Hi,
It was a verly early bird and I arrived at keflavik Airport at ca. 5:45 AM in the morning. The airport was already very busy as this is peak hours for Keflavik since almost all Icelandair flights to Europe depart early in the morning.
Check In at dedicated Saga Class counters in the very back right corner of the photo below was very quick and soon I passed security. This went very quickly by using a dedicated almost empty Priority Fast Lane.
Once airside I had a quick look at the shops & restaurants situated around this central plaza of the terminal complex.
Soon I made my way into Icelandair's Saga Lounge which simply impressed me: It is huge, very cozy with different zones and even offers an open fire.
Additionally the lounge is on the highest floor with huge lass windows allowing views on the parked aircraft around.
I decided to have a quick and easy breakfast from the buffet which offered a nice selection of food & drinks.
Delta's 757 headed to New York JFK was really looking exotoc here at Icelandair's home only surrounded by blue/yellow birds.
To my surprise my flight to Munich would today be operated by a Boeing 757-200 in a special livery: The plane is called 'Hekla' and features a great livery displaying the Aurora Nordic lights. Boarding started perfectly on time and priority lane worked great - I was among the first to be on board the aircraft.
I settled into my very comfortable window seat 5A in a nice & quiet Saga Class cabin upfront. Only 5 seats would be taken here this morning.
A very flushy nice pillow was already waiting on each seat.
Once seated a friendly female cabin attendant offered me some active noice cancelling headsets.
Seconds later this was followed by a bottle of water.
Some more minutes later I was offered a welcome drink of a small 'Morning shot' made of orange, carrot & ginger - it tasted very nice and refreshing.
Doors were closed on time and a flight time of 3 hours 40 minutes to Munich was announced followed by the safety video. During taxi some more Icelandair action includng one of their 767s could be seen.
We powered into cloudy & foggy skies before reaching the sun - always a great moment when flying.
The Purser made an announcement that 'Aurora' mood lighting would be switched on aboard this plane and it featured some great & very relaxing scenery imitating Nordic Lights.
*
*
On this Boeing 757 the overhead panel was slightly more modern than on the 757 I used some days before on the way up to Iceland.
Cabin crew then offered nice thick blankets to those passengers who wanted some.
We had soon reached our cruising altitude and started our journey across the Atlantic Ocean towards Europe.
I enjoyed the nice views outside an waited for the service to start. Atmosphere was very calm & relaxed and ca. 30 minutes into the flight hot towels were distributed.
About 10 minutes later the very friendly male Purser served every passenger the same breakfast by hand. It had no choice but already featured a small menu card on the tray describing the meal.
The meal simply tasted great - it was an excellent tasting breakfast different than what you usually get on airplanes. The bagel was warm and crispy - just perfect with the salmon. Also the hearty pancake was great as everything else. The meal automatically came with a glass of orange juice while I also ordered a cup of tea.
Drink refills were offered and after the tray was cleared away I ordered some Ginger Ale.
About 1,5 hours before landing I decided to order some Champagne which was very nicely served together with some tasty & well presented pretzels.
The flight ended too soon and we descended through some clouds to arrive perfectly on time at Munich.
We parked at a remote apron position which meant I could take some nice shots of this beautiful bird before jumping onto the bus.
By the way: In their Saga Shopinflight shopping you can also by this aircraft as a model - however I declined.
Thanks for reading,
FlyAlex
==================================== SPECIAL FEATURE =============================================================
Below please find some old Icelandair advertisement from the 1990s. I found this in an old Iceland sightseeing guide that my parents bought back then for a family trip that we made in the 90s to Iceland. The advertisment is in German and promotes Icelandair's introduction of new Boeing 737-400s to their fleet and regular flights from German speaking countries to the Nordic island.
The Boeing 757s are still in their fleet - just the outside painting and the Saga Class seats & meals have slightly changed - the overhead panels are still the same :D
I have very good memories of that family holiday to Iceland - one highlight was that me as a kid was allowed to visit the cockpit on the Icelandandair 737-400 from Keflavik to Copenhagen - how extremly times & world have changed during the last 20 years!
Thanks for this FR.
The meal looks good and healthy, but the quantity is a bit on the low side for a 3 hour flight, unless you could have more bagels.
I love how FI proudly displays their icelandic heritage on the blanket, pillows, liveries etc etc.
Thanks. Yes I also love Icelandair's connection with the country's heritage and great nature.
The breakfast might look small at the first view but it actually was very filling: The bagel was huge and with all the cream cheese and thick slices of fresh salmon I was already full after that one - but of course I also finished the great tasting warm meal
Thanks for sharing FlyAlex. Once again Icelandair shows it's a great product on medium-haul. You got lucky with the beautiful Hekla Aurora livery! The Saga Lounge was already very nice, but the new lounge is even more beautiful and more spacious.