Wow. Very detailed review! And after watching it I understand that word “DISAPPOINTING” is a clickbait because it wasn’t disappointing at all and actually kuch better service than most of SAS, LH or Swiss flights I took. However, you didn’t do much homework about LOT and its plans , which were officially announced already 2-3 years ago and can be found all over internet, did you? Firstly, LOT stopped counting on Polish diaspora years ago - now it flies basically whole Eastern and Central Europeans everywhere and most of their Asian flights are either with Asian passengers or Western Europeans. So places like Buenos Aires or Houston are not really on their scope. According to their official plans, new longhaul destinations should be Washington, Boston and San Francisco ( which were already about to be opened in 2020, but pandemic happened) and Osaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Mingh, Bangkok, Shanghai or some other Chinese city. Generally LOT wants to add 10+ longhaul and 30-40+ short and medium hauls within next 5 years. BUT they need more airplanes, which they are now about to announce. Soon they will have 100 airplanes in total but longhaul fleets is yet to be announced. Additionally LOT already announced and presented to the world their new 787 cabins, which are being installed from 2026 - just check online. Funny, when you mentioned “weird” duck dish - that is a most normal and traditional dish ever and that’s how it should be served. And to finish, LOT is basically the only carrier in that part of Europe ( well ok, technically Austrian is the same part of Europe, because you technically consider Finnair as “Nordic” ) with traditional service and longhaul destinations. Air Serbia is only starting but is many time smaller than LOT, with 2, maybe 3 A330s and that’s it. So LOT is the only major player in this part of a continent and expending like crazy. Another thing - company profits are not always meant to be spend but in care of post-covid reality, to be paid as a loan airlines took from governments etc. That’s a case here too. LOT was one of the tens of companies which needed government help to survive and is paying that loan back now. And regarding investment in a service - LOT still offers small catering and beverages for free to all Economy passengers ( unlike LH, OS, LX, SK and many others). Only this year several brand new airplanes arrived , 10 new destinations were opened ( from Lisbon to Tashkent and Riyadh!) and another ones are waiting to be announced- so here are your investments.
Thank you for the correction to what is typical American style reporting. Lazy and easy, I enjoyed this TH-camr until now..LOT is a hidden gem with better quality than most “household name” airlines.
Chodzi Ci zapewne o CPK. niestety, nowy rząd Tuska, tak chce realizować ten projekt, żeby go nigdy nie zrealizować. CPK jest wbrew interesom Niemiec, a Niemcy nie po to pomogli Tuskowi wygrać wybory, żeby tracili miliardy € na tym, że w Polsce powstałby hub pasażersko-towarowy
@@horyzontzdarzen4628 Nie chodzi o interes Niemiec baranie tylko o hajs, bo takie dziury w budżecie mamy, że jeszcze pary ładnych lat sobie poczekamy, dodatkowo jeszcze te głupke zasiłki. A PIS traktujący UE jak gówno nie pomógł w zdobyciu dofinansowania.
The duck, cabbage, and dumpling dinner is a super common meal in Central Europe, my Czech grandma always makes it when I visit. Czech pubs usually make great one too
I flew LOT on a short jump from Prague to Kraków very pleasanty, and it was economy. Contrary to other airlines, we had a very generousl and tasty lunch, complete. A wonderful experience.
LOT was a small airline before WW2 but it operated longest north - south route in Europe from Helsinki to Athens with several stops: Riga, Wilno ( Vilnius ), Warsaw, Krakow, Budapest, Belgrade, Thessaloniki. In the sixties it operated also some modern turboprop planes from UK - Vickers Viscount.
I flew LOT twice-once 30 years ago and now in 2024. I remember that I could have fun, and there was sweet food. However, now that I am an adult man, I would give a star to the service. They did not look tired and were apparently nice for that reason. And a second for the food. It is a different higher class than the Germans, Nordics, or French have. Besides, in the restaurants in the city, you can go down very well and cheaply.
Thanks Patrick for another informative airline view. I have never heard anything bad about LOT all I have heard was how good of an airline they are. I agree with you on the 2x2x2 seating in business especially the window seats when getting out you've got to climb over the person. I don't mind 2x2x2, but window, Isle seats should be one facing forward one facing rear as this would eliminate the climbing over the person in Isle seat as all you'd have to do is have access behind Isle seat to get in and out. I've seen this seating in other aircraft. the meal service you received seemed normal for an European to North American flight. 1 full meal and 1 light meal and that is in all classes of seating. Okay cheers and looking forward to next video
It was not soviet ocupation. Poland had own governmant, own oarlament, own armed forces, own language and everything. Poland was is soviet influence zone and in warsaw pact after USA sold Poand to the soviet influence zone in Yalta even Polish contribution to the vicotory over nazigermany was 3rd biggest in western allies. Tht's why we consider americans and Brits as traitors. it is even teached in schools as "double western betreyal".
@@300spartan2222 You know shit. USa had Nuclear weapon in those times and soviet union didn't. Making political pressure would be enough but there was lack of will. Western powers did that for Austria . They removed soviets from there. Your history knowledge sucks.
