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Date: 2016/11/04
Flight: JL413
Aircraft/Registration: 787-8/JA836J
Class: Business (award travel)
Seat: JAL SKY SUITE 787
Prologue
Redeemed 85,000 JAL miles for a return NaRiTa/HELlsinki trip on business class. Booking award-travel with JAL is a bit of a pain. In fact booking ordinary travels on their website is a bit of a pain. The dates of this trip was determined by the award travel availability.
Pre-boarding
Business class check-in counters were free of passengers. I had one bag to check and was done in less than 5 minutes.
As a JGC member, I was allowed to use the priority, JAL-only security line. But then, there weren't many other people so it didn't make much of a difference.
After clearing immigration (on the south end of the terminal,) I happened to be facing the Sakura Lounge.
The layout hasn't changed since my last visit here bout 2 years go; it's a bit inconvenient. After checking in at the reception counter, the business class lounge is to the right. One needs to go down a flight of escalators to the main sitting area. For food, one needs to go back up a level, back the the level where the entrance was.
The lounge was busy. They had a sign erected at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the dining area saying it was crowded up there. Fortunately, I didn't have problems find a seat for a sit-down breakfast.
The food on offer was the same as those in Haneda. There weren't a lot of varieties but both Western and Japanese items were on offer and more than sufficient for a fast and hot breakfast. The fresh-salad bar was a nice touch. With the exception of the down-and-up split levels, it was an excellent lounge.
As a JGC member, I was allowed to use the priority, JAL-only security line. But then, there weren't many other people so it didn't make much of a difference.
After clearing immigration (on the south end of the terminal,) I happened to be facing the Sakura Lounge.
The layout hasn't changed since my last visit here bout 2 years go; it's a bit inconvenient. After checking in at the reception counter, the business class lounge is to the right. One needs to go down a flight of escalators to the main sitting area. For food, one needs to go back up a level, back the the level where the entrance was.
The lounge was busy. They had a sign erected at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the dining area saying it was crowded up there. Fortunately, I didn't have problems find a seat for a sit-down breakfast.
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| JAL NRT Lounge Breakfast Menu |
On Board
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| Plastic Welcome |
Starters
Once seated, orange juice or champagne were offered. Too bad it came in a plastic cup. It took a while for the flight attendant to realize I had a jacket for them to store. In fact, I had to specifically ask her to store it for me.
The business class cabin was a little more than 1/2 full. I had a window seat, which afforded me great privacy. The "JAL Sky Suite" on this 787-8 seemed to be less claustrophobic than the ones on 777-300ER. It's a good business class seat, and I think this type is unique to JAL.
The IFE, including the selection of movies were OK. Choices leaned heavily towards Western (a la Hollywood) and Japanese tastes, with very limited non-Japan Asian choices. It's a shame that the IFEs didn't have external camera views. The controller is touch-screen. As with anything touch-screens, after heavy use, the screens tend to be finicky. Before take-off, I had trouble selecting the language. It would automatically jump all over the place. The problem went away after take off though. Must have something to with on-ground power source.
Meals
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| Western |
After the first meal, "Anytime You Wish" meals could be ordered up to 2 hours before landing. It said on the menu that those were available up to 1.5 hours before landing. But on this particular flight, 2 hours before landing. These meals, as well as drinks are ordered via the IFE controller.
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| Fumiko's Japanese Set Plate |
Around 3 hours before landing, I ordered the "Fumiko's Japanese Set Plate." After half an hour, no food. I rang for the flight attendant who returned after a minute and said they had not received my order. She didn't say it out loud but cast doubt on my ability to order the meal. To prove my ability, I demonstrated to her who I had ordered and ordered the same thing for the second time. She agreed that that was the right way to do it. A few minutes later, the chief purser came around to apologize and said that they had actually received my first order but due to a system freeze or whatever reason, they had 'overlooked' my order. She never explained exactly what happened but apologized again for the delay. In the end, the meal was delivered 30 minutes after I'd ordered it. The delicious meal made up for the hassle.
Service
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| Crane |
Other than the welcome drink in the plastic cup, and the anytime-meal delay, service was good. Little details were like the origami crane in the bathroom was nice.
Arrival
Due to construction work at Vantaa, the flight had to park in an open-spot. Though refreshing to step into the -2°C air, it was a shame to have to walk down the rickety stairs and onto the transfer bus. It was especially troublesome for those with children and or bigger carry-ons.
Epilogue
Total flight time was 9 hours and 22 minutes. Time flew by.Bibliography
http://www.jal.co.jp/en/inter/service/business/seat/skysuite.html
https://www.jal.co.jp/en/jalmile/jgc/
http://www.jal.co.jp/en/inter/airport/nrt/checkin/#counterSecurity
http://www.jal.co.jp/inter/service/lounge/nrt/special/
http://www.jal.co.jp/inter/service/lounge/pdf/first/nrt_food.pdf
http://www.jal.co.jp/inter/service/lounge/pdf/first/nrt_drink.pdf
http://www.jal.co.jp/en/inter/service/business/entertainment/
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