FLIGHT REVIEW: Flying Cathay Pacific Business Class aboard it’s worst aircraft | Regional Airbus A330

Having just arrived into Hong Kong on the best First Class flight I’ve taken, I was soon ready to jump across the South China Sea to Manila in the Philippines. Hong Kong is probably one of the best airports in the world to connect in after a long haul flight in a premium cabin. The terminal is modern, lounges are incredible and connecting is relatively easy. 

Cathay Pacific operates a large fleet of aircraft, this includes wide body aircraft which are extensively used on short haul routes. This means that travellers can expect to frequently see flights as short as 1 hour operated by an aircraft like an A330 or 777. Unfortunately, these aren’t the same as you’ll find on the routes which ply their long haul routes (with some exceptions). 

Today’s flight was operated with a regional variant of the Airbus A330 aircraft with recliner style seats in a 2-2-2 layout. Today, I sat in the last row of the Business Class cabin in a window seat.

First impressions matter and these seats are good – not great. This may sound a weird critique since they are miles above what any European airline offers on a similar length route, but this is a very different market with different cultural expectations. More on that later.

The seats are 21 inches (53cm) wide and come with 45 inches (114cm) of legroom with a decent recline. This is verysimilar to the seat product you will get on long haul Premium Economy products, such as China Airlines reviewed here. Like that experience, the seat reclines into a shell, so there is no disturbing the passenger behind you.  The seat is well padded and is unlikely to make your legs go numb on a longer hop. A drinks holder can be found between the seats which you share with your fellow passenger.

Boarding completed swiftly and today’s flight was lightly loaded – meaning I had this row all to myself. There was even time for a Cathay Delight mocktail as a pre departure beverage – I could’ve had champagne but I’d had plenty in the preceding 24 hours!

This area between the seats holds the only storage area. Large enough for small items like a wallet or mobile phone, the lack of storage space is less of a problem compared to a journey on one of Cathay’s long haul flights. Headphones are provided by the airline which are unbranded and the quality was middling – noise cancelling was passive so you’re better off using your own set if you have them.

Large Bamford pillows can be found on every seat – the same as which you’ll find on their long haul flights. These are a bit oversized for the purpoe, especially because few people are likely to sleep on these short flights.

Today’s departure took place from a very rainy Hong Kong which caused a slight delay in travel.

Once in the air, I took a poke around the inflight entertainment system – a very dated example. The selection of content was comprehensive for a short haul aircraft with plenty of films and series to watch, while even the inflight map was somewhat interactive. This was hampered by the sheer inoperability of the display which, thanks to the old style “resistive” touch screen, makes it very difficult to navigate with anything but the tip of your fingernail. I gave up trying to use the system and stuck to the map for most of the flight. Slow USB ports for power, an S Video input and coat hook can also be found here. 

The tray table stows beneath the display and is a large size, accommodating most laptops for use on board. It can be used in split mode as a small table to hold drinks and other items – or if you need to let your fellow passenger pass during the journey. 

A hefty menu was in seat pockets prior to boarding – and was quite impressive for this flight length.

Cathay Pacific serve their meals on a single tray for their shorter flights – and this was quite an enjoyable option . The Chicken & Rice was well seasoned and balanced well with the vegetables provided, while the dessert was a creamy cheesecake. This was rounded off, for me however, with a glass of Hong Kong-style iced milk tea, a refreshing drink especially since I was feeling sleepy.

Bathrooms were very standard but importantly kept clean by the crew. The same Bamford amenities you’ll find in their lounges and long haul flights are in here – although these are good, they’re a step down from the Aesop items they had pre-pandemic.

Flights between Hong Kong and Manila are quite short at around 90 minutes to two hours which means the actual service onboard has to be completed in quick succession. Earlier I mentioned that this Cathay product is good, but not great, in the context of regional competition. For connecting passengers, Cathay Pacific is competing with Singapore Airlines who have all-lay flat Business Class on long and short haul routes, narrow or wide body aircraft. While we can all debate the “need” for lay flat seats on short haul, you can’t argue that punch for punch Singapore Airlines has a superior short haul hard product.

Separately, as a person commented on my YouTube review, Cathay are notorious for having a random selection of aircraft on this route. Some days there might have this aircraft scheduled but then it is swapped out for a long haul aircraft, or vice versa – which can make it hard to know what level of quality you are getting.

That being said, this was an excellent flight even when taking the shortcomings into consideration. The food was good, service was engaging and the seat, in isolation, is very comfortable for its purpose. This is on top of the lounge experiences in Hong Kong which, in my eyes, beat Singapore Airlines lounges at their home airport, Changi.