TRIED & TESTED

London Gatwick-Hong Kong

Cathay Pacific’s and Ethiopian Airlines’ new A350 business classes; Jumeirah Himalayas Shanghai

BACKGROUND Cathay Pacific’s new A350-900 has 280 seats – 38 in business, 28 in premium economy and 214 in economy. It has been placed on the airline’s new four-times weekly London GatwickHong Kong route, which it resumed last month after a gap of nearly 20 years.

CHECK-IN I arrived at Gatwick South at 1000 for my 1235 departure on CX344 and headed for Zone F. Business class check-in was swift and I was given invitation cards for the No 1 Gatwick lounge (see businesstraveller.com/tried-and-tested for a review) and the carrier’s Hong Kong arrivals lounge. I was quickly through fast-track security.

BOARDING Gate 17 is about a five-minute walk from the No 1 lounge. Boarding had started when I arrived. I used the premium line then queued with the other passengers in the gate area to get on to the flight. On board, I was shown to my seat and offered a welcome drink of champagne, orange juice or water.

THE SEAT Business class is configured 1-2-1 and split across a larger front cabin of 30 seats and a smaller rear one with only eight. I was in 14D, close to the front of the front cabin, but was moved to 20G because the armrest was broken.

Designed by Studio FA Porsche, the seat will be immediately recognisable to those used to flying Cathay’s business class – it is forward-facing at an angle, with surrounds giving a fair degree of privacy without cutting you off. Still, there have been significant improvements to the seat compared even with the new one on Cathay’s B777-300ER. The storage has been increased – in addition to the existing side cabinet for smaller items with a netted pocket inside the cabinet door, there is a newly created under-ottoman space for shoes and small bags, and a side compartment suitable for a laptop.

There is also an armrest that goes up and down, and when up, there is space underneath for a bottle of water. That said, there were teething problems with this. It wasn’t just that 14D had a broken armrest. Having moved to 20G, in the front of the rear cabin, another passenger had found his was stuck down and could not be raised.

The seat reclines fully-flat and is controlled by simple presets, as well as a toggle switch allowing for smaller adjustments for the seatback, legrest and seat pan. On front row seats, there’s a thick padded seatbelt that tends to get stuck in the side of the seat when it returns to an upright position after reclining. In addition, the tray table, which comes out of the side area, is quite small, slopes, and vibrates when you type on a laptop. The seat pitch is 45 inches (114cm), compared with 43 inches (109cm) on the B777-300ER. The width is slightly less (20.2 inches/51.3cm compared with 21 inches/53cm) and the bed length the same, at 75 inches (190.5cm).

The seat has an 18.5-inch screen, as well as a new 4.3-inch video handset. The headphones are excellent, and the quiet aircraft and top-notch IFE system with its large screen makes it a great environment for catching up on entertainment. There are three live channels – BBC, CNN and Euronews. The aircraft is wifi-equipped and you can also use the new Panasonic ex3 platform to put on a do-not-disturb or wake-up call function. There is also in-seat power and USB charging.

WHICH SEAT TO CHOOSE? The back cabin suffers from noise from the galley – you can hear people chatting clearly from rows 20 and 21. Service

There have been significant improvements to the seat compared even with the new one on Cathay’s B777-300ER

also seems to be from the front of the main cabin. In general, window seats have great views. Centre seats are probably best for couples, although you have to lean forward to see one another.

THE FLIGHT This was only the second flight on the route and the attendants seemed to be finding their feet, but they were confident and soon caught up.

The lunch menu comprised chicken and duck terrine and a mixed salad to start, followed by mains of wok-fried butterfly prawns, chilli tomato sauce, broccoli and steamed jasmine rice (delicious); braised ox cheek, vegetables and parsley mash; side of pork, vegetables, celeriac mash, plum and ginger chutney; and spaghetti with spinach and cheese sauce. Fruit, desserts and cheeses were offered afterwards. Snacks are available on request, and breakfast is served prior to landing.

The champagne listed was Billecart-Salmon Brut, but in fact was Veuve Cliquot. Wines included Les Chapitres de Jaffelin Bourgogne Chardonnay 2014, Yealands Estate Land Made Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2015, Château Crabitey Graves 2012 and Rockbare McLaren Vale Shiraz 2014.

After the meal, I watched a film and then reclined my seat. The arm went down, and there was an extra side flap that opened to create an even larger bed area. Along with the side compartment, this all adds up to a big bed – and a comfortable one, allowing you to sleep on your side, move around and bend your legs. Again, it wasn’t all working, however. The seat opposite mine had a side flap that wouldn’t go back in no matter how many times the passenger slammed it shut. This was very noisy, but I understood her frustration, especially since her partner had an armrest stuck down.

ARRIVAL We landed early just after 0630 and disembarked quickly. It was a long walk to the transfer train, but there was no queue at immigration (I have a frequent visitor visa so can use the e-channel gates). Tom Otley

VERDICT This is a superb seat – an evolution rather than revolution of business class on the longhaul fleet, with direct aisle access for all, lots of storage and room to sleep. Once the seats have been made more robust, this will be one of the best business classes flying.