T RIED AND TE ST E D FL IGHT
B EST SE A T Single seats adjacent to the windows are obviously prime real estate, though there are some that might be worth grabbing over others. Seats A or K in rows 12-15 are a good bet, being positioned away from the galley and lavatories; the front cabin is also forward of the wings, meaning your journey should be as quiet as possible. Seats to steer clear of include 10A, which
stands alone at the very front of the cabin with the galley directly beside it, and centre seats 17D and 17F at the back of the first cabin, which are also close to the galley and lavatories that separate the two sections.
THE FL IGH T With 18 hours to kill, the first thing to consider is mapping out when you’ll be awake and when to sleep. This flight departs Singapore just before midnight and arrives in New York in the very early morning, so unless you plan on sleeping the entire journey away, you’re going to have to sleep earlier and have an extra-long day when you arrive, or put it off until later in the flight and try to power through the night. I planned to do the latter and make sure I
was well rested upon my arrival in New York, so I aimed to eat, work and relax for the first eight hours, sleep for the next seven and then wake up for the final three in time for breakfast. This is easier said than done, of course. After boarding, I was offered a choice of
champagne or orange juice from SIA’s new wellness-focused culinary partner, Canyon Ranch. We took off just before midnight and had our meal orders taken at 0020. SIA allows flexibility with meal service
times. Passengers are able to select their first meal service one to three hours into the flight, and their second meal service any time from eight to 16 hours into the journey. This gives you a good degree of flexibility when it comes to choosing how you spend your time. You can also pre-select your meals before the flight using the Book the Cook option. Choices for the first meal included pan-
seared lion head snapper fillet with red wine vinaigrette; beef hor fun (flat rice noodles); croque monsieur; and steamed lobster dumplings in “superior soup”. I chose the noodles, which came about an hour later and were very tasty. That, along with the fresh fruit that accompanied it, was satiating without being excessively filling – exactly what I was looking for. A member of the cabin crew offered a selection of amenities as part of a new
bus ine s s tr a v el ler .c om
“create your own amenity kit” concept unique to this flight. Along with a dental kit, earplugs, hand cream and lip balm, passengers can also grab a fabric crease release spray, and a wash and stain bar from The Laundress. (Socks, eye mask and slippers were already provided at each seat.) A noticeable omission for such a long-
haul flight, however, was pyjamas. SIA’s policy is to only provide these for first class passengers, but one would think that on a flight where good sleep is of such importance, pyjamas would have made the cut. I’d recommend bringing your own. After eight hours I settled down for a solid
seven hours of sleep… Unfortunately, at some point around the 11th hour the cabin lights were brought back on, in order to serve the second round of meals. This left me awake with just over four hours of sleep in the bag – not quite what I’d hoped for. The lesson? Use the provided eye mask and earplugs. The second meal offered a broader
array of options of varying portion sizes, including beef cheek in red wine sauce (from Australian chef Matt Moran); braised pork with citrus (from Canyon Ranch); Famous Singapore chicken rice; braised egg noodles with seafood; parsley cheese omelette; and a selection of dim sum. I plumped for the Singapore chicken rice, which came with a selection of chicken and beef satays as an appetiser, which I highly recommend, as well as a crab salad and a selection of chocolates, cheeses, fruits and
desserts. Meals are certainly sizeable and with multiple courses the challenge really is to keep yourself from overeating. Fortunately the lights were once again
turned off a few hours prior to landing, allowing me to squeeze in a couple of extra hours’ sleep – I’d already converted my bed back to seating position, but I nestled down in the broad seat and managed fine. SIA has introduced new refreshing
beverages onto this flight to help wake passengers up; I was partial to the agave and ginger lemonade, as the heat from the ginger and zest from the lemon deliver a pleasant shock to the system.
A RRIVA L We landed at Newark airport just before 0530 local time – a great time to arrive as the queues at immigration were nonexistent and I was through in a matter of minutes. My luggage was already on the belt by the time I got there – a pleasant surprise, and not something one can say about every US airport.
VERDIC T SIA has done an admirable job in making this 18-hour journey comfortable. The food selection and flexibility with when you eat gives passengers particular control over how they wish to manage their time. Is this flight too long to do in a single
go? Ultimately, no – there were times when the journey dragged, but at no point was it unpleasant, even when I wasn’t able to stick to my original sleep schedule. Craig Bright
With 18 hours to kill, the first thing to consider is mapping out when you’ll be awake and when to sleep
67
BE ST FOR …
Efficiency of flight time and overall quality of food and crew service
P R ICE
A return business class fare in mid-February starts from S$7,344 (US$5,346)
F L IGHT TIME 18 hours 45 minutes
C ONF IGUR A TION 1-2-1
C ONT A C T
singaporeair.com
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