EgyptAir’s business class disappointed

On Feb. 21, 2006, a companion and I flew on EgyptAir from New York (JFK) to Cairo, Egypt, with Grand Circle Travel. We were on GCT’s “Ancient Egypt and the Nile” tour with a 5-day pretrip extension to Jordan. We upgraded to business class (which we do on long flights).

Upon check-in at JFK we were sent to the Swiss International Air Lines business-class lounge, which was the finest lounge I had experienced. It had a full buffet dinner after 4 p.m. as well as free Internet service, excellent drinks and a beautiful sitting area.

Following this positive early experience to our trip, we boarded flight No. 968, departing at 6:30 p.m., and were immediately astonished to observe the poor quality of business class. Of the 28 seats, only seven had a semi-leg support coming out from under the seat. These seven supports extended only halfway of what other airlines have in their business class. The other 21 seats had no leg supports, and we were in this section.

The seatbacks reclined approximately 30 degrees, which is about the same as economy seats on other airlines. You are probably aware that most airlines have updated their business-class sections. Seats generally recline to 140 degrees, and two airlines (Qantas and British Air) have a full 160-degree recline.

The dinner meal consisted of a fish appetizer and a main dish of more fish. I asked if there were any other choices and was told they only had fish. The overall quality of the service and food was less than what I have usually found in economy class on other airlines. I might mention that on the return flight to JFK on March 12, business class did have a second choice of a meat dish, but again the quality of the meal was far below par, I felt.

For our return flight No. 985 to JFK, departing at 9 a.m., the boarding procedure at the Cairo airport was astonishing. The mob scene at the boarding gate where everyone crowded, a last-minute security check with inadequate personnel at the final door, and no early boarding for first- or business-class passengers made it a long, uncomfortable wait at the final door.

I hope this letter will provide you with some insight as to the quality of EgyptAir’s business class.

STANLEY L. STEELE, Jr.
Stockton, CA

ITN sent a copy of the above letter to EgyptAir and received the following reply.

At first, we would like to sincerely apologize to Mr. Steele for any inconvenience caused to him as stated in his letter, and we certainly hope that we will have another opportunity to serve him again.

With regard to our Business Class seats on our B777, the seats are 26.5 inches wide and the pitch is 40 inches, with semireclining seats and footrests with comfortable legroom. In addition, we have interactive personal inflight entertainment and individual phones in the armrest with fax capability.

As for the meal service in our Business Class, we do provide a selection of meals. Usually, the choices are beef, chicken or fish. It is possible that the other choices were already selected by the time Mr. Steele was served his meal from New York to Cairo.

MARY BOUDAGHIAN, Interline/Passenger Relations Supervisor, EgyptAir, 19 West 44th St., New York, NY 10036