Review: LATAM B787-9 Business Class, Frankfurt-Madrid

LATAM B787-9 business class cabin Frankfurt to Madrid

Flight: LA 705
Departure time in Frankfurt (FRA): 19:25
Arrival time in Madrid (MAD): 21:45
Aircraft: Boeing 787
Seat: 3A
Duration: 2h 20min
Date of flight: November 8, 2017
*Revenue Ticket, Business Class flight #137


Video Review

Check-in, Desk 766 Hall C, Terminal 1

Arriving with my SAS flight from Stockholm around 5:15pm, I immediately made my way to the departures hall of Terminal 1. On my last flight with LATAM two years ago, they were still using Terminal 2 for check-in and Terminal 1 for departure gates so it's nice to know everything is all in one place now.

There's a separate check-in desk for business class passengers/elite members and those traveling in economy and as soon as the agent was available, I was helped at once. I had already my mobile boarding pass but since I wanted to have a printed boarding pass, I requested the agent for it without any issues. I was also given a lounge invitation card for the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge.

LATAM Lounge invitation card

B Departures, Frankfurt Airport Terminal 1

Moments later, I was on my way to security of the B Departures and with a business class boarding pass on hand, everything went smoothly 👍

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge

I stayed at the beautiful Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge for about half an hour or so before heading to the departure gates.

Boarding, gate B48

At 6:25pm, an announcement was made that boarding would start in a few minutes.

As shown on the screen, this flight is flying to Madrid and onwards to Santiago. How I wish that one day, I'd be able to take this flight as I haven't been to Chile and that visiting the Easter Island is actually on my bucket list 😍

Ten minutes later, boarding started beginning with those flying in business class and those with elite status.

Business Class Cabin

The business class cabin on LATAM's Boeing 787-9 consists of 30 seats in a 2-2-2 configuration from rows 1 to 5. On this flight to Madrid, 18 seats were occupied.

LATAM Boeing 787-9 business class cabin

Seats 4D and 4H

At the back of the business class cabin is the Space + with a seat pitch of 34 inches followed by the Economy cabin with 32 inches seat pitch.

Seat, 3A

My seat 3A is a window seat

Moments after settling in, I was welcomed by a friendly flight attendant who took my pre-departure drink order. It's been two years since I've flown on LATAM so I decided to have a glass of bubbly for this 😉 The champagne (Casa Valduga 2011) was served with a ramekin of mixed nuts.

As for the business class seat, here are the features:

Personal screen and ottoman

Below the right armrest is a bottle holder, IFE controls, USB socket and power ports

Reading lamp

Window shades control

To the right of the personal screen is the coat hook and the headphones.

Privacy divider

Tray

In-flight magazines and safety instruction card

Headphones and IFE controls

Blockbuster movie selection

From the movie selection, I ended up watching "The Boss Baby" which I thought was a nice movie.

Later during the flight, I was able to check the seat more and as expected, it is fully flat 👍 I also have to add that the seats are wider than other business class seats I've seen.

Around 7:05pm, the captain came on the PA to welcome us on board, and gave us flight information among others, that this flight is continuing to Santiago and our flight time to Madrid which is 2 hours. Moments later, the Flight Service Manager also came on the PA.

In-flight Safety Video

Moments later, the inflight safety video was played. It was my first time to see this video and I actually liked it as it was creative and not boring.

Minutes later, we had a smooth take off.

Dining

A few minutes after the seat belt sign was turned off, the flight attendants started offering hot towels. There was no menu card although I was told that they were serving smoked salmon.

Smoked salmon with artichoke salad, sliced fruits 😋😋

I was also offered some bread and I chose a small bread plus an olive bread which was very good 😋 For my drinks, I had a glass of apple juice and water.

To end the meal, coffee and tea were served.

I settled for a cup of green tea.

Lavatory

There are two lavatories in the cabin, one on each side in front of the cabin.

The amenities included a body lotion, body perfume and some refreshing towels.

Wifi

I turned on wifi on my iPhone and was glad to see that I could connect to LATAM's but I needed a username and password so I didn't bother continuing.

Airshow

Airshow enroute to Madrid

Around 8:55pm, the captain was back on the PA and informed us that we start our descent among others, and that we would be landing around 9:30pm which is earlier than scheduled.

Landing at Madrid Barajas Airport

We landed at Madrid Barajas Airport around 9:37pm and afterwards, an announcement was made that those flying to Santiago would need to disembark as well.

One last look at the Boeing 787-9 who flew us to Madrid 😍

Madrid Barajas Airport Terminal 4S

From T4S, we took the train to Terminal 4 which is where the luggage were to be collected.

CONCLUSION

Taking this same flight after two years was sort of nostalgic for me since during my first flight with LATAM (then LAN), I was on a birthday trip traveling to Japan and then back to Europe. The Boeing 787-9 which LATAM uses now is definitely a step up since the seats are wider, the personal screens are bigger and the cabin feels more spacious. The food and drinks selection was also very good and the flight attendants especially the guy serving my side of the cabin was very attentive and jolly. For the price I paid and for the service I received, LATAM is definitely one of the best airlines to fly with between Frankfurt and Madrid 😍