A key anchor to our itinerary was the outbound flight to Korea. Because it took off from LAX, we had to take a positioning flight to and hang out all day in Los Angeles first. A couple people had expressed confusion when I mentioned this route, wondering out loud if there was no flight to Korea from SFO. Well, long story, but this was my dream flight…
Business class on the upper deck of an A380…
Prelude: the Obsession Goes Way Back
I openly admit my inferiority complex with double-decker airplanes, which is pretty much just Airbus A380 now that Boeing 747 hardly exists any more. It’s an amazing plane and I’d love to fly it as often as possible, but its vertical separation of people certainly introduces a sense of hierarchy impossible to ignore. That sense gets heightened when you spend time at the bottom of the staircase, looking but am not allowed to go up. How do I know? Well I spent a lot of time during my first flight on an A380 (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th) holding a little baby, and there was nowhere to be except the front or back of the plane. Check out my photos from 9 years ago…
That is to say, since the arrival of my second child, my aspiration in life had been to… one day to fly on the second floor of an airplane…
An opportunity came when I redeemed first class seats for Hong and I, on Korean Air A380 from JFK to ICN. This happened just before the airline massively devalued the miles, so we barely snatched those seats that our mileage balance couldn’t afford at a later date. Sweet! And that trip got cancelled forever, because it was in the middle of 2020.
In the years that followed, airlines grounded or retired these bigger airplanes due to the limited demand. I started to fear that double-decker planes would fade into history the same way ultrasonic passenger jets did, and I would never get to check off this important bucket list box. Thankfully, the trend slightly reversed and I was even able to find 4 award seats in Prestige (business) class on one of my dream flights. I couldn’t believe my eyes and may have made the booking without blinking once.
Korean Air may not have been regarded nearly as highly as Emirates or Singapore by the average enthusiast, but in my eyes it was perfect for my obsession for a few reasons: the business class occupies the entire upper deck so a passenger (me) gets to access the entire length of the plane; there’s a bar at the back of the upper deck which is freaking cool; Korean Air has pretty colors.
So yeah, that’s why I dragged the whole family to LA for a whole day.
The Lounge
The Korean Air lounges are a laughing stock among airline enthusiasts, with harsh reviews like “I’d rather hangout in the terminal” being somewhat common. The one in LAX has a better reputation because it has a cool balcony overlooking the terminal. That said, when we were there, the food spread was constantly running low and the hot water wasn’t even hot enough to make instant noodles. We weren’t there for the food anyway, so we were happy to just chill and wait for the midnight flight.
Boarding
The A380 is the only plane in the world that passengers board at two different levels, and I was REALLY excited about this. Airlines like Emirates put both first and business class on the upper deck. Korean’s first and economy class are both on the lower deck, so only business class passengers board from above. We walked past everyone else’s jet bridges and had to ascend a flight of stairs (or escalators) to get to ours. I had never walked up any stairs between the gate and the jet bridge, and it was a big deal.
To continue satisfying my vanity, I noticed the curvature of the cabin. Because we were in the upper-most portion of the metal tube, the walls curved inward significantly like in an attic. That created a wedge between the seats and the walls which made for a very convenient storage space. I was curious about how that curvature affected the view out the window while in the air, but we were deep in the night throughout the flight path, so there was nothing to see.
The pre-flight safety video was made entirely of AI-generated people… which was kinda jarring to see, but I suppose it fit South Korea’s image as a technology-forward group of people.
Standard Business Class Stuff
When it comes to the seat, food, and service, it was pretty standard for business class. We were comfortable and happy, but wouldn’t say anything was exceptional.
Bar & Lounge
The special thing I had been looking forward to on this particular plane was the bar at the back of the upper deck. Used to be “sponsored by Absolut Vodka” or something. I went to check it out after the first meal. The flight attendant stocking snacks there said I was free to hangout in the lounge and there were alcoholic drinks upon request, but there was no more live bar since the pandemic. I sensed a hint of regret in her statement.
In principle, I was sad about it, too. Having a live bar in the air was supposed to be a super unique experience, and anything “killed by the pandemic” always depressed me a bit. Despite the attendant’s (less than half-hearted) offer, I didn’t see a menu and had no idea what kind of drinks were available.
In practice, it could have been for the better. Virtually no other passenger ever came to the back, so the lounge became kind of an exclusive seating area for us to chill at. We didn’t need more space than what was available at the seat, but it was fun and relaxing to sit sideways on a couch in front of a pile of food and drinks. I spent a lot of time back there imagining what the scene used to be, and felt special now that the entire space was mine.
The front of the upper deck also had a small seating area with a smaller pile of snacks. I took advantage of that, too.
The Stairs
Going full circle to the source of my obsession, the two staircases are IMO the most significant things to the passenger experience in an A380. Onboard bar or shower don’t matter if you only read about them in aviation geek blogs. Neither does the mere presence of a second deck if it’s kept separate.
But these staircases aboard A380, along with the standard practice to rope them off, make a stark statement about class: that another world exists for you to peek into, but you cannot (for the peasant cabin) or should not (for the premium cabins) cross the line. These stairs are an invitation to formulate an aspiration and an affirmation of its attainment. Am I overthinking this? Perhaps. But I also spent a LOT of time holding a baby at the bottom of those stairs. I can’t help but wonder if all of Bong Joon-ho’s movies were inspired by similar experiences.
I asked the crew for permission to walk down the back stairs. They said it was fine, so I went to the lower deck and then back up. I was so happy.
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