The Bucket List: Singapore Airlines SQ322 A380R SIN – LHR Business Class

Welcome onboard Singapore Airlines flight, SQ322, from Singapore to London Heathrow. This is a line that I wish I could hear everyday, maybe I should record it and use as my ringtone. It was quite an uproar back then when SQ refresh their cabins and released the new hard products. I have also always wanted to try out the new J Class and Suites onboard their newest A380, also known as the 38R in the community. Currently as of writing they are only flying the plane to London, Zurich, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Sydney. Tokyo seems to be next as well although I can’t say for sure. I went all out to secure a business saver ticket onboard SQ322, one of the flight on the newest 380 with the new products. Super excited to try out the new business class seat after having high praises for the old ones. SQ are always known to be the benchmark for the industry. Previously, I have shared about my lounge tour in the airport. The flight depart from Gate A5. In Singapore, security is located at the gate, perhaps on the bright side you do not have to wait for super long, on the other hand you can bring liquid onboard. Thankful there was a premium line with no queue and boarding literally started once I cleared security.

There was a warm welcome onboard by the crew which was a norm although no usher was provided to the seat which is kind of a lapse and disappointing. SQ crew are always good, but a spectacular one will definitely give you a memorable flight. Stephanie and Anne working my aisle were poised and polished. Anne was the better one actually. Even on a bad day and just doing the bare minimum, they are still the best in the world and you will enjoy a pleasant flight.

Next up was definitely a process of snapping and taking lots of pictures. Sadly it is kind of dark to get good pictures. Just a slight forecast. I am not entirely happy with it. I have to say that the new 38R cabin looks extremely sleek and gorgeous. The curvature design of the seats together with the finishing. Classy at its very best without looking overly tacky like ahem, Emirates. I am not entirely pleased with this new product but I will be fair, pointing out both the good points of the seats as well as how badly designed it is.

I was seated in 12k on the right of the cabin it is in a 1-2-1 configuration. While gorgeous as it is, it does seems that the designer or the company have a little of designing myopia. I know that people use to complain that the J Class seats were too wide but this new business class is super cramp and squeezy, I guess we must have been spoiled by how wide the old J class seats are. As per the norm, they also have overhead compartments on the side of the cabin but none in the middle. I do not know why but the ceiling height of the cabin does seems to be shorter. I actually hit my head a couple of times when I am standing up in my seat area. You really got to be careful when you are seating on A and K seats. Speaking of it, even being a normal asian height, it is not tall enough for me. What about those caucasian? Now, since we are at the overhead compartment bin topic. The design of the bin also means that they are much smaller and they cannot even fit my carry on. My only choice is to leave it under my seat.

To be fair, the space below the seat does seems to be rather generous. Perhaps it is intentional such that the crew do not need to close the bins and open them more often? The seat is also tighter and they no longer need to put an additional pillow which mean now you only get one pillow. I do have to say that the new pillow is fluffy and not paper thin.

The screen is also much larger and super high quality, it is also touch screen as well. So you can control it either with the remote on the side of the seat or on the screen itself. Together with SQ award winning krisworld. It is awesome.

Then on the sides of the screen, you are able to find a compartment where you can store some little items for easy accessibility and there is also a drinks holder. The console also have some space for drinks. Towards the two side of the seat you can find some “flip out” arm rest which looks to be out of the way and definitely the style of the seat as well. The seat controls are near the console and they are not very sensitive. You kind of need a lot of pressure to activate it.

I really love the location of the outlets on the seat and there are even two of them. This is really something that I like about the new design, kudos to them. It is something so small but yet so important crucial part. There is one at the console which is super good for phone charging since you can use it while lying down or lounging, it even comes with a USB charger. While the the other one is located right under the window and next to the magazine rack.

For a new plane everything was fresh and nice but my seat was broken and literally had a hole in it! Ridiculous for a plane of less than 2 years. The wifi was also not working on the flight and the crew didn’t even inform us, major disappointment. Only upon enquiring about it were we told that the wifi is not working.

During the boarding process I had a short chat with Stephanie which was pretty funny since we were both pointing out the flaws of this plane together. It is also a tougher flight for them to work due to the galley position. Welcomed drinks and a hot towel was served. I went with a glass of silverkris sling which is so good. It has been quite a while before I had a taste of it. My jacket was also offered to be hanged. Ahem Cathay! Given that it is my first time onboard, I was snapping lots of the photo and once the crew saw me doing it they offered to help me take some as well. Such great offering. Again ahem CX.

While on ground the Stephanie came by to confirm my Book The Cook orders and surprisingly after take off drinks options were only asked once we level off. I had a glass of the burgundy white which was delicious, it was served with warm nuts.

