The Cathay Pacific JFK – Hong Kong service is one of the carrier’s flagship routes and one on which it shows why it’s one of the world’s most popular long-haul airlines, discovers Nick Walton.

Check-in/The Lounge

After a quick check-in process at JFK’s Terminal 8, which the airline shares with fellow oneworld carriers like British Airways, I made my way through security and straight up in the elevator to the American Airlines Flagship First lounge. The new-look lounge is part of a multi-million dollar roll out the airline is doing on its Admiral’s Club and Flagship First lounges, including the addition in major hubs of its coveted Flagship First dining experience.

The lounge is a sprawling space with two distinct identities; turn right at reception and you’ll find a superbly quiet space with a simple snack bar, a viewing room, a cocktail bar and views across the apron. Turn left and pass through frosted glass doors and you’ll enter the lounge’s main space, which has a much more extensive dining offering, but naturally attracts more people. The airline’s signature cocktails are surprisingly good, as are the made-to-order snacks in the quieter space so unless you’re seeking company you might want to exit stage right.

After quite a long wait, we boarded at gate 47, with crew promising an on-time departure of 2.50 pm, which I thought might be a bit of a stretch considering we boarded at 2.47 pm. I made my way to my seat in the 40-seat 1-2-1 configured business class cabin as the crew began serving pre-departure drinks, which included water, Piper-Heidsieck NV Brut champagne, and a signature non-alcoholic mocktail, Cathay Delight, with coconut cream, kiwifruit and mint.

After the safety briefing, the captain came onto the intercom at 3.15 pm to advise a flight time of 14 hours and 55 minutes, and that the delay had been caused by a catering truck that had broken down on its way to the aircraft. The captain was confident that we would make up the time en route and, in my experience, CX rarely arrives late on long-haul flights, so I doubt anyone on this particularly full flight was perturbed.

American Airlines Flagship First lounge at JFK

The Seat

While it might not have that brand new seat feel of the A350, the Cathay Pacific 777-300ER’s Cirrus reverse herringbone business class seat, made by Zodiac Aerospace, is still a market leader and begs to be enjoyed on long-haul flights, when its many attributes can be fully appreciated. For me, the seat offers the perfect balance of ergonomics, privacy and technology. There’s an oversized tray, which is as good to work at as it is to dine on; easy-to-reach AC and USB ports, headphone jack, and intuitive seat and entertainment controls, and when in bed mode, the 21-inch-wide seat offers two meters of seclusion and a night of very comfortable sleep.

What I love about this seat the most is the storage space; there is the shoulder-level compartment, where headphones, a chic amenity kit, and a bottle of Crystal Geyser water is stored, a compartment at ankle-level for shoes, and a sizeable open compartment below the armrest that’s perfect for PJs and other little essentials. As we have noted in previous recent reviews, the bedding is now stored in zip-up bags, making it much easier to stow away before takeoff – no more sliding plastic bags of pillows and blankets.

I duck into the bathroom to change into shorts and a t-shirt before returning to plug my Bose QuietComfort 35II headphones into the jack secreted within the shoulder-level compartment, in time to receive a hot towel from the welcoming and efficient crew and by 3.40 pm we’re taking off, soaring over Long Island as we follow the East Coast north.

When it came time for sleep, the seat easily converted into a bed, and with the mattress topper, thick duvet and a soft pillow, I slept for eight hours and could have easily dozed for a few more hours. Here alone, many business travellers would find the value of business class travel, ensuring a decent rest en route and a chance to make a pre-emptive strike on jetlag. I have previously found CX cabins to often be quite warm – perhaps a simple sheet as an alternative to the standard duvet might be an option the airline could consider.

Dining

As we cruised high above Hudson Bay, about an hour into the flight, the crew began an early dinner service with warm nuts and a beverage – in my case a glass of the airline’s signature Betsy Beer 2.0, which was recently relaunched.

The menu, which is an interesting example of effective content marketing, resembled a mini-newspaper and in addition to menus for the flight, has light articles on Hong Kong fare, restaurants in key Cathay destinations, and even tips on tackling jetlag.

For this flight, the meal began with chilled pancetta, matched with lettuce greens, a zesty vinaigrette, and garlic bread. For mains we were offered a choice of prawns simmered in superior broth with vermicelli, baby Chinese cabbage, wolfberries, and steamed rice; fish ball and fish cake with ho fun noodles in soup; roasted duck confit with radicchio, French beans, mashed sweet potato and balsamic jus; roasted butternut squash, spinach and orzo salad with pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, Parmesan cheese and a citrus dressing; and a beef burger with Monterey Jack cheese, bacon, pickled onion and chunky fries.

As I’ve attested to before, although it’s not always the most beautiful looking thing in the world, the Cathay Pacific beef burger is pretty bloody good – juicy, soul-soothing and the perfect carb-crash before a decent Trans-Pacific sleep, what more could you possibly ask for? I matched my burger with a glass of De Wetshof Estate Limestone Hill Chardonnay from South Africa, making for the perfect meal in the sky.

In addition to the early dinner, a series of snacks are available throughout the flight, including roasted butternut squash, spinach and orzo salad; the fish balls and noodles; and the burger (although one was quite enough for me), while other snacks are laid out in the galley for those feeling puckish while they stretch their legs.

As we approached Hong Kong the crew offered breakfast (despite the fact we were due to land at 7 pm) and I opted for the omelette, which was served with smoked salmon, crème Fraiche, and sautéed spinach, with pastries and illy coffee on the side. Despite the time, it was a very elegant breakfast that was well proportioned – the illy coffee was especially good and needed after surfacing from a deep sleep.

Service

My only niggle on this flight would be the service levels. While today’s long-haul flights have, if anything, moved away from the necessity of constantly doting of crew that business class was once known for, with passengers willing and able to fend for themselves with self-service counters in the galley, the service levels, from what I imagine was a New York-based crew, were noticeably lower than those experienced on previous flights. While I am confident that Cathay Pacific has turned a corner and is once again driving forward with world-class service levels, the disparity between this crew – in terms of presentation, service and general mood – and the others we have encountered recently was noticeable from the moment we boarded – everything took a little longer, and was done with a little less finesse and a little more absent-mindedness. At the end of the day, CX service levels are still among the best out there, so it was certainly no hardship.

Entertainment

As we have mentioned in earlier reviews, Cathay Pacific has recently revamped its inflight entertainment and while the selection is quite eclectic, there is certainly something for everyone. With a mind to getting as much sleep as possible, I watched Murder on the Orient Express through the dinner service before retiring. The seat’s personal monitor is great for viewing a film over a meal, although I have noticed the touch-sensitivity of the screen is lagging and in the end, and ended up choosing to use the remote to navigate the selections.

Summary

Cathay Pacific remains one of my favourite long-haul airlines, for a variety of reasons, and while service must have hit a New York pothole on this JFK – HK flight, the overall CX business class product offers travellers market-leading amounts of comfort, privacy, attentiveness and convenience when jetting between the US and Asia.

Cathay Pacific New York (JFK) to Hong Kong return in business class from US$9,800 per person.

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