Funny you arrived from Prague because Prague is most likely gonna be next secondary hub for LOT or CSA-LOT if they decides to bring it back after buying smartwings. Wish we gonna grow LOT fast enough to keep it alive and profitable in changing market. Overall there were Plans with getting aditional 787-10 or A350XWB but there was not enought gates at Warsaw-Chopin Airport for Widebodies. There are plans for both extending Chopin airport and build a new one (not as well located as Chopin is).
@obgaming101 Propably a little with more planes between, Prague should be the biggest secoundary hub with several 787-8's & A220 unlike Budapest and Vilnus. Likely Lot would put there most of 787-8's they courently own when they gonna buy 787-9 and 787-10 for Warsaw. They own 7, at least 1 will stay in Warsaw, 1 for Hungry (US & Korea) and 1 might be placed in Vilnus if lot have extra planes coz from what i have heard lithuanian gov is intrested in having direct connection from Vilnus to Lithuanian diaspora in US.
LOT got hit hard with the delay in 787s initial delivery, then the RR engine issue, which by the way has been going on since 2012!!! Then the 737Max fiasco, Covid. LOT did not have the money, and had to repay the Covid loans, again did not have the money to upgrade anything. Good news is a new business class seat 1-2-1 will begin being installed in 2026, of course for many of us it is way late. The new seats are coming out with the same color palate as the new lounges as in Chicago next JFK and remaking of the lounge in Warsaw. Also remember the new CKP airport is in the plans. So don’t expect massive updates in Warsaw. LOT right now is focusing on regional jets and should be making a decision soon, in the meantime it is snagging up leases on 737Maxes wherever it can. Longhoul right now is on the back burner , until the engine issues are over (2-3 aircraft are down at a time) and the cabin refresh done past 2029??! Not much there will happen. LOT will keep their business class cheaper then the rest. While economy plus and economy are usually more expensive than other carriers.
4:30 Zywiec is one of my favourites. I've only flown LOT short-haul. Nothing special but better than Ryanair or Wizzair on flights from Liverpool or Manchester.
LOT should exceed its presence in the United Kingdom. They fly only to LHR and only 3 times per day. It's unbelievable for me when more than a million Poles still live there.
@@airlinernee8292 The Polish expats seem to prefer Wizzair or Ryanair despite their fares being basically the same as LOT's after all the add-on fees are included.
LOT has not paid my 600 euro voucher for volunteering on overbooked flight WAW-ORD. Everytime I try to to get the list of documents LOT wants, LOT goes silent.
Just flew them from ord to otp via waw. Cabin shows it's age but staff service is great. Efficient transfer to otp easy airport to connect. Though outgrowing it's capacity
LOT was in a lot of debt and obviously, they couldn't invest all the money they earned instantly. The retrofit is planned for 2026, don't forget about the fact that they're about to buy 50+ A220s/E2s. Great review, I hope you enjoyed the journey.
this was a very interesting video to watch from the perspective of a pole living in poland. as someone who gets incredible anxiety when abroad, and also afraid of flying quite a bit (despite having flown twice) for some reason this video gave me more confidence to travel. thanks!
I agree. Their planes are old and outdated. The business class is nothing special. But….they are typically cheaper than other business class flights. And if you’re in it for a flatbed, and nothing else, LOTS IS a good option
Absolutely not old. Outdated - yes, because they were one of 787 launch customers, so they made their order well in advance, making the features and equipment lagging those who managed to update their orders before delivery. I think LOT probably didn't want to touch the order due to financial difficulties, cause every update means new "upgrade" pricing. Then they decided to keep the outdated layouts for the newer planes, probably for consistency in servicing. "Expected" standard for business class changed very quickly during that time. But if you look at American carriers they always show you their latest design and layouts, but it usually applies to small fraction of their fleet, with other planes being refurbished for years after launch of their "flagship" product.
@@Altonahh10You must be joking. Poland is very famous for a great and healthy food. At least pierogies or kielbasa and our great bread. You have to try our specialities!
I absolutely LOVE this airline ❤ Their business class configuration is very spacious, open and once you recline your seat there’s lots of room for sleeping. The entire crew is always professional yet friendly and very attentive
LOT surely has a potential to grow thanks to major Polish diaspora in North America. Yep they seem to be a bit slow with some upgrades. Hope they catch up fast.
Taking in consideration Buenos Aires as a possible destination, there’s no point. It’s a long flight but also they will need to compete mainly with Lufthansa (daily), ITA ( Nine weekly flights), AF/KL (both daily), British and Iberia (three daily flights).
I love flying with LOT in their business class and their premium economy. I don't mind their 2 x 2 x 2 cabin design. At least one still gets 3 windows - like it should be in business class. I've flown recently on B787 with Air Canada from Toronto to Buenos Aires and I barely had 1.5 window in their business class configuration. And the food was not great - at all. I love LOT's food and service. IMO - them and Turkish Airlines are the best in Star Alliance. If you would like to see my LOT business class experiences - I have a few videos about them on my channel. We can compare. Thanks for the video and greetings from Ontario, Canada 🤗Happy thanksgiving to you guys! 🦃
Exactly what i would have expected from LOT. They were a client of mine a few years ago. Nothing special but decent service. They actually offer a good price points versus if you connected on Lufthansa or ba.
I flew on a LOT 787 in business class and made the mistake of picking a window seat which blocked my aisle access. It was a pain having to climb over someone to use the restroom. We departed Warsaw an hour late and arrived in Toronto 45 minutes late which made my connecting flight tight.