Again SQ, decide to be different from the industry and still doesn’t provide an amenity kit in J class. Instead you can find slippers, socks and eye shades left on the seat, other amenities such as toothbrush, shaver can be found in the toilet. I went to check out the toilet and it was spacious enough with lots of amenities. Penhaligon’s products were provided. They are always well maintained when I use it

We had a super smooth take off, here comes 12 hours of delight onboard. There is always something so magical about flying. Speaking of it, I can’t even count how many time I have flew this summer. Service started with a after take off drink, when they served the drinks now, they also do not border to show the wine bottle anymore and pour at your seat, instead they will just bring out the glass from the galley. It used to be such a classy affair. Here are the menus for the flight if you are interested. But I have already did Book The Cook for my mains. For the supper I got the Grilled Chilean Sea Bass and the Grilled Angus Beef Burger for breakfast.

While I love that the table now comes out from under the console since it creates an extra top for you to place your stuff and all. It got to be the most stupid thing ever, the height of the table could not be adjusted which used to be possible and awesome. This is the most uncomfortable table, that I have used. Once again, design myopia! Supper Service begin about 1hr after departure which was super slow and it is from a cart. Crew were unspectacular as mentioned. A little uninterested actually, for example, dishes would just be placed on the table without anything being said. It started with the appetiser, Smoked Duck Breast with Pink Oyster Mushroom. I love the duck but the dressing for the salad is just way too tart for my liking.

A bread selection was also offered and you can never go wrong with SQ garlic bread. It is that good that I had 4 slices of it. Another classic famous dish of SQ is the satay but sadly that is not served on the supper service. I caught an awesome movie Hunter Killer while having dinner.

For the Main course I got the Grilled Chilean Seabass which came with clam and mussel chowder, served with ciabatta crouton. I wanted to try something really different from my usual Lobster Thermidor. Presentations certainly isn’t on point for the dish but the clam chowder sauce is really amazing and they were so sweet to remove the mussels from the shells so that it is easier to dine. I love everything of the dish, from the super moist and flaky fish to the chowder and even the accompanying vegetables.

The dessert for today was the Nanyang Coffee Mousse with Chocolate cake. It was alright.

After that the crew roll out the cheese cart which was lovely. I had a little bit of everything and my favourite was the soft brie or mancheno cheese which is so good. I love it so much and wipe that off despite being really stuffed at this moment. I had a glass of port to go with it. Meal ended with a bottle of water being given out.

Another perks of this seat is that you can recline it straight to bed mode and not like the past where you have to flip it over. I get that how it is suppose to allow the passengers to do it themself and become less taxing to the crew. But almost everyone still gets the crew to make the bed. While I didn’t managed to snag a double bed since the flight is full. I did try my parents one and it is really awesome and spacious. The best way to do it in this J Class is to lie across 2 seats and you will have the most amazing bed space. It would be super amazing if you could snag a double bed when travelling solo, but this is definitely only possible when the flight is empty. Hardly feasible on a popular route like SIN-LHR.

I decided to stay up for a little and had a glass of French red. It was not bad, but my fav still remain the burgundy white. In fact, the single bed, which you most likely have are bad and it was literally the worse bed that I ever slept on in a premium cabin. I only got about 2 to 3 hours of sleep. It was terrible. Squeezy and tight. Your legs goes to a small cubby and I keep hitting my knee against the seat in front of me. The cabin was also kept super warm. The pad was thin but I am actually alright with the hardness since I prefer harder surface actually. The width is the main fault.

I laze for a little while over some hydrating Moroccan Mint Tea before deciding to do some work just as the sun is about to rise. It is such a lovely sight. Then I ordered a double brazilian espresso which is awesome. I have to say that SQ have one of the best beverages selection onboard.

Breakfast service begin with a hot towel, roughly about 2 hours out from London. It started out with a fruit plate. Service is rather slow. I got an orange juice and another double Brazilian to kickstart the trip.

Selection of pastry was also offered. I had a Croissant but it tasted stale. The granola parfait was up next and it tasted excellent. The pear compote and orange zest tasted so good. Just wish that there were more of them.

For my main I got the Grilled Angus Beef Burger which came with portobello mushroom, onion jam, cheese and tomatoes. The burger was good, in fact spectecular considering that it was reheated and onboard an aircraft. It is juicy and satisfying as well. I love the portobello mushroom. Might be a little overcook though. No offer of drinks refill. Definitely recommend everyone to order next time as well

Right before landing after changing up I got a surprise birthday cake by the crew. Really got to say thanks to Anne for the cake and being my personal photographer. Hopefully you get to see this. Finally I got to celebrate my birthday onboard.

Fast track card provided when on approach and my Jacket was automatically returned. We had a fairly long taxi to the gate. Immigrations was smooth and we were thru in mins since Singaporeans can now use the egate which is super awesome. Baggage does do take a long time. I appreciate SQ well intention with this new seat design but overall I feel that they have sort of a design “myopia” and they focus too much on the flaws of the old seats but actually miss out on certain stuffs that are crucial and important to a good J class. It is definitely still a competitive product which direct aisle access and all. I can definitely think of worse airlines business class. It is just rather disappointing since I specifically went all out to fly it. In future, I will take the old seats instead any time!