15.5 Hours In Korean Air 747-8 First Class…

My longhaul Korean Air flight from Atlanta to Seoul in first class on the flagship Boeing 747-8 was a very pleasant journey overall with some rough edges, but a great crew and spacious seat.

Korean Air 747-8 First Class: My First Impressions

Korean Air operates the longest 747-8 flight in the world; the 7,152-mile journey from Atlanta to Seoul was blocked at nearly 16 hours.

Onboard, I was greeted by two flight attendants, Ms. Kim and Ms. Park, who did a wonderful job of taking care of me during the long daytime journey to South Korea.

I appreciated the pace of service, the overall attention to detail, and the fact that they somehow knew when I woke up and came over promptly to check on whether I needed any food or drink.

The seat onboard, branded the Kosmo Suite 2.0 by Korean Air, is very spacious and has closing doors. The signature turquoise seat covers have been replaced with neutral grey seat covers…I prefer the turquoise, which is so ubiquitous with Korean Air and its livery that has not changed in decades (I like it).

I did not go hungry on this flight.

Lunch was served after takeoff, starting with an amuse-bouche and glass of Champagne (Devaux “Stenope” 2011).

A full caviar service followed.

The flight attendants were unaware of what Negroni was, but the ingredients were present so I had one with my lunch.

Next came a soup course, followed by salad.

The flight attendant recommended I try a California red wine with my main course from Shafer and it was very good.

I loved the palate cleanser before the main course.

Filet mignon for my main course…the other choices being bibimbap or sea bass.

All four passengers ordered the steak…I had pre-ordered a Korean meal on the flight from Seoul and wanted to see how the KAL steak compared to the JAL steak departing the USA.

I was asked how I wanted it prepared beforehand (medium rare) and it was served a perfect medium rare.

I concluded the meal with fruit, cheese, and cake along with a cappuccino.

I then changed into pajamas, which I found very comfortable and stylish.

After sleeping for several hours, I woke up just after we passed over Alaska.

I ordered a “sandwich” off the menu, which the flight attendant said was served warm. It turned out to be a pastrami Reuben…a delicious one. I don’t think I’ve ever had pasrami on rye on an airplane! I enjoyed an iced capucino with it and some cookies.

There were still many hours left in the flight and unfortunately, the inflight entertainment library was rather meager.

Two hours before landing, a light meal was served. I was glad I had eaten the sandwich, because the salmon was quite dry and tasteless (though nicely presented). It was preceded by another green salad and proceeded by fruit and one more coffee.

The poor salmon aside, I quite enjoyed the food on this flight.

A couple oddities and a couple more negatives about the flight.

First, there were two pilots in first class, taking the prime 1A and 1K seats…it appears Korean Air uses the first class cabin for pilot rest, even though my understanding is the 747-8 has pilot bunks on the upper deck.

Second, while I truly found the service outstanding overall, I wish the flight attendants would be trained on how to properly present wine. Instead of offering a taste and then holding the bottle up while I sampled it, it was just poured out (I asked for the pictures above). It’s a missed opportunity to really provide a first class experience proactively.

As for the negatives, the cabin was very cold after takeoff, such that I put a day blanket around me. When the flight attendant saw that I was cold, she said, “I’ll make it warmer!”

No, no, no!

I knew that would backfire and sure enough, the cabin became like a sauna during the middle of the flight. Even though there was an individual air nozzle in the first class suite (which I had on full blast), I struggled to sleep (and eventually requested the temperature be turned back down, which it was though the cabin never cooled off).

While it is nice to unplug sometimes, I find the lack of Wi-Fi onboard wholly unacceptable for 2025. Going over 15 hours without wi-fi made me understand what it must feel like for smokers who have to go so long without a cigarette…it’s just too long and the flight was in the middle of my work day.

I have to admit, I could not wait to get off that aircraft so that I could check-in with my family, office, and associates…and that may be more a reflection on me than on Korean Air, but a leading airline should offer wi-fi.

CONCLUSION

It was a beautiful evening as we approached Seoul Incheon.

Overall, though, I thought the flight was very nice…it was what I expected (I didn’t expect wi-fi…) and I thought the food and service was great overall. I’m not in a rush to book first class again on Korean Air, but I did very much enjoy the experience.

I’ll have a lot more details in my full flight review.