Wait so when did this flight depart Europe? Most transatlantic flights leave mid morning to early afternoon bound for the Americas so I’m surprised this LOT flight is departing at 4pm, 5pm? Edit: per LOT website the Chicago bound flight leaves Warsaw at 5:20pm CET and arrives in Chicago at 8pm CST. I guess they’re not concerned about transfer passengers as most of the passengers on this particular flight will remain in Chicago. Add the delays plus immigration upon arrival this is not a flight to take if you have a tight connection in Chicago or continuing your journey to other parts of the US. Options will be severely limited arriving past 9 pm even for a major hub like ORD.
The year round flight is later in the day like that, but their extra flight they add for the summer (LOT1) has more traditional times, leaves WAW at 12:05, lands at ORD at 3:10pm.
That's exactly right, I think LOT was either pushed out of United/ Star Alliance network in the US, or decided they didn't care about anybody who lives outside of their destination airports. This may be an fallout from the bankruptcy (technically "restructurization" under EU rules) somewhere around 2011-2012, when they had to shrink their network and severely cut costs to legally receive government subsidy and survive. They lost or relinquished afternoon slots in their US hubs and never got them back, not sure if they even tried. They seem to be content delivering people without opportunity to get a flight the same day. There are some seasonal flights a few times a week during summer season with landing at times one can change planes, but during winter season it's all evening landings. This is why I was unable to fly LOT from my city to Poland for more than 10 years now, even if I wanted to (I won't be spending extra night in New York or Chicago if three or four other airlines can carry me in one day). I don't really miss it too much anyway. To add their bizarre position in US market, they are part of Star Alliance, but fly to JFK, Miami and LA, rather than EWR, HOU, or SFO respectively). It makes them basically a "phantom" Star Alliance member. Perhaps Star Alliance losing SAS will change that and they get back better slots in Chicago and get another flight to EWR at decent hours.
Your observations about 2-2-2 business class seats is spot on. They are dated, but then they are more comfortable once you're there. I'm on large (wide) side and as much as I like direct access to the aisle, I hate these "pod" seats with narrow footwells and shoulder space so narrow I cannot lie flat there at all and end up at 150 degrees just to not to dislocate my shoulders. BTW, LOT never had 757 in their fleet. I think you just misspoke there. That had/have 737 (classic, NG, Max), 767, 787 and other non-Boeing aircraft.
To be fair to the lounge; you skipped over the Elite Lounge which only admits passengers departing on overseas flights and M&M Hon members they have a higher quality selection of food and drink and additional seating!
What could go wrong with taking shots of vodka in the airport lounge before boarding a plane? A Latvian friend flying Riga- Oslo last year on Ryanair on a one hour flight said a group of drunken Lithuanians were detained by police in Oslo for being unruly and arguing with the flight crew.
Almost flew LOT to Copenhagen from ohare, but settled for a direct flight on SAS. Still waiting for someone to do a comprehensive review on the Belgrade-Chicago route with air Serbia.
I flew Air Serbia BEG - JFK several times during the pandemic. A great 1-1-1 layout in Business on their A330 albeit in a strange inward facing configuration with wonderful service throughout each flight.
I asked this question earlier this year and Patrick said he had it already booked for this year. But that was back in earlier 2024, and now we only have 1.5 months left in 2024. Because I would very much like to see the Belgrade-Chicago route as well. Sounds like it has been doing pretty good with high load factors.
The Dash 8s are disappearing around the globe, but honestly they're great airplane. I honestly think there's enough people who fear a plane with propellers
I’m fairly impressed with the historical backgrounds you provide in your reviews. Learned a bunch of new LOT facts. But, for someone who clearly does a lot of research, you missed some vitals. Yes, LOT is making a profit, and they got huge investments under way. The main WAW lounge has been renovated since the summer and opens this month. I do agree that the shower situation is bad. Not sufficient for so many passengers. That non-Schengen lounge is tiny. Yet, food wise and drinks wise way better stocked than let’s say the Arlanda SAS lounge. LOT is also building a lounge in Chicago, and there are big plans for a flagship lounge at the new JFK terminal that opens starting 2026- but that’s a fair while off before it becomes a reality. LOT’s cabins are dated, BUT, just like many big Star Alliance players like Lufthansa and Turkish, the 2-2-2 dreaded will remain in place for a while. I flew to Australia with Turkish this year and they used the old setup. Not their new 1-2-1. Same with the vast majority of Lufthansa’s fleet. Flying to the US last year I felt like their business was of premium economy density. Good new; LOT has announced a total refurbishment of all Dreamliners with 1-2-1 setups. The upgrade program for all cabins is meant to be done end of 2026 - About cabins: paxex.aero/lot-polish-787-8-cabin-design-retrofit/ About lounge in Chicago: www.airportsinternational.com/article/clune-builds-lots-first-us-lounge#:~:text=With%20Chicago%20home%20to%20one,flown%20in%20by%20the%20airline. About JFK project: simpleflying.com/lot-polish-jfk-terminal-1-move/ About WAW lounge: pressoffice.lot.com/360856-lot-business-lounge-polonez-at-the-warsaw-chopin-airport-will-get-a-brand-new-interior
I flew with them the past summer (WAW-LAX) in biz. The 2-2-2 config was better than what I had expected, as you pointed out. Will def. fly with them again.
