DISCLAIMER: tickets for these flight were offered to Aviacionline by Gulf Air (Business class tickets are expensive!). However, our editorial independence is a non-negotiable value and all views expressed here are mine and mine alone, regardless of who paid for the ticket.
After having a taste of Gulf Air’s flagship 787 product in the Dubai Air Show, I got really interested to fly with them.
I mean, so much is talked about the Persian Gulf’s big three – Emirates, Etihad and Qatar – that often we forget that there is a whole lot of other airlines in the surrounding countries; and one of them is Gulf Air, the flag carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
The strategic location of the Persian Gulf allows airlines to flourish by carrying passengers from Europe/Africa to Asia, and that’s what Gulf Air, albeit in a smaller scale, has done over the years.
That’s why when the opportunity knocked, I took it immediately. Gulf Air has a very limited network to Europe, currently serving Athens, London and Paris via Frankfurt. So just after arriving in Italy from the Dubai Air Show, I took a flight to Frankfurt to reposition myself for a Bahrain roundtrip.
I arrived in Frankfurt with some delay after an okay-ish Lufthansa flight. At least the views from the window were kinda nice.
But the delay (and the fact my dispatched bag took even longer to get to the conveyor belt) got my life harder. In the end, I had to leave my bag behind, otherwise I would have losed my flight.
I had to change terminals and check-in was closed already, so I just stormed through safety checks and was one of the last passengers to board the aircraft.
Luckily this flight was also delayed, even though it had arrived from Paris on-time, otherwise I would have definitely losed it.
Anyway, the aircraft deployed in this Bahrain-Frankfurt-Paris-Frankfurt-Bahrain run was A9C-NB. One of Gulf Air’s four A321LRs, the ship sports Gulf Air’s retro livery, celebrating the airline’s 70th anniversary; according to Planespotters.net, it was delivered to the company brand new in February this year.
Gulf Air’s A321neos are displayed in a two-class configuration, with 16 seats in Business class – named by the company «Falcon Gold» class – and 150 in Economy.
The problem of Business class – well, if you can call it a «problem» – in narrowbodies like the A321 is that it’s quite unusual for airlines to apply a configuration with full aisle access. While Aer Lingus, which I wrote about earlier this year (see the article clicking here), offers an alternated pattern of 2-1/1-2 in Business, Gulf Air went to a standard 2-2 configuration.
I guess that’s just the commercial downside of operating a narrowbody in routes like these, as widebodies can usually operate with full aisle access, which, I guess, is because they can do so as profitably as otherwise.
Luckily, I would have no one by my side, so I could stretch my legs as much as I wanted. I was received with a smile by the two flight attendants that served Falcon Gold class.
I stretched my legs and, despite my delay, I saw no rush from the crew whatsoever. Later the Captain came into the PA system and talked about the flight, explaining that the delay was due to labor shortages in Frankfurt.
Later I saw it with my own eyes; though I’d been one of the last passengers, if not the last, onboard, bags were still being boarded.
I was quite satisfied with the warmth of the crew from start to finish; they were really lovely and active despite the relatively long journey — it’s a six-hour flight, so they don’t take turns with other crewmembers.
By the way they didn’t seem like they were briefed I’d be reviewing the flight and were as attentive to me as to the paying passengers.
I was welcomed and then the purser asked if I wanted any welcome drinks; I happily took an orange juice, which was really good.
We were treated quite well on the ground, to be fair; flight attendants then offered arabic coffee and dates.
The lead FA then asked what did I want for lunch, and if I wanted it straight after take-off; I said yes.
I forgot to ask why, but this time they did not offer a written menu; the FAs had to explain the dishes to us. I mean, obviously it wouldn’t make my flight dreadful as I don’t care about it, but most airlines in a flight like this would offer one. Funnily enough, in the flight back to Frankfurt they did have a menu.
I chose the meat option, to be handed after takeoff, and I was also given a bottle of water.
Finally, we were handed the necessaires kit. The cover with horses was kinda weird, but I guess horses are popular in Bahraini culture – and after all you can’t say this kit was not remarkable.
