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stealthpilot · Member Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 2325 Location: BLR, DXB

So recent trip reports seem to have more and more pictures, I figured I would follow the trend Cool

This TR covers a 9 day trip to New Zealand with my wife (R) + 2 friends. Pretty straight forward getting there- somewhat of a weird routing coming back which I did to fly the Qantas 747-400

DXB-SYD on Qantas QF2 premium economy (380)
SYD-AKL (Auckland) on Qantas QF143 (738)

AKL-ZQN (Queenstown) on Jetstar JQ281 (320)

CHC-WLG on Air New Zealand NZ362 (737-700)
WLG-BNE (Brisbane) on Virgin Australia VA65 (738)
BNE-SIN on Qantas QF51 Business (744)
SIN-BLR on Singapore Airlines SQ502 (772)

BLR-DXB on Emirates EK567 Business (332)

Tickets to NZ were booked last minute, the easiest choices were EK or QF with 1 stop. I guess it was busy travel time (early March) because the EK non stops to SYD/MEL/BNE were quite full in my 2 day window. I could have gone thru PER/ADL but I wanted the 380 not to mention connecting to AKL was easier from the bigger cities.
2 days before I checked the EK loads to SYD-MEL. All the non stops were close to full in J or overbooked .... but 10ish seats available in Y. Unlike the 777 which could go load restrictions on these ULRs the 380 would be fine so I was confident about getting on. QF has a daily 380 from DXB - MEL/SYD. I can get J class standby tickets on QF as well but it's more expensive, and I quite like EKs 380 ULR so ideally wanted to stick to EK however QF had more open seats. I went ahead and booked 2 tickets DXB-SYD + SYD-AKL in J on QF.
The day before I called QF to get listed on the flight (extra work for cheapy standby tickets .... cant complain) and I got a PNR. Chap on the phone said loads are no problem = happy Laughing

Got to the airport. Qantas uses Terminal 3 in DXB which is only EK + now QF, went to check in everything done quick. The lady hands us the boarded passes and R notices it's economy? Hmmmmm. We tell her its a business class standby and she checks again and says its an economy listing. Yikes. The chap on the phone had made an economy listing and that was strung to the PNR. She tried to change it, called her supervisor who eventually (after 15 mins) managed to (but they couldn't change the next sector) they had only 1 J seat available otherwise all they had was premium economy. R wanted to sit with me but I overruled that idea- someone may as well be comfy on a 14 hour flight so we said she will go J and I will go Y+.

Immigration (emigration whatever ... I switch them up) was a breeze thanks to the E-Gate ..... just scan your boarding pass + egate card + fingerprint and you're thru. Security check as well is always quick in DXB. Whole thing done in a minute.

DXB-SYD QF2 premium economy (380) around 14:00? I forget but it was long.
STD = 0955
STA = 0655

First time on Qantas. J was full but there were a few Y+ open & more Y seats free.

We both boarded from the upper deck. Front part of the upper is J & Y+ behind so it wasn't a big deal for me to visit R Laughing

Flight was maybe 15 mins late + uneventful. Lunch.
The salad was just leaves + dressing. The chicken was yum and the beans were surprisingly nice. Desert was ok.

I watched Gravity + a few movies, the selection was quite good

The crew were very friendly and let me walk up to the J cabin whenever I wanted. The seats had the call another seat function so played with that- was easier than walking thru cabins. Cabin crew said I could go to the 'social area' near the front stairs whenever I wanted as well and it was great to stretch out and relax. They had a couch + TV + snacks were left out at the galley.

Breakfast was good. Small bowl of fruit + muffin was ok but the eggs/potatoes/spinach were great.

Headphones +

Premium economy seats. Seat pitch IMO was a bit little but iv never been premium economy so nothing to compare it too. It didn't seem much more than an economy seat. Legroom + seat width was nice to have that bit extra.

Sunrise with the beacon light

The mighty 380

Upper deck J class.
Overall very friendly crew and good food/IFE = very nice flight. My only complaint was with the IFE which folds into the armrest- never liked that idea because you have to stow it for TO/landing.

Got into SYD maybe 10 mins late, our flight to AKL was 4 hours later. We didn't have to go thru immigration etc just went to the transfer desk and got put on the next flight. We were surprised, we thought since it was a standby ticket they would make us clear everything + get bags + check in but they did it at the transfer desk itself and checked our bags to AKL. Great!
We told them about our economy listing on a business class ticket but the Qantas transfer desk people couldn't change it. O well .... anway no biggie.