There used to be more flag carries in Central Eastern Europe, such as Malev and Czech airlines which recently ceased operations. I have flown Lot a couple of times. I agree with you that its business class standards lacks the standards compared to other European carriers such as Air France Lufthansa, KLM, British, ect. I do believe that Lot will upgrade its business class until 2026. It is unfortunate that the airline is behind with some services such as WIFI and other contemplary services that are the standard with other business class cabins in other airlines. But I respect your critique and thorough assesment of your analysis of Lot's Business class.
Interesting experience on LOT's biz product, although Warsaw as a city is pretty bad*ss! I've yet to fly on LOT; when I visited Warsaw in the mid-2010s I flew in via Alitalia and flew out via Czech.
Unfortunately lot have management problem what not focusing to bring foreign travellers between Poland and North America instead focusing on Polish diaspora and Polish people are very supportive to Lot ? You can see in your comment ? Polish Arline have monopoly on America destination as there is no competition ? No American Arline fly to Poland and I don’t know why ? Yes I heard that they going update the Arline or build new airport but this is years away ? Now we have three star Arline for very long time ? You can see the food is average without any presentation ? Maybe for Polish people that is great standard but for International traveler it is disappointing !
I never flew LOT on long distance. But their European service was always reliable and on time. And of course, LOT is less expensive. But nevertheless, I prefer the flag carriers of LH-group…
You must be joking! There are many more things they are good at. First of all not fly they directly to the US but also to many other cities on the Middle East and far Asia. They bought brand new Boeings 737'800 and Max. They serve good food and offer many domestic connections. I am also Polish, so I know what I am talking about now. They are expanding their fleet all the time now approaching to 90 aircraft soon and many more.
hardly disappointing, I have flown much worse many times on leading European airlines. Business lounges at Okie Airport are a disgrace I must agree, they are always crowded, and food is rather limited, this seems to be a quite universal problem nowadays in Europe ( T5 BA lounges are just as bad for this )
Good news is that LOT Polish will start retrofitting their 787-8s with brand new cabins starting from 2026. The bad news is that it is in 2026
Those planes are not that old to be retrofitted elier, as they are gonna be at worst 13yo.
Can you believe 2026 is only 13 months away 😊
Thank you. Unfortunately you did not show the french champagne
Wow. Very detailed review!
And after watching it I understand that word “DISAPPOINTING” is a clickbait because it wasn’t disappointing at all and actually kuch better service than most of SAS, LH or Swiss flights I took. However, you didn’t do much homework about LOT and its plans , which were officially announced already 2-3 years ago and can be found all over internet, did you?
Firstly, LOT stopped counting on Polish diaspora years ago - now it flies basically whole Eastern and Central Europeans everywhere and most of their Asian flights are either with Asian passengers or Western Europeans. So places like Buenos Aires or Houston are not really on their scope. According to their official plans, new longhaul destinations should be Washington, Boston and San Francisco ( which were already about to be opened in 2020, but pandemic happened) and Osaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Mingh, Bangkok, Shanghai or some other Chinese city. Generally LOT wants to add 10+ longhaul and 30-40+ short and medium hauls within next 5 years. BUT they need more airplanes, which they are now about to announce. Soon they will have 100 airplanes in total but longhaul fleets is yet to be announced.
Additionally LOT already announced and presented to the world their new 787 cabins, which are being installed from 2026 - just check online.
Funny, when you mentioned “weird” duck dish - that is a most normal and traditional dish ever and that’s how it should be served.
And to finish, LOT is basically the only carrier in that part of Europe ( well ok, technically Austrian is the same part of Europe, because you technically consider Finnair as “Nordic” ) with traditional service and longhaul destinations. Air Serbia is only starting but is many time smaller than LOT, with 2, maybe 3 A330s and that’s it. So LOT is the only major player in this part of a continent and expending like crazy.
Another thing - company profits are not always meant to be spend but in care of post-covid reality, to be paid as a loan airlines took from governments etc. That’s a case here too. LOT was one of the tens of companies which needed government help to survive and is paying that loan back now.
And regarding investment in a service - LOT still offers small catering and beverages for free to all Economy passengers ( unlike LH, OS, LX, SK and many others). Only this year several brand new airplanes arrived , 10 new destinations were opened ( from Lisbon to Tashkent and Riyadh!) and another ones are waiting to be announced- so here are your investments.
Thank you for the correction to what is typical American style reporting. Lazy and easy, I enjoyed this TH-camr until now..LOT is a hidden gem with better quality than most “household name” airlines.
Poland is currently at the end of the process of designing and really close to start building a new larger airport out of town
Addressing the airport problems like the lounge and boarding
Who told you that? Mr.Tusk or some other Lasek?
Chodzi Ci zapewne o CPK. niestety, nowy rząd Tuska, tak chce realizować ten projekt, żeby go nigdy nie zrealizować. CPK jest wbrew interesom Niemiec, a Niemcy nie po to pomogli Tuskowi wygrać wybory, żeby tracili miliardy € na tym, że w Polsce powstałby hub pasażersko-towarowy
@@horyzontzdarzen4628 Nie chodzi o interes Niemiec baranie tylko o hajs, bo takie dziury w budżecie mamy, że jeszcze pary ładnych lat sobie poczekamy, dodatkowo jeszcze te głupke zasiłki. A PIS traktujący UE jak gówno nie pomógł w zdobyciu dofinansowania.
