Trip Report by Roni Hawi

Photography by Roni Hawi and Sam Chui

Emirates music theme courtesy of Patrick S

I N T R O D U C T I O N

Marking the 61st anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, a series of activities and events were planned in Hong Kong that were sure to celebrate.

The festivities in the ultra-bustling Special Administrative Region commenced with a flag-raising ceremony amongst several thousand people at the Golden Bauhinia on October 1st 2010 at 8am. Around the same time several jet-lag zones behind at Gate 232 of Dubai International Airport, a pre-boarding announcement was made for an Emirates A380 tasked to operate its inaugural flight to Hong Kong.

Pre-departure checks complete, doors closed, and the flight crew requested pushback at Dubai, while the Police band and a school mixed voice choir played and sang the national anthem at the ceremony in Hong Kong. The festivities in Dubai commenced as the Emirates A380 made its first departure towards Chek Lap Kok, while the morning ceremony in Hong Kong was concluded with a sea parade and a fly-past by several of the SAR’s disciplined forces. In the evening, a spectacular 23-minute fireworks display at Victoria Harbour ended the official 61st Chinese National Day Celebrations, only a few hours after the Emirates A380 made its first landing in Hong Kong.

The Emirates A380 was only a nonstop terminator flight to Bangkok, however today it is a stop away from non-stop, one-stop to Hong Kong. Dancing in the dark, all the way to the very end, two of us were on board inaugurating the festivities of this special event.

Join Sam Chui and myself as we take you on a trip of spectacular madness …

WELCOME TO MY TRIP REPORT

This TR will cover the events of our inaugural Emirates A380 flight from Dubai to Hong Kong.

Note: This is a joint Trip Report between Sam Chui and myself. All pictures belong to me unless otherwise stated that they belong to Mr. Chui.



B A C K G R O U N D

On one fine weekend afternoon, I received a tweet on my phone by my favorite travel guide –The Airline Route Blog- that Emirates would inaugurate A380 services to Hong Kong on October 1st 2010.

Now we all know that the words ‘Hong’ and ‘Kong’ are music to my ears, and combined with the words ‘Emirates A380’ and ‘Inaugural Flight’ meant double or even triple the pleasure. I knew it wasn’t going to be such a big thing as the JFK inaugural however, I still felt like I wanted to be a part of this one too. Nevertheless, and with all the excitement, my printer spat out a Business Class itinerary that would take me from Dubai to Hong Kong via Bangkok on the Emirates A380 inaugural flight on October 1st.

Apparently –and I had never really paid any attention before- Emirates has been milking away its BKK-HKG 5th Freedom Route for many years now. Combined with the introduction of the A380 on a segment that can be flown by a larger catchment size of traffic, there definitely was a lot of interest by the public masses, including several A.netters as well.

However, coincidence really had its way when Sam Chui had sent me an email to inform me that business shall bring him to Abu Dhabi during the last few days in September, with a departure out of the UAE scheduled on 1st October 2010. He managed to get a ticket on Emirates however his flight back to Hong Kong was on EK380 –a 77W operating with the old Business Class recliner seats- which was then changed to EK384 while he was in Abu Dhabi.

D E P A R T U R E

We had requested for an Emirates Chauffer service to be at my apartment at 10pm on September 30. Naturally, our Emirates-branded Volvo was at my building by 9:45pm and our driver called me at exactly 10pm.
 

A mere 20 minutes later, we were dropped off at the curbside of terminal 3’s premium check-in area at Dubai international Airport. An Emirates agent had approached the car to welcome us to the airport and escort us to the Business Class check-in desks. We decided to sort out our check-in first before giving Sam the grand tour of the empty ‘KUL-like’ landside area of Terminal 3.

At the counter at 10:25am, we handed our documents to the check-in agent and informed her about our requests for an upgrade to First Class. Sam’s reservation had a request in the system for an upgrade subject to load and we did not want to travel in different classes, so we had requested the agent if it was possible I could purchase an upgrade using my Emirates / Skywards miles only if Sam’s upgrade was approved; otherwise we were both happy to remain in Business Class.

The agent made a quick phone call –I believe to the Operations Control Center- and logged the request with the manager on duty. We were advised to check on the status of this request at the gate, when things would have been clearer by then. After this, our boarding passes were printed, Sam’s suitcase was tagged to Hong Kong, and our documents handed back to us.

 

By 10:40pm, we were cleared to proceed, but before heading airside, I gave Sam the grand tour of the landside area, as surprisingly it was his first time at T3!

