I was the only person at check-in at the SQ counter at Frankfurt T1 and wondered if the flight was going to be half empty again. As it happens there were 28 occupied seats this time, so it looks like the recession is going to be with us a while. The check-in agent was courteous anf helpful though not exactly brimming with conversation.

As far as lounges go, there isn’t much to choose from: either the very ordinary Lufthansa Business or Senator lounges whose only hot food was an uninspired pasta-in-tomato dish as well as meats and cheeses plus bar selection, or the dreadful United Airlines Red Carpet lounge. A few business facilities are thrown in such as computers and fax machine, plus a very handy Miles and More balance-checking machine.

On board I was pleased to note that for a while now SQ no longer distribute thos bulky amenity washbags but instead keep shaving and dental kits are in the washroom. They seemed pretty wasteful really.

Krisworld is usually one of the highlights of flying SQ: it’s by far the best inflight entertainment of any airline I’ve flown on. Movies included recent releases such as Revolutionary Rd, Yes Man, Slumdog Millionaire and CDs Lady Gaga, Will Young and Bruce Springsteen.

The little touches are what Asian carriers do best and here SQ have an extraordinary selection of tea including Indian Masala Tea and Chinese Pue Erh Tea. No I’d never heard of them either but both were very pleasant. There is the option of having a continental breakfast just before landing if you wish to sleep longer. Shortly after tray collection I informed a cabin attendant that I didn’t want breakfast so I was a bit annoyed when she woke me up, and then again by the purser some minutes later.

During one of my walkabouts around the cabin I got chatting with one of the managers. I’m beginning to notice that regular crew aren’t really interested in making small-talk, preferring to leave it to supervisors instead. Not that it bothers me…anyway I think he must have taken a liking to me because he brought over a little bottle of eau de toilette remarking that it’s not usually allowed. Perhaps I should have given him my phone number in exchange!

From an aircraft utilization point of view it’s interesting to note that planes don’t stay very long on ground. SQ326 SIN-FRA has a mere 90 minutes on the ground before the turnaround as SQ325 to SIN, and again 90 minutes before this exact same plane was used for my connection HKG, and then for a HKG-SFO sector.

Overall, well worth the fare paid. The only annoyance was the crew doing the opposite of what I asked but aside from that, really enjoyable. If you’re curious to try SQ better act now since their biz fares are seldom this low!