LATAM 767-300 Business Class Initial Thoughts New York-Lima
- Konrad Tillman
- Jul 7
- 7 min read
Intro
Unlike my other "initial thoughts" posts, I promise to keep this somewhat brief and hold off on the tangents 😅.
Hello from Los Angeles, where I have just finished up a quick trip down to South America! I recently had the opportunity to try out the LATAM 767-300ER in business class from New York to Lima, and I've gotta say, I am a little bit disappointed.
After flying the 787 in Business a couple of times and loving it, I was hoping that the 767-300ER product would shine. Guess I was wrong. While I will have a full review sometime in the future, here are my initial thoughts on this product!
For reference, I booked this ticket about 3 weeks in advance for 50K VS Miles, with minimal fees.
Check-In/Lounge Situation At JFK
Arriving about 3 hours prior to departure, I was pleased to see LATAM operating from check-in zone 7 at Terminal 4. However, what I wasn't so pleased about was that it had turned into the Central Park Zoo inside.
Even with business class check-in available, it took a whopping 25 minutes to check in when there were only 8 passengers in line with 1 agent helping. I am sorry, but that is the longest I have waited to check in for a business class ticket.
Please don't mistake my criticism for a lack of gratefulness. However, it is important to point out where LATAM can improve
Breezing through TSA with precheck, it was a matter of time before I was at the Delta One Lounge. Luckily, those flying on LATAM in Business Class have access to this beautiful space, which I have previously reviewed in more depth.
Not much has changed, aside from the fact that there can occasionally be lines to get in nowadays.
The Brasserie (restaurant) began serving lunch at 11:30 am, so I headed off to grab a quick bite. If you happen to be flying any of the LATAM departures, you will be able to have a nice meal before boarding and trust me, you want to 😉 (more on that in a bit).
Boarding
With a stomach full to the brim from 2 steaks and a burger (I think I might turn into a cow one day), I headed off to gate B30, where we would be boarding today.
Interestingly, LATAM boards the aircraft about an hour before departure, which for a 767-300ER is a lot longer than needed, presumably...
Boarding started with Business Class passengers, followed by those in Groups 2,3,4, etc...
Needless to say, boarding took 1 hour and 15 minutes. I'm not quite sure how that is even feasible, but it was the case 😅. We ended up pushing back 15 minutes behind schedule...
The Seat/Cabin
Just like the 787-9, LATAM decided to install a very similar seat on their 767-300ER. The cabin is laid out with 5 rows of business class in a 1-2-1 configuration, offering direct aisle access to all passengers.
My advice would be to select a window seat in the odd rows if you are a solo traveler, while if you are traveling together, select one of the center pairs in an odd row as well...
Be aware: seat 5A or 5L will be blocked off for crew rest on these longer hops, needing 3 members of the flight deck.
So I won't get into too many details about the seat, but here are a few of my observations from seat 3L (closer to the window), which I selected for this flight:
The seat has enough storage for everything you need. There is a small pop-up cubby next to your arm that can hold your phone, wallet, and passport, while you can store your laptop on top of it (look where the slipper is in the photo).
It's extremely narrow, especially in bed mode. Getting in and out of the seat was a little bit of a challenge, and I like to consider myself in good health at 165 lbs and 6 feet tall. I had to give myself a little shimmy to fit between the side storage console and the back of the seat in front...
When lying down, the footwell is tight, one of the tightest you'll come across on a widebody...
So look, while I will always appreciate having a lie-flat seat, and this is a miles better product than what they used to have on their 767s, you can notably tell the difference between the 767 and 787 products. It's similar to Air Canada and their 787 versus A330 business classes.
Oh yeah, no overhead vents either... First-world problems, I know 😂.
Amenities
Where I will give credit to LATAM is with the amenities offered on their long-haul Business Class product. Waiting at my seat upon boarding were two bags, including a lovely mattress pad, a plush pillow, and a very comfortable blanket. Additionally, we were given a beautiful amenity kit, a pair of slippers, and a very good quality pair of headphones...
IFE+WIFI
In terms of entertainment options, LATAM drops the ball by not offering any wifi on their 767 fleet. I get that these planes are old, but this could be a serious caveat for certain business travelers.
However, there are plenty of options on the seatback screen in front of you, featuring new release movies, to plenty of TV shows such as "The Agency". (small rant) If you haven't seen The Agency, you have to! It's an exhilarating show that kept me on my toes the whole time about Sudan and Ethiopia.
Meal Service
Upon boarding the aircraft, I was pleased to see a menu with a wide selection of items for today's flight. After takeoff, there was an option of lunch, and prior to arrival, there was an option of a snack.
Just before departure, a flight attendant came around to take orders for both meals. While I was only in row 3, they had already run out of a few options for the main, and I was the last one to be able to select a meat sandwich prior to landing. LATAM, come on, you have the options for 5 mains, but by row 4, only 2 are left??
Once we were airborne, the meal service started 45 minutes after takeoff with nuts and a glass of champagne (they come around with a champagne tray, which makes 0 sense in case some go to waste). Why not just ask what we want?
For the next 45 minutes: nothing.
Eventually, the whole meal came out about 1 hour and 30 minutes after departure. While I had pre-ordered the chocolate ice-cream before departure, they had somehow "run out". Huh?
Overall, I found the meal to be tasty. The tenderloin was, in fact, tender 😉, the starter was good, and the ice cream was a good way to finish off the meal.
Approximately 2 hours before landing, the cabin crew came out to distribute the pre-landing snack. The options that were given to us were a "veggie sandwich" or a "non-veggie".
I went with the non-veggie, which consisted of prosciutto, arugula, tomatoes, and cheese, and came with a bag of chips. I loved the cute newspaper packaging, and it was overall quite tasty!
Service
I know this is a long initial thoughts post, but the last thing I want to touch on is service. I have consistently found service on LATAM to be very well-intentioned and friendly, but extremely slow. For a daytime flight, this isn't the end of the world, but I have taken red-eyes with the airline and have seen the exact same thing.
Anyways, here are a couple of things that stood out to me, both good and bad:
Upon boarding, I was greeted by name, which is always a nice gesture
There were no pre-departure beverages
I went to the toilet near door 1L and found the cockpit open mid-flight. Now, this is a major safety issue, even if it was for a brief second. I hate to call out LATAM, but the crew should have blocked access to the galley during this time...
Originally, I had specifically requested the tenderloin, but they brought out the pasta. Thankfully, they still had a tenderloin left...
The overall timing of the meal service felt extremely slow. No one came by to check in on drinks; you had to flag an FA down
And even when I pressed the call bell, I ended up waiting 10 minutes before giving up and going to the galley midway through the flight
But here is where I am conflicted. Every interaction I had with the crew was extremely friendly. They were always smiling, and were efficient outside of meal orders when you could actually get a hold of them...
It was a bit of juxtaposition... but more on that in the full review...
Final Thoughts
Honestly, and weirdly, this flight sort of reminded me of my visit to Afghanistan. It's a tale of two stories, within the same setting. On the one hand, you have lie-flat seats, good food, and exceptional wine, and cabin crew with smiles, while on the other hand, you have tight seats, slow service, no wifi, and cockpit doors open... So yeah, Afghanistan is a weird example, but in Bamian, you have the beautiful landscapes and people, but surrounded by the Taliban...
Would I fly LATAM again in Business Class? Absolutely, but I would look to seek out the 787 product instead of the 767-300ER. Not to say the 767 product was bad, it's just the 787 might be one of the best hard products in the Americas...
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