The airline
Hong Kong Airlines.
The route
Auckland to Hong Kong, an 111⁄2 flight. We left shortly after the scheduled departure time of 10.20am, and arrived in Hong Kong at 5pm local time.
The plane
Airbus A330-200. It can carry 283 passengers, with 24 of those in business class seats.
The loyalty plan
Hong Kong Airlines isn’t part of the Star Alliance, which means a flight with them will not count towards Airpoints . In order to accumulate membership points you will have to join the Fortune Wings Club. Two to three round-trip flights will get you a short haul flight on their mileage programme.
Up the back or at the pointy end
We were lucky enough to be seated in business class, up the front.
The seat stuff
The business class seats were placed in a 2-2-2 configuration. The seat was comfortable. However, someone over 6ft tall would struggle to fully recline, I am 5ft 8’’ and my legs just fit in the leg rest space. The seat had a number of reclining options, so it was easy to manouevre, and it wasn’t too difficult to access the aisle even when my partner’s chair was totally reclined. There was a small table space in between the two seats that could fit a few cups but not much else.
Comfort factor
The seat itself was comfortable and the blanket provided was a good combination of fluffy and not too bulky. The pillow was probably a bit small, but this wasn’t a big problem. The slippers we were given definitely helped to ramp up the comfort factor.
Baggage allowance
30kg for checked baggage, 7kg for carry on.
That’s entertainment
The decent-sized screen folded out from the middle of the two seats. It was a touch screen, and although it was a little laggy, it wasn’t enough to be annoying. The movie categories included Hollywood new releases, Western classics, Asian films, and world films. There were about 20 films in the Hollywood new releases, and not a great selection but I managed to find two to watch; Mother’s Day and X-Men Apocalypse. The classics had a range of kids, action, drama, and romance. TV shows were few and far between, the only one that really caught my eye was Modern Family, and even then there was only one episode to watch. There was no in flight wifi on board.
The service
Overall the service was friendly and helpful. Apart from a little hiccup with misprinted names on tickets, it all went smoothly.
Feeding time
Having spent most of my flying time in economy class, I’ve become a bit wary of airplane food. However, this time I was pleasantly surprised. A starter included some spiced chicken on salad with a white bread roll. The main course was a ricotta and spinach cannelloni, and dessert was a lemon tart with berry compote and cream. Later in the flight we were given a choice between beef noodles, and fish with boiled potatoes. My first choice of beef noodles was not available. There’s something about fish on planes that doesn’t appeal to me so much – maybe it’s the fact that fish should be cooked and served straight away.It did have a very strong fishy taste, which I didn’t love, but the mustard sauce that came with it was delicious. Dessert definitely made up for the fish; a dark chocolate mousse. Throughout the flight they made sure we were well watered and offered small Whittaker’s bars of chocolate and packets of nuts for snacks.
Frequency
Hong Kong Airlines flies from Auckland to Hong Kong 10 times a week.
The verdict
We arrived in Hong Kong feeling well rested and well fed. We flew economy on the way back, and it was a different experience entirely.
More information
hongkongairlines.com
The writer travelled courtesy of Hong Kong Airlines.