be taken on cloud nine? On US Airlines? Looks more like US3 than 453 to me
LOL .. At least the CAI lounges were more 'Cloud Nine' than at ADD
Quoting NZ107 (Reply 17): Food looks pretty good. What is that (fried?) thing next to the mushrooms and olives on your CAI-ADD breakfast?
LOL ... A piece of potato. I think it was fried. Was good though!
Quoting NZ107 (Reply 17): Even though the first one was horrible, you continued with seconds? Haha I'd be onto something else, even if it was just tomato juice; or coke if it was me..
And the second one was worse than the first too
Quoting NZ107 (Reply 17): Were you trying to christen the plane?
Haha .. if i was then i think i did a good job doing so .. because my tray was completely brown when i was finished
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): Another superb report, thanks so much for taking the time and effort to share your travels with us.
Thanks Mark!
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): - At least they have that function, the one on the MH website is still under construction!
But i remember selecting my seat on the MH website for the A380 inaugural. Not sure what happened there!
Are you flying MH soon? They are Oneworlding next month
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): - Interesting, not seen that on any of the various departure cards I have filled in around the world.
Yea it's a Cairo quirk!
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): - What were they doing during boarding? - they could have done this and pass out the amenity kits whilst boarding was taking place.
Interesting that you pointed this out because it was quite out of sequence giving the amenity kits out about 30 mins into the flight after the drink service
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): - There are times when presentation is not important, flavour and spice are most important in my book.
Very true!
Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18): The 787 itself is a fine plane, however as you point out it lacks a comfort feel, quite stark and sterile, the mood lighting does not really seem to hide that, if fact seems to make it more evident, at least from my experience on two NH 787 flights between FRA & HND.
For economy passengers, comfort has stepped back, the good old layouts of 2-3-2 on a 767 and 2-4-2 on an an Airbus is giving way to 3-3-3 for the vast majority, save JL & NH, a great shame.
Very nice way to put it. There seems to be a lot going on inside the 787 and maybe that's not so comfortable. Perhaps it's the mood lighting effect as you pointed out. But at times when the cabin lights were fully illuminated, the cabin looked way too white.
Cheers,
Roni
A Stop Away From One-Stop, Is Non-Stop : Airbus A340-500
ba319-131 From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2001, 8267 posts, RR: 56 Reply 20, posted (4 months 2 weeks 4 days 17 hours ago) and read 7936 times:
Hi Roni,
Quoting ronerone (Reply 19): Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 18):
- At least they have that function, the one on the MH website is still under construction!
But i remember selecting my seat on the MH website for the A380 inaugural. Not sure what happened there!
Are you flying MH soon? They are Oneworlding next month
- Yes, you can select a seat during the booking process but cannot go back and make changes without picking up a phone and making a call.
Booked my 1st MH flight, thus 1st MH A380 flight on Friday, travelling in March, LHR-KUL-CGK. A few days spotting in CGK then home via HKG with CX & BA, can't wait!
MSS658 From Belgium, joined Oct 2010, 2212 posts, RR: 14 Reply 22, posted (4 months 2 weeks 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 7213 times:
Hello
Great report, thanks for taking the time to put up your african dreamliner adventure.
I really like ET's colors they look very warm!
Service seems good as well, except for the delay.
Thanks for sharing once again!
fidelidade From Brazil, joined Dec 2012, 27 posts, RR: 0 Reply 23, posted (4 months 2 weeks 4 days ago) and read 7173 times:
Last December I routed CDG-ADD-LBV. While an enjoyable service in Y class (for what one can expect of it), I found ground staff @CDG and @ADD to be unhelpful. To check-in using the *Gold line in CDG was a mess... Long line and I had to ask the lady for my benefits as being *Gold (on JJ and TK, both of them she wasn't finding me in their system...). I had to ask for the priority boarding signal, for the priority bagagge tag. And @CDG they weren't able to print my boarding pass ADD-LBV (for which I'd have to ask @ the gate (no success) or in ADD.
When in ADD, I asked for it to 5 ppl, no one was able to get it to me (sorry sir, my printer is not working, sorry sir, i don't know how to do this...). Asked for the lounge (which I personally found poor...) and there, after teeling them how disappointed I was about their ground service, then one lady gave me a manually written boarding pass (for, once again, her printer wasn't working...
stipica From Croatia, joined Feb 2011, 398 posts, RR: 8 Reply 24, posted (4 months 2 weeks 3 days 14 hours ago) and read 6694 times:
Hi Roni !
what to say ... did you know that I never read your trip report hiihihi ... and same examples are still in trip cellar "unread" ... but this one is excellent quality and substance is so tempting ...
Quoting ronerone (Thread starter): Ethiopian is one of the most fascinating airlines in the world that today I am finally able to experience.
lucky you ...definitely agree with you ... ET is No.One African airlines and on my "to do list" ... with new transformation is soooo beautiful and I am soooo happy that first echelon of A.net trip reporters have a positive opinion about company ... a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to see for the first time in live 787 , wearing the ET colors , and instantly fell in love ...
Quoting ronerone (Reply 1): I prefer to leave that for a future report on Egyptair, which is relatively high on my must-joyride list.
and we are looking forward
Quoting ronerone (Reply 3): and I believe it resembled that of LOT’s Business Class product
Contour Aerospace Aura Lite ... LOT and TK have a flat version but I think ET is only carrier who ordered a sliding version
thanks Roni ... stipica
Open your eyes and think
25 ronerone: Hope you enjoy your first MAS ride! Thank you Marc. Glad you enjoyed it Hi fidelidade, That sounds like a total nightmare! last December sounds like
26 eastafspot: thanks you so much Roni for this enjoyable report. you got lucky man to catch it I did know there were 2 lounge in ADD what a mess for boarding The ca
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