Thai Airways London to Bangkok in Economy Class on Flight TG917 - Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner
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- Опубліковано 15 вер 2024
- I flew with Thai Airways from London Heathrow to Bangkok in Economy Class on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on the 1st of June, 2022. This was the final time I boarded a plane in over 2 years! I was searching around for holidays in the end of May, and found air fares and hotel prices to be surprisingly reasonable in Bangkok, so I quickly took a few days off at work and made the bookings.
Many people in the UK were desperate to go on holiday around that time and there were reports of chaos in airports around the UK because there were not enough staff to handle all of those travellers. My flight was late in the evening and Heathrow Airport was still quite busy. Crowd control measures have been taken at the airport, so I had to enter Terminal 2 via a specified entrance to check in.
I only had to queue for half an hour before my baggage was checked in, but then I had to join another queue to clear security. While the queue appeared to be long and intimidating, I cleared security 40 minutes later. Heathrow Terminal 2 has 2 concourses, Main Concourse A and Satellite Concourse B. Since my flight used Gate B48 which is one of the furthest, I still had to walk quite a long time before I could get there. I reached the gate as people were boarding the plane and made a sigh of relief.
I chose a window seat and was lucky to have a good view of the wing. Meals were served shortly after the plane took off into the night sky. I chose the sweet and sour pork and managed to order some green tea after the meal.
An interesting point is that the plane would normally fly over Ukraine and Russia on its way to Bangkok. However, the plane took a more southerly route via Turkey due to the current situation in those 2 countries and the flight was slightly longer than normal as a result.
I slept for nearly 6 hours and had a typical Western style breakfast consisting of an omelette with a hash brown, chicken sausage and tomato. As the plane gets closer to Bangkok, I filled in an Arrival Card provided by the cabin crew.
I landed in a bright and sunny afternoon in Bangkok. As the plane taxied to the gate, I had a glimpse of the completed Satellite Concourse of the Suvarnabhumi Airport. Little has changed since the last time I have arrived at Bangkok, it is just that I needed to show my Thailand Pass to some health officials before I could clear immigration. The Thailand Pass is used to prove to the Thai authorities that you are sufficiently vaccinated against Covid or have been tested negative by a professional shortly before your trip, and have adequate medical insurance coverage while in Thailand.
There was a long queue at immigration, but I was still able to get past it within half an hour. After I collected my baggage, I decided to buy a Tourist SIM Card straightaway. The mobile service providers Dtac, True and AIS have set up counters near Baggage Carousel 11, and you may be able to get a better deal than outside the airport. With the SIM card sorted, I entered the Arrival Hall and made my way to take the Airport Rail Link into town and properly begin my holiday.
Personally, I never book a window seat as you tend to be hemmed in for the duration of the flight. I find it better to reserve an aisle seat that allows me to get up and stretch my legs at my own leisure. Also, I don't have to keep asking someone else's permission. The only benefit of a window seat is if you want to sleep for long periods without being interrupted. However, an aisle seat situated in the middle row gives the other passengers another exit route out should you be catching Z's yourself.
Great to see you back in the airplane seat! Love the video and it made me feel a bit envious 😉. But such crowded airports… Here, Schiphol has the same issues, now facing a civil court trial for incompetence. 20% of the flights next July have to be canceled because they are understaffed. I did also noticed that your Dreamliner good use a new paintjob. That wing looked a bit tired…
Enjoy your stay and keep up the good work!
Hello! It has been a great trip. The most unpleasant part of the trip was the queue for the security check back at Heathrow. There is nothing wrong with having to queue for 30 minutes to check in if you are not a premium passenger, but taking 45 minutes to clear security is definitely not on. The problem is that when the pandemic started, many airports around UK started to furlough or layoff their airport staff. The problem is that such staff are very difficult to rehire due to the extensive background checks required. The airports certainly were unprepared for the surge of people desperate to travel again. I am lucky that my flight is quite late at night when there are fewer flights, as I heard it was way worse in the morning and the middle of the day!
Given the situation in Schiphol, I guess it is kind of good that you are not travelling anyway to be safe. Do you think things will improve by the time you are fit?
That wing looks more and more messed up the more I look at it. I wonder how many other people would comment on it?
Boarded Thai Airways from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok on Dreamliner 787-9. It was an amazing flight and their food catering is really great. It can be understood that flight nowadays are basically all full, if we can still get a row of empty seat to ourselves that's truly a blessings. Can lay down for the whole flight, 13 hours. I wonder what happen to the wing if it is paint scratch / peel off. Nice vlog by the way.
