BR226 (SIN - TPE) Plane Type: Boeing 777-36NER Registry: B-16709 Class: Economy Seat: 62A Layout: 3x3x3 Reviewer: Malcolm Lu Date: Nov 4th 2015 ​ Presenting a simple review of my inflight experience onboard EVA Air, one of Taiwan's International Carriers. Just a bit of a backstory, I am not a newcomer onboard EVA. My first flight with them was back in 1996 when I was 14 years old. That was, of course, my first solo flight and was kinda nervous. Back then, EVA still operated 747-400M Combi models and I was fortunate to have taken one for my first solo flight. The Air Crew were very nice and kindly upgraded me to premium economy, and also took extra care of me as it was my first time flying alone, and was kinda nervous. Since that time, EVA has grown and expanded, modernising their fleet with the B777-300ER, A330s and upcoming 787s. Their service is as always, attentive and warm-hearted, which truly reflects the spirit and culture of Taiwan. Now the plane that was assigned for my recent trip was B-16709, an almost 8-year-old Boeing 777-300ER. The exterior of the plane recently underwent repainting, removing the traditional Chinese characters from the billboard title logo on the hull. The interior features 38 flatbed Royal Laurel (Business Class) seats, 64 Elite (Premium Economy) Recliner Seats, and 211 Economy Recliner Seating. My assigned seat was 62A, just behind the wing of the plane. The flight was overall enjoyable, the seats were comfortable and space was adequate for an economy class ticket. The food was great, it was quite tasty and my only wish was I could get 2nd servings. I ordered the mashed potato with chicken chop and veggie sides, which is also served with bread, a salad appetiser, fruits and a chocolate cake for dessert. Drinks included Tea/ coffee and one other choice of beverage.  :) The flight attendants were well mannered, very well trained and always serving you with a warm smile and Taiwanese friendliness. Overall, the flight was smooth, relaxing and quiet. Manage to get a snooze here and there, also enjoying the amazing view of the sunset along our flight path.  A very nice touch is the boarding and landing music the airline plays, which is a soothing orchestral melody of traditional Taiwanese folk songs, adding that local Taiwanese touch to the EVA Experience. Now to the downside, as every review should have one. The seat design in comparison with other airlines is slightly older. I do know that EVA is slowly updating their interior furnishings, like in this flight, it featured the newer business class seats but the premium economy and economy seats are older, not super old, just not as new as what you see on other international airlines of the region. The IFE is another thing to note, as the screen is much smaller, non-touch screen, and under the C, D and H seats in economy class, there is the entertainment box under the seat, meaning that legroom and under-seat stowage will be restricted for passengers on that seat. This is something that will be changed slowly when the newer Economy class designs are introduced to the rest of the fleet. For the moment, it is still a good comfortable flight and will definitely fly on EVA again. Even my dad who is a regular flyer said he really prefered this Airline over his previous choices, as in his own words, it surprised him, beyond his expectations for the price he paid. And just as a point of reference, he took Royal Laurel class while we mere mortals were in economy lol. To sum it up, keep up the good work EVA, and if you readers would ever want to fly to Taiwan, might I suggest trying EVA out? Its the perfect way to experience Taiwan even before you land :) Cheers folks!

