SOUTH AFRICAN AIRWAYS – Business Class, Heathrow to Johannesburg

THE FLIGHT: Flight SA235 from London Heathrow to Johannesburg departed at 19.00 and we arrived in Johannesburg at 07.30 the following morning (+2 hours). This was the inaugural flight out of the UK on one of the airline’s five new A330-300 aircraft. On April 20, SAA will cut its Heathrow-Johannesburg service from two daily flights to one, but the number of business class seats will remain almost the same.

THE CHECK-IN: It was a Sunday evening and Terminal 2 was busy, but SAA’s Business check-in desk was quiet.

THE SEAT: I was in 7K, a window seat. All business class seats are forward-facing with aisle access in a 1-2-1 configuration. There is a double seat-belt – one across the waist, one diagonally across the chest, which I had not seen before. The 15-inch HD touchscreen was impressive, and I liked the generous space on my right side and the storage behind. The seat turned into a lie-flat bed that extended almost two metres long and felt ultra-comfortable. The space had its own power plug and USB port. The RAVE inflight entertainment system features over 100 movies. There is no wifi onboard, but users can stream content to personal devices, via an app, before the flight.

THE SERVICE: Before take-off I was offered sparkling wine, orange juice or water and a hot towel. I enjoyed the dinner of salad, soup and a seafood trio of shrimp, scallops and cod – eventually! I was overlooked and the passenger opposite me had finished her food and was asleep before I had even been asked for my choices.

flysaa.com; 020 8576 5555