The new Gouverment is authoritarian and antipolish.
How can you say central and Eastern Europe lack long-haul carriers? They have a LOT 😉
I don’t fly a LOT because I don’t fly a lot. But if I flew a lot, I’d fly a LOT.
There are lots of LOT on the lot
Wow, you love or you loath these comments but, if I'm not asking a lot, is it like a lottery to fly with LOT?
Let yourselves out, guys
😂
I've been on LOT 787 business class many times between WAW and JFK/EWR. Always great service and a comfortable cabin.
The duck, cabbage, and dumpling dinner is a super common meal in Central Europe, my Czech grandma always makes it when I visit. Czech pubs usually make great one too
LOT is about to update its cabins.
No they're not. Two years from now.
I flew LOT on a short jump from Prague to Kraków very pleasanty, and it was economy. Contrary to other airlines, we had a very generousl and tasty lunch, complete. A wonderful experience.
Omg bro! I was on that flight with you in business class. I was in 4A. Lol that was you!
LOT was a small airline before WW2 but it operated longest north - south route in Europe from Helsinki to Athens with several stops: Riga, Wilno ( Vilnius ), Warsaw, Krakow, Budapest, Belgrade, Thessaloniki.
In the sixties it operated also some modern turboprop planes from UK - Vickers Viscount.
I flew LOT twice-once 30 years ago and now in 2024. I remember that I could have fun, and there was sweet food. However, now that I am an adult man, I would give a star to the service. They did not look tired and were apparently nice for that reason. And a second for the food. It is a different higher class than the Germans, Nordics, or French have. Besides, in the restaurants in the city, you can go down very well and cheaply.
This is an in-depth and fair review-thank you! Greetings from Poland!
This airline means a LOT to Poland
Great review. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Patrick for another informative airline view. I have never heard anything bad about LOT all I have heard was how good of an airline they are. I agree with you on the 2x2x2 seating in business especially the window seats when getting out you've got to climb over the person. I don't mind 2x2x2, but window, Isle seats should be one facing forward one facing rear as this would eliminate the climbing over the person in Isle seat as all you'd have to do is have access behind Isle seat to get in and out. I've seen this seating in other aircraft. the meal service you received seemed normal for an European to North American flight. 1 full meal and 1 light meal and that is in all classes of seating. Okay cheers and looking forward to next video
18:10, "Soviet occupation after WW2....In 1945." The Soviet Occupation began in 1945 and de facto ended in 1990.
19:25 LOT never operated the 757...brah you need to get your facts straight
Well the soviet occupation sterted in 1939 when they attacked with adolf (ribbentrop molotov pact) soviets teamed up with nazis at begining ;)
It was not soviet ocupation. Poland had own governmant, own oarlament, own armed forces, own language and everything. Poland was is soviet influence zone and in warsaw pact after USA sold Poand to the soviet influence zone in Yalta even Polish contribution to the vicotory over nazigermany was 3rd biggest in western allies. Tht's why we consider americans and Brits as traitors. it is even teached in schools as "double western betreyal".
@ my man I am polish and know my History … yes we were sold but they had to .. did you want a 3rd world war just after the second ?
@@300spartan2222 You know shit. USa had Nuclear weapon in those times and soviet union didn't. Making political pressure would be enough but there was lack of will. Western powers did that for Austria . They removed soviets from there. Your history knowledge sucks.
They were supposed to launch SFO service in June 2020 😭
Funny you arrived from Prague because Prague is most likely gonna be next secondary hub for LOT or CSA-LOT if they decides to bring it back after buying smartwings. Wish we gonna grow LOT fast enough to keep it alive and profitable in changing market. Overall there were Plans with getting aditional 787-10 or A350XWB but there was not enought gates at Warsaw-Chopin Airport for Widebodies. There are plans for both extending Chopin airport and build a new one (not as well located as Chopin is).
The Lot hub in Prague sprarked my interest. Could this finally lead to reasonably priced tickets between the Warsaw and Prague?
@obgaming101 Propably a little with more planes between, Prague should be the biggest secoundary hub with several 787-8's & A220 unlike Budapest and Vilnus. Likely Lot would put there most of 787-8's they courently own when they gonna buy 787-9 and 787-10 for Warsaw. They own 7, at least 1 will stay in Warsaw, 1 for Hungry (US & Korea) and 1 might be placed in Vilnus if lot have extra planes coz from what i have heard lithuanian gov is intrested in having direct connection from Vilnus to Lithuanian diaspora in US.
CLICKBAIT ALERT!!! I watched, so that you don't have to... Nothing dissappointing here, everything was ok, just wasn't exceptional, clickbait!
LOT actually announced service to SFO, but COVID squashed it. They planned on operating it 4x per week and had flight numbers LO 35/36.
Don't see anything disappointing with the flight.
LOT got hit hard with the delay in 787s initial delivery, then the RR engine issue, which by the way has been going on since 2012!!! Then the 737Max fiasco, Covid. LOT did not have the money, and had to repay the Covid loans, again did not have the money to upgrade anything.
