What's the A330-200 like to fly in?

jasonb

Hi there,

Myself and my family will soon be flying Dublin-Chicago, and then coming back San Francisco-Dublin with Aer Lingus. From what I can see we'll be flying the Airbus A330-200 in economy class.

What's this aircraft like to fly in? I haven't flown further than the UK in a long time, so I don't know what to expect in terms of comfort, entertainment etc. Any advice/tips?

Thanks...

J.

arubex

Quite bouncy in turbulence, compared to Boeing twins, but much quieter. Though still noisy in absolute terms, ear plugs are a boon on all big twins.

Last few rows are uncomfortable due to the negative floor pitch in that area inherited from the A300. Look at the window line.

Aisle width is usable. Last time I flew them they still had the plain green Recaro seats that give a numb bum.

My favorite trans-Atlantic twin is the 767 as it is rock-solid and had nice wide squishy seats.

LXFlyer

Seating is 2-4-2 and each seat has its own personal entertainment screen in the seat back in front.

The Aer Lingus website has a fair bit of information if you go and have a look on it.

IRLConor

If you're planning on making full use of the in-flight entertainment:

1. Bring your own headphones. The supplied ones are OK-ish but aren't comfortable to wear for long periods at a time.
2. Get yourself an adapter for the headphone jack. It's a two pin yoke.
3. Be careful with the volume if you're using good headphones. There's often a volume difference between the announcements and the IFE so if you have the IFE turned up too high you'll get lifted out of it by the PAs.

Comhrá

If you can manage to get a seat ahead of the wing area, it's much quieter than sitting aft of the engines.

I once walked through the cabin of an A330 200 mid-flight and the increase in cabin noise was significant once you walk past the wing/engine area towards the rear of the cabin.

homerjay2005

very disappointing compared to the likes of the 777 in my opinion anyway.

Preset No.3

Very disappointing in economy!

Crumbs868

Preset No.3 wrote: »

Very disappointing in economy!

Wow tell me more.

Have you flown business?

Savman

jasonb wrote: »

What's this aircraft like to fly in? .

Like any long narrow tube with engines spinning for 11 hours.

Seriously, there's very little noticeable difference and long haul aircraft are all very similar now (A380 and 747 being 2 exceptions).

Didn't care for the 777 myself so it's horses for courses.

Comhrá

(A380 and 747 being 2 exceptions)

Sorry for going slightly off-topic but the A380 is in a class of it's own for quietness - especially in the upper deck.......eerily quiet in fact.

Preset No.3

Crumbs868 wrote: »

Wow tell me more.

Have you flown business?

Yes, yes I have and its worth every penny!

Crumbs868

Preset No.3 wrote: »

Yes, yes I have and its worth every penny!

I was being sarcastic...

I think everyone and their mother have read of your frequent 'claims' to have platinum status with every ff programme and your daily business class flights

Eg on this thread absolutely no need for your original useless post other than the usual blowing!!


@OP as already pointed out seat configuration is 2-4-2 so more comfortable and more bag space than your traditional 737 and in my opinion preferable to its long haul alternatives 777 / 747 / 757 due to seat layout. Aer lingus have a decent flight entertainment on each seat but bring your own air phones.

Cheat out seatguru.com for best seats. In terms of which part of cabin(front /rear) to pick as you will have pre cleared emigration no major rush off the plane as bags will rarely be waiting for you so no advantage sitting up the front. Avoid being too close to lavs

lord lucan

Crumbs868 wrote: »

I was being sarcastic...

I think everyone and their mother have read of your frequent 'claims' to have platinum status with every ff programme and your daily business class flights

Eg on this thread absolutely no need for your original useless post other than the usual blowing!!

If you've an issue with a post then report it and a mod will deal with it, don't engage in personal attacks and backseat moderation.

martinsvi

I like the EI A330, its no more noisier than your 737/320.. IFE screens are a bit annoying and unresponsive, but other than that it feels roomy (comparing to 777 with 3-4-3 seating), legroom is fine, food is ok, really no complains.. enjoy your trip!

kevinandrew

The A330-200 is a reasonably comfortable aircraft, the 2-4-2 seating is spacious and far superior to the Boeing equivalent on the 777 of 3-3-3 which can be a little narrow in comparison.

Aer Lingus economy is pretty standard, the IFE is a run of the mill offering that can be found on many other airlines, the seat is an 'off the shelf' deal from Recaro that also features on plenty of other airlines across the world, and the food is your typical economy stuff. Nice thing about Aer Lingus is the ability to upgrade the service you get by paying for extras like the premium meal, wifi and better leg room seats. You can basically customise your economy flight into something near another carriers Premium Economy product.

One A330-200, EI-EWR appears to have slightly different seats and IFE in economy, it recently returned to the fleet and received a new cabin with what looks like a larger HD screen, USB ports and newer seating.

Preset No.3

Crumbs868 wrote: »

I was being sarcastic...

I think everyone and their mother have read of your frequent 'claims' to have platinum status with every ff programme and your daily business class flights

Eg on this thread absolutely no need for your original useless post other than the usual blowing!!

