Shanghai Trip – American Shanghai to Dallas

Shanghai American Shanghai Dallas –

I returned to Shanghai for my second visit and have put together the following trip report:

• Shanghai Trip Report – Intro
• Shanghai Trip Report – Minneapolis to Dallas
• Shanghai Trip Report – Admiral’s Club at DFW – D
• Shanghai Trip Report – Dallas to Shanghai
• Shanghai Trip Report – Grand Hyatt Shanghai
• Shanghai Trip Report – Sightseeing in Shanghai
• Shanghai Trip Report – VIP Lounge Shanghai
• Shanghai Trip Report – Air China First Class Lounge
• Shanghai Trip Report – Shanghai to Dallas
• Shanghai Trip Report – Hyatt Regency DFW Airport
• Shanghai Trip Report – Admiral’s Club DFW C
• Shanghai Trip Report – Dallas to Minneapolis

Shanghai Trip – American Shanghai to Dallas

Date: April 17, 2016

Flight: American 128

From: Shanghai – PVG

To: Dallas Fort Worth – DFW

Aircraft: B787

Seat: 2A

About 24 hours before the scheduled departure time to Dallas, I received notice that the flight was upgraded and that I was assigned seat 2A.

I took a taxi to the MagLev station and then bought a ticket for 40 RMB for the MagLev to the airport.

The MagLev train took about 13 minutes to get from the station to the airport. The train traveled via a magnetic field and exceeded 300 KM per hour.

Upon arrival at the airport, I proceeded to Terminal 2 and located the American Airlines check in area.

When I arrived there were zero other guests waiting in line. I approached the counter and a colleague invited me to the desk. After the colleague greeted me I requested to check in. The colleague asked for my passport. I provided it and he thanked me. The colleague asked where I was traveling to. I said that I was traveling to Dallas Fort Worth. The colleague thanked me and he asked if I had any bags to check. I declined and he issued the ticket as well as an invitation to the Air China First Class Lounge. The colleague wished me a good flight.

I proceeded to the immigration area. There was a line of about 20 other passengers when I arrived. After waiting for about 10 minutes, I reached the front of the line and proceeded to the immigration agent.

Once I cleared immigration. I joined another line of about 20 guests for security.

It took about 15 minutes to clear security.

Once I cleared security I entered the terminal. I visited two lounges before making my way to the gate at boarding time.

When I arrived at the gate passengers were already lining up in groups. I located the premium line and joined a line of about 10 other passengers.

After a few minutes I reached a gate agent who scanned my boarding pass and took one side of it before returning the stub to me. The colleague asked me to enter the boarding area.

I proceeded to the jetway and I was required to go through a secondary screening. The security officer greeted me and quickly searched through my backpack before inviting me onto the plane.

Once I reached the front door to the plane, a flight attendant welcomed me. The flight attendant looked at my boarding pass and he provided directions to my seat.

I was assigned seat 2A, a lie flat business class seat that was rear facing.

Once I took a seat, a colleague greeted me in a friendly tone and welcomed me on board. The colleague offered a glass of Champagne water or orange juice. I requested Champagne. The flight attended provided the glass and asked me to enjoy.

The seat featured a chair with multiple recline settings, high definition touch screen video monitor, remote control and storage areas.

The seat featured two AC outlets and two USB ones.

A pillow and blanket was provided on the seat along with a business class menu, Bose Headphones and an amenity kit.

The amenity kit was an older version with heritage logos for Piedmont. The current amenity kit offering was not provided. The amenity kit had the standard offerings including toothbrush, toothpaste, location and lip balm.

During the boarding process, the purser approached my seat, greeted me by name and welcomed me on board. The purser provided her first name and she asked if I had a chance to review the menu. I said that I did and I requested the duck entrée. The purser thanked me and she wished me a good flight.

A flight attendant refilled my Champagne two times during the boarding process.

The boarding process completed on time and the door was closed. A variety of announcements were made as well as the safety video was displayed on the video screens.

There was a medium length taxi before the flight took off.

Once the flight was airborn, the Captain made an announcement that he expected turbulence for a little while and he said he would leave the seatbelt sign on.

The seat belt sign remained on for the entire 12-hour and 40-minute flight.

About 20 minutes after taking off, the flight attendants provided a hot towel that had a pleasant scent. Another flight attendant picked up the towel a minute or two later before providing a placemat.

The Purser returned to my seat a few minutes later and offered a choice of beverages. I requested Champagne and she thanked me and provided a glass. In addition, the flight attendant provided a glass of water and a snack nut mixture.

The Champagne was dry and it had a good flavor. I did not consume the nuts; however, the dish felt warm.

About 10 minutes later, the Purser returned to my seat and provided the tray with the appetizer and salad. She offered a choice of dressing. I requested the Asian option. The flight attendant thanked me and she provided the salad dressing on the salad. Another flight attendant approached my seat a few minutes later and offered a choice from a bread basket. I requested the whole wheat option.