SYD-AKL QF143 economy (738) ... 3:15 mins flight
STD = 1000
STA = 1515
Pics from SYD

The window was quite close to the wing .... nice.

Saw a lot of 330s. QF + a lot of others.

The flight was a little behind schedule, something about it being towed to a different gate. It was a remote stand, so took a quick bus ride to the aircraft.

Got the last row on the left side. Yikes, never like the bathroom seats.

77W sneaking up on a 343.

Not much to say about this flight. We were dead tired .... tried to sleep for a bit. The IFE was great, AVOD.

Their headphones sucked but it was the normal jack (thank god) so I used my own. I don't know why all airlines just don't stick to the simple headphone jack and go with fancy 2/3 pin things Confused

Food was quite yum. Salad again was just leaves but it was nice, and the fish was good I liked the sauce. R thought it was a bit too 'fishy' but I liked it. Desert was an ice cream bar.

Welcome to Auckland! Was hoping to see the black 777 .... saw the smaug one but couldn't get a nice picture.

Immigration was quick but customs was a pain. As you can imagine you cant bring anything into the country (even dirty shoes) so this process was slow. X-ray + sniffer dogs etc. We went to AVIS to pick up our car (pre booked) went to another shop to rent a GPS and left for the hotel.

JQ281 AKL-ZQN Jetstar (320) ... 1:45
STD = 0910
STA = 1055
The rental car drop was at the international terminal, dropped it off and took the free inter terminal shuttle to domestic (could have walked but it was longish)

We boarded from the front which meant no stairs.

She was parked next to us

Taxi out. I remember this view from all the pictures on airliners

A few black 320s, not as striking as the 77W but still looks good.

Smaug 777

Jetstar route map.

Everything was buy on board.

Approaching Queenstown. Amazing amazing views. Remember the video floating around about the foggy approach? I couldn't find it but I did find this = gives you an idea (youtube video copyright whoever made it)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EGYNjj7y3Q

Queenstown airport, would love to fly one day

Getting off the aircraft

There she is

I've never seen this before, a wheelchair lifter of some sort. Quite ingenius never seen something like this, generally airports have the big high lifter.

Arrivals

Airport rental car lot

Trip almost over ..... Christchurch was the last stop.
Initially the plan was to head back to DXB, but I had 4 days off and hadnt been home in a few months so .... new plan. Emirates flies from a few Aussie cities to SIN/KUL/BKK, so figured Id do that then hop across to BLR. Then I realised QF flies the 744 Brisbane-Singapore ..... couldn't pass that one up! The problem was getting to BNE in the morning from CHC, searched a few travel portals and came up with a CHC-BNE via the capital Wellington .... with an 8 hour stop overnight. This wasn't cheap + we would have to get a hotel for 6 hours ..... but to fly a Qantas 747 was worth it.
Got on expedia and bought those flights + SIN-BLR. The option was Tiger/SQ or Silk Air. Tiger timings didn't suit us, the Silk Air cost the same as SQ but left in the morning, so SQ it was. Tickets booked on my ipad, didn't work the first time (error message after I did everything) but the second time it went thru.

CHC-WLG NZ362 economy (737-700) 45 mins
STD = 2000
STA = 2045
Christchurch the city wasn't very interesting, downtown still had many empty buildings. I'm sure it will take years to recover from the 2011 earthquake.

Self check in. Boarding pass + baggage tag. Just the way it should be, why cant airlines let people put their baggage tags on it's not complicated. This was you don't have to interact with anyone, kiosk to a bag drop where an assistant just checks to make sure the tags on right, you place the bag on a weighing scale and off it goes. No lines = quick.

It was evening so got a bite to eat. Normal choices fast food + sit down. Almost everything was before security check tho, good thing we ate then. If we went thru without eating we would be hungry ..... strange for a big airport.

There was a lot of space to sit and look outside. Civilised place Laughing

Comfy chairs + places to kick your feet up were a plus.

One ugly wing Wink

They played the safety video, the famous ANZ one (with Sports Illustrated) doing the rounds online.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQDip9V49U0
Our retarded DGCA would have a heart attack and scream and cry claiming its unsafe yada yada. Rolling Eyes

For a quick flight I was very happy. The seats were nice but the legroom was amazing. I'm not sure what the config was but must have been lower the leg room was very generous. I'm almost 6' .....

Flight attendants came around with water + snack. OK it would be a stretch to call it a snack so whatever you want to call it. It was a cookie or a tiny pack of crisps.

