Ia Orana! To Tahiti Part III: AKL-PPT-LAX (w/ new Moana Economy and pics)
Jun 20, 2013 | 4:05 pm
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Ia Orana! To Tahiti Part III: AKL-PPT-LAX (w/ new Moana Economy and pics)
Hello FT! This is the last installment of my three-part trip report of Air Tahiti Nui. This report will focus on my return trip (AKL-PPT-LAX). Below are the first and second parts of the report:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...ax-ppt-tn.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...my-w-pics.html
Air Tahiti Nui flight TN 102, June 9th, 2013
Auckland International Airport (AKL) to Papeete/Faaa International Airport (PPT)
Gate 9
Seat 14G (switched to 12H)
Departure (Scheduled/Actual): 2:20pm/2:15pm
Arrival (Scheduled/Actual): 9:15pm (-1 Day)/9:01pm (-1 Day)
Aircraft Airbus A340-300 (Moorea)
It was time to say goodbye to New Zealand and take a long trip home. I arrived at AKL early (3.5 hours before) as the hotel checkout time was 10AM (a bit early considering in the US checkout is usually 12PM). When I arrived at the airport, the TN desks were not open yet so my family and I had to wait for a bit. Luckily, the desks opened 20 25 minutes later. The check-in line was not full when I went on line but soon filled up after me. The agent who handled my check-in took a longer time than the agent next to her. She seemed new to her job and was not a computer wizard (as she was older than most of the agents). She had to ask either her collogues or her supervisor for help. When check-in was almost done, she mentioned that our seats were in the rear of the aircraft. The problem was that my family and I confirmed seats in the front of the plane. I asked if the plane was full and the agent responded no. I then proceeded to ask why we didnt get our original seats and she proceeded to say that the front of the plane is reserved for families. Someone in my family stated that we are a family and she was silent and directed us to security. We decided to see if the agent at the gate could do something instead of this agent we had.
AKL airport is one of the best-designed airports. Clean, modern, and efficient. Security and immigration was quick. No complaints there. I then waited by the duty free/shopping area for a while. There was lots to buy but prices were cheaper in the US (an iPad 16GB was $130 more than the US, and this was the duty free price). After a while, I proceeded to the gate area to see if I could change my seats. I asked the agent at the gate, for which she was glad to change my seats. I also asked about a possible upgrade, just for the PPT-LAX segment. TN wanted $1,740 per person to upgrade so I decided to slum it in economy. Soon after, boarding started. I noticed that the agent that checked my family in scanned boarding passes. I made sure I did not go in her line. It was a good decision as she again, took a longer time to scan passes and asked her co-workers for help. I would be more sympathetic with her if she knew how to do her job.
Upon boarding, I was given a tiare flower with an Ia Orana, and Bonjour. Like my flight coming to AKL, I was on ea plane with the new onboard product. Todays plane was Moorea. Luckily, the plane was not full and in fact the row in front of me was empty so I upgraded myself to the full row.
Once in the air, flight attendants handed out an amenity kit, which had headphones, earplugs, and an eye mask. Since it was the same upgraded system, I knew that the choices were limited. I was actually afraid that the same movie choices were on the same flight. However, there were different, but limited choices. I watched one movie (a French movie with Diane Kruger Un Plan Parfait. This time, I read one of the digital magazines. It was easy to navagate but small to read as I kept zooming in and out to read. Like my last flight, the map feature was disabled. I dont understand why it did not work as PPT-LAX shows the moving map (though it is an older system).
After a while, meal service began, dinner. The choices were Tamarillo braised chicken served with honey-roasted pumpkin, garlic mashed potatoes, and broccoli florets or poached hoki fish filet and shrimp with Mornay sauce, parslied gourmet potato and carrot, bean, and asparagus saut. Both were swerved with a Russian salad with ham, bread, and a palova with passion fruit. I chose the fish and it was a bit on the dry side but the sauce helped. I loved the dessert (Im a sucker for anything with passion fruit).
