Review: Korean Air KE11 First Class Boeing 747-8i Seoul Incheon (ICN) to Los Angeles (LAX)

My flight originated from Singapore, so I checked in for my flight and got my boarding pass at Singapore Changi Airport using Sky Priority Lane. So I can’t comment on what it’s like to check in at Seoul Incheon International Airport, but Korean Air First Class Lounge was nice. See below. 

Korean Air First Class passengers have complimentary access to the First Class Lounge in Terminal 2 by Gate 248 at Incheon International Airport (ICN). 

One thing that stands out about Korean Air First Class Lounge is when you arrive at the lounge entrance to check in, they give you a gold luggage tag with your name and SKYPASS number engraved. The lounge itself is also quite impressive, with seats and a-la-cart dining. See the detailed review below for the Korean Air First Class Lounge at ICN Airport:

• Review: Korean Air First Class Lounge at Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN) For Korean Air First Class

Boarding at Incheon International Airport took place at Gate 267. The boarding process was a bit chaotic, and the Sky Priority Lane which includes Business and First Class passengers, all board simultaneously. I wish they had a dedicated queue line for First Class passengers. 

Korean Air Boeing 747-8i

I was blown away by the Korean Air First Class cabin on the Boeing 747 of how the seat is configured and arranged. The cabin leads to the front of the plane, which is the nose of the plane.

I sat in Seat 1A, so literally at the nose of the plane. I noticed there were no overhead bins, and right in front of me was a closet type that the crew helped me stow my carry-on. 

The First Class cabin is on the lower deck right below the pilots, so that was cool to know. But you will hear the wheels down and feel turbulence more than usual. I still think it’s a cool seat at the nose of the plane, though. 

Korean Air calls its First Class seats on this 747 aircraft as Kosmo Suites 2.0. The seat itself is huge, with plenty of legroom. The distance between the seat and the entertainment monitor is far, so you can only control it remotely. 

There are few compartments by the seat, buttons for seat controls, and confusing light control buttons. If you like, a video on the monitor shows you how to operate those controls or see the photo below. 

The seat also has a sliding door for privacy, but it’s manually controlled for opening and closing. 

I’ll talk about the lie-flat bed below. What’s crazy about my Korean Air flight’s First Class cabin is that I was the only one sitting in First Class, and there are 6 First Class Suites, so 5 Suites were empty. No wonder Korean Air is eventually getting rid of the First Class cabin, but it makes me wonder why they are so stingy about releasing First Class award availability too. 

First Class passengers can access an extensive list of wines, champagnes, and alcoholic beverages. I chose the red wine Cabernet from France for my meal in the sky. 

The First Class menu consists of Korean food sets and Western meals because it’s a South Korean airline, and I specifically chose Korean food for dinner and breakfast. Below is the menu that you can take a look at:

I am usually a fan of Korean food, but for some reason, I was not impressed much by the Korean food catering on this particular flight; however, the presentation of the food with seven-course meals was still pretty good, and the crew was constantly on top of things. Most Korean food is pretty spicy, so keep that in mind.

After meal service, I decided to go to bed, so I asked the flight attendant to make a bed for me so they could bring out the comforter, and I also asked for an additional pillow. The flight attendant also closed the suite door for me to enjoy a good night’s sleep without any disturbance. 

The bed and the comforter were actually very comfortable enough for me to have a good night’s sleep on the plane. The turbulence was pretty often that woke me up quite often, but I still had a good night’s sleep in the sky bed.

As mentioned previously, I was the only passenger in the First Class cabin, so I got all the full attention from the crew that served in the First Class cabin, and there were two of them. They were pretty nice and friendly and spoke very good English. 

I felt super privileged when every time I went to the laboratory. One of the flight attendants would open the door for me. I never get that kind of treatment when flying other First Class flights, so overall, the crew did a great job. They were always on top of things when they served me food during meal service or whenever I needed something.

A pillow, slippers, and a blanket are the usual amenity kits I was provided in my seat. There’s also a blue bag with a mask, socks, little bottles of lotion, etc. There’s also a purifying water spray you can spray on your face, which I found intriguing.

Korean Air SKYPASS miles are now harder to accrue since they left the Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) program. Getting a Korean Air credit card is likely the fastest way to collect Korean Air miles. Moreover, Korean Air is removing the First Class cabin and devaluing its award redemptions. So if you can and want to experience Korean Air First Class, do it now while you can instead of waiting. Availability can be hard to find, but if you search one year in advance, you’ll find it. Please note that Korean Air is known for swapping aircraft, and that’s the risk you will have to take; the flight between Atlanta and Incheon route seems to constantly get the Boeing 747 more than other US airports.