Scoot surprises on long-haul: a review of Scoot's 787 Economy Class inaugural from London to Bangkok
This journey began in the article here, detailing the check-in and Gatwick Airport experience. Now we pick up the review just as we get on-board the aircraft for the 12 hour journey to Bangkok, Thailand. This flight was paid for by Scoot, read my policy on ‘free’ media trips here.
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Boarding experience
First impressions of Scoot were positive. A modern aircraft, high ceilings, large luggage bins and mood lighting - which means the basics are covered off pretty well by this low cost carrier. At the time, the airline provided care kits (similar to my Singapore Airlines' flight in October) which contains:
A disposable face mask
Lifebuoy hand sanitiser
Disposable wipe
Enclosed in a bag to dispose of items
This is a good addition and ensures that people are more conscious of health protection - or at least I would like to think so! No other amenities are provided on the flight, but they will provide a blanket, eye mask and earplugs in return for around GBP 10 if you pre-pay online. I did buy one, just to try it out - it comes with a cool looking eye mask and the blanket is super soft, but pretty light.
Economy…with a twist
On this flight we was travelling in Scoot's Economy Class but with a twist. Although not particularly well advertised, Scoot offer "Scoot in Silence" as a distinct option when travelling in Economy and pre-selecting a seat. This portion of the plane guarantees no children aged under 12 (i.e. the silence in Scoot in Silence) but also every seat features a little extra legroom and an adjustable headrest (which isn't found in their regular Economy seat). Would I say that the silence is effective? Partially. There are not walls in between this section, so any noise from the regular Economy section would still travel through. In order for you to Scoot in Silence, you'll need to pay extra costing:
In case you're interested, pre-seat selection in the regular Economy section costs £17 and £69 for extra legroom. I should note that I overheard another passenger mention they got assigned to an extra legroom Scoot in Silence seat for free at check in - but if you want to guarantee this space, then you will need to pay up in advance.
How's your bum feeling?
Scoot's seats are upholstered in a bright blue fabric with advertisements for their Scoot Hub as head rest covers. The seats themselves are comfortable for Economy with adequate padding (so no numb bums!) and back support. I was a bit concerned that Scoot would not have enough legroom on-board. At 188cm/6ft2, I am happy to report that this legroom was okay for a flight of this journey. Sure, it gets a little bit tight when the person in front reclines but no worse than other long haul airlines in Economy.
You might be thinking, “Callum it's a 12 hour flight that departed at close to midnight, did you manage to sleep?” The answer is yes! Yes, I did! In total, I probably slept half the flight on and off whilst listening to music and eye mask on - probably because I had been up since 05h30 that morning meant I was in good condition to sleep almost anywhere.
Elsewhere on the seat, there’s very limited controls for the call bell and light switch. There is the obligatory 787 window dimmer which I find very frustrating…if it’s the mid-afternoon in Thailand, I want to be able to see out the window - not be in complete darkness!
Seat power, which can accept different plug types, can be found underneath the seat - but, as you’ll see later, it doesn’t work…at first. No USB ports have been installed on this aircraft which would seem to be a strange omission.
Where's the screen gone?
Looking towards the seatback and you will notice something missing that features on almost every other long haul aircraft - in-flight entertainment (IFE). Scoot are clear on their website that they do not offer any screens or likewise - but I could imagine some people being surprised to find that there is no in-flight entertainment available on a long 12 hour flight. In all honesty, can I say I missed it? Not really. I was prepared and had loaded my tablet up with plenty of programmes from Netflix, BBC iPlayer and YouTube. This also meant I had programmes I actually wanted to watch rather than spending much of the flight doomscrolling and looking for a long time for something to watch (which I've done way too often). If you're used to travelling on low cost airlines, this will be quite normal for you - and exactly what many people are used to doing in Europe for travel. For those interested, I was able to work off my 13 inch MacBook Pro whilst the person in front was not reclined.
Despite no IFE, WiFi should be available…if working
WiFi is advertised as available on-board which is increasingly standard across all types of aircraft, both long and short haul, with varying quality of speeds. Disappointingly, paid Scoot internet access was unavailable on this flight (and my return trip). I did ask the crew about it who confirmed it was down and that it would not be available across the whole journey. Strangely, there is two WiFi networks on-board Scoot's 787 Dreamliner aircraft - these being Scoot WiFi and the other ScootHub. Scoot WiFi is used for regular internet access when and if it is working. If you login to this network, there is some information about the flight but also you can tell it's not been updated for a long time. Note the reference to Scootv, a now-dead device streaming entertainment service, and references to ScootBiz which is now called ScootPlus.
