Buenos Aires to Rome aboard ITA Airways' A350 in economy light.
Right now ITA Airways offers, on board the new flagship, two classes: business and economy. Today we tell how they [...]
Right now, ITA Airways offers, on board the new flagship, two classes: business and economy. Today we tell about How to travel on the A350 with the cheapest fare possible.
In this article:
- Specifications
- Aircraft:
- A350
- Class:
- Economy Light
- Treat:
- EZE - FCO
- Price:
- 380€
- Book
The debut of this route was a real celebration, with an exceptional godfather the "Divine Tail" aka. Roberto Baggio. The first flight took off from Fiumicino on June 2. and with 5 weekly frequencies, the two capitals are once again connected by the Italian flag carrier: this has not happened since before the pandemic. Attentive readers have already read the trip report Of the outward journey, made in the new business class cabin. Now it is the turn of la vuelta, which is the return trip we made in economy.
The Flight Club school teaches. Than using the points to detach a prize ticket is much cheaper toward a premium cabin, rather than tourist class. In this case, however, it is a ticket paid for with a credit card so you can earn points and miles That will help us get to the next award ticket.
Reservation
I booked the cheapest possible ticket, which was the Economy Light. A "no frills" fare since it has no checked baggage, seat selection is chargeable, and has the most restrictive rules regarding schedule changes or cancellations. Of course, it is the one that allows Accumulate the least number of bonus points in the Volare loyalty program. Taking advantage of one of the frequent ITA Airways discount coupon, I had managed to Pay this ticket just under 400€.
Thanks to my premium level Flying I am still entitled to priority boarding, free seat choice, lounge access and checked baggage. On balance on this ticket, being a frequent flyer allowed me to save no less than 150€, as well as priority boarding and free access to the Aerolineas Argentina lounge.
A little color note: on the ticket I am still recognized as FAL, or Winged Arrow, a level I held in the old Alitalia loyalty program. Talk about discontinuity.
At the airport
I arrived in the main Buenos Aires airport well in advance. Little bad since I was planning to visit three separate waiting rooms anyway.
The first thing you notice is the absence of Sky Priority routes to get through security screening. In fact, access is through a single queue that leads to the personal and carry-on baggage screening area. Once you have passed security, you have to go through customs. Here there is a Sky Priority desk but it was not manned, in any case being very early there was not a big queue.
Once inside Terminal C, I headed for the lounge area. Terminal B and C are in the same facility, and you don't even realize it when you go from one to the other.
In the StarAlliance lounge Normally only passengers flying with this alliance can enter, but at this time is also open to Priority Pass holders and other similar tiles. I visited this hall first because it has been open since 6 a.m.
American Express' Centurion, reserved for owners and guests Of the most exclusive Amex cards, was the second hall, currently opens from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m.
The last one was Aerolineas Argentinas' main lounge, the SalonCondor, which is located on the opposite side of the Centurion entrance. To access this lounge, you must fly in business with the Argentine carrier or a SkyTeam member carrier, such as ITA Airways, or have at least ElitePlus status in one of the ST carriers with a same-day departure flight.
All three lounges are large and very close to the gates used by ITA, At the level of gastronomic offerings that of StarAlliance. was definitely the one that offered a more varied choice, while Centurion definitely had the better stocked bar. If I had to choose, I would aim for one of these two over Aerolineas, which is larger but less aesthetically pleasing.
Flight boarding was at 11:40 a.m. with scheduled takeoff 60 minutes later. When I arrived, the Airbus A350 named after Valentino Rossi, was already ready to depart, Fortunately, the fog did not spoil the plans as it did the next day.
I find ITA's flight schedules to/from Buenos Aires to be perfect. From Rome it is late in the evening, with an overnight flight and early morning arrival. From Argentina it is at 1 p.m., perfect for not having to wake up at dawn and arrive in Italy at 8 a.m. the next morning.
Also at the gate, like the security checkpoints, there was no Sky Priority zone. Because the plane was completely full there were two immense lines, and with difficulty an agent had to bounce passengers who were (unbeknownst to them) in the wrong line for boarding, resulting in an argument with those who did not like having to queue all over again.
On board
Boarding was through the central door for all passengers. Having to turn right to go to the back of the plane instead of left was a little disappointing to me, but work is work and you can't just travel first or business class.
I had already had a chance to poke around the tourist cabin of this A350, this time I had more time, between boarding and flight almost 14 hours.
I really like the colors of the seats, I find the whole ensemble very relaxing although a little more color could have given the cabin more character. That, however, is taken care of by the LEDs and the millions of colors that can light up the cabin of this made-in-Europe gem.
The lighting effects are beautiful and customizable. So I expect ad-hoc projections in the coming months, similar to the Northern Lights simulated aboard Finnair's A350s.
One of the benefits of elite status in the Volare program is to be able to choose any seat on board for free. Thus saving up to 50€ for a seat that gives more space: for a 13-hour flight being more comfortable makes all the difference in the world.
As is well known aboard ITA's A350s there is no premium economy cabin, present instead on Airbus A330s, formerly Alitalia. According to the plans Should be installed between late summer and the holiday season. However, there are 4 rows of Economy comfort, meaning same seat but more leg room.
When I bought my ticket these rows were not yet bookable, so I had opted for the row 49, chair L, which is the first row of the last cabin. Close to the emergency exit and no seats in front, basically. infinite leg room.
I have no idea whether they are chargeable or not, in any case, the best A350 economy seats are A and L in row 50, because they have a window and no seat in front. If they are bookable without extra charge, it is even better.
