Background
My very last flight shortly before the world went into lockdown in early 2020 was with Austrian Airlines from Vienna to Heathrow in business class. At the time, as you can see from the video that I made, I declared that flight "the best Euro business class experience I've ever had". I had feedback on that comment!
Most viewers told me that until I had tried Aegean, I couldn't make such a claim. Well, Aegean immediately went to the top of my list of Euro business class products to try!
Today's flight is with Aegean on a three month old Airbus A320neo, a state of the art short/medium range airliner that Aegean is gradually moving to as it retires some of its older A320 series aircraft.
Our flight tonight is the last of several daily services between Athens and London Heathrow.
The establishment of Aegean Airlines as the largest airline in Greece is a complex story. It's almost a blog post in itself but suffice to say, when I was growing up, Olympic was the airline of Greece. That's all changed now.
Check in
Check in was a simple affair. Aegean's app is excellent, with just about everything you need to manage your flight contained in one simple interface. I booked this flight, selected my meal and seat and checked in from the app itself. Something I always seem to struggle with Lufthansa Group airlines.
The lounge
Aegean Airlines has recently refurbished its flagship Athens lounge to a very high standard.
Access is with either Star Alliance Gold status or Star Alliance Business Class ticket. Readers may also be interested to know that similar to SAS Scandinavian Airlines' own lounges / SAS EuroBonus Silver members, Silver members of Aegean's 'Miles and Bonus' loyalty scheme get limited access to this lounge - Aegean gives four lounge visit vouchers per year, to their Silver members.
Star Alliance mid-level Silver status does not confer alliance-wide lounge access, unlike Oneworld mid-level Silver status which does grant you access to Oneworld member business class-level lounges.
Whilst the range of food here at the late hour of my visit (9pm) was fairly limited, quality was very good. The range of alcohol choice was similar to what you would find in the Lufthansa or British Airways mid-level lounges.
Boarding
This was my second flight within a month with Aegean on this route and, as with low cost Athens-based competitor, Sky Express, who also operate to Heathrow, boarding was by bus. This was actually the only unpleasant part of the trip - whilst we were given priority boarding on to the bus, unlike other European business class airlines such as Swiss, there is no dedicated bus for premium passengers. Everyone else proceeded to board the bus and before we knew it, it was rammed and sat at the boarding gate for 40 minutes before we were taken to the plane.
Once boarded however, with just two of us in business class tonight and three dedicated business class crew, I had a feeling we would be in for great service.
At the time of booking, despite having no Star Alliance status, I was able to reserve seat 1F free of charge. This is in stark contrast to British Airways who will only let BA Executive Club Gold members book row 1. You can't even pay for this seat on BA.
Seating on Aegean Business Class is typically Euro business class - the middle seat is blocked with a table - although for comparison, readers should note that BA has removed the handy table on their newer A320's series aircraft - an unfortunate hangover from a hapless former CEO.
The flight
Soon after take off, a welcome drink was given by the friendly cabin crew leader who welcomed me on board and addressed me by name. She was ably assisted by two seemingly new cabin crew up here in business class. Menus were handed out although I had already chosen today's dinner as Aegean lets you choose your meal at the time of booking, even on short and mid-haul flights. This is another significantly positive part of the Aegean premium experience. It means you're not going to worry about them running out of your choice, as well as knowing in advance what you are getting.
Aegean was the launch customer for state of the art super fast wifi called 'European Aviation Network (EAN)', and provided by Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom. As well as being the fastest airborne wifi, it also works via satellite, so provides near 100% coverage on this route. The service is provided free of charge for the entirety of the flight to business class passengers (British Airways, take note) and in addition to wifi, provides streaming movies, TV series and journey maps. Fortunately, tonight's flight is one of only seven aircraft in the fleet so far to have this installed (Aegean will roll out EAN fleet-wide by the end of 2024). I managed to achieve a very impressive 90mbps - something that only a few years ago wouldn't have been achievable on my home broadband, let alone five miles above the Earth!
Food and drink
With the welcome briefing by the customer service lead and initial drinks handed out, it was time for dinner. This is another facet of the Aegean experience which puts even long haul meals on other airlines to shame.
Whilst menu's were handed out, as I said earlier, I chose my main course at the time of booking.
I chose Striftoudi Pasta with Prawns and Sauce, with a nice appetiser of Greek fava (split peas puree from the island of Santorini). When the crew showed an interest in my vlogging they proudly brought to me the other choice, beef in a rich gravy on mashed potato. I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed my prawns and testing the beef (although for clarity, didn't eat both dishes fully!).
I was then brought several of my favourite Plomari Ouzo's - made on the lovely Greek island of Lesvos.
To wrap up dinner service, the crew brought me a coffee (specifically my request for an espresso), with, and I quote "a Greek Moustokouloura (a grape infused biscuit is the simplest way of describing it) served with a Greek coffee and you will have a match made in heaven".
Tonight's excellent main meal choices (click to enlarge)
Later in the flight, an espresso and ouzo (traditional Greek aperitif)
Arrival
Prior to arriving in London, I was offered another coffee and two chocolates. It rounded off a really nice flight.
With an on time arrival, I was quickly through Heathrow immigration and in my hotel within 40 minutes of landing.
Verdict
There is no doubt that under respected Greek businessman Dimitrios Gerogiannis, Aegean has earned a deservedly excellent reputation for what is one of the finest European business class products you will ever experience.
Everything about this flight beat route-rival British Airways hands down. From the super fast (complimentary) wifi, to the substantial and quality meal options, bookable at the time of reservation, my ability to choose a front row seat even without status, through to the various courses of food and outstanding menu of drinks options.
I cannot think of a single reason why you would choose British Airways over Aegean on this route, even if you are a 'Gold Guest List'-toting die hard BA afficionado, I'd still choose Aegean for this journey.
What is most bizarre is that Aegean manages to remain price competitive with BA and the Lufthansa Group airlines on Athens routes, despite offering a superior European business class product.
Whilst I haven't (yet!) tried the European business class product of every airline, I've tried most. Is Aegean's European business class product the best of the ones I've tried? Yes, absolutely. If you do nothing else in the next twelve months, this is an experience to try. Not just highly recommended, a must do.
Flight Facts
Aircraft Type: Airbus A320neo
Flight Duration: 3 hours and 34 minutes
Price: £190
Seat Configuration: 3 x 3 (with middle seat blocked)
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