Recently I had the opportunity to see what it was like to fly British Airways 787-9 Dreamliner in First Class from London Heathrow (LHR) to Dubai International Airport (DXB).
The 787-9 variant of the Dreamliner offers BA’s modern take on its First Cabin. Originally released in 2015, it’s second only to the First Class Suites seen on some 777-300 aircraft, although there is little difference between the two, with the latter having a fully enclosed suite.
This article will walk through my experience from arriving at the airport to landing in Dubai, and how I would rate it from a scale of 1-10.
The First Wing
I arrived in Heathrow Terminal 5 well ahead of my departure time of 22:35, as I wanted to experience the ground product as much as possible. This started off with the First Wing check-in experience, located at the far end of Terminal 5.
This area is reserved exclusively for passengers travelling in First Class or BA Gold card holders, or OneWorld Emerald equivalent status members.
As I had already printed my boarding pass and only had hand luggage, I simply walked through the dedicated security channel and through to the lounge.
The First Wing leads directly into the BA Galleries First lounge from this walkway, away from the melee of the main security area. I had a quick look around but I wasn’t going to stay here, as I had access to BA’s most exclusive lounge, The Concorde Room.
The Concorde Room
As a lounge reserved for ticketed First Class passengers or BA Gold Guest List members, you do notice a steep drop off in the number of passengers here compared to the ‘First’ lounge.
As I had a few hours to spare, I settled into the dining area where the lounge provides a-la-carte dining and had a bite to eat, as well as a glass of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle champagne, which retails for £200 a bottle.
To sum up, I had a thoroughly enjoyable time here as I felt it was an amazing way to unwind ahead of a special flight for me. Although I felt there were some drawbacks to the lounge experience, I made my way to the gate feel refreshed and ready to board the plane.
The First Cabin
I was seated in 2K for the flight. The cabin is made up of 8 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration across 2 rows. The cabin was full for tonight’s flight, with the exception of 1K in front of me (this turns out to be a great thing for me later on).
I wanted a window seat and seats 1A and 1K are reserved for BA Gold members (I was only Silver at the time).
I actually think that row 2 is better, as they are further away from the galley and toilet that service the first cabin, which I found was quieter.
There is ample storage room to the side of the seat with a universal charging port and USB, as well as a mirror, lamp, side desk and fully extendable table. The quilted seat was extremely comfortable and spacious, with ample leg room to stretch out.
The foot rest in front of the seat can be pulled down to provide a footrest, or kept in place so that the seat can turn into a fully flat bed (more on that later).
Pre take-off
After I was shown to my seat by a flight attendant, they came around introducing themselves, along with the in-flight manager. This was a nice touch as it made the service feel more personalised, especially when being called by name.
I was then provided with the BA First amenity kit, which came with all the essentials and a particularly comfortable eye mask, along with loungewear by Temperley London and slippers to use throughout the flight.
The flight attendant asked if I wanted a pre-departure drink and I happily said yes to another glass of LPGS champagne. My dinner order was then taken. BA provides a ‘dine on demand’ service in First, meaning that you can eat whenever you want. As this was a late flight, I and everyone else opted to eat as soon as possible and maximise on our sleep.
Dining
BA provides a full 3-course meal service onboard First Class. The sizeable table extends out and was set with precision by the flight attendant. In the older variants of the First Cabin on the (on the 777 and A380), it was possible to have a ‘buddy dining’ layout, where the footrest acted as a second seat.
Due to the fixed IFE screen, that is no longer possible. Personally, I prefer the idea of being able to dine across from someone whilst flying, however being able to use the IFE screen for take-off and landing is also a plus with the new setup.
The food and drink list was extensive, with many options to choose from.
I was served capanes to begin, which were tasty, particularly the bresaola with melon. To start I had the smoked salmon, accompanied by the Louis Latour white wine.
I was impressed with the presentation of the dish. The use of the fine china really elevates the dining experience in First for me compared to Business Class. The salmon was delicious and fresh, and paired well with the white wine. The wasabi dressing added a lot to this dish and I was thoroughly impressed.
For the main I opted for the duo of lamb rack and braised lamb. Switching to red meat I opted for a red, however I couldn’t make up my mind between the Chateau Chauvin and the Casa Ferrerinha, so I tried both!
I’ve always found that the staff are happy to accommodate you for a wine tasting should you wish. I had not tried either previously so I was eager to see which one I preferred. Personally the Casa Ferrerinha wins it.
I was less impressed with the main dish. While it was tasty and a hearty meal, I felt the duo of lamb was a strange combination, and a very ‘meat heavy’ dish. I also think that have one side dish option for all mains is quite an unimaginative way for BA to cater in First Class.
This isn’t exclusive to this flight but their entire First service. Not to mention that the options of potatoes and roast vegetables did not scream ‘fine dining’ by any means.
This however was much improved for dessert. I opted for the passionfuit tart which was incredible and served beautifully. This was every bit restraunt-quality, and I would be happy being served this anywhere, let alone 30,000 feet in the air!
I paired this with the Sauternes to finish off the meal which was also excellent, however I was still lagging behind. In true BA fashion, the flight attendants were more than generous in their servings, and in this case even decided to leave both bottles at my seat for me to have at my leisure. While it was incredibly generous and quite a unique experience, I did not take up the offer and decided to change into the loungewear and get some sleep.
Sleeping
BA offers a full turndown service in First Class. You can simply let the flight attendant know that you wish to sleep and they will make the bed up for you, with a padded mattress for added comfort, a sizeable pillow and full duvet.
As 1K was free, the flight attendant suggested that she make up that bed for me so that I don’t have to move anything around in my seat. The small details of consideration like this make the flying experience that much more enjoyable.
This meant that when I awoke 6 hours later, I could simply get out of bed, freshen up and return to my seat for landing. I asked not to be woken up for the breakfast service as dinner was more than enough. The bed was incredibly comfortable and I slept the whole way through the flight.
Many people like to refer to BA First as the “World’s best business class”, but I cannot agree when the sleeping experience is so much better than other business class products. Between that and the meal service, it was every bit First Class in my opinion.
Despite the seatbelt sign coming on as I woke up, the flight attendant was happy to make me a cup of coffee before landing. I think the 7-hour flight is a little bit too short to experience a full dinner and breakfast service while having slept through the entire flight.
Conclusion
All in all the BA First Class product in the 787-9 is an incredible experience. It transforms the older 777-200 seat into a modern and up-to-date aesthetic and moves BA in the right direction.
The biggest plus as a solo traveller is the fact that the IFE screen is fixed, meaning that it does not have to be put in place for take-off and landing like the older variant of the First Class seat does. The downside of this is that it introduces a slight “cubby hole” when lying down, potentially restricting how you can sleep (although I did not experience this).
It also makes the buddy dining feature more difficult than before, as someone sitting opposite you is much more difficult with the fixed IFE screen in place. In fact, the 787-9 seat does not have a seat belt across from the main seat like the 777 or the A380 does.
Being able to sit across from a friend or partner in the sky and have dinner together is a unique experience that not many carriers can say they offer in First Class.
The lie flat bed and the bedding provided is fantastic, and I would highly recommend this product to anyone looking to sleep comfortably on a long-haul flight. Luckily for passengers, BA operates the 787-9 on some of its longest routes currently, such as Santiago and Singapore.
If you would like to know more about how exactly I booked this for the price of an economy ticket, I have made a step-by-step guide on this here. I have also written a review just like this for the return flight, where I flew the 777-200 variant of the First Class product.
You can see the difference between them from a hard-product perspective, and how important it can be to check what aircraft your ticket is scheduled to use!