A slightly firm touchdown in Wellington and that was the end of a short ANZ experience. Nice and efficient .... except a ratty 737 and a broken suitcase.
Picked up the luggage and called the hotel to send the shuttle (one of the reasons I picked the place was it was close by and had free pickup/drop). Got to the room around 2130 and crashed- we had to take the 0430 shuttle back to the airport.
O ya the suitcase, we only noticed once we got to our room. One of the cases was cracked- a Samsonite that too. The supposedly strong ones, you know the adds where people are jumping around and on them? It was quite a big crack, enough to get your arm in and take clothes out or something flattish. We called Air New Zealand immediately but they were no help, they said no point going back to the airport now no one will be there. They also (very politely) said it will be hard to get a refund because its hard to prove it broke on the flight. They asked if I booked travel insurance (I hadn't for this expedia booked ticket) .... hmmmm. They said the best bet is to go tomorrow morning and speak to whoevers in charge because the baggage people wont be there at 5am. The person on the phone did say if they could take it and fix it they would, and we could even pick it up in Brisbane. Well that's no help to us. Could they send it to Bangalore & give us a replacement...... problems.

The hotel staff were very helpful. I called the reception and the lady said she would leave thick black tape for us when we check out, she promised it would be good enough to temporarily fix the suitcase and she was right. When we checked out at 0425ish the tape was with the new chap at the reception ..... a few layers and the bag was good to get us to BLR.

WLG-BNE VA65 (738) 3:55 mins
STD = 0645
STA = 0740
This was booked as NZ7937 Air New Zealand codeshare .... but it was Virgin Australia (they have a tie up). Because It was an ANZ codeshare it included meal + IFE which I was unaware of.

Wellington airport is smallish, had to have these. As my tittle suggests this is Middle Earth.

I Didnt see any scared kids Laughing

Coming back to the flight, it was great. Unexpected extras maybe but it was great. R and I had eaten breakfast at the terminal (unfortunately as it turned out).... the gate area was small and crowded.

Onboard. They had tablets to rent for $15 New Zealand dollars if I remember correctly. However we got them complimentary because it was a ANZ booking. It was very impressing, everything was on wifi even my movie was streamed. I could connect my iphone to their wifi network and see the aircraft moving map on the phone but that's about it. Was still pretty neat. When you're watching a movie on the tablet and the crew make a PA it automatically pauses for the PA and resumes after. Pretty smart.
I used my own headphones tho ....

You could get the same thing on your phone.

I thought the food would be buy on board, and it was. But again not for us (this Air New Zealand booking/codeshare thing). Well we had just eaten and I was kicking myself- I love airplane food! It looked nice as well omletty thing. Anyway we were stuffed so just took the tray with fruit and a muffin + juice.

Landing into Brisbane. Overall a great flight, im not sure if I paid extra for the tablet/food or if it was included or what. The movie/tv show selection was nice and good quality + seamless streaming. Quick for an onboard wifi.

BNE-SIN QF51 in business (744) around 7:35
STD = 1030
STA = 1605
The main event

As I mentioned earlier this flight wasn't originally planned. After we decided to stop by BLR this option came up. I'm glad it did. I'm not a fan of flying on a 747 they are generally old and not as comfortable/quiet. It's way better looking than a 380, but id fly on a 380 any day of the week.
A Qantas 747s tho ... I had to do it once. When I was small I loved the 747-438 and the -ER. It was iconic. too bad they removed Wunala dreaming.

After the VA flight we had to clear immigration/customs/get our bag and recheck in. This QF flight was on a standby ticket but the loads were very light. When I called to make the listing I didn't make the same mistake twice, i reminded the person it was a business class standby and he said business class loads (the whole flight in fact) is quite empty so no problem getting a seat.
immigration at BNE was a pain, super slow they only had 5 counters open or something. Took almost an hour. Bags were obviously there already and up we went to the departure area. Checked in and had a quick conversation with the agent about QF who had just announced 5000 job cuts. Tough times for the airline .....

I liked the terminal, airy/spacious + lots of chairs/couches/few plants.

There she is

Never seen this before, interesting idea. You can sms a number and have your byebye message up on a billboard

Like most airports anyone can enter the terminal .... be with family/friends when they check in .... have a bite to eat. There were escalators going downstairs to security/immigration that was passengers only (obviously) .... but visitors could stay here and wave/watch as the pax boarded the flight. Such a simple thing to do ..... too bad India makes retarded excuses like security + too many visitors etc Rolling Eyes

Big glass windows = great view! Excitement grows.

Parked to our left .... another good looking

to our right .... good looking aircraft with a not so good looking livery

Boarded from the front door and we had row 1 .... front row by the nose.

