British Airways 747 London to Phoenix First Class Experience

Entering First Class Galeries Lounge in Terminal 3 at Heathrow is suitably classy and impressive leading straight into the Champagne Bar

A coffee station area gives the range of hot drinks one would expect 

Lounge areas offer a variety of seating options for individuals or small groups with easy or more upright seating

Refreshments available with a range of beers, wines and spirits 

Buffet of food available to match the time of day with a range of cold and hot options

Dining space is available with further menu of items available to request for table service or in the lounge areas.

A number of magazines and newspapers available for reading 

As well as a work zone of computers and multi-function printer

Then first to board, the cabin is literally at the very front of the plane as the pilots are on the level above and further back so First Class passengers indeed arrive at the deistination first 

to the seat...

Even a cupboard for one's coat!

Pyjamas were offered in medium or large with a toiletry bag which seemed well provisioned.

Naturally champagne was offered prior to departure and for a cabin of just of 14 it is good to see 2 or 3 members of staff offering of course the staff attention ratio to be expected in this premium cabin.

Aperitif with roasted nuts (not packet stuff at the front so lovely and warm) are served as lunch orders from a selection of 4/5 choices for starters and main are taken with wine suggestions...

As avid consumer of tech the 20-year old technology apparent in the screen has to be the most obvious flaw. I assume the core technology feeds the whole plane or else why wouldn't at least the top cabin have a quality screen; however, the slightly larger screen especially when further away from the seat is appreciated as is a USB socket for charging (power socket also available by foot stool). Without wanting to labour the point when at home one can enjoy voice activation, streaming of any content this felt a very old school way of controlling the entertainment and took away from a key part of a top of the range cabin experience for the trip.

Moving on from the unintentional irony of my photo being from a sci-fi film, it is a film that would be best appreciated on a decent screen rather than something that feels decades old. The headphones provided give good audio and noise-cancelling so as in previous Business (Club) class no need to break out one's own. 

Now to lunch, with attendant pulling out the tray and cloths very nice start...

Starter as equisite of course, in this case seared tiger prawns and scallop with umami crumble, Marie Rose sauce, avocado purée and cucumber salad...

Mains equally showed a freshly served look for a seated fillet of Aberdeen Angus beef with pearl barley arancini, cauliflower purée, root vegetables and Madeira jus...

Followed by desert and cheese options, coffees and chocolate.

When it comes time to relax (I paused the entertainment for the meal only for it to seal it's fate as sub-standard by failing to keep my place), as one would expect one is in control of the seating with a luxurious twist dial 

The foot stool is comfortable and can then become a lie flat bed or seat for a meeting, presumably for an underling!

Even the toilet has a window (with blind)! 

Other than that the addition of facecloths as an alternative to paper towels was a nice touch.

A light bite meal followed in the last hour or so before landing, started with a salad...

Followed by braised Moroccan-style lamb slider with tomato relish, baba ghanoush and slaw salad.

Then followed be fruit and coffees or teas.

Is first class worth it? The very fact you have to ask then maybe not! Like so many things in this world, the only reason to maybe do it is because you can. 

Ford (not so) Easy Fuel

This weekend I learnt two important lessons:

1. Don't run out of fuel
2. Certainly don't run out of fuel with Ford Easy Fuel

The technology behind Ford Easy Fuel adds extra layers of security behind the external fuel filler opening to inhibit forced entry and syphoning. 

Easy Fuel’s spring-loaded flap is held closed by two latches that can only be released by a standard-size fuel nozzle. When the proper nozzle is inserted into the filler neck of the system, the latches release and the nozzle pushes the spring-loaded flap to the open position. When the nozzle is removed, the flap is automatically and firmly closed by the spring.

Easy Fuel also has a patented inhibitor designed to prevent improper fuelling and syphoning consisting of a fuel nozzle detector that guides the nozzle to the opening. If a nozzle or foreign tube of a different size – a diesel nozzle or plastic hose, for example – is placed in the filler neck of a petrol-powered vehicle, the latches will not release. For a diesel-powered vehicle, the inhibitor will keep out the smaller nozzles.

All sounds good right? Yup, except if you want to fill your car from a can because then you need a handy bit of plastic I am now able to demonstrate below...

However, Ford in their infinite wisdom neglected to include one with our vehicle, I tried to borrow one from somebody but the diesel one is different to the petrol (makes sense I guess) so off down to the local dealer (Allen Ford) I went! After some "discussion" about how I should have one, had I really looked, sales would need to order one, parts order from Ford Motor Company eventually a salesman saw sense and pulled one out of his draw.

So lesson of the day for any Ford drivers out there (or anybody else with a not so easy to fuel system), check you have that crucial piece of plastic just in case you ever need it!

Sky+ iPad App Resolves Clashes

Pleasantly surprised when checking TV guide via Sky+ app (Saints match is on Sky Sports 1) from my trusty iPad this morning it noticed a clash on our connected Sky+ HD box and actually made suggestions for alternate airings...

Well done Sky on that front! 

Time for a new digital camera with a flip touch screen?

Had my Samsung ST500 for a couple of years now, been very pleased with the front display as I've travelled around with my better half we have managed to photograph ourselves at locations without the guesswork but the screen was small and not always great to see depending on lighting conditions. Excited to notice the new Samsung MV800 today which boasts a nice rotating flip-out display so now get a better picture in the "self-potrait" style shots but loads of other possibilities and interface looking a lot more sophisticated (no wonder Apple are suing Samsung for nicking their UI) so now just need to justify spending another crica £250 :-) Particularly interested in the 3D feature given I have a couple of Samsung 3D TVs at home, maybe that's the justification I was looking for!!

Free chapter of "The Way I See It"...

Having only just finished Lord Sugar's last book time to dip into the free taster of the next one... The Tiny Fork Die [iBooks Edition]   The Tiny Fork Diet [Kindle Edition]  which focuses on diets in typical Sugar style, most of the books and regimes are full of bulls**t and he can condense it all down to basic mathematics, as ever hard to argue with his down to earth thinking!

We're all mad but it's a sign of genius according to this passage.. Kindle Highlight. 

Lord Sugar - "What You See is What You Get"

Just finished reading Lord Sugar - "What You See is What You Get" - Lord Sugar is a little like Marmite I suppose, you either love him or hate him, but whichever it is his amazing rise from humble background to fast growing multi-million pounds businesses, with a venture into football, politics and then TV means he is a personality most of us have come across at some point in his career.

One certainly gets an idea of the gutsy approach which took him to his heights, and sometimes cost but the insight into the "Amstrad philosophy" which capitalises on a concept quickly and economically was fascinating as Sugar describes the colourful dealings with suppliers in the Far East. A simple businessman's perspective on becoming a PLC, dealing with big accountancy and legal firms is also very interesting.

The fall of Amstrad in the PC world, the diversion into Football and the numerous encounters with the legal system all complete a picture that many will only have picked up fragments on over the years.