The terminal at this time of night was even less crowded than the last time I was at the facility when I traveled to Jo’Burg. However, this is normal as per a recent Emirates hub-report on A.net, which revealed that the late-night movement bank is not as busy as the crazy sunrise Emirates rave parade. Naturally, EK’s miniscule Dubai O&D traffic flows would even be thinner at this time of night hence, the deafening silence at the check-in area tonight.

 

Using the facilities of the UAE-Gate, immigration was a total non-issue for me, and so was the subsequent security check, which followed right after. At 11:45pm, both Sam and myself were airside.
 

Similarly at the airside terminal building, it was also quieter in comparison. There was a transit flow but it was far less overwhelming than the morning stampede. You could actually enjoy the terminal, but not for too long as the midnight arrival dumps were gradually peaking into the building.
 

Escaping the progressing crowds, we decided to seek shelter inside the Emirates Business Class lounge for some peace and quiet.

At the reception of the Business Class lounge, we thought to enquire with the agent about the status of our upgrade. We informed the friendly Indonesian agent about our scenario and upon checking with the OCC, we were advised that two seats were reserved for us at this stage, but we would have to check at the gate. I randomly requested if there was any possibility to use the First Class Lounge given that we have the possibility of this upgrade looming in the background.

“Gentlemen, it would be my pleasure to offer you the facilities of our First Class lounge, please present your boarding pass to my colleague Reem inside the lounge and she will be more than happy to assist”

Again, this reaffirms my conclusion that Emirates has some of the best ground staff out there!

 

At the lounge reception, Reem took a look at our initialed boarding passes and gladly welcomed us inside.
 

We were both hungry, but before hitting the buffet, Sam decided to book an appointment for a massage at the Timeless Spa reception.


 

At the main dining area, a waiter immediately approached our table to hand out a la carte menus and take our drink orders. A breadbasket, in addition some olives and a small late of hummus were also placed on the table. We all know my opinion on this lounge, but tonight, it was Sam’s turn to be impressed!

 

After settling into our dining spot, we both opted for the buffet and proceeded to explore the offering.

 

Both Sam and myself enjoyed the great food offering at the lounge, as everything was fresh and perfect. After dinner, we moved to a comfortable couch area adjacent to the dining room where I simply relaxed while Sam proceeded for his massage appointment.

When Sam had returned at 2am, he was beginning to feel rather sick. Not sure whether it was exhaustion or food poisoning, but his condition began to worsen a little, his face was rather pale, and his stomach pain was not going away. We informed a passing lounge agent, who immediately took action and called the paramedics.

A few minutes later the paramedics arrived with oodles of medical equipment, a foldable hospital bed on wheels, and a wheelchair; they began to interact with Sam in order to assess his situation and while doing so, the usual blood pressure and temperature testing was going on.

We were now one hour before our scheduled departure time, and I had enquired whether Sam was fit to fly or not. Apparently it was up to the doctor to decide this, but it was also Sam’s choice whether he felt like seeing the doctor or not. We all decided that a visit to the doctor was necessary and as such, Sam was placed on the wheelchair and we all proceeded out of the lounge towards the Dubai Airport Medical Clinic, located behind the Duty Free area.

Naturally, I was rather concerned and the last thing on my mind was to continue taking pictures. However, on our way to the medical clinic Sam cracked a smile and said “hey Roni, take my picture on the wheelchair!!!” All the paramedics broke into laughter when they saw me taking pictures of Sam on a wheelchair.

Along with the paramedics, we were escorted by a wonderful Emirates ground agent from Iraq, who was in constant communication with the Gate staff as we were 15 minutes away from boarding time. After dropping us off at what seemed to be the doctor’s office, she excused herself for several moments to attend to something else.

A female doctor from the Indian Subcontinent was quick to receive Sam and begin running tests to assess his condition. While this was going on, the Iraqi agent returned back to us with a big smile.

“The flight will soon begin boarding, but I think we have enough time. I’ve informed the gate and we will hold the flight for you”
“Thank you for that”
“Oh by the way, these are your new boarding passes, you’ve both been upgraded to First Class”

 

After the latest series of tests were complete, we were then wheeled into another office, where the doctor was sitting behind a desk. It was then evident that the lady that attended to us at first was his nurse. No specific reason was given for Sam’s condition however Sam believes he was just exhausted after a rather stressful period of business meetings in Abu Dhabi. I believed his words more than the doctor’s as we found him to be rather dry, and probably inexperienced.

He handed Sam a prescription and without bidding farewell, he let us proceed to Gate 232. What was more interesting was that we had to purchase the medicine ourselves from the Duty Free pharmacy; I think it would have been more appropriate if we were given a small sample of medicine for free that would last us only until we reached our destination.