Thanks Lord Lucan for stepping in there.

Now what reason would I have to lie? Also if I was lying why would I have so much knowledge about business class flights, especially United. I will say I do not have Platinum anymore, dropped to Gold at the start of the year. If it would make you feel better I can send you a picture of my card. Perhaps maybe you would like my CV, birth cert and details of my last medical check up. :mad:

I dont have a reason to lie about anything I do, my experience, knowledge or involvement in the airline industry. So no need for the personal attacks.

roundymac

I wonder will EI consider introducing P/E seating once IAG fully take over?

Preset No.3

roundymac wrote: »

I wonder will EI consider introducing P/E seating once IAG fully take over?

I think it was discussed in the EI fleet thread but doesnt look like we will see it in the current 330 fleet.

jasonb

Thanks for all your replies, much appreciated and lots of info and tips there!

I've found the details online about paying for Wifi once you're onboard, thanks. I assume the better legroom seats are the Exit seats? If so I'm guessing I can't go for them as we'll have a young child with us.

Thanks again...

J.

faceman

IRLConor wrote: »

If you're planning on making full use of the in-flight entertainment:

1. Bring your own headphones. The supplied ones are OK-ish but aren't comfortable to wear for long periods at a time.
2. Get yourself an adapter for the headphone jack. It's a two pin yoke.
3. Be careful with the volume if you're using good headphones. There's often a volume difference between the announcements and the IFE so if you have the IFE turned up too high you'll get lifted out of it by the PAs.

This by a million!

Also pay to get an upgraded meal in advance. It's worth it.

Personally i find the A330 quieter than the B777. They say turbulence is more pronounced in the A330 due to the wing stiffness but let's be honest, if you're going to hit turbulence you're going to hit turbulence.

Alcohol is not free on Aer Lingus long haul unless you are in business class

Enjoy your trip!

Tenger

roundymac wrote: »

I wonder will EI consider introducing P/E seating once IAG fully take over?

Its being name-checked a few times by EI over the last few years. Mueller wasn't a fan of it, he preferred the simpler 'add-ons to the existing fare' idea. He did however acknowledge that it was a good product. perhaps he thought it didnt suit EI in 2011-2014.
I think that the introduction of the A350 in 2018 will allow EI to add a Y+/PE section to their existing config on the A330-300's. (The A359 being approx 10% larger than the A333)

Preset No.3

Seems to be a decent runner for Virgin but substantial investment and not one I could see happening in the current fleet.


http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Virgin_Atlantic_Airways/Virgin_Atlantic_Airways_Airbus_A330-300_3C.php

IRLConor

Preset No.3 wrote: »

Seems to be a decent runner for Virgin but substantial investment and not one I could see happening in the current fleet.


http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Virgin_Atlantic_Airways/Virgin_Atlantic_Airways_Airbus_A330-300_3C.php

I flew in Virgin's premium economy roughly four years ago and it was almost as good a seat as EI's old (early 2000s) business class seat. The food and service wasn't as good but for the price it was pretty solid.

jasonb

Just a couple of quick questions about the headphone adapters:

1. Why are they needed in the first place? In other words, why do Airlines use two pin sockets when the one pin socket is common all over the world?

2. Are the Aer Lingus ports two 3.5mm pins, or is one pin smaller than the other? I've seen both types of adapter out there. Also, does the Aer Lingus port have some sort of recessed section which means that some adapters might not fit, depending on the shape of the plastic case on the adapter?

Thanks...

J.

L1011

Its to stop or reduce the amount of airline supplied headsets getting stolen generally.

Bummer1234

jasonb wrote: »

Just a couple of quick questions about the headphone adapters:

1. Why are they needed in the first place? In other words, why do Airlines use two pin sockets when the one pin socket is common all over the world?

2. Are the Aer Lingus ports two 3.5mm pins, or is one pin smaller than the other? I've seen both types of adapter out there. Also, does the Aer Lingus port have some sort of recessed section which means that some adapters might not fit, depending on the shape of the plastic case on the adapter?

Thanks...

J.

1) i think the two pin was added so that the airline perhaps could get a added penny here and there for people who wanted the headphones, I remember, not to sure if it was another airline or aer lingus, They charged a few euro for the headphones. Now they give out the crappy free ones which as a previous poster said, They get uncomfortable.

2)They are two 3.5mm, If you plug your one headphone jack into the one, All you will get is sound out of one of the ears. Aer lingus have the 2 pins on the side of the arm rest so all adapters will work.

jasonb

Just to resurrect my own thread...

I'm back from the holiday, and we flew the A330-200 from Dublin-Chicago and then from San Francisco to Dublin.

I found it comfortable enough, but with less seat space than the internal flights we flew with United Airlines. Which surprised me a little considering it's a much longer flight, so you'd expect seat space to be more important on the longer flights. If the person in front of you reclined the seat (which everyone seems to do without asking first, is that normal?) then the seat back of the seat in front of you has to be around 6-10 inches from your face, unless you also recline.