At 10h58 – 13 minutes after scheduled time of departure -, the lead FA announced «boarding completed»; it was not before 11h18, with a 33-minute delay, that doors were closed; pushback was started three minutes after.
Gulf Air’s safety instructions video was cool and not as boring as other airlines’.
We were parked by British Airways’ Airbus A380, which has been doing some London-Frankfurt runs lately.
It was only at 11h45 that November Bravo lined up and stormed up one of Frankfurt’s runways. Although the flight was more or less long, the payload was far from the maximum; 10 passengers spread over the 16 Falcon Gold seats and only 67 were in Economy class, where there are 150 seats.
While the seatbelt sign was not turned off, I took the time to spread my legs and explore that pretty Business class seat. Luckily I had no one by my side. But apart from this detail, Gulf Air’s A321 didn’t get behind of any widebody in terms of product quality, really.
And hell, for a narrowbody, that was a superb hard product; not better than Aer Lingus’, but a really solid one.
Another flaw, however, is that the footrest afunnilated, which is kinda bothersome, depending on the position you sleep on.
The screen was very large, on level with other airlines’ entertainment systems.
Oh and by the way, Gulf Air’s logo is pure class.
While the food didn’t get ready, I started to explore the entertainment options. To be honest, there were relatively few options — I’m quite picky with movies — and it didn’t impress me much.
Because the screen is quite far from the seat, having a functional remote control is quite important. And Gulf Air’s was quite good.
The touchscreen was very responsive and the interface was really easy and intuitive.
Eventually I chose to watch «500 Days of Summer» which, believe it or not, I hadn’t watched yet. Quite a good movie, not gonna lie, although the protagonist was clearly an unhinged jerk.
In Business class, Gulf Air offers a headset which was nothing incredible, but one that still had some sort of audio quality. This is how I found it, in a storage area between my seat and the window.
The console between both seats is quite large, and from there you can open the tray table.
The table has a fairly decent size, and from what I’ve seen, it was not difficult to eat the full meals with it – it was quite firm, in the sense that there were no parts loose.
Soon the meal started being served. The entry was a dish with shrimps… again, it’s really a shame that they didn’t offer a menu so I can’t tell you what exactly it was, but I can tell you that, throughout the flight, all meals tasted really good; besides, all heavier dishes were served with a glass of water along with my drink of choice, which I think is a nice touch.
Meals were also delivered with the plastic wrappings. It’s not a deal breaker, obviously, as long as there’s some space in the table to put the plastic.
After I was done with the entry, the lead FA brought me the main course. The meat was really well prepared and tasted delicious, despite the average presentation.
To top off, the FA asked if I wanted anything else, and I asked for a coffee.
Before I went to sleep, I talked to him to ask about this flight and the airline. He was a very senior flight attendant at Gulf Air – which was his only job in aviation – and I could see from him the pride he felt, as a Bahraini national, to work at the national airline of his country. At the end of the day, this is something you cannot train your workforce to feel, and it’s something that is usually very pleasing to customers.
Privacy-wise, despite the lack of aisle access there’s these division between seats, that can be lifted manually. I think it would definitely make the difference despite appearing quite small.
And the seat belt was also a fine detail.
Upon boarding I had been given a blanket and a pillow, both of which were awesome. However, the flight attendant proactively offered me a turndown service – despite it not being a red-eye flight -, which I naturally took.
And so I went to the toilet to brush my teeth and leave them preparing my bed; by the way, this is how the cabin looked from my seat.
And this is the controls that manage the seat positions, very intuitive and on par with other Business class seats in the market.
Speaking of brushing teeth, the necessaire products were of good quality; the airline did not offer pajamas in this flight as it was not a red-eye – in the return flight they did, one of a very good quality by the way.
Another feature of a narrowbody that does not suit a Business class is the tight toilet – it’s not something exclusive to Gulf Air’s A321neo, compare it to Aer Lingus’ A321neo for example – but at least it was kept impecably clean.
And a nice feature, they had a hand cream alongside the soap.
Back to my seat I found it like this; I hadn’t slept that night, so I couldn’t wait to get some rest.
Still regarding the question of the affunilating footrest, I had some trouble accomodating my feet there, and that’s because I’m not particularly tall. But when I did, sleeping was not at all difficult – after all, the seat goes full flat.
