Review Etihad Airways Business, Colombo - Abu Dhabi
General Impression: 
Before the Flight :
Check-in Process: 
Security Control:
Lounge:
Information:
Boarding @ Gate:
Staff @ these points:
Boarding in Cabin:
Welcome Drinks:
Punctuality: 4 min early
4 min early
During the Flight :
Food presentation: N/A
Food quality: N/A
Drinks: N/A
Service Procedure:
Amenity Kit: no amenity kit
IFE System:
Seat Quality:
Legroom:
Lavatories:
Cleanliness:
General Atmosphere:
Announcement Pilots:
Announcement Cabin:
Cabin Crew:
After the Flight :
De-Boarding:
Baggage Delivery: in transit
—-
= bad, a lot of work needs to be
done
= poor, you will be busy with
corrections
= good & normal, nothing
special
= high level, but the icing on
the cake is missing
= topnotch, leave me here!
= Half a Point/sheep
—-
On the Ground:
We arrived at Colombo Airport 2,5 hours prior the scheduled time of departure.
Before entering the terminal, there was a passport control and before getting to check-in there was a screening of all bags.
There was no queue at check-in and the agent was friendly and efficient.
After checking in our bags we headed to emigration. Also there no queue at the business / first counter.
Then we headed to the lounge.
Compared to the last time, the lounge had improved a lot.
There was enough seating capacity. The F&B selection was absolutely great this time with fresh and delicious food. They had a bar which was completely self service.
Etihad did send a messages via the app at 18:30 that boarding starts and you should go to the gate. Officially boarding starts at 21:10.
We went to the gate around 10 minutes prior the indicated time.
Security control is done before entering the gate. There was only a short queue.
Security staff was grumpy and to be honest, a thorough security screening is different. They could not have cared less.
At the gate we were immediately boarded into the lounge and business class passengers were waiting in a separate area.
Staff at the gate was friendly and they did their job.
Thanks to the segregation of passengers, priority boarding was conducted.
At the aircraft door we were greeted by the cabin manager who was checking the boarding passes.
The other cabin crew member was in the cabin and super friendly and helpful during the boarding process.
The seats were already equipped with a very comfortable and fluffy pillow and a comfy blanket.
A small water bottle was in the seat pockets together with the headset.
No amenity kit on this flight.
Once installed in the seat and seated, the crew came by and asked for a welcome drink. We were able to choose from fresh orange juice, water or lime/mint.
Once everyone was on board, the crew also passed with hot towels and distributed the menu cards.
After the safety demonstration the crew passed by to take the orders for the meal service. They would have asked for the choice of starter as well as the hot meal for the main service.
We decided to skip the meal and just had a tea and some ice cream.
Inflight:
The Etihad Airways business class on this Airbus A321 is a real business class.
Our aircraft had 8 business seats in a 2/2 abrest.
We had seats 2A & 2C.
The seats have a big recline and a movable footrest. For a short haul aircraft like this A320 family they are super comfortable but definitely not made to sleep.
With only 4 hours and 5 minutes flight time, we could at least get some rest.
After take off, once the fasten seat belt sign was switched off, the cabin crew started very swiftly with their inflight service.
We sort of skipped dinner and I just had a tea and some ice cream.
Also on this flight we had an amazing cabin crew which interacted with the passengers. They were smiling and delivered a nice customer service.
After the main service, the cabin was cleared, and the lights were switched off for some rest. With the short flight time there was only some time left for a nap.
Etihad Airways has a mix as inflight entertainment on board its Airbus A320 aircraft family.
They call it the E-Box which is a stream on your own device system. All passengers can access it and that is the only option for economy class.
Passengers in Business Class also have a small monitor in the armrest which can be used with exactly the same content. The screens in business are touch screens and the system was super
reliable.
The inflight entertainment is offered in different languages and Etihad Airways has a good choice in movies, music as well as TV shows.
There is no WiFi.
Toilets were super clean throughout the entire flight and the cabin crew checked them super regularly and stocked and cleaned them all the time.
Announcements from the flight deck and from the cabin crew were clear and understandable.
After the Flight:
We are transiting in Abu Dhabi to our connecting flight to Milan. Bags are checked through and we have around 3 hours time until our next departure. More on that experience in our next
review.
Summary:
All in all, another good flight with Etihad Airways.
The crew did an amazing job service and procedure wise and offered a personal service with a nice touch and were interacting with passengers.
The seats on the Airbus321 are comfortable and also the rest of the hard products were able to deliver.
Notes:
- Paul the Sheep does not get any benefits from the Hotels/Airlines etc.
- Paul will always pay for the services in order to be able to rate freely and truly about the experiences.
- If you are interested in more details, please send me a private message and I will be happy to share