Over the Pacific on Cathay: Domestic First on American JFK-DFW (with Conclusion and Final Thoughts)

Over the Pacific on Cathay

a.       Introduction/Preface

b.      The Club at DFW and Admiral’s Club DFW Terminal D

c.       Domestic First Class on American DFW-SFO

d.      Admiral’s Club SFO

e.      Cathay Pacific First & Business Class Lounge at SFO

f.       First Class on Cathay Pacific SFO-HKG

g.      Cathay Pacific The Cabin HKG

h.      Business Class on Dragon Air HKG-CAN

i.        China Hotel, A Marriott Hotel, Guangzhou &  Exploring Guangzhou

j.        Business Class on Dragon Air to HKG

k.      Cathay Pacific Lounges HKG

l.        Business Class on Cathay Pacific HKG-YVR

m.    Business Class on Cathay Pacific YVR-JFK

n.      American Airlines Flagship Lounge JFK 

o.      Domestic First on American JFK-DFW plus Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Domestic First on American JFK-DFW

AA 855 JFK-DFW
April 26, 2012
Boeing 737
Departure Time 4:25PM         Actual: 4:18PM
Arrival Time 7:35PM              Actual: 7:10PM
Flight Time: 4 hours 10 minutes
Seat 3A           First Class

The scheduled boarding was 3:45PM and I made my way about 3:35PM to gate 33 which was on the other side of the terminal for the domestic and Eagle flights.  By the time I got there, general boarding was called and I was issued a new boarding pass for First Class as I got an upgrade.  Pre-departure beverages of water and orange juice were offered.  The flight attendants Lynne and Shirley were mentioning that boarding started very early though.  That helped us get an early departure out of JFK and the usual long wait for landing and takeoffs is not uncommon at JFK.

  
I don’t remember much of the takeoff as I was so exhausted that I kept nodding off.  I woke up and had a (cold) moist towelette waiting for me along with some mixed nuts in a ramekin.  I had some water to drink during the flight.  For the dinner, I had the chicken that was served with broccoli and rice.  The side accompaniments were a small salad with vinaigrette dressing, dinner roll, and shrimp appetizer.  Dessert was the brownie sundae (which I skipped since I was full).

My Seatmate's Brownie Sundae

I had a nice chat during dinner with my seatmate and some of the flight attendants serving the First Class.  The rest of the flight was uneventful and the movie shown was Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows.  We even arrived on-time at DFW in the nice/hot Texas weather.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Overall, I felt that it was a great trip as I enjoyed both the outbound and inbound service on Cathay Pacific.  I was finally able to experience the famous First Class service myself and had the New Business Class configuration on the way back from Hong Kong.  I would like to try First Class on a Boeing 777 next time as there are only 6 seats (versus 9 on 747) and thus more attentive service.  The Shanghai Tang pajamas are amongst the most comfortable ones I have ever had and I love the fact that I got 2 sets.   

The only thing I felt lacking was the Dragon Air flight on my return as the service did not met my expectations nor can it compare favorably to my previous flights on the same route.  The food was not that great and during the weather delay, the flight attendants let the passengers walk over the plane as they pleased.  There should have been some type of order as everyone rushed off the plane in a stampede. 

I got a call the next morning and my checked luggage arrived at AVP (Scranton, Pennsylvania) with a United Express flight out of Newark.  The contract agent agreed to send the bag to DFW on the next flight out and it made it the following day.  I had to go after I got off of work to retrieve it since the United baggage agent refused to send it via courier service since it was not their fault the baggage did not make it and they were not sure if Cathay Pacific could be billed for it.  The best part was when a DragonAir agent called me at 1AM to see if my bag made it.   

They had no clue where the bag was located during the entire time.  Only when I told them that I got it did they clear out my claim.  I did sent a customer service letter to ask why my bag was sent to a different airport (1,600 miles from my home) and why an agent called me at 1AM local time… all I got was a form response that they will forward my letter to the JFK baggage services.

NOTE *** I did go and speak with baggage services at HKG to get it resolved in May. My compensation was 500 HKD cash on the spot for the inconvenience on their part.