Business Class on Airlink is pretty average.

I was a loyal Business Class flyer for local flights on BA/Comair for a number of years and knew what to expect from them. After they went out of business earlier this year, I decided to try the Business Class option on SA Airlink. Their Cape Town route, which is the one I use the most, was about 20% more expensive than the old BA, but I put that down to the increased fuel prices this year.

Overall, there were pros and cons. I'm glad the Slow Lounge option was available and I liked the touch of getting a SMS when boarding was commencing. However. on arriving at the gate, I see that there was no priority boarding for Business Class passengers - or rather, I think there was, but all the Economy passengers were standing in that row, with staff not bothered about it! (One star lost).

On the flight, I liked the fact that Business Class has a single seat option, so you don't have to sit next to anyone. Were were give wet towels, but they were cold which was quite uncomfortable and offered the standard still or sparkling water. In flight, we were offered drinks. I requested a scotch & soda - my "standard" on flight drink, only to be told that they don't serve spirits, so I asked for a beer - again to be told that there was no beer! In fact, besides soft drinks or coffee, all they had to offer was a white or red wine. I opted for the white wine. I didn't see tne bottle - I just got a plastic glass with what looked more like urine than wine. It was absolutely awful. In fact, urine probably would have tasted better! I was very disappointed that the drinks service was so very poor - you would expect a bit more in Business Class! (Another star lost).

However, I was pleasantly surprised with the meal, which was tasty and well presented - I wasn't expecting much after the drinks saga! Much better than the slop BA used to serve up. I thoroughly enjoyed the meal and, for a change, ate every morsel. It would have been better with a decent wine, though!

So, overall pretty average for Business Class. Certainly not worth 5 stars, but their good meal pushed them to 3 stars, when otherwise I would have given them 2 stars. However, if Airlink want to corner the Business Class market, they are certainly going to have to make some improvements to their offering. Unfortunately, nowhere near worth the price you pay for a Business Class ticket and I'm not sure if I'll use them again.