At 2:45am, we had arrived at Gate 232, where the flight had already commenced boarding. There was a lot of activity going on at the gate, and for some reason the variety of different congregations felt like I was at the entrance of an all-night dance rave that was hosting thousands of club-goers. Is this a modern boarding experience of an A380 flight or am I just obsessing? Who cares, I’m about to fly First Class!


 

Proceeding towards the holding area, premium passengers have to go one level above the gate area by elevators to reach the upper deck aerobridge. It may sound a little complicated but the elevators are large enough to fit enough passengers in each load, and I believe that Dubai International Airport had correctly planned out this elevator mass-transport concept.

Looking outside, we were absolutely taken away by the fact that our aircraft for tonight’s flight was A6-EDM. As Emirates’ ultra-latest bird at the time, it was a very exciting discovery and for once our ‘I am only into classic planes’ type theories suddenly did not matter anymore. There is no feeling like riding a fresh plane, whether it’s far too commercial for our liking or not.
 

At Door 1L of the upper deck, we thanked the very helpful wheelchair attendee that escorted us to the aircraft, handed him a tip, and proceeded to board. Senior Flight Stewardess (SFS), Nathalie, took a look at our boarding passes as she welcomed us on board with great spirits.

“Mr. … Chui and Mr… .. Hawi? … is that right?”
“Yes it is”
“Excellent, welcome on board gentlemen, great to have you back”
“Thanks. We are here for the inaugural flight”
“Oh that’s wonderful! I trust you will enjoy the flight with us in First Class”
“My colleague will be escorting you to your seats”
“Thanks!”



By 3am we were on board.

 

F L I G H T
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emirates Flight Information:

SCR
/EK/01OCT
S10
01OCT
DXB
KEK384 01OCT02NOV 1234567 489388 DXBBKK0315 1740HKGHKG J
GI BRGDS

Actual Departure Time: 03:40 (Pushback)
Actual Arrival Time: 18:00 (Touchdown)

Registration: A6-EDM
Condition: 2 days old, delivered to Emirates on September 28th 2010.

Remarks: This flight stops in Bangkok
STA/ATA ex. BKK- 12:05/12:40
STD/ATD ex. BKK- 13:45/14:50

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


 

I did not really require an escort 'service' to my seat however, the crew flocked towards Sam like butterflies to ensure he was assisted all the way through the cabin to his seat. Ms. Weili -a cabin crew from China on her first A380 flight tonight- was especially pleased to be working on Sam's side of the aisle, and she very much added that 'Mandarin' personal touch to Sam's onboard experience.

The First Class cabin onboard this A380 -opulent, futuristic, private, and with a touch of class- was up to capacity tonight as each and every one of those 14 suites was occupied. Peeping behind me through the aisle, masses were marching towards the opposite end of the fuselage which only tells me that this flight was packing to the gills.


 

At my suite at 2F, a freshly laundered pillow, mattress, and blanket were placed in their usual locations, along with the other amenities such as the fully stocked mini-bar and snack basket, vanity and writing kits. All lights in the suite were fully lit and the ambience could not be more inviting as I quickly made myself comfortable on the plush leather seat; who's to say I'm not going to enjoy the next ten or so hours of this flight?


 

"Welcome on board sir, may I offer you something to drink?"
"I have orange juice, apple juice, and champagne. Or anything else perhaps?"
"I'll have a glass of orange juice please"

 

Dates and Arabic coffee were then offered -in which I declined- and then Sirirat reappeared with a very special offering that was to be the highlight of my experience on this flight.

"Mr. Hawi, would you like to book an appointment at the onboard shower and spa?"
"Definitely"
"When would you care to use it?"
"Perhaps after takeoff please?"
"Certainly, we will let you know once it is ready after takeoff"
"Thank you"



At 3:30am our Captain, Eric Trotter, made an announcement to welcome us on board and to inform us that our slight delay in pushing back was due to the baggage offloading of some missing passengers (seriously now, where do these passengers go?). However, as this was almost done, we were soon to be on our way to Bangkok and Hong Kong. He also informed us of our routing to Bangkok and that our flight time for this sector was to be 5 hours and 45 minutes.

 

The taxi to the runway was quiet and flawless, and as many have pointed out, this advantage of the A380 can also be a slight disadvantage as it gives way to hearing many unnecessary sounds. Tonight, such sounds as grunts, gasps, yawns, and phlegm-clears were quite easily heard as A6-EDM's engines uttered a quiet roar that seemed too far away to belong to this aircraft.