The salad was served chilled. The salad consisted of a mixture of lettuce, carrots and tomatoes. The vegetables and tomato was fresh and it had a good taste. The dressing was tangy and it had a bold flavor. The portion size was small.

The appetizer consisted of a small Peking Duck spring roll. The spring roll was cut into three small pieces. The duck had a fresh taste and it was made with vegetables. A balsamic sauce was drizzled over it. The appetizer had a good flavor. A small container of soy sauce was served with the appetizer tray. The portion size was small.

The whole wheat roll was served warm. The bread was fresh and it had a good taste. Butter was provided that was easy to spread. The bread had a good taste.

After I finished the appetizer and salad, the flight attendant offered to remove the dishes. I accepted and she removed both the salad plate as well as the appetizer plate.

The entrée was served a few minutes later. I requested and was served the Duck entrée. The flight attendant thanked me and she refilled my Champaign glass before asking if I needed anything else. After I declined she thanked me.

The entrée was served hot. The duck was cut into four or five pieces. The duck had a good flavor. It was served with sticky rice, snap peas and carrots. The vegetables were fresh and they had a good taste. The portion size was medium. The rice was also fresh and it had a good flavor.

After I finished the entrée, the Purser approached my seat and offered to remove the tray. I accepted and she thanked me.

The Purser returned about 10 minutes later and offered a dessert selection. I requested ice cream with fruit sauce and nuts. The Purser provided the ice cream quickly and she asked if I wanted tea or coffee. I requested tea and she offered three options. I requested the Asian option. The flight attendant thanked me and she asked me to enjoy.

The ice cream was served chilled. The ice cream had a good vanilla flavor and it was rich and creamy. The ice cream was topped with strawberries. The fruit was fresh. It was also topped with nuts. The nuts had a good taste. The portion size was medium.

After I finished the dessert, the flight attendant thanked me and she picked up the tray and she offered a bottle of water. The flight attendant asked if I needed anything else. After I declined she thanked me and asked me enjoy the flight.

The flight attendants dimmed the lights and adjusted the window shades after the meal service was complete.

I prepared my seat into a bed and I attempted to sleep for a while.

I slept through the snack at the middle of the flight.

The flight attendant setup a snack station in between the two business class cabins. The snack station had a variety of items and it was stocked throughout the flight.

After I woke up, I watched a movie and relaxed at the seat and did some work on my laptop. The video system had a good quality video; however, the system reset and it returned to the main menu every 10 minutes or so. I had to follow the menu back to the movie I was watching and press the play button to restart the movie. Fortunately, the movie returned to the correct spot each time. There was also some feedback coming through the headphones throughout the flight. I encountered this issue with both the American Bose headphones as well as my personal ones.

About an hour or so prior to landing, the flight attendants returned to the aisle and offered a pre-arrival meal as well as a beverage selection. The meal choices included shrimp with rice and vegetables option or an egg one. I requested the shrimp dish and orange juice. The flight attendant provided the meal and asked me to enjoy it.

The meal consisted of the shrimp dish, a small salad as well as cake for dessert.

The shrimp was served warm. The shrimp were large in size and it was cooked well. The shrimp was served with a flavorful sauce as well as rice and vegetables. The rice was cooked lightly and it had a good flavor. The vegetables were cooked well and they had a good taste. The salad was served chilled and it consisted of a mixture of lettuce, red peppers and tomatoes. The salad had a good taste. The cake was served chilled and it had a fresh taste. The portion size for the meal was medium. It was presented neatly on the tray.

The orange juice was served chilled and it had a good flavor.

After the meal was complete, the flight attendants returned to the cabin and removed the trays and offered an additional beverage.

A few minutes later, the flight attendants returned to request the Bose Headphones. They provided a complimentary one in its place.

The customs and immigration video was shown throughout the cabin and the flight attendants and the Captain made announcements as we made our way closer to Dallas.

The Purser served all of the meals to me during the flight and she used my name on each interaction.

The plane landed on time and after a short taxi we made our way to a gate in the D terminal.

Upon arrival at the gate, the door was opened promptly and a gate agent made an announcement welcoming everyone to Dallas.

As I exited the plane the Purser thanked me using my name and wished me a good day.

I proceeded to the customs and immigration area and made use of the Global Entry kiosk. The immigration process was efficient and I made my way to the customs area. After waiting in a brief line, I exited the terminal.

Unfortunately, due to the arrival time of the flight I was required to overnight at Dallas Fort Worth so I made my way to the Hyatt Regency at DFW.

Summary –

I felt that the flight attendants and Purser were excellent on this flight. It was a nice touch that the Purser used my name several times throughout the flight. I felt that she was happy to assist me and that she made me feel like a valued customer. The seat was comfortable an I was able to sleep for several hours during the flight. The meal service was good and the food had a good flavor. It was another good flight on the Dreamliner.