UPDATE: Oman Air No Longer Operates to Singapore. (2019) Overview: ​ Well, here is APP's first official Airline / Flight Review, featuring a short but in detail look into a relatively new and underated airline based out of Muscat; Oman Air. Oman Air was founded in 1993, based out its hub in Muscat, and flying to over 46 destinations in 27 countrys around the world. Its fleet consists of mostly Boeing 737s & A330s, with receiving their very first B787-8 recently. For most Singaporens whom travel to Kuala Lumpur, there are plenty of ways one could accomplish that, either by driving, taking a bus or flying. the SG - KL route is populated with many options of air travel. Oman Air is one option most Singaporens and Malaysians would overlook as a possible choice of air travel. Oman Air operates a flight from Muscat to Singapore via Kuala Lumpur daily giving rise to an opportunity for travellers here. Well I'm here to give my 2 cents about this possible route to take for most SG-KL travellers. First off, the pricing to fly between SG-KL on Oman Air is not expensive. Its really affordable for a full fledge airline, specially on such a short route. Our journey to KL on Saturday only cost us 107SGD per pax for a return ticket on Economy Class. Now this price is bound to change mind you, but for a weekend flight out of Singapore, that is really not expensive seeing how her budget airline competitors could charge you almost 75SGD for a return ticket on some god forsaken hour and on such a tiny cramped up plane with no service and no baggage allowance at all. Did I mention Oman Air is NOT a budget airline? Being a non budget airline comes with benefits such as 30kgs of baggage allowance on Economy class, and of course service of snacks and drinks for the short 45min flight. I feel the main selling point of travelling on Oman from SG to KL to SG is the timing of the flights. The flight WY0824 departs Singapore at 0730hrs, arrives in KLIA at around 0845hrs. Return flight on WY0823 departs KLIA at 2125hrs and reaches SG at around 2230hrs. Its perfect timing for business travellers or those looking for a day trip out of SIngapore. The baggage allowance allows one to shop and purchase items with no worries of baggage constraints on a smaller no frills airline. The larger A330 means more comfortable non cramped cabins, allowing more comfort for travellers, even though it is indeed a short flight. A Look at the Cabin: What can I say? The cabin Interior for our flight on Oman Air's Airbus A330-200/300 (we had one 200 for the outbound and 300 for the inbound flight) was better than what I had imagined. After recently flying on other big full fledge airlines (shall not name any here), I must say, I was impressed by the finishings, seat comfort, IFE and overall cleaniness of the plane. Seats on Economy class were arranged in a standard 2-4-2 configuration, with a width of 18inches and a pitch angle of 34 degrees, not too shabby for an economy class seat on a A330. Unlike other airlines in the region, the lighting system on Oman Air's flight features a mixture of LEDs and flourescent lights, a nice touch in my opinion. Seats are coloured in a mixture of cyan, green and burnt orange, representing the corporate brand colour of the airline. IFE system features a 10.6 inch touch screen and remote in economy class, with a wide selections of movies and tv programs. Now the cool part, the airline offers onboard wifi and ethernet plugs in all classes, and there are 3 pin power sockets under passenger seats (shared between 2 seats) as well as USB ports and a small coat hanger built into the seats. Even though we booked economy class seats, the flight crew were kind enough to let me take some pics in the Business class section before passengers came onboard. In Business Class, Seats are capable of fully reclining into a flat bed, with a width of 22inches and a length of 77.5inches. A nice touch to the bu​siness class seats are a small blue led light above the head board, giving off a nice low blue glow in the seat acting as a night light. Business Class seats feature a 17.5 inch touch screen personal IFE system, as well as 2 USB ports, an ethernet socket, an audio video assumption socket and power ports. Oman Air's A330 fleet is equipped with 20 Business Class seats, though in the 300 model they also carry an additional 6 first class Open Suites not featured in this review. Service: It is hard to gauge service for an Airline for a short haul flight, but from what I have seen, the crew on Oman Air are well trained, and well mannered. The flight time between SG-KL is short, hence its understandable that there is a sense of rush when serving passengers on such a short flight. The crew are well spoken as well, with no issues of miscommunications or misunderstandings between passengers and crew. To Sum it all Up: Good Flight Ambience Good Flight Experience Affordable Price 30KGs baggage allowance Convenient Timing Friendly Crew Personally, I would fly Oman to KL again, after looking over all the other options available, they seem most valuable for the affordable price you pay, or if I ever visit Muscat, they are my top choice for Airlines. Hope this short review has been helpful. Do check out Oman Air's Website for more details and flight information as well as A Plane's Portrait full gallery for more inflight photos. Cheers & Happy Flying ! #Airline #Review #Inflight #Cabin