Arriving at the runway, we held short to give way to a blue-striped A330 that was preparing for takeoff. "OMG GARUDA!!!!" both me and Sam yelled -another unnecessary sound that was heard across the cabin- and for just a small moment as we looked at each other with surprise, we were wishing to be on board that Amsterdam-bound flight.

However, all such thoughts were re-called and forgotten at around 3:35am when our Shamu-Jet took off into the night and began the journey towards Bangkok.

 

After reaching cruising altitude, the seatbelt sign was switched off and the crew were released. There is no typical order of events in Emirates First Class and as such, everyone zoned into several different activities; some drifted off to sleep, others powered on their IFE's, some settled for a cup of coffee, while I anxiously waited for my appointment of retreat at the Spa.

 

Meanwhile, Weili had turned Sam's seat down into its fully flat position as he was exhausted and needed to sleep during the beginning of this journey.

 

"Mr. Hawi, the shower has been prepared for you"
"Thank you"
"Most welcome. I would also like to offer you the menu for the flight. We will be serving you a breakfast at anytime that you like"
"Great. Can you please wake me up for breakfast 2 hours before landing?"
"Certainly"

 

Two shower spas are located in the front side of the cabin, near the First Class social area. CSA Geraldine, from the Philippines, welcomed me to the starboard-side spa and gave me a thorough briefing on the features of this confinement.

You really have not seen it all until you've paid a visit to this unique space onboard an aircraft. The amenities and the settings are exactly like those found in a large bathroom of a five-star hotel. Lotion, shampoo, body wash, conditioner, and loofah's are aplenty and available at your disposal. Emirates-branded shave kits and toothbrush sets also available for use along with a hairdryer, an electric razor power port, and the usual barf-bags and feminine pads. The rest is just a space of heaven that only the following pictures can describe.

 

There has been a lot of debate on the 5-minute time-limit on the Emirates shower. The mechanism behind this, is that you are allowed a total of 30 minutes to spend inside the spa doing whatever you wish (and mind you, a maximum of two people per session is the rule!). Within those 30 minutes, you are allocated 5 minutes total time for running water, and you are free to switch the shower off at anytime in order to buy more time. So in reality, you could have a 30 minute shower using up to a total of 5-minutes worth of water.

Thinking you may feel cold being naked on a plane and switching off the water to have more shower time? Think again because the Emirates onboard spa features heated flooring that is guaranteed to keep you warm and snuggly. It was my first time being completely nude on an aircraft, and it felt so liberating!

I showered for 15 minutes, and used up my 5-minutes water's worth. After drying up, dressing up, and some final moments of pampering, I was out of the shower within 25 minutes feeling so relaxed and quite ready to sleep.

 

Back at my seat, turndown service has been complete, however a quick visit to the Business Class bar was necessary first before hitting the sack.

 

Passing through the dark aisles of First and Business Class, there was not an empty seat in sight, and most passengers were fast asleep. At the light at the end of the tunnel, I arrived at the mildly busy Business Class bar. Several passengers were socializing over drinks, some at the bar while others on the couch. Sharon and Nathalie were entertaining two young men who were showing off their business itinerary to Hong Kong and beyond, while the bar had a more down-to-earth atmosphere and was supervised by Mary, whom I was pleasantly surprised to discover was a Christian Arab from Egypt (we are quite rare you know!).

 

Sharon broke away from the 'I fly only Business Class each time I travel' conversations by the couch to check on things by the bar.

"Hi Mr. Hawi, nice to see you here in the lounge. How is everything so far?"
"Everything is great thank you"
"Are you a reporter for a magazine?"
"No, I am just an aviation freak!"
"Oh that's interesting, is this your first time on the A380?"
"No it's not, but my friend and I are here for the inaugural flight to Hong Kong"
"Wow! that's great. Well I hope you enjoy the flight with us today"
"Thank you! May I take a picture of you and your lovely colleague please?"

I ordered my customary Bloody Mary, and joined the casual chit-chat that was happening between two friendly Scottish fellow passengers, Mary, and the occasional third random crew. One thing is for sure -and the anti-EK's may think otherwise- is that the conversations one can have with your typically good Emirates crew are always quite real and very every-day. I think they can be quite a fun and down-to-earth bunch when on a good flight (and my experiences seem to see much more of the good than the bad of late).

 

I woke up two hours prior to arrival in Bangkok, and found Sam awake and feeling much better, and was holding two certificates.

"Hey Roni look! Sharon handed out our inaugural flight certificates while you were sleeping. Yours has your name on it! Mine doesn't because it was a last minute flight booking!"