Excellent trip report. The seat was comfortable, wasn't it? 6 hours sleeping in an economy class was just awesome. Btw, the wings really needed some paint job done
One fairly recent change is that you no longer need to fill in the TM6 arrival card .
Wow ,Kylo is back ! I was hoping you would make a comeback.... good to see you in the sky again and thanks for sharing your Thai 789 journey.
I am pleased to see your comment too! This holiday has been a snap decision made at the end of the last month. I searched for a flight departing the night just before the Bank Holiday weekend, was surprised to find a DIRECT flight to Bangkok going for under £1000, add the facts that a hotel I stayed in previously had surprisingly reasonable rates and that I just need to complete a very simple extra formality to travel to Thailand, and it was a no brainer!
Wow glad to see you back I am a little surprised that the plane was aloud to take off did you see the state of that wing it looked like all the wing covering was flaking off.
So I know that Thai Airways is having a bad time at present so did you notify any of the crew who would have told the pilot how poor state his aircraft was in.
So hope you enjoyed your holiday.
No, I was too excited about my holiday to tell anyone about it. Due to the way the windows were dimmed, I only found out a couple of hours before I arrived. Hope that wing draws even more comments though! Yes, I had a very hot but enjoyable holiday, I visited all the sites I planned to visit, ate lots of good Thai food and snapped up a few bargains. The only unpleasant experience was the rush to Heathrow and the long queue to clear security. But still, it could be even worse, right?
It seems to be a common issue with the Boeing 787-8 composite wings, as many airlines have had paint flaking off as well
@@unknown69667 If you ask me, maybe many airlines have experienced budget cuts as a result of the Covid pandemic. As a result, the paintwork is one of the first things the airlines scrimp on. As long as the plane is structurally sound and can fly safely, why care about the external appearance?
@@kylohk The paint on an aircraft is not purely for cosmetic reasons , it plays an important part in protecting the structure beneath it. To see a wing like that might not be a major concern but it’s certainly not a good sign.
Thanks for the video! I’m flying back to Thailand in 32 days from London for the first time direct. Any tips on how long before I should arrive at the airport, because I can be there 6-8 hours early!
3 hours should be enough, especially since the airport is less busy late in the evening.
Great video thanks, THAT WING ! i know its only paint but to be fair the rest of the thai fleet look tired and faded,. i,m looking at booking lhr/bkk for late november with thai or eva,.the prices are £750 thai and £650 eva (approx) ive flown both before, also emirates,a380/777/747 etc but would like to try 787/9,. what did you think of it ?,. cant have been to bad to have sleapt for 6 hours !
I would say it was quite comfortable, though it was a pity that there were 3 seats rather than 2 on each side of the plane - it would have been easier to get out to stretch my legs otherwise.
The flight being direct and departing late at night were very important to me because it minimises the journey time and allows me to save a day of annual leave which would otherwise be used on the day I set off. What is the most important to you?
I’m flying to Thailand from Heathrow T2 on the September 2nd. Any chance of giving me a list of the documents I need to pass security? Thank you 🙏
Good video. I didn’t know they had resumed the evening departure again ..
Yes, I always prefer departing late at night when I book long haul flights.
Wings need repainting 😯
Better tell the airline then, in case all the other people that have commented on it have not done so!
Can I just say I never realized but that was actually my flight plz belive cuz it is really true I flew economy tg917 boeing 787
Did you happen to fly on that day as well?
Is it me or do really see parts of the paint job scrapped off the wing??
Going back to my homeland this Friday I’m excited but I’m too sure about the heat
It was so hot that it was hard to concentrate while seeing certain sights, lol.
@@kylohk lol i certainly agree but at least it Thai rain season so I hope it rains so I isn’t as warm. Wow I haven’t seen my Thai family for 3 years I’m quite exited
@@tonbug I feel your pain. I have not been in Hong Kong more than 2 years myself. At least Thailand has a much more lenient quarantine policy.
Why do you focus on the seat TV monitor for sooo long....is absolutely boring....no focus on the service, the seat configuration, the washroom, etc...
It's because I tend to be more interested in where I am at any given moment when I am on a long haul flight. Also, those 3 things you mentioned are pretty run of the mill for Economy Class, and I do not think it is worth talking about them unless something silly/crazy/outrageous happens.