The main J cabin was 2-3-2 ...... but the forward section was narrower so more space. I couldn't really tell from my seat but im sure the chaps sitting behind liked the space.

Not a very long taxi .... and we were on time.
Coat hanger in front

Drink service + mattress. They had a nice selection of movies the same as the 380 on the way in. Screen was a good size but again- armrest screens! Aaahhhhhhh. Im not a fan, I like sitting down and starting a movie right away. That way by the time we get to cruise im halfway thru. With this one not only do you pull it out after TO, you have to stow it when they secure the cabin for landing ... so no camera view and the last 20 mins of the flight you're twiddling your thumbs. I know i know first world problems Wink

Menu. I had the Vietnamese beef salad + fish tortillas and R had the carrot/thyme soup + chicken red curry.

My starter was nice, not too tangy. Bread was good and salad was just leaves .... again ....

My main didnt look like much but it was good

Desert. A bit too sweet.

Lavs were at the back, here's the mid J cabin at 2-3-2. The 380 had 2-2-2 but their upper deck is narrower, the seats are exactly the same. All QFs 747 have been refurbished and now have 380 seats apparently.

The seat was nice, as good as 180' flat if not there. My only problem was the IFE screen tucked away for TO/landing and the privacy screen was tiny.headphone jack behind your head not on the armrest which I like.

Didn't use the massage function, to play around maybe but don't really use them on flights.

Another view of the closet in the nose.

Snack before arrival. A pumpkin something wasn't very nice too fried and bready. The chicken tortilla (or whatever) was just like my lunch but with chicken- I was happy with it tho.

A better view of the empty cabin

It was a great flight, mostly because I got to fly a QF747. As I mentioned before no great love to fly the aircraft again, the product is upgraded to the 380 but I wont go out of my way like I did. The crew were good, always friendly. The 380 flight from DXB I had the best experience but all 3 QF flights I had were good, good IFE good food good crew.
Docked maybe 10 mins late around 1615, customs and bags was quick as usual in SIN.

SIN-BLR SQ502 in economy (772) 4:20
STD = 2005
STA = 2155
The BLR flight was in less than 4 hours, so no time to do anything. Friends of ours came to the terminal and after we checked in just sat at a coffee place. Would have loved to catch up with a few SIN members but it was a late plan + no time .... there's always next time. at 19:10 we headed thru and a 10 mins walk to the gate the flight was almost boarded.
Nothing much to report, ill just add a few pics. The flight wasn't full.
Not many people dislike SIN

Oldish IFE

Dinner was good tho, butter chicken. The same one Nimish is used to I guess Wink

I couldn't see an Indian FA in economy, maybe in front. SQ generally has one on their Indian flights.

My first time in the new BLR international terminal. Nice, I like the space + greenery. Still has a mid size airport feel but it's good enough for the next 2-3 years.

BLR-DXB EK567 in economy (332) 4:10
STD = 1930
STA = 2210
The original plan was to leave on Sunday, but it's never a good idea to try a standby ticket too/from India on fri/sat/sun so luckily I could push it to Monday. The early morning flight was overbooked, morning was ok and the evening one was no problem. Booked ourselves on the evening flight which would get into DXB around 2200.
As you can tell im rushing this ....

Terminal extension area.

Bar which overlooks the apron.

Standard EK regional flight ..... the 330 cabins are old they need to go!

EK does the Indian menus in hindi/regional language apart from English/Arabic.

Doesn't look the most appetising, it was OK.

Thanks for reading!

Few pics from NZ
Auckland

From the Sky Tower

Mount Eden ... crater

Hells Gate geothermal park in Rotorua

(Lake) Taupo

Got excited .... until I realised it was a McDonalds

Skydive Taupo
I thought it was fun but I was a tiny bit disappointed. I prefer bungy jumping

Hobbiton, near Hamilton. Sets where they shot bits of the movie.

Queenstown. .... one of the nicest cities!

Stupid ducks liked hamburger

Milford Sound

More Queenstown

Random trail/scenic area

Zip-lining .... ok to do once but .... wont really do it again.

Bungee ..... the ledge

Nevis

R taking the plunge

Road obstacles = bald sheep

Fox glacier

NZ = green and blue.

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eP007

me111993 · Member Joined: 04 Sep 2009 Posts: 3225 Location: MAA/AMD

Terrific Terrific TR Nikhil!

Stunning pics and so exotic!

The couch on the QF 380 looks so inviting!

Interiors of OFs 737 and 744s look so good!