 

While Weili had already set Sam's table up for breakfast, Sirirat was at my seat for my wakeup call.

"Good morning Mr. Hawi. Can I offer you some breakfast?"
"Yes please. I'd like to have the detox drink, bread basket, yoghurt, and the egg noodles"

Similarly, Sam had ordered the same but without the detox drink.

 

The fruit and the yoghurt were very cold, and very refreshing; just the way they are meant to be. Once we were both through with our starters, our main courses were promptly delivered.

The main course consisted of egg noodles served with a glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in a lotus leaf and a steamed shrimp dumpling. We both found the meal to be of excellent quality, and I was especially impressed with the rather flavorful rice dumpling. It was excellent!

 

At 12:10pm local time in Thailand, our captain made an announcement to inform us that we had begun our initial descent towards Suvarnabhumi International Airport and that we were expected to touchdown within 30 minutes. The seatbelt sign was then switched on, and the cabin crew continued their preparations for landing.

A hot towel service was conducted while Sharon passed around the First Class cabin to personally bid farewell to each passenger.

"Good morning gentlemen. How was everything?"
"Everything was absolutely great, thank you very much!"
"I am glad to hear that. There will be a crew change in Bangkok so I will bid farewell to you here."
"I would like to thank you for flying with us today, and we hope to see you on board again soon!"

 

At 12:40pm, A6-EDM simply 'dropped' onto the runway -something I have noticed to be common of an A380 touchdown- and gradually decelerated into a typical taxi speed before exiting towards a taxiway. For a moment I thought that the flight had come to a complete end, only to be reminded that there still was a transit stop, and a continued journey to Hong Kong ahead. In reality, it was now when this flight was to transform from a regular operation to an inaugural flight.

I had high hopes for some time spent inside Suwanapoom, but unfortunately we were requested to remain on board during the transit stop. With such hopes, my nicotine withdrawals suddenly surfaced -very heavily too- and I had to focus on holding the reigns a little until we reached Hong Kong. It all worked out well in the end.

 

TRANSIT STOP
 

As soon as most Bangkok-bound passengers had deplaned, the aircraft cleaning staff had trickled into the aircraft and were quick to begin their duty. With just over an hour's worth of turnaround time, I was curious to see how the Bangkok ground staff would manage this A380. Without any surprise -as BKK seldom disappoints- the aircraft was cleaned, blankets, headsets, and such replenished, all mini-bars re-stocked, and every other little detail that was behind the naked eye seemed to be superbly managed. Perhaps, if anything, the only nuisance would have been Sam and myself making our ways through their work for nothing but the intention to explore.


 

A new set of crew began to make their ways inside the aircraft, and each assumed their respective working positions after a brief handover from the crew that operated the flight from Dubai.

Ms. Zoleka, our motherly-lovin', ultra-charming, and extra-cheerful purser from South Africa, had made her inaugural appearance in the First Class cabin, and her very first task -even before stowing her carry-on rollaway that was trailing behind her in the aisle- was to greet her First Class customers with nothing but momma's love n care!


"Assalamu alaikom!"
"Wa alaikom al salam! I see you know enough Arabic!"
"Come on now, I live in Dubai"
"My name is Zoleka, and I will be with you for the next two hours"
"Nice to meet you! So you must be Sharon's substitute for this flight"
"Indeed, and I was asked to specifically take very good care of you two!"

 

CONTINUED SERVICE TO HONG KONG

As the crew settled in, pre-departure services began as the Hong Kong-bound premium 5th Freedom traffic made their appearances in the upper deck.


 

Apart from Sam, myself, and a honeymooning couple that joined from Dubai, the newcomers in the cabin were mostly of Thai origins that seemed to be making their ways to Hong Kong for holidays. Perhaps they even were on this flight for its inaugural-esque intentions; who knows, but at least they seemed to be enjoying their respective First Class suites.

Meanwhile, Noelle from the Philippines -striking, beautiful, humble, and very attractive- made her appearance in the aisle to welcome us on board and introduce herself.

"Good afternoon Mr. Hawi, welcome on board. My name is Noelle and I will be serving you on this sector"
"Can I offer you something to drink before takeoff?"
"May I have a glass of champagne please?"
"Certainly"

 

Perry -from African descent- was equally cheerful and professional, and also introduced herself to us as she offered a selection of newspapers.

"Gentlemen, my name is Perry, and I would like to welcome you on board"
"Along with my colleagues, I will be looking after you this afternoon. Would you care for a newspaper?"
"No. Thank you!"
"My pleasure, may I get offer you another glass of champagne?"
"Yes please"