New Seat Review: Finnair A330 Business Class New York to Helsinki

Background and Booking

For my summer trip which was to begin in Helsinki, Finland, I had found award space for my parents on Air France from LAX. So, I just needed to meet them in Helsinki from New York. In looking at options, there was one seat left on Finnair in Business for the nonstop from New York (JFK) to Helsinki (HEL), so I decided to snag it for 57,500 American Airlines AAdvantage Miles (plus $5.60). I had never flown Finnair before, so I was excited to give a new airline a try. Also, it was on the new Finnair A330 Business Class AirLounge seat that was launched in 2022 and fully integrated into their long-haul fleet this year, so that was also exciting.

Flight Details

Finnair Flight 16
New York (JFK) to Helsinki (HEL)
Scheduled Duration: 8 hours and 5 minutes
Actual Duration: 8 hours 0 minutes
Cabin: Business
Aircraft: Airbus A330
Seat: 5L (Window)

At the Airport & Lounge Access at New York (JFK)

Finnair leaves from Terminal 8 at JFK Airport along with their oneworld partner American Airlines. The check-in area was on the smaller side, and they just utilized some of the “Special Services” desks of Americans. They did have a Priority Line for Business Class passengers, and I was helped within 5 minutes of waiting. There wasn’t a spot during online check-in to add my TSA PreCheck number, so thankfully they could assist at the desk.

The standard TSA line showed about a 20 minute wait, but thankfully PreCheck was a quick couple of minutes. When flying Finnair business class, you can access the American Airlines Greenwich Lounge (formerly the Flagship Lounge).

I’ve visited the Greenwich Lounge many times before, and I still find it quite a solid international business class lounge. I do think they could work on their cleanliness, but I still like it a lot. There is plenty of space, and on top of the buffet, there are some food options where you can order from a menu, specifically at the Tasting Room and the Bridge. I forgot about the Bridge, and wish I visited it rather than ordered bar bites at the Tasting Room which were not great. Oh well, next time!

Boarding and the Finnair A330 Business Class Cabin

Boarding for our flight was scheduled at 10:15 pm which was 40 minutes before our scheduled departure. Five minutes before boarding was supposed to start, they announced that they would start boarding those who required special assistance, and then Group 1 boarded shortly after.

The Finnair A330 Business Class is one cabin featuring 28 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. We boarded through the middle door, so we turned left after boarding.

Our A330 was delivered in June of 2009, and reconfigured to have the new Business Class in February of 2022. Upon entering the plane, I was impressed by the beautiful cabin with the bright cabin mixing well with the dark blue fabric and peaceful wood tones. I found this cabin to be one of the prettiest airplane cabins I had ever been in.

The Seat (called AirLounge)

The Business Class seat is from Collins Aerospace and is called the AirLounge seat. The unique aspect is that the seats don’t actually recline. It’s supposed to create more space and flexibility, and can still turn into a bed. Picture it more like a couch, and then the footrest area can be closed up to turn it into a bed.

To the right, under the lamp is a storage compartment that houses the remote for the TV, some storage space, the headphone jack, and both USB A & C Ports. The side table even has a wireless charging pad which is a nice touch.

There is a nice light wood countertop that houses the full-sized tray table underneath. Here, there are controls for the “do not disturb” button, seat control, and brightness.

Two pillows and a blanket plus a mattress topper were provided, as well as slippers.

Towards the window, there is a storage cubby that houses a water bottle, amenity kit, and headphones.

I really like the blue cushions with light tan wood accents, it felt very modern and chic. The fact that the cabin was super clean was a major plus as well.

The amenity kit was on the basic side, but it was sufficient. It came in a pouch with a zipper and contained a toothbrush, toothpaste, eye mask, and earplugs.

The captain let us know that our time in the air would be 7 hours and 20 minutes, and boarding was complete about 10 minutes before our scheduled departure.

Before our departure, the flight attendant came by to explain how dinner service would work and asked if I’d like a welcome beverage of champagne, juice, or water. I got some champagne, and loved the glass that it was in!