Good news is a new business class seat 1-2-1 will begin being installed in 2026, of course for many of us it is way late. The new seats are coming out with the same color palate as the new lounges as in Chicago next JFK and remaking of the lounge in Warsaw. Also remember the new CKP airport is in the plans. So don’t expect massive updates in Warsaw. LOT right now is focusing on regional jets and should be making a decision soon, in the meantime it is snagging up leases on 737Maxes wherever it can. Longhoul right now is on the back burner , until the engine issues are over (2-3 aircraft are down at a time) and the cabin refresh done past 2029??! Not much there will happen. LOT will keep their business class cheaper then the rest. While economy plus and economy are usually more expensive than other carriers.
4:30 Zywiec is one of my favourites.
I've only flown LOT short-haul. Nothing special but better than Ryanair or Wizzair on flights from Liverpool or Manchester.
LOT should exceed its presence in the United Kingdom. They fly only to LHR and only 3 times per day. It's unbelievable for me when more than a million Poles still live there.
@@airlinernee8292 The Polish expats seem to prefer Wizzair or Ryanair despite their fares being basically the same as LOT's after all the add-on fees are included.
I love your videos, and I really appreciate the history lesson we get with each one! Hope you’re having a good autumn
I've had a few excellent flights with LOT in economy. Would love to see a review on one of their more unique routes, such as Wroclaw-Seoul.
Hello Patrick - one thing to note is the Russian overflying ban and LOT's cancellation of Beijing.
LOT has not paid my 600 euro voucher for volunteering on overbooked flight WAW-ORD. Everytime I try to to get the list of documents LOT wants, LOT goes silent.
Just flew them from ord to otp via waw. Cabin shows it's age but staff service is great. Efficient transfer to otp easy airport to connect. Though outgrowing it's capacity
LOT was in a lot of debt and obviously, they couldn't invest all the money they earned instantly. The retrofit is planned for 2026, don't forget about the fact that they're about to buy 50+ A220s/E2s. Great review, I hope you enjoyed the journey.
this was a very interesting video to watch from the perspective of a pole living in poland. as someone who gets incredible anxiety when abroad, and also afraid of flying quite a bit (despite having flown twice) for some reason this video gave me more confidence to travel. thanks!
These Seats Are Good For Sleep.Great Video And Info
Looks good to me
I agree. Their planes are old and outdated. The business class is nothing special. But….they are typically cheaper than other business class flights. And if you’re in it for a flatbed, and nothing else, LOTS IS a good option
The average age of aircraft in the LOT’s fleet is 11 years.
Absolutely not old. Outdated - yes, because they were one of 787 launch customers, so they made their order well in advance, making the features and equipment lagging those who managed to update their orders before delivery. I think LOT probably didn't want to touch the order due to financial difficulties, cause every update means new "upgrade" pricing. Then they decided to keep the outdated layouts for the newer planes, probably for consistency in servicing. "Expected" standard for business class changed very quickly during that time. But if you look at American carriers they always show you their latest design and layouts, but it usually applies to small fraction of their fleet, with other planes being refurbished for years after launch of their "flagship" product.
@ so true
Orange juice with cajun chicken and pasta. Never change, Poland.
Well, Poland is not really famous for its delicious and sophisticated food.
@@Altonahh10You must be joking. Poland is very famous for a great and healthy food. At least pierogies or kielbasa and our great bread. You have to try our specialities!
I absolutely LOVE this airline ❤ Their business class configuration is very spacious, open and once you recline your seat there’s lots of room for sleeping. The entire crew is always professional yet friendly and very attentive
LOT surely has a potential to grow thanks to major Polish diaspora in North America. Yep they seem to be a bit slow with some upgrades. Hope they catch up fast.
"which is meant to be shared but my seatmate struggled to understand" 🤣
They are always a lot cheaper than the competition. That's their selling point. Given that, the config and soft product are competitive.
Taking in consideration Buenos Aires as a possible destination, there’s no point. It’s a long flight but also they will need to compete mainly with Lufthansa (daily), ITA ( Nine weekly flights), AF/KL (both daily), British and Iberia (three daily flights).
LOT is great! I've been flying so many airlines and I think their customer service is top notch!
I love flying with LOT in their business class and their premium economy. I don't mind their 2 x 2 x 2 cabin design. At least one still gets 3 windows - like it should be in business class. I've flown recently on B787 with Air Canada from Toronto to Buenos Aires and I barely had 1.5 window in their business class configuration. And the food was not great - at all. I love LOT's food and service. IMO - them and Turkish Airlines are the best in Star Alliance. If you would like to see my LOT business class experiences - I have a few videos about them on my channel. We can compare. Thanks for the video and greetings from Ontario, Canada 🤗Happy thanksgiving to you guys! 🦃
How many hours did you sleep on the plane?
6:10. Paint scheme was changed / updated several times over the years. The current livery is from 2020.
I always enjoy the journey very interesting nice aircraft airplane & airlines
Try Air France's Paris to Manila flights (I think they're using a350s) inaugurating soon.
The lounge reminds me of the LH lounge at LAX, not counting the Senator part of it of course.
2 dinners > dinner + breakfast
"No Polish bound flights." 10:12 WTF?
Exactly what i would have expected from LOT. They were a client of mine a few years ago. Nothing special but decent service. They actually offer a good price points versus if you connected on Lufthansa or ba.
Are these the old Turkish Airlines seats? The footrests look similar to what I've experienced on their 777-300ER's.