I did notice it being noisier if you went to the back of the aircraft, but nothing too bad, and we were sitting near the front of the economy section anyhow.

One thing though - why don't the arm rests go up fully so that they're between the seats? They only went up about 3/4s of the way, which made it very awkward to try to give my two year old enough room to lie down to sleep! On the 737s we flew with United Airlines the armrests went up the full way.

Thanks for all the advice...

J.

Tenger

jasonb wrote: »

Just to resurrect my own thread...
.....
One thing though - why don't the arm rests go up fully so that they're between the seats? They only went up about 3/4s of the way, which made it very awkward to try to give my two year old enough room to lie down to sleep! On the 737s we flew with United Airlines the armrests went up the full way......

The EI entertainment system has the controller in the armrest, the cable is a certain length, if the armrest went up the whole way the cable would need to be longer....and need to relied upon to not get kinked when the armrest was down. So the restriction in lifting means less cable needed and less chance of cable breakage.

Pat Dunne

Tenger wrote: »

The EI entertainment system has the controller in the armrest, the cable is a certain length, if the armrest went up the whole way the cable would need to be longer....and need to relied upon to not get kinked when the armrest was down. So the restriction in lifting means less cable needed and less chance of cable breakage.

Sounds like a bit of a lash up job, that's poorly designed and implemented. Methinks the accountants were choosing the specifications on that particular day of the purchase discussions.

jasonb

Thanks for your reply Tenger, that makes sense, but as Pat Dunne says, they might have gone the extra mile with their planning, as it was really annoying having the armrests in the way on a long night flight...

J.

smurfjed

I found the same thing on a BA's B777 and B787, it's annoying to be lucky enough to be on an empty flight but then not be able to benefit from the empty seats....

Tenger

Pat Dunne wrote: »

Sounds like a bit of a lash up job, that's poorly designed and implemented. Methinks the accountants were choosing the specifications on that particular day of the purchase discussions.

I'm not sure who supplies the EI Y class seats but I do know that the IFE is the Panasonic EX2 system.
Maybe EI were unhappy with the weight of the PTV's and wanted a way to reduce it?
An EI mate tells me the the system on the latest member of the fleet (EI-EWR) does not have armrest handsets,it is a solely touchscreen updated version. However he was not 100% useful as he didn't know about the armrests going up 3/4 or fully. He now has a mission when he see's it on stand at DUB.

The_Wanderer

Just out of interest for a forthcoming USA trip.

Is it worth purchasing lounge access at DUB before departure of the flight? How does that work with pre-clearance? I.E. is it worth it?

El_robbo1980

They possibly still do not retract fully as even with the handset cradle no longer needed, there may still wiring in the armrest for the headphone audio jack and a cable for seat recline which would run from the button in the armrest down to an actuator under the seat base. These would probably be pre-determined length wise to reduce unnecessary wear! Standby until we get confirmation I suppose! ðŸ˜႒

Tenger wrote: »

I'm not sure who supplies the EI Y class seats but I do know that the IFE is the Panasonic EX2 system.
Maybe EI were unhappy with the weight of the PTV's and wanted a way to reduce it?
An EI mate tells me the the system on the latest member of the fleet (EI-EWR) does not have armrest handsets,it is a solely touchscreen updated version. However he was not 100% useful as he didn't know about the armrests going up 3/4 or fully. He now has a mission when he see's it on stand at DUB.

Tenger

The_Wanderer wrote: »

Just out of interest for a forthcoming USA trip.

Is it worth purchasing lounge access at DUB before departure of the flight? How does that work with pre-clearance? I.E. is it worth it?

No lounge avail after pre-clearance...so unless you check in early in order to have time in the lounge before queuing up for CBP then I would say don't bother

IRLConor

Tenger wrote: »

An EI mate tells me the the system on the latest member of the fleet (EI-EWR) does not have armrest handsets,it is a solely touchscreen updated version.

Interesting. I hope the touch screens are better than the other ones. I often used the armrest handset because it's more reliable than the touch screen.

The_Wanderer

Tenger wrote: »

No lounge avail after pre-clearance...so unless you check in early in order to have time in the lounge before queuing up for CBP then I would say don't bother

Thanks Tenger.

Hansanter

I flew on a KLM A330 this time last year from Abu Dhabi to Amsterdam. It was the most uncomfortable seat I ever sat in... in ANY vehicle. Jeez! was I happy to get off that plane. It was a night flight and blankets were given out as usual, I had to ask for an extra blanket, so I could fold up the two of them to put under my backside as the seat was that uncomfortable. The staff and service were very good though.

H/

duskyjoe

From a drivers point of view, it's a nice bus to work on. Very reliable , great in bad weather and still after all these years an economical twin. Ok we can't compare it re economies of scale to the plastic express (787) which is an amazing machine but the 330 holds an substantial slice of the twin market . When you see American carriers continuing to order the 330 is says a lot.

El_robbo1980

The headset socket on EWR is in the screen itself and not the armrest, this therefore allows the armrest to be fully stowed on all economy seats