All your NZ ramp shots look awesome. That place is heaven! and very few 320s are as photogenic as the ones Jet Star has.

QF 744ER is a nice plane to have logged. Very Happy

Thanks a ton for sharing !
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Causal Determinism : We are hardwired to need answers. The Caveman who heard a rustle in the bushes and checked out to see what it was, lived longer than the guy, who assumed it was just a breeze.

- Greg House

Karan69 · Member Joined: 22 Dec 2006 Posts: 1334

Stunning Stunning TR Nikhil.

Loved each and every of the pics

I feel happy when people go out of the way to fly an aircraft, makes me feel a bit more saner Very Happy

Your photos of the NZ landscape make me feel like visiting the country

Some amazing tarmac ,airport and ramp shots as well

Just a slight correction, ANZ does not have 737-700s what you flew was a 737-300

You had some great variety in this Trip

380/738/320/733/320/744/77E/332

Karan

Optimus.Prime · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2014 4:58 pm Post subject:

Stealthpilot,

God above - That was beautiful. I always wanted to go to Hobbiton.
The manatee looks surprisingly inviting and so does the JetStar-Virgin combo. Ill definitely buzz you before i plan my NZ sojourn!

P.S: Seems like you my friend have mastered the art of ZED booking.
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Why can't Donuts be square?

sri_bom · Member Joined: 22 Dec 2006 Posts: 2365 Location: Singapore

Great report and excellent sharp pictures really loved each one of them.

Thanks for taking time to post this report.

Sri_Bom

PAL@YWG · Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2014 1:25 am Post subject:

Another excellent TR, stealthpilot! Get to see a lot of distant places thru your TRs.

- Ticket booking part was interesting. Have a few friends in airline industry so I get to know how "stand-by" tickets work!
- R sitting in J and N in Y+ Surprised

That too for 14 hours ...Hmmm
-QF 388 Lounge seat is so inviting!
- Loved every bit about NZ. Definitely a must visit but too far from where I live. One day for sure...
- BNE terminal is very impressive

stealthpilot · Member Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 2325 Location: BLR, DXB

Thanks guys!

Rish - The Jetstar 320 is good looking!

Spiderguy252 · Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2014 11:13 am Post subject:

Crisp report, stealthpilot.

NZ seems like a fantastic place.
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Yeah.

jbalonso777 · Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2014 6:53 pm Post subject:

Brilliant TR from you as usual (Capt. Razz

) Nikh!

Those Hobbit things in Wellington Airport surely has invited babies screaming as they see the props, since I'll be honest: they are creepy!
Nice to see ANZ be quite innovative in terms of..well..everything of course! Yeah, that is a 737-300, I could tell from the silver lining of the engine cowling. Not there on the 737NGs.
Wonderful pictures as well, great that you could fulfill your wish of being on a Qantas 747, taking a detour for that, just like I did for the B787, signs of a true HahstagAvgeek.

Looking forward to more from you!

Regards
Jish

Nimish · Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2014 11:46 pm Post subject:

Lovely TR Nikhil - thanks for posting. Glad that R & you had a comfortable flight, and though QF had you in separate cabins, you were still able to hop across or meet up in the lounge as needed.

NZ is gorgeous - but so very isolated/ insular. Did you get that feeling as well?
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We miss you Nalini!

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

On AI's longest non-stop out of DEL, with a offline copy each of some 25 TRs I had to catch up on, on AI.net. AI 127 DEL-ORD.
Good leg room, great food, good service.
What more could I ask for? I also ask for forgiveness, for having read it this late, and replying after such a long time.
Superb trip report, Sir! It started with the lovely catchy title. With you, once can expect great routings, nice pictures, and of course, unusually nice holiday ideas! One of the best parts I like about your TRs is the planning part. The reader can feel the rush of adrenaline: with limited choices, slap-dash trips to be back in the front office on time, and your wife sharing your love for quick get-aways. She is also lucky to have you sacrifice your J seat for her. Woud I do the same? I need to check my LIC policy. The food parts had me salivating, as usual, and even though I was not at home, I had AI's galley snacks to dig into, even when the meal service was not on. Thank you for ensuring that I over-fed myself, as usual.
Aircraft pictures: both on the ground, as well as inside eminently desirable planes, in the sky. Great on-location pictures: Rotorua (so many picture postcard photos!), scary Middle Earth airport, even scarier sight of a couple leaping out of a plane (thankfully, safely)...wow! I will cherish this TR for a long time to come.
Thank you for sharing this with us!
Cheers, Sumantra.