Meanwhile, ScootHub is a relatively new innovation to the 787 aircraft in their fleet. It can involve either:
Scanning the QR code on the headrest advertisement (or seat sticker in ScootPlus)
Or connect directly to the WiFI network in settings and head to scoothub.sg in your browser
Once in, you'll be into an online portal that is home to information about your flight, food and more. The concept is great and execution is good. With no in-flight entertainment system, ScootHub brings some of the things you might expect from a long haul flight onto their 787 aircraft such as:
In-flight map with flight updates
In-flight services
Games
Scoot Café digital ordering (although not working on this flight)
It’s a little strange that in-seat power cannot be paid for directly from the ScootHub site, which seems a little bit of an oversight, but I assume is down to technical limitations between this and the aircraft’s systems.
Clearly no television or film programmes, but this goes some way to solve the shortcomings of not having in-flight entertainment. I really think that the Scoot Café digital ordering is a great innovation and perfect for reducing contact during Covid-19 - which is what I imagine their product development teams touted as the benefit!
Note: if you've pre-ordered food, you'll get this served to you during the in-flight meal service.
What's cooking?
Speaking of food, the offering from Scoot is basic. I had 'Mum's Fried Rice’ on this journey which consisted of fried rice, crab stick and a few pieces of chicken. It wasn't particularly flavourful and I’d prefer never to have it again but did the job of filling me up as we got to the end of the flight.
This came alongside some cookies (which were pretty decent) and a drink (which for me was just a water, due to me not buying any at the airport and gasping for some more!).
The airline is actually in the process of rolling out Singapore Hawker Stall-inspired food which I would like to think improves in terms of quality. One of Scoot's 'rules' is that no outside food is allowed on-board. In practice, I didn't see this enforced but your mileage may vary - probably don't bring a whole banquet on the aircraft.
Staff that are flying to serve…even on a low cost airline
Finally, I would like to commend the cabin crew who were extremely helpful. Whereas on flights with other low-cost airlines, who shall be unnamed, the crew here felt genuinely caring and willing to support passengers where possible. All the crew greeted passengers and were very quick to respond to the call bell when needed. Toilets were kept exceptionally clean throughout the journey during the numerous times I visited - with crew wearing full PPE while cleaning the facilities often. Similar to their parent company, Singapore Airlines, they also strictly enforced mask wearing in a way that I have not seen European airlines doing so - ensuring that people, regardless of status, wore a mask on-board covering their mouth and nose. In the interest of public health protection, that really needs to be commended. This was very refreshing to see coming from a country where they are often derided. The on-board staff experience was far above that of the European low cost airlines we are used to flying - and I would argue some full service carriers.
Odds and ends
The bathrooms on the 787 are a reasonable size and you could easily get changed in them if you wanted to wear something more comfortable when sleeping. There are five bathrooms to service all passengers in Economy - with two extra dedicated solely for ScootPlus. There are no amenities in any of the bathrooms, being a low cost airline, besides soap and you will need to pack any of your own stuff. I recommend packing up a little amenity kit of your own for the journey. In mine, I included:
toothbrush and toothpaste
eye mask
Japanese steam eye mask (to aid better sleep)
earplugs
moisturiser
facial mist
lip balm
This just helps make your journey that little bit more comfortable.
Concluding thoughts
This was my first long haul flight in over two years. I have been desperate to return to Asia ever since my last trip to Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia in October 2019. It was an immense privilege to travel long haul to my favourite part of the world once again - even if this was on a low cost airline.
One point of context, this was an inaugural flight and at the start of anything, whether that's flights, new services or products, you should expect some hiccups along the way. Almost all the issues prior to the journey were down to third parties who are contracted to provide Scoot services on the ground. Speaking to passengers who were on subsequent flights from London, these teething issues appear to have been resolved since my journey. Still, I will say that there should have been more communication between Scoot's Singapore HQ and Gatwick staff to smooth over all aspects of service support to make a better experience for their inaugural passengers.
As an aside, I will commend the Covid protocols, alongside parent company Singapore Airlines, to be some of the most stringent in the industry which is great to see. From the fact that there was comprehensive document checking, in line with destination rules, created a safe environment to travel, through to the provided care kit and the comprehensive cleaning alongside staff wearing full PPE. Scoot - a low cost carrier - have proven that travel, even during Omicron, can be safe if all precautions are taken. They put other airlines to shame in how seriously they are taking their Covid-related precautions.
So should you be booking with Scoot? This is caveated with Scoot restarting service from Gatwick in late-March 2022 after the initial Christmas and New Year flights - which can be anybody's guess thanks to Covid uncertainty. If you're looking for a good-quality product that will transport you safely, with some comfort and no stopover from Europe to South East Asia then they are perfect for you. Prior to the journey, I did expect that I would miss in-flight entertainment but I didn't once I got on the plane and actually sat through the flight. The food is average, staff are great and the seat is similar to the industry standard for long haul Economy. This might be a low-cost carrier but aspects of the service don't always feel low-cost. So, if you're thinking of Scootin' long-haul at a low price to save a bit of money on your airfare for spending money or better hotels in Thailand, then I wholly recommend travelling on Scoot.
As always, I advise you to compare the prices between Scoot and other airlines taking into account the extra costs for food or baggage - alongside balancing the premium you may place on having not needing a connecting flight.
