U
B U T . . . UNITED AIRLINES STILL DON’T GET IT
2 4 2 in Business Class on a Boeing 777-200, seated backwards looking into the lights of the galley, or down the throat of the engine for 13 1/2 hour trans Pacific service from Sydney to Los Angeles is hardly Business First. And, there is not one place to safely place my spectacles (let alone anything else like minor toiletries) while I attempt to sleep.
The controls for the lie-flat bed were easy enough for a blind man like I to see and operate, and the bed was fine. You might be ‘flying the friendly skies’ with United, but step inside the cabin and the crew is anything but. I felt bad about making them get up and come to work.
Why can’t UNITED AIRLINES management try and at least go part of the way to get their act together and get the product/service somewhere closer to the standards on the Middle Eastern and Asian carriers (and Air New Zealand on the Pacific)? This is America after all where so much inventiveness and style continue to surprise and lead the world in other industries.
The LAX SFO sector was a totally different story with the UNITED crew only to eager to please, and there was a a sense of space even in the smaller Boeing 737. (AND Postscript: The return flight to Sydney on 17 September had an excellent crew and goof food – the squeeze 2x4x2 seating is still enough to make United my last choice of airline).
Now, back to the hotel that I stayed in on my very first visit to San Francisco 40 years ago – then the brand-new Holiday Inn Financial District, and now the Hilton Financial District. Great view from the balcony of my room below.
