Shenzhen Airlines review (Shenzhen to Shanghai Pudong)- BOEING 737-900

Shenzhen Airlines Boeing 737-900 tailfin at Shenzhen airport: Copyright Navjot Singh

Route: Shenzhen Baoan airport to Shanghai Pudong airport

Departure date and time of flight: 09:35am on the 12th April

Flight Number: ZH9811

Flight duration: 4 hours and 5 minutes

Class: ECONOMY CLASS

Aircraft type: Boeing 737-900

Punctuality of the flight:

The passengers boarded the flight on time (at around 9:00am), and all seemed to be fine until the actual time of departure came around when instead of taxing to the runway, the plane was still sitting on the tarmac. It was around about 10:00am (approximately 25 minutes after the scheduled time of departure), that the passengers were provided their in-flight meal while the plane was still on the ground. Quite understandably, this seemed to cause a few frustrations among some of the passengers who demanded to know why the plane was delayed and why we were being served our in-flight meal while we were on the ground.

The plane eventually took-off at 11.35am (exactly two hours after the scheduled flight time), and we arrived at around 13:25pm. There was no formal explanation given as to why we were delayed. I don’t suspect that the weather was a problem because it was nice, sunny and clear when we landed in Shanghai Pudong airport.

With the 2 hour delay, the one and a half hour flight turned into a 4 hour flight.

Any baggage issues:

No issues- the bags arrived on time and in one piece.

Comments on the check-in staff and any issues:

Check-in at Shenzhen Airport was easy and very efficient.

Comments regarding the pre-meal service:

None.

Comments regarding the first meal:

As mentioned that the passengers were offered their in-flight meal while the plane was still on the ground. I, however, opted to wait and have the in-flight meal while we were in the air.

Comments regarding the drinks service:

None

Comments regarding the in-flight snacks (if any):

None

Comments regarding the second meal (if any):

None

Comments on the in-flight system (if any):

None

Comments of professionalism of the cabin-crew:

Most people around the world would probably have never heard of Shenzhen Airlines because its only concentrated in the Chinese domestic market with some international routes being operated in the Asian region (Japan and Korea for example). Like the vast majority of airlines in the Chinese domestic market Shenzhen Airlines is an upcoming airline that is striving to achieve its best when it comes to providing excellent customer service. 

The airline has made a lot of effort to bring out the best in its crew. However, the most important challenge for an airline like Shenzhen Airlines is to get cabin-crew that can speak good enough English, and cabin crew that are polite and courteous to their passengers; the latter being more important when dealing with difficult situations like a flight delay etc. Unfortunately, it goes without saying that for the vast majority of the flights the cabin-crew has a very limited knowledge of English, and tend to be somewhat arrogant and rude. One of the reasons for this is perhaps that being an air hostess in China is actually seen as a glamorous job. However, some may disagree with this statement altogether.

Another issue I have noticed on many flights is that if there is a problem (i.e. such as a delay etc.), the cabin crew tend not to interact much with the passengers. This means that instead of relaxing and calming the situation down by offering drinks or by walking around the cabin and making sure no one has any problems, the cabin-crew tend to just sit, close the curtain to the galley and just indulge in chatting to each other. I am not sure whether this is a way to shy away from the situation and make everything look smooth as if nothing bad has happened.

Improvements that could be made:

Passengers could be better informed in the event of a delay, and also there was no vegetarian option for the in-flight meal despite me ordering it in advance. But this is a common problem when flying domestically. For some unknown reason the chefs cannot produce a vegetarian option meal (or perhaps they are not told to do so!).

Comments on the interior of the aircraft (including seat comfort):

Shenzhen Airlines have a 3-3 configuration on their Boeing 737-900 aircraft for Economy Class and a 2-2 configuration for their Business Class cabin.