I think they're actually the same time, made by RECARO
I flew LOT recently from Toronto... I enjoyed the friendly staff it was my first as a United/ Air Canada 🇨🇦 my go to carriers
I flew on a LOT 787 in business class and made the mistake of picking a window seat which blocked my aisle access. It was a pain having to climb over someone to use the restroom. We departed Warsaw an hour late and arrived in Toronto 45 minutes late which made my connecting flight tight.
Very informative video Patrick.
Nice video and good information. But I don’t think I would describe the experience as “disappointing.”
Can't really see what was so disappointing. Pretty clickbait.
Toronto has a direct flights to Poland. We all are waiting for new CPK but for some reason it keeps on dragging on.
I much prefer that classic business class over Polaris. It’s more spacious, which makes a huge difference if you’re claustrophobic.
Polaris is a good product, in my opinion and I always prefer it to any European carrier flying to the US.
Wait so when did this flight depart Europe? Most transatlantic flights leave mid morning to early afternoon bound for the Americas so I’m surprised this LOT flight is departing at 4pm, 5pm?
Edit: per LOT website the Chicago bound flight leaves Warsaw at 5:20pm CET and arrives in Chicago at 8pm CST. I guess they’re not concerned about transfer passengers as most of the passengers on this particular flight will remain in Chicago. Add the delays plus immigration upon arrival this is not a flight to take if you have a tight connection in Chicago or continuing your journey to other parts of the US. Options will be severely limited arriving past 9 pm even for a major hub like ORD.
The year round flight is later in the day like that, but their extra flight they add for the summer (LOT1) has more traditional times, leaves WAW at 12:05, lands at ORD at 3:10pm.
That's exactly right, I think LOT was either pushed out of United/ Star Alliance network in the US, or decided they didn't care about anybody who lives outside of their destination airports. This may be an fallout from the bankruptcy (technically "restructurization" under EU rules) somewhere around 2011-2012, when they had to shrink their network and severely cut costs to legally receive government subsidy and survive. They lost or relinquished afternoon slots in their US hubs and never got them back, not sure if they even tried. They seem to be content delivering people without opportunity to get a flight the same day. There are some seasonal flights a few times a week during summer season with landing at times one can change planes, but during winter season it's all evening landings. This is why I was unable to fly LOT from my city to Poland for more than 10 years now, even if I wanted to (I won't be spending extra night in New York or Chicago if three or four other airlines can carry me in one day). I don't really miss it too much anyway. To add their bizarre position in US market, they are part of Star Alliance, but fly to JFK, Miami and LA, rather than EWR, HOU, or SFO respectively). It makes them basically a "phantom" Star Alliance member. Perhaps Star Alliance losing SAS will change that and they get back better slots in Chicago and get another flight to EWR at decent hours.
Great video!
Thanks!
Your observations about 2-2-2 business class seats is spot on. They are dated, but then they are more comfortable once you're there. I'm on large (wide) side and as much as I like direct access to the aisle, I hate these "pod" seats with narrow footwells and shoulder space so narrow I cannot lie flat there at all and end up at 150 degrees just to not to dislocate my shoulders. BTW, LOT never had 757 in their fleet. I think you just misspoke there. That had/have 737 (classic, NG, Max), 767, 787 and other non-Boeing aircraft.
Great Tripreport!
To be fair to the lounge; you skipped over the Elite Lounge which only admits passengers departing on overseas flights and M&M Hon members they have a higher quality selection of food and drink and additional seating!
What could go wrong with taking shots of vodka in the airport lounge before boarding a plane? A Latvian friend flying Riga- Oslo last year on Ryanair on a one hour flight said a group of drunken Lithuanians were detained by police in Oslo for being unruly and arguing with the flight crew.
at 21:02 about 2 blocks south from that intersection is my home 😁
Almost flew LOT to Copenhagen from ohare, but settled for a direct flight on SAS. Still waiting for someone to do a comprehensive review on the Belgrade-Chicago route with air Serbia.
I flew Air Serbia BEG - JFK several times during the pandemic. A great 1-1-1 layout in Business on their A330 albeit in a strange inward facing configuration with wonderful service throughout each flight.
I asked this question earlier this year and Patrick said he had it already booked for this year. But that was back in earlier 2024, and now we only have 1.5 months left in 2024. Because I would very much like to see the Belgrade-Chicago route as well. Sounds like it has been doing pretty good with high load factors.
I'm still perplexed by LOT getting rid of their Dash-8-Q400s. They were perfect for the shorter routes within Europe.