I watched some movies and TV after meal service. Like the flight coming to AKL, FAs came around with water service rather than a full pre-arrival beverage or snack. Upon landing, FAs handed out landing cards. One FA gave me one but I proceeded to tell him that I was headed to LA not Tahiti. He seemed not to understand and still handed me a landing card. I wasnt until someone said, transit and he started tacking back some of the landing cards. Upon landing, I found an iPhone and handed it to the same FA giving out landing cards. He seemed flabbergasted and did not know what to do. (I joked how he would take a five-finger discount and take it as his own). In all, the service was not as good as the previous flights. It might have to do with the fact that the FAs had a hard time understanding non-French speaking passengers.
We landed smoothly and early. I proceeded to the transit desk, which they handed me a new boarding pass with the same seats. Then, I passed security and waited in the departures lounge. It was a weird feeling as I went back in time to Saturday night. I noticed that there were three major departures tonight: one to LAX (an earlier departure), one to LAX and continuing to CDG, (leaving 45 minutes later) and a Hawaiian Airlines flight to HNL. The departures lounge was packed but luckily I found a seat. Boarding started on time, but there was chaos. Because there was two flights to LAX, many of the passengers going to CDG were confused and thought that the flight going to just LAX was their flight. There could have been a better announcement, especially in French, to avoid this chaos. In addition, this probably was not the first time this is happened so I didnt understand why the ground staff could have organized this better.
Air Tahiti Nui flight TN 102, June 8th, 2013
Papeete/Faaa International Airport (PPT) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
Gate 60
Seat 14G
Departure (Scheduled/Actual): 11:15pm/11:10pm
Arrival (Scheduled/Actual): 10:25am (+1 Day)/10:08am (+1 Day)
Aircraft Airbus A340-300 (Nuku Hiva)
I thought that since the flight had the same flight number, we would be on the same plane the whole leg. Instead, I boarded a different plane, the same plane that took me to PPT, Nuku Hiva. I was greated with a final, Ia Orana, and Bonjour, but was not given a tiare flower. Since it was a late flight, passengers were weary and tired. Luckily, boarding was quick and we left quickly. This flight was full so no moving around.
Once in the air, FAs kept the announcements to a minimum. They handed out amenity kits, and landing cards for the US. After, meal service was done. There was only one choice, a penne mixture with cheddar cheese slices and chicken slices. It was like a deconstructed mac and cheese and it was pretty good (late night food is the best!). The penne was served with a chocolate muffin, French bread, and a yogurt. After meal service, I went to sleep until breakfast was served.
Breakfast was actually the same choices as the PPT-AKL segment. It was eggs with turkey ham, broccoli, ratatouille and potatoes or peach French toast with apple compote and passion fruit coulis. Both were served with fruit, yogurt, and a roll. Again, I chose the egg option and it was the same, decent and bit watery.
We landed in LAX earlier than expected but immigration took a long time since there were many flights landing at the same time. At immigration, I noticed that Mark Burnett, the creator of Survivor was on our flight. Maybe the next season of Survivor will be in Tahiti.
Overall, I liked TN but I am in no rush to go back to fly with them or visit Tahiti. Beaches are okay but not as large as Hawaii or Caribbean ones. Things are very expensive compared to other island nations. The service on TN is hit or miss. It started out strong but then started to dwindle down. The new TN products is nice but there needs to be a bigger selection, especially on long haul flights to CDG from PPT. I appreciated how on time TN flights are but wished flights were timed better. Catering was good too, especially the desserts. The Tahitian/Polynesian touches were nice and added a different touch to flying (tiare flower, FA's changing to traditional Polynesian uniforms, etc.).
I hoped you enjoyed my three-part report of TN and Tahiti. I welcome questions and comments. Thank you for reading!
Below are the pictures of the flight:
AKL pre-security/immigration
Cheeky and clever - "This is it folks. Time for last goodbyes"
Planes at AKL - QF 737 to SYD, my TN A340 plane to PPT, and a CX A340 to HKG
The plane at the gate
Ia Orana - New Moana Economy today!
Love the new screens, pillows, and blankets
Tiare flower for everyone!
What should we eat today?
Chicken choice
Fish choice
Cabin after meal service
Boo.