In 1969, at North Seattle, Everett, a large commercial airline is slowly moved out of her hanger, seeing sunlight and huge masses of people for the first time. This massive undertaking by Boeing was a giant leap in technology, and it redefined the way air travel was considered by the public. Its introduction paved the way for modern day air travel en mass, creating the era of the Jumbo Jet, and allowing the airline industry to grow out of its infancy. ​ That plane, was the 747. At its peak, the 747 reigned dominance over the airline industry. It was the go to plane for any airline looking to operate on a long range widebody commercial airliner. In total, over 1500 Boeing 747s were built, with multiple variants spanning down the line from the original -100 model to the most popular -400 series. Her unique hump, upper deck and raised cockpit along the forward fuselage added to her already iconic status, making the 747 truly a recognisable symbol in human society and earning it the nickname, Queen of the Skies. 📷 At its peak, the 747 reigned dominance over the airline industry. It was the go to plane for any airline looking to operate on a long range widebody commercial airliner. In total, over 1500 Boeing 747s were built, with multiple variants spanning down the line from the original -100 model to the most popular -400 series. Her unique hump, upper deck and raised cockpit along the forward fuselage added to her already iconic status, making the 747 truly a recognisable symbol in human society and earning it the nickname, Queen of the Skies. Today, 48 years since the first 747 took to the sky, we are witnessing the end of the 747’s golden age, which began when Airlines turned to cost effective, fuel efficient airliners such as the Airbus A380 and Boeing’s own B777. Every single cent saved by these new generation of jets meant better profit margins and cheaper tickets for passengers, something which the 747 can no longer provide to her operators and passengers. 📷 Boeing did address this fading popularity by introducing the 747-8 variant. The -8 is the latest iteration of the 747 family, integrating new technologies developed for the 787 Dreamliner to make the Queen competitive again in today’s market. It was a mild success, with more orders for the freighter version of the 747 over the commercial variant. Though the 747 will continue to fly, her days as the workhorse of the airline industry is over. ​ For myself, the 747 will always have a special place in my heart. As an “avgeek”, nothing compares to the Queen in terms of grace, grandeur and beauty. As a designer, the 747 is the epitome of a well thought out design, put together with care and consideration. Why ?you might ask. Well, considering the fact that the 747 evolved from a bomber and military transport concept, it has done well for itself. The unique hump, more than an aesthetic feature was actually needed so that the cockpit could be raised higher in order for a cargo door to be installed at the nose, allowing the 747 to serve as a full fledge cargo plane as well as a dedicated passenger liner. The functions the 747 could serve is wide, which is the saving grace of this long serving aircraft. Modified versions of the aircraft was used to carry the space shuttle, ferry Presidents, serve as a large scale fire fighting aircraft, airborne military command centers and more. No other aircraft in the commercial aviation industry has seen such versatility. This makes being in the presence of the 747 such an awe inspiring moment. 📷 As a kid raised in the 80s at a time before iPads and the internet, I grew up playing with toy cars, trains and airplanes. In my collection of objects, there was a Boeing 747 toy plane that is etched in my memory. The toy was a motorized, with moving wheels, light up engines and a red beacon light on top of the planes hump, painted in Pan Am livery. I remember it was my favourite. On weekends, my parents would bring myself and my brother to the airport viewing gallery, where we would sit and watch planes land and take off. I always could identify the airline and aircraft before me, and it was a fun thing to do with my dad. But when we saw a 747 come in, that really got me excited, as it “was” my toy plane, in real life right in front of us. I did not realise at first, but as I think back to my first memories of the 747, the reason why it really caught my attention was because the aesthetics of the plane were unique, and the sheer scale of the aircraft was awesome, added to all the toys, TV appearances and memorabilia based off the plane, granted it an everlasting presence in my memory. 📷📷📷 Flying on the 747 was quite an experience as well. I had the opportunity to fly on different variants of the Queen over my lifetime, from the 747SP to the 747-400. It was the first plane i flew on with my parents back home to Taiwan, first plane i took by myself when I was 12,  first plane I sat on with an Inflight Entertainment System, it was the plane I grew up with, and made lots of memories on. I never thought I would see this day, and took the 747 for granted in thinking that it will be around for a lifetime. Alas, today, more and more 747s are retiring from commercial passenger service. What was once a common sight has now become a rarity we all chase after. Though the 747 might soon be gone, it will live on forever in our lives and memory, for we shall never forget the lasting impact the Boeing 747 has made on us all.