I am back in freezing Manhattan, having arrived from London yesterday after a fantastic experience on EOS airways (www.eosairlines.com) courtesy of the now bankrupt MaxJet airways on which I had started the first leg of my transatlantic journey in late November.  MaxJet declared bankruptcy on Christmas Eve and kept us dangling with minimum communication until one of its representatives decided to call us on New Year's Eve. We flew to New York City on EOS airlines on our scheduled departure date of the 2nd of January. Never having flown EOS both me and my husband who had been frequent fliers with MaxJet wondered if the EOS experience would be similar to the now defunct MaxJet. My brother in law who is a banker with HSBC and a frequent Trans Atlantic commuter assured us that EOS was far superior to MaxJet and its service was on par with BA’s Club World. We decided to wait until we got on board to form our opinions though the airline's website did look extremely slick but  even MaxJet had a pretty impressive website and it imploded within a year of operation.

A day before our journey I was compulsively looking at EOS airways website to view its contract of carriage as I wanted to know the airline’s baggage allowance. Nowhere on the website is the amount of free baggage allowance mentioned, instead there is an ambiguous statement which states that the amount of baggage allowance is determined by the fare you pay. Not much use to me as I was not buying a ticket but had been accommodated on EOS by MaxJet. A call to the EOS call center however soon cleared the air  along with the confirmation of our tickets, the representative told us that we were allowed four bags as long as they did not exceed the weight of 70 lbs each. I heaved a sigh of relief but couldn't help feeling a twinge of regret as I had not really shopped up a storm at London's excellent post Christmas sales for  I hadn't been  sure as to which carrier was taking me home or how much baggage allowance I had. The baggage allowance is always a source of extreme stress for me, as try as I might I am unable to cultivate the art of  packing lightly.

We awoke at the crack of dawn to drive to Stansted airport from our home in South London and once we had returned our hired car we proceeded to check in at the EOS counter. The ground staff was extremely efficient and able and even assured my husband that there was no need to buy TSA locks for our two unlocked bags as they would be safe aboard EOS. EOS carries only 48 passengers or ‘Guests’ as they call them on Boeing 757 aircraft which are built to carry 220 passengers hence luggage can be managed easily they said. After check in we were escorted to the Fast Track section for business class passengers by Monica, a chatty and personable EOS ground staff member. After a quick turn of the Duty Free shops we boarded the shuttle train which took us to the gate and the EOS lounge.

On arriving at the Lounge we discovered that we had neglected to put in our VAT refund forms at the custom's desk which is located right after security at Stansted. Once one is at the boarding   gate there was no way to go back to the custom's desk in the main terminal. We mentioned our predicament to the lady who was seated at the welcome desk of the EOS lounge. She promptly asked us to give her the forms and reassured us that she would take care of their submission so our refund was assured. Relieved, that the issue was sorted so easily we boarded the flight.

As soon as we had got to our ‘suite’ of two seats, our coats were taken by a charming flight attendant, called Evelyn who was manning the section that we were located in. Once comfortably seated with our seat belts fastened we were served a champagne cocktail before the aircraft took off. We were then soon handed out spiffy comfort kits and personal entertainment systems which came equipped with Bose noise reduction headphones.

Once we were airborne, a flight attendant came around to get our lunch orders and asked us, if we wanted to have lunch seated across one another. This was a first for us, having flown business class on many airlines; we had yet to this dining experience. The configuration on EOS is such that two seats are located side by side and both the seats expand into full 6ft 6” flat beds. The dining tray of the seat located near the window can expand to accommodate another dining tray, which is used by  your  dining companion who can seated on the seat which normally holds your pillow and blanket. This novel experience enhanced the enjoyment of the flight which was further buoyed by the continuous replenishment of our champagne cocktails.

Fully satiated after his meal, my husband returned to his part of the suite to ‘have a kip.’ I have to mention the thick blankets provided by EOS, were fully appreciated by someone like me who is perpetually cold on flight. I too lay down for a kip and before I knew it I had slept like a baby for over three hours. I woke up just in time for the serving of a traditional English high tea which consisted of scones and finger sandwiches. Soon after the serving of tea we commenced our descent into New York City and my enjoyable journey on EOS had ended all too soon.

Having flown a couple of times on Ba's Club World as well as the excellent Indian Jet Airway’s  Premiere Class ,I would say EOS holds its own against these carriers who are known for their excellent service in Business Class.

The only aspect of EOS, for which I have a rant is the selection of entertainment on the personal entertainment system neither the music nor the movie selection were very enthralling, that aside if I could afford the hefty $4000 price tag ,I would definitely chose EOS for my frequent trips to London.