You Trip Report

	DATE	FLIGHT NUMBER	SEAT	AIRCRAFT
16 Nov 19	UA 2006	34L	787-10
CLASS	VIEWS	LANGUAGE	AUTHOR
Economy	87609	English	jetsetpanda

Prologue:

Hello and welcome to the return leg of this weekend mileage run operated by a new 787-10.

The excitement of flying a new type of airplane is a cherished event for any avgeek and I was fortunate that UA operated this aircraft on this domestic route. I was looking forward to this trip with excitement but before doing that I had to visit some lounges.

As a *A Gold thru TK I was able to access the SK and LH lounges located in Terminal B @ EWR. There was a UA operated bus by gate C71 that takes you from the UA gates after security and deposit you inside Terminal B at the gates. However if you need to go back to Terminal C then you will need to exit the terminal, take the AirTrain and go through security at Terminal C.

Since i purchased a restrictive Basic Economy fare and I didn't pay to reserve a seat it was up to the computer system to assign me one. When I checked in for my outbound flight I was also assigned a seat for my return trip. To my surprise I was on 34L which was in Economy Plus.

I am certainly dumbfounded as to what criteria the computer uses to assign seats. To my understanding *A Golds from partners are not provided courtesy seat assignment in the Econ Plus section. That explains why I was assigned a regular middle seat on the outbound while there were a few Econ + seats available in the front. However on the return the flight was open in the back and I saw plenty of empty seats in the last couple of rows. Why was I then assigned 34L? It seems so random. Anyways I'm not complaining just wondering why.

I believe that SK only has 2 lounges in the US - EWR and ORD. The lounge receptionist was polite but not overly engaging. i had trouble scanning my boarding pass from my mobile and she helped me reposition my phone on the scanner. After that i was good to go.

Cozy atmosphere with that characteristic Scandinavian minimalist and clean aesthetics.

Catering consisted of a salad bar and soup along with breads. I saw a container for a hot dish but it was not brought out when I was there.

Salad bar.

Liquor bar

More private sitting area on the side of the lounge.

WC was small but clean.

The LH lounge was located in front of the SK one. As it is often the case with any LH lounge there are two areas within the lounge - Business and Senator.

The welcome was friendlier here and I was invited to step into the Senator side.

Not a big area but adequate for the amount of people that were there. The buffet area featured several dishes but the beer dispenser was broken judging by the sign apologizing for the inconvenience.

Buffet menu.

Crisps.

My snack.

Some plane spotting at Terminal B.

Gate during departure.

Gorgeous airplane.

Priority boarding commenced.

Friendly welcome aboard.

Passing through the Premium Plus (Premium Econ) section arranged in a 2-3-2 pattern.

Pretty neat cabin.

Economy Plus seats.

Comfortable pitch.

Reading materials.

Window in dark setting.

Seat reclining button looks different.

It's the Star Wars safety video.

Taxiing to runway.

After take off service started with drinks and a meal for those in Economy Plus. There was a choice between chicken or pasta. In addition alcoholic beverages were free for pax in these seats.

Dinner - chicken in a creamy sauce served with fresh fruit and a dessert.

WC

Galley with snacks - Biscoff cookies pretzels and Dutch caramel cookies.

About 1 hr prior to landing a round of drinks and a bar was served.

========== Newark Liberty Intl Arpt (EWR) - ==========

Security/Immigration efficiency: 9/10

Access and parking: 9/10

Services and activities: 9/10

General cleanliness: 10/10

========== SAS Lounge ==========

Staff Service: 7/10

Entertainment: 7/10

Business Center: /10

Food: 6/10

Lounge Design: 9/10

Spa and Bathroom: 8/10

Wifi: 10/10

========== Lufthansa Senator Lounge ==========

Staff Service: 9/10

Entertainment: /10

Business Center: /10

Food: 8/10

Lounge Design: 8/10

Spa and Bathroom: 0/10

Wifi: 9/10

========== United Airlines - Airline ==========

Cabine comfort: 10/10

Crew: 9/10

Entertainment: 10/10

On-time performance: 10/10

Appetizer: 0/10

Starter: 0/10

Main Meal: 7/10

Main Meal-2: 0/10

Cheese: 0/10

Desserts: 8/10

Alcohols: 0/10

Mid-flight snack: 0/10

Breakfast or light meal before arrival: 0/10

========== San Francisco Intl Arpt (SFO) - ==========

Security/Immigration efficiency: 9/10

Access and parking: 10/10

Services and activities: 9/10

General cleanliness: 10/10

Summary:

A very pleasant flight on UA especially in Economy Plus. I'm still wondering how I ended up with an Econ Plus seat on this segment while there were plenty of open seats in the back.