The pros of these chairs are:
- Plenty of leg room
- Being able to get up when you want without disturbing neighbors or being stepped over/wakened by your neighbor
- The screen is swiveling, while the other chairs have it fixed
- You are close to the bathroom so you get up when there is no queue
- No one will lower the seat in front reducing the space available
The cons are:
- The screen is slightly smaller and cannot be used during takeoff/landing
- You don't have a space to stick items like a tablet or a book, such as the pocket in the front seat
- You are close to the bathroom and therefore in a busy area
- If the neighboring seat is free, you cannot lie down there because the armrest is fixed (houses the coffee table)
From my point of view, the pros outweigh the cons and are especially worth the 50€ required in addition to the ticket cost, which I did not pay, however, thanks to the status.
Very comfortable headrest, it moves on a track so it is easy to find the preferred position. The two ends provide excellent head support, to avoid ending up on a neighbor's shoulder or banging against the airplane wall. Finally very generous, for an economy, seat tilt.
Perhaps the only shortcoming of this chair is that the coffee table, which comes out of the armrest, does not offer much support and therefore is not optimal if you want to work at a computer. If, on the other hand, you want to use it for support, it is absolutely capable of fulfilling its role.
Service
Here we can say that we can see the gulf between business and economy. First of all, unlike with other airlines, e.g., Air France, there is no special "greeting" to the Elite passenger flying tourist class. Although it is one of the benefits provided by the Volare program. To be fair, I have to say that it did not happen even when I flew business on the outward journey, but it was a "special" flight so it is not the standard.
On the seat a plastic bag containing a blanket and a small pillow and nothing more.
I always do a test (with all airlines), even when I fly business: in the middle of the flight I press the button to request an attendant and ask for a glass of water or some snacks.
I first pressed the button after about six hours of flight and simultaneously started the stopwatch.
After nearly 23 minutes, the light went out on its own, without any human intervention at the chair, probably because the belt light had come on because of turbulence.
About half an hour later I did the same experiment again.. This time after almost 10 minutes a "passing" assistant noticed the light and reached out to turn it off without asking for anything, but at my request he immediately brought me a glass of water.
Food & Beverage
A small premise. Of course it is true the plane is new and one has to perfect it. Of course the catering is also new and the right recipe has to be found. But ITA has been flying intercontinental since November, since the U.S. reopened its borders and now has connections with wide-body planes to Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Miami, New York, Los Angeles and Tel Aviv. So certain details such as the menu and tray should be "broken in"
Here I think ITA has a lot of work to do. First of all, no menu is distributed, which is the case in economy with almost all airlines, and those who do not provide it use the in-flight screen to give this information.
Recently it was announced the new catering and revised menus, I understand treating echo passengers less well than the 33 who sit at the front of the plane, but when the attendants arrived at our seat We were told, "Pasta or meat?" and when asked what the recommended choice was, the answer was : "We are Italian so the pasta"
Let's say that already the presentation in the tray was not the best, but once opened it looked like leftovers from Fantozzi's company cafeteria, and it's not that it was bad but good, quite the contrary.
Also on the tray was an appetizer with a scoop of coleslaw?...and two slices of sliced meat, crackers, a sandwich, and a slice of apple pie (perhaps the best thing). The drink cart arrived about 10 minutes after the food cart.
The flight takes just under 13 hours, much to my surprise ITA also serves a snack halfway through the trip. Again, the presentation needs improvement. No tray but a hot product inside a tin foil (a tomato and mozzarella panzerotto?) and a bag containing a cold sandwich, a mix of dried fruits, crackers, and a (similar) energy bar, all served by hand With the crew warning that the bun is hot.
About 90 minutes after landing, breakfast is served, or something that should look like it. Again, no tray, but hand passage of a muffin and a stuffed treat, individually bagged. Let's say very uninviting. Especially when we think that other carriers offer as breakfast, always in economy, a hot plate or, alternatively, brioche, jam, butter, yogurt and/or some fruit.
On-board entertainment
The screen comes out of the seat, and the resolution and size are adequate. The defects found in business on the outward journey are no different in economy on the return.
Wi-fi is missing, there is very little multimedia content, the only interesting thing are the games definitely more modern than usual, I enjoyed playing Monopoly.
It would seem that theA350 named after Marcello Lippi, the first to be delivered to ITA, have working wi-fi, the only one of the 3 in the fleet.
Many menu items do not work, cameras are disabled, and do not allow the passenger to enjoy the takeoff with the view from the tip of the plane's tail or other views during flight and landing.
The "worst" thing, however, is that the headphones for using the entertainment system are distributed after takeoff, once the cruise altitude is reached. Instead, they should already be in place or as many airlines do distributed before takeoff so that they can enjoy in-flight entertainment right away and not almost an hour after buckling up.
For me this is not a problem because I use my wireless adapter to connect my headphones, but for the regular passenger this is a real malus.
The remote control is also unusable since it is fixed in the side of the seat and is blocked by the passenger's leg, I don't really understand the point of this option since all the functions are also on the screen.
Then there is a power outlet, and each screen has a USB outlet for charging one's personal devices.
In conclusion
The hardware is there and it is first-rate, lacks a software upgrade and improved presentation: from food to IFE to more attention to the passenger even in economy. The flight lasts almost 13 hours and I must say. what made the difference was definitely the chair. Being able to be comfortable with my legs stretched out all the time allowed me not to suffer too much, the time also helps a lot to pass the time.
This link, since day one has been traveling at nearly 100% as a fill rate. It has always been one of the most important routes for ITA/Alitalia. The decision to deploy the flagship goes right in the direction of wanting to show that the new Italian flag carrier is capable of competing with Aerolineas Argentinas, Iberia, Air Europa, Lufthansa and all the other carriers used by Argentines to fly to enjoy the European summer.
Pro
- THE A350
- The chair
Against
- Gastronomic offerings
- IFE
- Service