Back in PPT and headed to LAX
Late night boarding - too bad the flight was full.
Older but good economy seats
Older IFE
Late night meal service - deconstructed mac and cheese
Egg choice
French Toast choice
Hello LAX!
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...ax-ppt-tn.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...my-w-pics.html
Air Tahiti Nui flight TN 102, June 9th, 2013
Auckland International Airport (AKL) to Papeete/Faaa International Airport (PPT)
Gate 9
Seat 14G (switched to 12H)
Departure (Scheduled/Actual): 2:20pm/2:15pm
Arrival (Scheduled/Actual): 9:15pm (-1 Day)/9:01pm (-1 Day)
Aircraft Airbus A340-300 (Moorea)
It was time to say goodbye to New Zealand and take a long trip home. I arrived at AKL early (3.5 hours before) as the hotel checkout time was 10AM (a bit early considering in the US checkout is usually 12PM). When I arrived at the airport, the TN desks were not open yet so my family and I had to wait for a bit. Luckily, the desks opened 20 25 minutes later. The check-in line was not full when I went on line but soon filled up after me. The agent who handled my check-in took a longer time than the agent next to her. She seemed new to her job and was not a computer wizard (as she was older than most of the agents). She had to ask either her collogues or her supervisor for help. When check-in was almost done, she mentioned that our seats were in the rear of the aircraft. The problem was that my family and I confirmed seats in the front of the plane. I asked if the plane was full and the agent responded no. I then proceeded to ask why we didnt get our original seats and she proceeded to say that the front of the plane is reserved for families. Someone in my family stated that we are a family and she was silent and directed us to security. We decided to see if the agent at the gate could do something instead of this agent we had.
AKL airport is one of the best-designed airports. Clean, modern, and efficient. Security and immigration was quick. No complaints there. I then waited by the duty free/shopping area for a while. There was lots to buy but prices were cheaper in the US (an iPad 16GB was $130 more than the US, and this was the duty free price). After a while, I proceeded to the gate area to see if I could change my seats. I asked the agent at the gate, for which she was glad to change my seats. I also asked about a possible upgrade, just for the PPT-LAX segment. TN wanted $1,740 per person to upgrade so I decided to slum it in economy. Soon after, boarding started. I noticed that the agent that checked my family in scanned boarding passes. I made sure I did not go in her line. It was a good decision as she again, took a longer time to scan passes and asked her co-workers for help. I would be more sympathetic with her if she knew how to do her job.
Upon boarding, I was given a tiare flower with an Ia Orana, and Bonjour. Like my flight coming to AKL, I was on ea plane with the new onboard product. Todays plane was Moorea. Luckily, the plane was not full and in fact the row in front of me was empty so I upgraded myself to the full row.
Once in the air, flight attendants handed out an amenity kit, which had headphones, earplugs, and an eye mask. Since it was the same upgraded system, I knew that the choices were limited. I was actually afraid that the same movie choices were on the same flight. However, there were different, but limited choices. I watched one movie (a French movie with Diane Kruger Un Plan Parfait. This time, I read one of the digital magazines. It was easy to navagate but small to read as I kept zooming in and out to read. Like my last flight, the map feature was disabled. I dont understand why it did not work as PPT-LAX shows the moving map (though it is an older system).
After a while, meal service began, dinner. The choices were Tamarillo braised chicken served with honey-roasted pumpkin, garlic mashed potatoes, and broccoli florets or poached hoki fish filet and shrimp with Mornay sauce, parslied gourmet potato and carrot, bean, and asparagus saut. Both were swerved with a Russian salad with ham, bread, and a palova with passion fruit. I chose the fish and it was a bit on the dry side but the sauce helped. I loved the dessert (Im a sucker for anything with passion fruit).
I watched some movies and TV after meal service. Like the flight coming to AKL, FAs came around with water service rather than a full pre-arrival beverage or snack. Upon landing, FAs handed out landing cards. One FA gave me one but I proceeded to tell him that I was headed to LA not Tahiti. He seemed not to understand and still handed me a landing card. I wasnt until someone said, transit and he started tacking back some of the landing cards. Upon landing, I found an iPhone and handed it to the same FA giving out landing cards. He seemed flabbergasted and did not know what to do. (I joked how he would take a five-finger discount and take it as his own). In all, the service was not as good as the previous flights. It might have to do with the fact that the FAs had a hard time understanding non-French speaking passengers.
