Comments on: A Meditation at 11,700 metres, 719km/h

By: Stilgherrian

Stilgherrian — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:08:01 +0000

@zhasper: It certainly sounds like the Airbus A380, at least in Singapore Airlines’ configuration, is a return to the idea of air travel being a luxurious experience rather than a bus with wings. I await you further reports eagerly — and start pondering my own next travel experience.

By: zhasper

zhasper — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 04:04:51 +0000

Sumptuous More when pics are uploaded and blogged. The extra few inches in both seat pitch and width made a huge difference, the USB port for charging of accessories (and storage of the documents you laboriously edited in StarOffice via the IFE) is tres chic, the magic power socket that takes any plug and keeps your laptop running is magical. The bigger screen makes the IFE really, really nice — the language courses are actually useful instead of being blurry and illegible!

Then there’s the little touches, like having, as well as the standard spotlight from the roof of the plane, a more personal reading light set on the bottom of the IFE screen, so it illuminates just your lap without blinding half the other passengers…

Next time I fly to the US, I think I’ll be trying for an A380 flight - the extra hassle of having to go through the Armpit of the US (as my airline industry friends refer to LAX), have your luggage stolen, and then transfer to SFO — totally worth it for having a flight over that isn’t cramped and uncomfortable.

Also, Changi airport rocks. Spent a nice 45 minutes relaxing in the pool there after checking in yesterday.

Bloggery forthcoming.

By: Stilgherrian

Stilgherrian — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 21:23:09 +0000

@zhasper: Oh you modern little jet-setter, you! Do tell us what the Guppyliner is like from a passenger’s point of view!

By: zhasper

zhasper — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 08:25:00 +0000

Singapore Airline’s new Airbus A380 sat at the international terminal like a shiny fat guppy.

Guppy is pretty much what I thought of when I saw it too, although it also reminds me a bit of a Beluga (the mammalian Beluga, not the piscatorean one) for some reason.

My point is though, that it was looking very guppy-like again when I was at the airport a few weeks ago… and on Sunday night, I’ll be inside it on the way back to Sydney, whee!

By: Stilgherrian

Stilgherrian — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 20:03:23 +0000

@Zhasper: Before you “call shennanigans” (interesting that that archaic phrase has lurched into currency) you probably need to ask whether I was aware that “offline mode” on a phone means “transmitters turned off”, and indeed whether I’ve bothered spending time exploring all those ill-named options.

If Nokia still called it “flight mode” (and I’d noticed it), I might have guessed that it was somehow useful on an aircraft. However the only time I’d seen “offline mode” was turning the phone on after having dropped it and the SIM card was loose. So I’d associated “offline mode” with “something’s broken”.

I’m not quite sure what ’Pong has to do with me having a camera or not.

I guess this is further support for the argument that I need a tame 15-year-old. To keep me informed. Yes, I can read manuals and experiment myself — but it still is a lot quicker (for me) if someone else wastes all that time finding the answer and just tells me.

By: Zhasper

Zhasper — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 05:20:09 +0000

I’m sorry, I flat out don’t believe you.

Your only camera is a phone, and a phone that doesn’t have a flight mode at that? Tosh and nonsense. How could Pong let you get away with not having at least a modest real camera? How could a sophisticated urbane media-whore^H^H^H^H^Hsavvy gentleman such as yourself not have a phone with a flight mode?

I call shennanigans.

By: Stilgherrian · When should a post be timestamped?

Stilgherrian · When should a post be timestamped? — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:10:47 +0000

[...] I posted my Meditation at 11,700 metres, 719km/h I was no longer on the aircraft. I back-dated the post to the time I wrote it, not when I posted [...]