Welcome to Thailand
That wing looks terrible. Wished seen this video before I'd booked with them.
When are you flying?
@@kylohk not until September
@@rob2103 Not bad. Perhaps the UK airports would have sorted themselves out a bit more by then. What do you plan to do in Thailand?
@@kylohk trying to keep the cost down so may just taxi down to pattaya for a bit and may reach koh samet or koh Chang then back to bkk
@@rob2103 Yes, Pattaya is straight down the Motorway from the airport. I have never been there myself, hope you have fun!
We don't have to wear mask in the terminal ?
Hello. You are not required to wear masks inside Heathrow Airport, but you certainly have to keep it on at Suvarnabhumi Airport!
I think the aircraft you took was B787-8
What's happen to wing ?
They have deliberately stripped off some of the paint so you may be surprised enough to comment on it.
Good afternoon, with legroom in mind, we could see how much space you had in front of your knees. Would you mind advising how tall you are please? I am 185cm and wondering if I need to book an extra legroom seat? Many thanks.
Hi, one of my neighbours was taller than you and he looked comfortable watching films during most of the flight. Of course, he was in the aisle seat so you might want to choose that if you have any doubts and would not like to pay extra for an extra legroom seat.
@@kylohk Great...thanks for getting back to me.
Hey man! My old UA-cam got shut down a while back and I’ve only just managed to find you after 10 minutes of intense searching as I’d forgotten your handle. I hope you’re well anyway!
Hi, please remind me, who would you happen to be?
@@kylohk my name was Oli and I had a picture of the northern lights
@@ozbolli Ah, now I remember! How are you doing? Getting on all right?
@@kylohk yeah man I am good thanks. How’s life?
@@ozbolli Yes, I'm fine. I have been back at work for a while after returning from Bangkok. I am missing that place already!
What's happening to the wing ?
Ask the airline, maybe they are trying to save money on paint.
787 ทุกลำเจอปัญหาเรื่องความชื่นในปีกครับ ทำให้สีลอกหมดเลย ทางโบอิ้งบอกว่าเป็นแค่ส่วนของสีเท่านั้นไม่มีผลต่อโครงสร้างครับ ตอนนี้ทะยอยทำจนหมดทุกลำแล้ว ทำที่เดียวพร้อมกันไม่ได้เพราะเครื่องไม่พอบินครับผม ua-cam.com/video/LrMVggepidk/v-deo.html&loop=0
We're there any power options available? Like I would like to charge my phone/laptop, is there a socket available?
There is a single USB port just under the TV screen, so you may charge your phone. You may also charge your laptop if it is one of the newer models with a USB-C charging port. It will be dead slow, mind you!
@@kylohk thanks for the reply, much appreciated. Are there sockets underneath the seats for actual plugs?
@@Makesyouquestion Unfortunately Economy Class seats are not equipped with power sockets on the Dreamliner planes. Power sockets are provided on their B777s though.
@@kylohk thanks a lot for the heads up 👍👍
@@Makesyouquestion Always glad to help. Are you heading to Thailand any time soon?
Hi do they need RT PCR TEST TO FLY WITH THAI AIRWAYS?
It depends on where you are travelling to. If you are flying to Thailand, you do not need to get tested if you have already received the standard number of doses of an approved Covid vaccine (2 doses for all types offered in the UK, for example). Where would you like to travel to?
Hi what time did u take off sorry if you mentioned this thanks!
The official departure time on the ticket was 9:25 pm. The plane took off a few minutes late, so I would say just after half 9.
@@kylohk thanks 👍 that's when we take off in a couple days
@@AlanFitz14 Then I hope you are well prepared for the potential chaos at the airport!
I am pretty sure that the pass is getting removed
Is that so? Where did you hear about this? Do you have a link to the news?
@@kylohk I just arrived today and no pass was needed for me
You are right. It's quite funny, I never knew the Thai government would scrap the Thailand Pass so quickly after they lowered the processing time for new applications: www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/special-reports/2338363/full-reopening-jump-starts-foreign-tourism
如果現時坐國泰可以在香港轉機？
但係國泰現時每日剩係有一班機由倫敦出發，機位真係供不應求貴到飛起。
@@kylohk 你有健康碼？有冇打算回港？
@@hongkongtastingpower6523英國冇健康碼依樣嘢，剩係得疫苗通行證。現時喺度睇實啲機票價錢，價格合理嘅話可以開始諗，同時又要睇埋啲隔離酒店有冇房。