In view of the peak travel season, Singapore Airlines typically increases capacity on flights to New Zealand. This was the case on this flight where I managed to clinch award seats the moment the additional flight to Christchurch became available for booking online when I was scouting for seats months prior.
Check in was once again a breeze at Changi Airport Terminal 3 where there were many counters to receive Business Class passengers.
Upon receipt of my boarding pass, I proceeded to the SilverKris Lounge for some light refreshments. In preparation for Christmas, the lounge was decorated beautifully with lovely ornaments.
As I was expecting the flight to be full, I proceeded to the gate to board on time. The boarding lanes were clearly marked for those with priority to facilitate the boarding process. At around 30 minutes to the scheduled departure time, the first boarding call was made for Business Class and PPS Club members.
This flight was operated by the B777-200ER aircraft, with Business Class seats arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration. These seats were introduced to the Singapore Airlines fleet back in 2006 but are still one of the widest in the industry today. All Business Class passengers have aisle access too, making this a very competitive product.
I managed to secure seat 11D, which happens to be a bulkhead seat. Notice how much more spacious the bulkhead seats are with the amazing legroom available.
For those travelling alone, seats 11A and 11K offer more legroom as well.
The cabin crew proceeded to welcome us on board with a hot towel and welcome drink.
Let’s take a closer look at the seat. The noice cancelling headphones can be stowed conveniently right next to the seat.
The seat controls are located on the armrest, together with the attendant call button. A ‘do not disturb’ button is also available for use.
Lift the armrest to reveal the IFE control, which appears to be outdated when compared to the touch screen ones on newer aircraft. However, it still served its purpose well enough.
I had a look at the menu prior to take off, and was delighted to see that both supper and breakfast would be served for the flight. Unlike other flights that depart late at night to destinations like Japan and Australia, which end up with a sleeper service, flights to New Zealand are significantly longer that necessitates two meals to be served on board.
With time to spare, the doors were closed ahead of schedule and we were on our way.
After take off, the cabin crew served some peanuts and juice, which I had requested.
The supper service started with some smoked duck breast, with dried fig compote, mesclun salad and mustard vinaigrette.
Next up was the main course, which I had selected from the Book the Cook menu. The lobster thermidor was prepared to perfection.
For dessert, I had the Haagen Dazs cookies and cream ice cream, which was a great finale to the supper service.
Immediately after supper, I changed into something more comfortable before flipping the seat back over to reveal my fully flat bed. Once again, notice how much more space you’ll get when you select the bulkhead seats in Business Class. I managed to get hours of restful sleep for most of the flight.
At around 2 hours prior to arrival, the cabin crew commenced the breakfast service, starting with a selection of sliced fresh fruit and a croissant.
This was followed by some fruit yoghurt.
For the main course, I once again selected from the Book the Cook menu, and chose the dim sum selection, which was both flavourful and portioned nicely for breakfast.
As we approached Christchurch, the captain provided us with the latest arrival information, and as expected, we descended and touched down in near perfect weather.
Business Class passengers were the first to disembark, marking the end of yet another wonderful flight with Singapore Airlines.
