My review of Hong Kong Airlines Business Class A350 San Francisco/ Los Angeles to Hong Kong and A330 to Taipei
Hong Kong Airlines has been a thorn in Cathay Pacific's lucrative 'near monopoly' of Hong Kong to Asia and Hong Kong to US flights. The corporate owner HNA (which also owns Hainan Airlines and HK Express among many others) has been investing heavily to modernize Hong Kong Airlines from an airline targeting vacationers to non-leisure travelers. A few months ago Hong Kong Airlines published 'mistake fares' that had Business Class fares from the US to many destinations in Asia on sale for just $680 Round Trip. Mighty Travels Premium alerted subscribers FIRST just when it became first available. Start your free 30 Day Trial here to get an alert when the next mistake fare comes along. In total I got to enjoy three different configurations on Hong Kong Airlines - the First generation A350 Business Class (flying the San Francisco route), the second generation A350 Business Class (flying the Los Angeles route) and the A330 Business Class (flying regional routes).
Hong Kong Airlines A350 Business Class San Francisco to Hong Kong (First generation)
Hong Kong Airlines is still new to San Francisco airport and does not run their own lounge there. Instead it uses the Air France/ KLM lounge. While not a great lounge it features an eclectic, French-inspired menu and wasn't crowded this morning. However there was a major winter storm rolling in with delays of up to three hours at San Francisco airport. Flights to long-haul destinations are typically less affected and Hong Kong airlines managed to stay on time.

























Hong Kong Airlines A330 Business Class Hong Kong to Taipei
I detailed my experience of the Hong Kong Airlines Business Class Lounge here. The A330's that Hong Kong airlines uses are much older and have gotten the Stelia SOLSTYS I seats. They are largely similar to the newer generations but are less wide and definitely more tired. I was finally tired at 5 Am body time and made use of the lie-flat option to fall asleep right after take off. I wasn't able to remember much after that though.Hong Kong Airlines A350 Business Class Hong Kong to Los Angeles (second Generation)
Amazingly for such a new aircraft - Hong Kong Airlines decided to up-the-ante and install a new seat the BE Aerospace Super Diamond seat on these aircraft. Another popular choice that China Airlines Business Class and many others have opted for. The advantage of the seat is the improved privacy, the fully lie-flat, crisp display and plenty of storage.It also makes every single seat equal - not more panic about seat selection. Plus the cabin looks just so much more beautiful compared to the somewhat ugly cabin design using the Stelia Solstyce seats.

