Crew was professional and the free meals and liquor for Econ Plus pax made the experience more enjoyable.

We arrived 20 min. earlier than expected which was a big bonus.

10 Comments

Thomas — Nov 22,2019

Thanks my dear Panda for the review. Good to see a real meal for a domestic flight ! I wonder if you would get a meal on the regular Y seat ?
You were lucky !
Reply

jetsetpanda — Nov 22,2019

Hi Thomas,

Those sitting in regular Y do not get meals unfortunately. They are offered a choice of snacks like cookeis, pretzels or BOB.

I was indeed lucky. ;)
Emile — Nov 22,2019

Lovely report Adan. Good to see the return. Still it's weird to 2 lounges where I don't think LH and SAS have both many flights out of EWR. See you soon for another delightful report.
Reply

jetsetpanda — Nov 22,2019

Hi Emile,

I don't know about LH but SK has flights to OSL, CPH and ARN out of EWR. Does that warrant a lounge? That is a good question. Probably yes.

More TR's are under way. In a few hours I'm flying AC SFO-YUL-CDG in PE. ;)
GG_007 — Nov 22,2019

Thanks for sharing this TR

"Anyways I'm not complaining just wondering why."
I am keeping my fingers crossed and I'm hoping to be as lucky as you on my UA flights

"if you need to go back to Terminal C then you will need to exit the terminal, take the AirTrain and go through security at Terminal C."
Very bad news :(

"i had trouble scanning my boarding pass from my mobile "
Always a bit unconfortable with the new technologies ;)

It's a shame you didn't go to the C gate UA Club to see the differences with the SK and LH lounges

Nice new cabin

"Dinner - chicken in a creamy sauce served with fresh fruit and a dessert."
With a lot of melted cheese !!!!

"Dutch caramel cookies."
What a treat !!!
Nothing can be better ;)

A very good UA flight

Have a good trip to Paris

See you soon
Reply

jetsetpanda — Nov 22,2019

Hello Gilbert,

"I am keeping my fingers crossed and I'm hoping to be as lucky as you on my UA flights"
- Don't forget the prayers. ;)

"Very bad news :("
- At least I had TSA Pre-check and it moved quickly.

"Always a bit unconfortable with the new technologies ;) "
- I learn quickly. ;)

"It's a shame you didn't go to the C gate UA Club to see the differences with the SK and LH lounges"
- I even heard that there is a private restaurant by UA that is accessed through invitation only. How lucky for those that are fortunate enough to enjoy these privileges.

"Judgment is not upon all occasions required, but discretion always is." Philip Stanhope

"With a lot of melted cheese !!!!"
- It was a cheesy dish. :P Too greasy I would say.

"What a treat !!!"
- Haven't you heard of Dutch treat? ;)

Thanks. See you soon on another TR
Casper — Nov 22,2019

Very nice review Adan. Thanks a lot for sharing. Nice to see an upgrade. Have you tried the PE on UA ? Cool that you were able to enjoy the overall experience.
Casper
Reply
AAFlyer — Nov 23,2019

Lovely TR Panda !
Reply
Capoune — Nov 25,2019

Hello Adan!
A really nice flight on this new aircraft. Lucky you to have his seat, ans the meal looks very good.

Thank you for sharing.
Reply
Vendredi13 — Nov 28,2019

Ouaf ! Panda:))

Beautiful blue sky ! And Yes, your 787s' picture is gorgeous.
On board, pretty nice cabin. Your plane looks really recent.
If you add the Economy+ seat, this lunch, the lottery was generous for your return^^

Thanks for sharing this very interesting report JetSet'
See you soon !

Reply