One of our favourite flights with Singapore Airlines is SQ11, from Los Angeles to Singapore but with a stop in Tokyo Narita. This itinerary, which includes a popular 5th freedom route across the Pacific Ocean, departs Los Angeles in the afternoon, arrives in Tokyo in the evening on the next day, and in Singapore early in the morning a day after that. While Singapore Airlines offers a non-stop option, we prefer to be able to stretch our legs during the stopover in Tokyo.
Arriving at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at LAX, we quickly checked in as we had plans to visit the United Polaris Lounge which is located in Terminal 7! It would be a pretty long walk but definitely worth the effort! But more on the Polaris Lounge in another post.
We also set aside some time to visit the Star Alliance Lounge, which is located in the Tom Bradley International Terminal itself. While less exclusive than the United Polaris Lounge, it boasts a huge floorplan and nice views of the tarmac. I’ll cover this lounge in more detail in another post too.
We reached our gate in time for boarding. The gate agent called First Class passengers forward to board first, followed by us in Business Class. SQ 11 operates the B777-300ER aircraft, which features 4 cabin classes. Specific to Business Class, rows 11-14 are located in a mini cabin behind First Class but ahead of door 2. We managed to secure the bulkhead row 15 seats, located right at the front of the larger Business Class cabin just behind door 2.
On Singapore Airlines, bulkhead seats in Business Class can actually compete with First Class seats on other airlines. Just check out the legroom in this seat! Note that this is also a bassinet row seat, meaning that passengers travelling with infants may book these seats ahead of time, before they release it to other passengers. That’s why bassinet row seats may appear to be “blocked” off on the seat map at the time of your booking.
Business Class seats onboard the B777-300ER are arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration, with everyone enjoying direct aisle access. Couples should opt for seats D/F while solo travellers can enjoy more privacy in seats A/K along the windows.
We pushed back on time, and I enjoyed a refreshing glass of apple juice while we taxied to the runway for an on-time departure.
As soon as we reached our cruising altitude after the climb out of LAX along the west coast, the cabin crew served passengers some warm nuts and my favourite mocktail, royal sparkle.
This was followed by the hanakoireki dinner service, which I had pre-selected ahead of time. I always make it a point to go for the Japanese meal on flights in and out of Japan. To start, I had some tofu, snow crab, salmon and green tea noodles.
For the main, I had grilled prime beef, simmered vegetables, jellyfish, and steamed rice with bamboo shoots and vinegar. The miso soup was also a fine accompaniment.
To round off the dinner service, we were served some mango mousse cake, a perfect finale to the meal.
The crew was efficient during the meal service, and we were barely 2 hours into the flight when our tables were cleared. I was in need for some sleep, so I flipped the seat back over and made my own bed. Singapore Airlines’ 2013 Business Class seat is still industry leading 10 years since its introduction, based just on the bed’s surface area alone.
After a few hours of uninterrupted sleep, I was a little hungry so I ordered a mid-flight snack, some udon noodle soup with prawns. A comforting bowl of goodness to say the least.
After a little more inflight entertainment on Krisworld, the cabin crew commenced the lunch service, starting with baked smoked salmon with asparagus and olive creme fraiche.
For the main, I had some ravioli with steamed vegetables, dressed with a rich umami sauce.
For dessert, I had the blackcurrant and cheese mousse cake, which was light and not too sweet.
As the sun started to set, we began our descent into Tokyo Narita. Air traffic wasn’t too congested and we touched down ahead of schedule. As we taxied to the gate, the cabin crew reminded passengers continuing on to Singapore to disembark before re-boarding again later. With over an hour to spare, we made plans to head to the ANA Lounge for some light refreshments before our next leg to Singapore.