Singapore Airlines B787-10 Business class review - Singapore to Bangkok
After a quick one-night stay at the InterContinental Singapore Robertson Quay, it was back to the airport for my flight to Bangkok.
Singapore Changi is one of my favourite airports. I mean, what’s not to like about this airport? There are countless restaurants, plenty of areas to sit and relax, a swimming pool on the roof, and of course, Jewel and its incredible Rain Vortex.
Whenever I’m at Singapore Changi Airport, I try to make some time to visit Jewel. This place still amazes me. It’s hard to believe you’re actually inside an airport.
With all the greenery surrounding the Rain Vortex, you almost feel as though you’re standing in a tropical rainforest — until you look up and see the airport train passing through.
Mastercard Canopy Bridge
On this visit, I decided to take some extra time and pay to walk across the Mastercard Canopy Bridge.
The bridge gives you a completely different perspective of Jewel. From high above, looking down toward the Rain Vortex and the surrounding gardens, you really get a sense of just how large and impressive the entire complex is.
Singapore Airlines Boeing 787-10
My flight to Bangkok was aboard one of Singapore Airlines’ Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners.
Route: Singapore Changi (SIN) → Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK)
Aircraft: Boeing 787-10
Registration: 9V-SCM
Scheduled departure: 4:00 PM Singapore time
Actual departure: 4:55 PM Singapore time
Scheduled arrival: 5:25 PM Bangkok time
Actual arrival: 6:51 PM Bangkok time
Singapore Airlines 787-10 Business Class
For the flight to Bangkok, I was seated in 17K, a window seat near the back of the Business Class cabin.
The 787-10 Business Class cabin has a clean, modern appearance, with each seat providing direct aisle access. Seat 17K gave me a window seat while still having easy access to the aisle.
A bottle of water was already waiting at my seat when I boarded, which is always a nice touch.
The seat itself was comfortable, although I did find it a little cramped. There was, however, plenty of legroom, and for the relatively short flight between Singapore and Bangkok, it was more than adequate.
Being in 17K also meant I had a window seat, something I always enjoy, especially when flying out of Singapore. The window gave me some great views during departure, first looking back toward Changi Airport and then across Singapore and the huge number of ships waiting offshore.
Overall, 17K was an okay window seat. Being near the back of the Business Class section wouldn’t necessarily make it my first choice on a future flight, but I certainly enjoyed having the window and the views it provided.
KrisWorld Entertainment
Singapore Airlines’ KrisWorld entertainment system is controlled using a handheld touchscreen controller.
Singapore Airlines’ KrisWorld entertainment system is controlled using a handheld touchscreen controller.
For such a short flight to Bangkok, there wasn’t a great deal of time to watch anything, but the entertainment system offered plenty of choices if you wanted to use it.
Departing Singapore
One of the advantages of having a window seat is the view, and there was plenty to see as we eventually departed Changi.
Shortly after departure, there were some great views of Singapore below, including a golf course and the large number of ships waiting offshore to enter one of the world’s busiest ports.
Business Class Menu – Singapore to Bangkok
Despite this being a relatively short flight, Singapore Airlines offered a full Business Class meal service.
For dinner, I chose the pan-roasted chicken thigh with a rich mushroom sauce. The meal started with a citrus-scented crab salad, and I also chose some of Singapore Airlines’ garlic bread to go with my meal. Dessert was a mango cream cake.
Dinner
Once we were in the air, the crew began the dinner service.
The citrus-scented crab salad made for a nice start to the meal, and the garlic bread was a welcome addition. I finished with the mango cream cake for dessert.
Overall, I enjoyed the meal, but the presentation was another small area where this flight didn’t quite feel up to the usual Singapore Airlines standard.
The pan-roasted chicken thigh was served with a rich mushroom sauce. While the meal itself was enjoyable, the presentation could definitely have been better.
As you can see in the photo, the mushroom sauce hadn’t been poured particularly carefully into the bowl. A fair amount of it was sitting up near the lip on one side rather than neatly in the bowl. It’s a relatively small detail, but in Business Class — and particularly on an airline with Singapore Airlines’ reputation — presentation is part of the overall dining experience.
usual for Singapore Airlines, they just seemed like they did not care, not very freindly at all.
Final Thoughts
Singapore Airlines is one of my favourite airlines, so I boarded this flight with fairly high expectations. Unfortunately, this particular flight didn’t live up to the Singapore Airlines experience I’ve had in the past.
The flight started with a delay of nearly an hour, which wasn’t the best beginning to what should have been a straightforward flight from Singapore to Bangkok.
More disappointing, however, was the service. Singapore Airlines is normally an airline I associate with warm, friendly and attentive cabin crews, but that wasn’t my experience on this flight. The crew just didn’t seem particularly engaged, and the service came across as indifferent rather than welcoming.
There were still things I enjoyed. The 787-10 was a comfortable aircraft for the short trip to Bangkok, I had plenty of legroom, the meal was enjoyable, and sitting in 17K gave me some excellent views as we departed Singapore.
But there were also several little things that added up. The seat felt somewhat cramped, the presentation of the main course wasn't particularly polished, and most importantly, the cabin crew lacked the warmth I normally associate with Singapore Airlines.
None of these things on their own would make this a bad flight. Taken together, however, they made the experience feel rather ordinary — and Singapore Airlines is an airline I normally expect to be anything but ordinary.
Would one disappointing flight stop me from flying Singapore Airlines again? Absolutely not. I’ve had too many excellent experiences with the airline to judge it on a single flight.
But on this particular Singapore-to-Bangkok flight, Singapore Airlines simply didn’t live up to the high standard I’ve come to expect from them.
This review reflects my personal experience of Singapore Airline flight from Singapore to Bangkok. All views and opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.
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