We took off at 11:15 pm, 20 minutes after our scheduled departure time.

Dining

Finnair has a bit of an interesting way of doing their meal service, and they actually don’t serve dinner on this evening departure. There is a “snack” after takeoff, and then a breakfast before landing. Personally, I found it a bit like cutting corners and I also didn’t enjoy the snack itself.

There weren’t options for the snack, and the only offering was the Bacon and cheese quiche served with green salad and lemon curd mousse. A hot towel was provided before the snack was served.

The quiche was definitely too cheesy, but at least the salad and bread offerings were decent. A pretty disappointing “snack”, let alone a meal. I tried the “mocktail” Blueberry Fizz and really enjoyed it!

Also, of course, I had to try the Finnair Signature Cocktail, which comes in a can surprisingly.

It was certainly interesting, and much better than I expected for a canned alcoholic drink.

Service was quite good on this flight, and the flight attendants were attentive and friendly.

Bedtime

I found the space where your feet go when lying flat to be quite spacious, and I was able to make myself comfortable. I ended up sleeping until they turned the lights on for breakfast, so I was able to get about 4 hours of sleep. The back of the seat never reclines, but rather two leg rests extend to create a fully lie-flat bed (78 inches in length) and you then slide forward to sleep. To make the bed, you just press the button on the console, but then you do have to flip up one part from the footrest area, then voila, it’s all fully a mattress. Your shoes can be underneath as there is a gap.

In-Flight Entertainment

The 18-inch screen was crisp and a solidly large size. It had plenty of movies, tv series, music and games. They even had a cute airport landing game that you could play on your phone.

The map feature was pretty good, and had a forward and downward flight camera which I enjoyed watching.

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi was available on the flight and it was complimentary for 1 hour for Business Classic and Business Flex ticket holders, plus Finnair Plus Gold members. And, is free for the entire flight for Finnair Plus Platinum and Platinum Lumo members.

For those not listed above, Wi-Fi was available for:

• Full flight for 24.95 Euros (19.95 for Finnair Plus Members)
• 3 hours for 14.95 Euros (12.95 for Finnair Plus Members)
• 1 hour for 7.95 Euros (6.95 for Finnair Plus Members).

For the hour that I had Wi-Fi, the speeds were pretty good.

Lavatories

There are two lavatories at the front of the plane. I visited the one on the right side of the aircraft during my flight. Both times the lavatory was quite clean, though basic. There were no little amenities like mouthwash, etc. I did like that there were automatic sinks, and soap and lotion were provided by the Finnish brand SEES. 

Breakfast (Main Meal)

About an hour and 30 minutes before our scheduled arrival, breakfast was served. It first started with a hot towel service, and it came with 2 cold plates of cold cuts and fresh fruit. Then you could choose between a:

• Spinach frittata served with bacon, goat cheese, and red pepper relish
• Blueberry pancakes served with berry compote and creme anglaise
• Scrambled eggs served with cream cheese, potatoes, tomatoes and tomato sauce

I opted for the blueberry pancakes as blueberries are very popular in Finland! Unfortunately, the pancakes felt soggy, and the blueberry sauce was too sweet for me. I did enjoy the fruits provided, and I got the Orange and Ginger Fizz mocktail which was a great wake up call.

Next thing I knew, it was time for landing and the flight attendants passed by with little candies before.

We touched down at 1:40 pm and got to the gate less than 10 minutes later.

The Verdict

Overall, I really enjoyed my first ever flight on Finnair, and liked the hard product of the new AirLounge aboard the Airbus A330. The service was also friendly, and I found the cabin to be quite clean. The meal service was alright, and the limited amenities offered onboard were minor detractions from the overall experience. But overall, I had a solid flight and would not hesitate to fly the Finnair A330 Business Class product again.

Have you flown on the new seats aboard the Finnair A330 Business Class? How was your experience? Comment below!

Cheers,

Ty

Have any questions? I’ve also started working with a travel agency, Fora Travel, and can assist in booking hotel stays or planning trips. Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!