And this was the view from my seat with the window shades closed.
By the way, there was also this reading light attached to the seat.
I woke up almost at night, and this was the fantastic view from my window.
The flight map said we were quite close to arrival, so I was offered a small bite before landing.
While my dishes were being prepared, I went to the back of the Economy class to take a picture. The screens looked quite neat.
So this is how my food arrived; a small cheese plate and a couple of fruits. Great to top off a flight, you can hardly make it bad; the cheese selection was pretty light.
Soon A9C-NB started its descent into Bahrain; it was a very smooth flight into the Gulf, as usual; sky was clear, not a cloud in sight.
Despite the 60-minute delay upon take-off, at 19h30 local time, 30 minutes after schedule, November Bravo landad in Manama International airport.
A short taxi to the gate followed – the airport is not nearly as large as, say, Dubai’s -, and boarding of the 77 passengers happened very quickly.
Before leaving, I asked to take a photo of the lovely crew that took care of the Falcon Gold class. I asked them to smile and the lead FA took off the mask for the picture. Really great care and service, and this is something that will always make the difference, regardless of the size of the plane. Kudos to Gulf Air. 🙂
So Bahrain’s terminal was opened in the start of this year, and it’s made to support the growth of Gulf Air in the coming years; it’s especially catered for connections.
In this regard, I didn’t need to enter Bahrain because I was doing back-to-back flights without dispatched luggage (I was basically connecting back to Frankfurt); I did need, though, to check my hand luggage again.
I was negatively surprised, though, that I didn’t see any line for Business class passengers. I mean, not a big deal for me, but I’m sure for other passengers who would want to put up some more work in the lounge instead of waiting in line, that does make a difference.
I still had six hours to spare before my flight back to Frankfurt, so after clearing the safety inspection I went straight to Gulf Air’s Falcon Gold lounge.
Space was abundant – in fact, there were even parts of the lounge that were not even open – but my greatest good surprise was waiting at the a la carte menu. Who would’ve thought that I would find my favorite food, stroganoff, half the world away from my home country?
It was not as good as the Brazilian version, definitely, but a great way to finish my experience.
Final remarks
When you decide to put a narrowbody in one of your most premium routes, there are some things that you’ll naturally be unable to run from. Comparing to what I saw in their 787 at the Dubai Air Show, the hard product is quite behind, especially regarding the 2-2 configuration.
Gulf Ai’s 787 offers a level of privacy for sole travelers that is up there with the best in the planet; their A321, on the other hand…. well, I definitely could not say the same.
At the same time, the lie-flat seat was top notch in terms of sleeping comfort, despite the affunilating seats, as well as the bedding.
Food selection was also good – again, not having a printed menu in this flight is something I don’t really care about, but it’s standard at other airlines – and adequate to the duration of this flight.
The level of care of the crew was also a high of flying with Gulf Air; so attentive, proactive and lovely. By the way, something really nice I observed in the Middle East, especially for the workers that are locals at their national airlines; they all seem to have an immense pride for carrying the name of their respective countries to the world. I repeat, that’s something you cannot train your employees for, and as a foreigner, it’s just so cool to see.
Last but not least, the connection experience was kinda spoiled by the departure delay – that was not the airline’s fault -, and by the lack of a fast track – that was the airline’s fault – in the safety line. The lounge, on the other hand, was really well set up and organized.
So all in all, did I like flying Gulf Air? Definitely. They have some rough edges to fix, but the big picture is quite nice.
I think odds you might face a decision of flying or not with them would be higher going from Europe to Asia or vice-versa.
My veredict is; if the aircraft you’re gonna fly is the 787, go for it as the hard product is fantastic. Now if you’re going to fly the A321, you’ll be delivered a quite competitive product that might not be in the same league as its competitors’ widebodies, but if the price is better, don’t think twice and go for it.
But overall, if Bahrain wants to make itself a power of the aviation industry competing with the Big Three of its region, it has with Gulf Air a jewel in its hands. Staff looked motivated, the brand is strong and the airport structure is great. Now it’s just about setting some minor details straight.