We landed smoothly and early. I proceeded to the transit desk, which they handed me a new boarding pass with the same seats. Then, I passed security and waited in the departures lounge. It was a weird feeling as I went back in time to Saturday night. I noticed that there were three major departures tonight: one to LAX (an earlier departure), one to LAX and continuing to CDG, (leaving 45 minutes later) and a Hawaiian Airlines flight to HNL. The departures lounge was packed but luckily I found a seat. Boarding started on time, but there was chaos. Because there was two flights to LAX, many of the passengers going to CDG were confused and thought that the flight going to just LAX was their flight. There could have been a better announcement, especially in French, to avoid this chaos. In addition, this probably was not the first time this is happened so I didnt understand why the ground staff could have organized this better.
Air Tahiti Nui flight TN 102, June 8th, 2013
Papeete/Faaa International Airport (PPT) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
Gate 60
Seat 14G
Departure (Scheduled/Actual): 11:15pm/11:10pm
Arrival (Scheduled/Actual): 10:25am (+1 Day)/10:08am (+1 Day)
Aircraft Airbus A340-300 (Nuku Hiva)
I thought that since the flight had the same flight number, we would be on the same plane the whole leg. Instead, I boarded a different plane, the same plane that took me to PPT, Nuku Hiva. I was greated with a final, Ia Orana, and Bonjour, but was not given a tiare flower. Since it was a late flight, passengers were weary and tired. Luckily, boarding was quick and we left quickly. This flight was full so no moving around.
Once in the air, FAs kept the announcements to a minimum. They handed out amenity kits, and landing cards for the US. After, meal service was done. There was only one choice, a penne mixture with cheddar cheese slices and chicken slices. It was like a deconstructed mac and cheese and it was pretty good (late night food is the best!). The penne was served with a chocolate muffin, French bread, and a yogurt. After meal service, I went to sleep until breakfast was served.
Breakfast was actually the same choices as the PPT-AKL segment. It was eggs with turkey ham, broccoli, ratatouille and potatoes or peach French toast with apple compote and passion fruit coulis. Both were served with fruit, yogurt, and a roll. Again, I chose the egg option and it was the same, decent and bit watery.
We landed in LAX earlier than expected but immigration took a long time since there were many flights landing at the same time. At immigration, I noticed that Mark Burnett, the creator of Survivor was on our flight. Maybe the next season of Survivor will be in Tahiti.
Overall, I liked TN but I am in no rush to go back to fly with them or visit Tahiti. Beaches are okay but not as large as Hawaii or Caribbean ones. Things are very expensive compared to other island nations. The service on TN is hit or miss. It started out strong but then started to dwindle down. The new TN products is nice but there needs to be a bigger selection, especially on long haul flights to CDG from PPT. I appreciated how on time TN flights are but wished flights were timed better. Catering was good too, especially the desserts. The Tahitian/Polynesian touches were nice and added a different touch to flying (tiare flower, FA's changing to traditional Polynesian uniforms, etc.).
I hoped you enjoyed my three-part report of TN and Tahiti. I welcome questions and comments. Thank you for reading!
Below are the pictures of the flight:
AKL pre-security/immigration
Cheeky and clever - "This is it folks. Time for last goodbyes"
Planes at AKL - QF 737 to SYD, my TN A340 plane to PPT, and a CX A340 to HKG
The plane at the gate
Ia Orana - New Moana Economy today!
Love the new screens, pillows, and blankets
Tiare flower for everyone!
What should we eat today?
Chicken choice
Fish choice
Cabin after meal service
Boo.
Back in PPT and headed to LAX
Late night boarding - too bad the flight was full.
Older but good economy seats
Older IFE
Late night meal service - deconstructed mac and cheese
Egg choice
French Toast choice
Hello LAX!
