I recently flew from San Diego to Amsterdam in KLM 787-9 Economy Comfort (basic economy with four extra inches of legroom).
It was nearly 10 hours of a decently comfy seat, attentive service, mostly good food, lots of blue fabric, and awfully persuasive Heineken advertisements. Other than the slimy pancakes, I don’t have much to complain about.
The following is a full review of my experience. Spoiler alert: they were unsuccessful in getting beer into my belly.
KL640 San Diego, CA (SAN) – Amsterdam, Netherlands (AMS) Tuesday, June 3, 2025 Aircraft: 787-9 Registration: PH-BHH Duration: 9 hours 18 minutes Seat: 19G (Economy Comfort)
KLM 787-9 side view illustration by NorebboStock.comOur route from San Diego to Amsterdam today as KL640
Arrival at the airport (and checking in)
This flight was scheduled to depart SAN at 1:55 PM. I rolled into Terminal 2 West at exactly 10:36 AM like a man ready to fly long haul economy. In other words, I came prepared wearing the loosest and most worn out pair of underwear I had.
SAN to AMS on KLM FTW (and OMG)! Welcome to Terminal 2 West at the San Diego International Airport. IYKYK.“Should I tell them about the underwear? Or not?”
The KLM check in and baggage drop counter is located very deeply in the T2 West ticketing hall. Be prepared to walk.
The KLM check in / baggage drop area is hoppin’ with still 3 1/2 hours to go until departure. San Diego is nice and all, but it seems as if I’m not the only one looking forward to skipping town on a KLM 787-9 today.
Waiting for the flight
KLM economy passengers don’t get lounge access obviously. The trick is to arrive with enough time to spare, but not enough to be bored out of your mind. They certainly aren’t going to entertain you.
Be honest. If I didn’t tell you that there was an Air Canada Jazz CR9 sandwiched between these KLM and JAL 787’s, would you have even noticed?“No. It’s not time yet. I swear to God that we’re not going to leave without you.” I was a bit too far away to know for sure, but that looks to be how the conversation is going here at gate 51.“How ’bout now? How come they haven’t made the announcement?!” This flight leaving without me was not an option today.
The boarding process
I had a Zone 3 boarding pass for this flight, which is the best zone possible for economy. As if things couldn’t get any better, they actually started the boarding process a few minutes early.
My attempt to use Jedi mind tricks to turn this Economy Comfort boarding pass into a KLM World Business Class boarding pass was unsuccessful. Maybe I didn’t clench my sphincter tight enough? I don’t know.Not only is this the first time that I’ve ever boarded a Boeing 787-9 here at SAN, it’s also the bluest airline. And probably the most Dutch.Premium economy looks good! But it doesn’t matter! This is (after all) a long haul economy class review. Let’s pretend we didn’t see this, shall we?
KLM 787-9 Economy Comfort seat overview
Economy class seats on the KLM 787-9 are pretty nice IMHO. They are arranged in a decently spacious 3-3-3 layout, and legroom is equally roomy at 31 inches. Most importantly, they are soft. Ish.
You know, even after getting an eyeful of premium economy just now, these Economy Comfort seats don’t look all that bad.
Economy Comfort seats (located at the very front of the economy cabin) offer 4 more inches of legroom over a basic economy seat. They also offer you the privilege of sitting closer to all of the lucky ducks sitting in premium economy.
Seat 19G. Your a** is narrow, right? You better hope so.Thankfully my scrawny a** and shortish legs helped to make this a very tolerable seating situation. Economy Comfort indeed!Zooming out a bit reveals the horrors of being stuck in the middle seat. Ain’t nothing “Comfort” looking about that.Big video screens. Big tray tables. Big legroom. Big pimpin’ Big anticipation of a great flight ahead.In addition to USB charging ports located under the video screen, there are two 110 V electrical outlets located down beneath and between the seats. I like how they knew that I forgot to charge my phone before boarding the plane.Here we have a picture of the guy sitting in 19D realizing (in real time) that there is no Bluetooth connectivity for linking a phone to be in-flight entertainment system. Thanks bro! Saved me the time of trying to figure it out for myself.
The departure from San Diego
They tried so hard to get us pushed off the gate on time. Unfortunately, there was a fueling issue which caused a 19 minute delay. We were finally underway at 2:14 PM.
“Ladies and gentlemen, not only will we be flying over uninhabited sections of the Canadian North, at least three hours of this flight will be spent crossing the near-freezing (and shark infested) Atlantic Ocean. So shut the f**k up and pay attention to this safety briefing. Thank you.” Pro tip: Row 19 looks to have a misaligned windows.*looks the other direction* Yup. That kinda sucks.
KLM Economy Comfort amenities
There are no amenity kits in KLM long haul economy (or Economy Comfort). Other than a pillow, a blanket, and cheap earbuds, a bottle of water and a prepackaged hand sanitizer wipe will be distributed. That’s it.