The Dash 8s are disappearing around the globe, but honestly they're great airplane. I honestly think there's enough people who fear a plane with propellers
Great vid, although one correction - we have never fielded 757's, sadly
I’m fairly impressed with the historical backgrounds you provide in your reviews. Learned a bunch of new LOT facts. But, for someone who clearly does a lot of research, you missed some vitals. Yes, LOT is making a profit, and they got huge investments under way. The main WAW lounge has been renovated since the summer and opens this month. I do agree that the shower situation is bad. Not sufficient for so many passengers. That non-Schengen lounge is tiny. Yet, food wise and drinks wise way better stocked than let’s say the Arlanda SAS lounge. LOT is also building a lounge in Chicago, and there are big plans for a flagship lounge at the new JFK terminal that opens starting 2026- but that’s a fair while off before it becomes a reality. LOT’s cabins are dated, BUT, just like many big Star Alliance players like Lufthansa and Turkish, the 2-2-2 dreaded will remain in place for a while. I flew to Australia with Turkish this year and they used the old setup. Not their new 1-2-1. Same with the vast majority of Lufthansa’s fleet. Flying to the US last year I felt like their business was of premium economy density. Good new; LOT has announced a total refurbishment of all Dreamliners with 1-2-1 setups. The upgrade program for all cabins is meant to be done end of 2026 - About cabins: paxex.aero/lot-polish-787-8-cabin-design-retrofit/
About lounge in Chicago: www.airportsinternational.com/article/clune-builds-lots-first-us-lounge#:~:text=With%20Chicago%20home%20to%20one,flown%20in%20by%20the%20airline.
About JFK project:
simpleflying.com/lot-polish-jfk-terminal-1-move/
About WAW lounge: pressoffice.lot.com/360856-lot-business-lounge-polonez-at-the-warsaw-chopin-airport-will-get-a-brand-new-interior
How are they coping with the impact from the Ukraine conflict? I imagine that would impact some of their flight routes a lot?
The only thing I can tell you from experience is that they always are late in departing.
That's interesting being in the five best punctual airlines in Europe. A few months ago the were on the first place...
I flew with them the past summer (WAW-LAX) in biz. The 2-2-2 config was better than what I had expected, as you pointed out. Will def. fly with them again.
Thanks Patrick for the business class trip report, enjoy your next journey brother.
potato dumplings are served in Poland with a lot of meats, so it's not so strange,
Great review. Surprised you did not mention anything about their new lounge coming to ORD? Or maybe I missed this somehow.
There used to be more flag carries in Central Eastern Europe, such as Malev and Czech airlines which recently ceased operations. I have flown Lot a couple of times. I agree with you that its business class standards lacks the standards compared to other European carriers such as Air France Lufthansa, KLM, British, ect. I do believe that Lot will upgrade its business class until 2026. It is unfortunate that the airline is behind with some services such as WIFI and other contemplary services that are the standard with other business class cabins in other airlines. But I respect your critique and thorough assesment of your analysis of Lot's Business class.
Another great video thanks Patrick
45 minutes late. You know every flight I’ve taken over the last few years has been late. OTP seems to be a thing of the past 😐
Just flew to Paris and back via Istanbul. Never late on departure, and always early on arrival.
Forgot about FINLAND!!! It technically is East of Germany.
Not quite Central Europe though, is it?
Austria is not “Eastern Europe”.
Neither is Poland. :)
easter europe or not, where the truck is it?
One of two airlines I’m never looking forward to fly. And the issue over the space with your seat mate seems to be this airline specific… had the same
Which is the other?
You haven't tried ryan air yet the lot is pretty good compared to that but very expensive
Actually LOT operates flights to Buenos Aires
Another great video!!
There are a few other decent lounges you'd have access too.
Well there's one airline I have flown but only within Europe.
Interesting experience on LOT's biz product, although Warsaw as a city is pretty bad*ss! I've yet to fly on LOT; when I visited Warsaw in the mid-2010s I flew in via Alitalia and flew out via Czech.
Love the in-depth commentary. I won't be seeking out LOT any time soon.
LOT flies to ICN from three cities Warsaw Budapest and Wrocław
Unfortunately lot have management problem what not focusing to bring foreign travellers between Poland and North America instead focusing on Polish diaspora and Polish people are very supportive to Lot ? You can see in your comment ? Polish Arline have monopoly on America destination as there is no competition ? No American Arline fly to Poland and I don’t know why ?
Yes I heard that they going update the Arline or build new airport but this is years away ? Now we have three star Arline for very long time ? You can see the food is average without any presentation ?
Maybe for Polish people that is great standard but for International traveler it is disappointing !
How dear you talking about this Earline’s 😂😂😂😂
I never flew LOT on long distance. But their European service was always reliable and on time. And of course, LOT is less expensive. But nevertheless, I prefer the flag carriers of LH-group…
LOT? Jesus everybody knows that POLISH AIRLINES is not comparing with standards of asian or Western Europe airlines
Lot is not perfect, but see Lufthansa, that's absolutely terrible business class seats.
Informative, well researched and a fair assessment.
LOT best airlines in the world - its crew speak Polish.
Business class is outdated. LOT provides direct flights from US to Poland and that is really the only positive about them.
You must be joking! There are many more things they are good at. First of all not fly they directly to the US but also to many other cities on the Middle East and far Asia. They bought brand new Boeings 737'800 and Max. They serve good food and offer many domestic connections. I am also Polish, so I know what I am talking about now. They are expanding their fleet all the time now approaching to 90 aircraft soon and many more.
hardly disappointing, I have flown much worse many times on leading European airlines. Business lounges at Okie Airport are a disgrace I must agree, they are always crowded, and food is rather limited, this seems to be a quite universal problem nowadays in Europe ( T5 BA lounges are just as bad for this )
Yikes 😳 2K for a third world seat configuration,food and lounge experience 😂😅🎉. Ya got played bruv.
Time. To. L o T. Step. Out. Wee need. American. Airlines. To. Non. Stop. Flying. Poland. Vis. 🇺🇸 USA
LOT never operated the 757