We hadn’t even hit 10,000 feet before the flight attendants came down the aisle handing out these prepackaged refreshing towels. Economy class passengers are disgusting, aren’t they?They also gave us a bottle of water large enough to shower with. I can take a hint!
In-flight entertainment
Other than the cheap earbuds, the in-flight entertainment in KLM 787-9 economy was nice. Each seat features a 13 inch video screen, and it’s an excellent portal from which to enjoy a pretty decent catalog of movies, tv shows, music, games, and podcasts.
Vincent van Gogh seems to be double-dog daring me to make a selection. I’ve never felt more intimidated to choose a language in all my life.I’m in! I’ve gotta say that this is probably the simplest in-flight entertainment main screen that I’ve ever seen. Both of my very small brain cells very much appreciated the simplicity and cleanliness of the UI.
Perhaps my only gripe about the in-flight entertainment was the glossy video screen. Unless the cabin was dark, it was difficult to watch anything without dealing with annoying glare.
The best part of the menu screen? The realization that freakin’ Fanta is an option on today’s flight. ¡aleluya!Hmm. The free earbuds don’t look all that bad actually.They sounded terrible though. Consider it a warning that this reminded me of that time when I got cow manure stuck in my ear (don’t ask).
The first meal service
Dinner was served approximately 45 minutes after departure. They didn’t even bother with a pre-meal snack and beverage service.
The two choices were chicken (yay!) or a vegetarian pasta dish. I’m almost surprised that they didn’t tell me that both were better with a Heineken.
Winner winner chicken dinner. Or something like that.Whoa. I haven’t seen airplane food this colorful since American Airlines 737-800 first class. I so would have attempted to high five the person sitting next to me if such a person existed.
The quality of the meal was excellent by economy class standards. The meal I had in Turkish Airlines 777-300ER economy is still the best (even after all these years) – this was no match for that.
I know. All that hype about the Fanta and I go for red wine instead. One of these days I’ll follow through on my enthusiasm for that fruity (and bubbly) elixir from the land of Mariachi. Prometo!But wait, there’s more! They came down the aisle with the drink cart again immediately after the meal service. Another chance at a Fanta perhaps?Maybe next time. The cookie was FANTAstic though.
Economy class lavatories
Should you need to use the toilet (after drinking one too many Heinekens perhaps), you’ll be happy to know that the KLM 787-9 lavatories are as practical as they are fun. There are two located mid cabin, and the rest are at the back.
You can either stare at yourself in the mirror as you poo, or you can admire the Dutch themed wallpaper. Go ahead and do both if you’re so inclined.
Seat and cabin comfort
It’s not very often that I’ll be able to muster out praise for the seat recline in an economy class review. But here I go: It’s pretty darn okay! I actually thought my seat had broken as it laid back in a way I haven’t experienced since British Airways A350-1000 premium economy.
Consider it a good thing that this very large (and thickish) blanket reminded me of the Cookie Monster, preschool, and graham crackers with milk. Flashback city, man.The pillow though? I think these are the same ones you get when you go in for a colonoscopy. Seat recline is pretty good. However – those of you hoping for something as aggressive as what you’ll get in Air France A350-900 premium economy will not be liking this one bit methinks. “If I’m not making the person sitting behind me completely miserable, I’m not comfortable!”It wasn’t until that I was walking back from the lavatory that I noticed the (very thin) partition between economy and Economy Comfort. That (very thick) bulkhead wall way up front is the partition between Economy Comfort and premium economy.
The flight attendants came down the aisle with a midflight snack with approximately 5 hours of flying time remaining. Yes, I will take a brownie and another bottle of water, thank you very much.
$20 says he just realized that there is more legroom in these Economy Comfort seats than there will be in KLM 737-800 business class (what he payed extra for to connect to at AMS).
The second meal service
The meal that the cabin crew presented me with approximately one and a half hours prior to landing was easily the most disappointing part of this experience. The only choice was pancakes, and they looked disgusting. At least they tasted ok.
“Why they gotta turn on the cabin lights so abruptly?”Going from dead sleep to eating a full meal in less than 60 seconds is one of the most underrated things about flying IMHO. Why is it not this much fun at home?“He slimed me.” – Peter Venkman, PhDThe worst thing about this is that I actually ate it. All of it. And I probably could’ve eaten more.
The descent and landing into Amsterdam
Strong tailwinds across the north Atlantic were to our advantage, and we ended up starting the descent into AMS 14 minutes early.
8:49 AM:“How soon is the pancake slime gonna start shutting down my internal organs? Is this how it ends?!”8:53 AM:“Those pancakes ain’t sh*t. Welcome to Amsterdam!”
Touchdown on runway 18C happened at 8:53 AM. Not having a window seat made the long taxi over to gate D43 in Terminal 2 seem longer than it actually was. I timed it at 19 minutes. But it felt like 20.
“Shoulda had more pancakes.”
Pros and cons
Economy Comfort on the KLM 787-9 is something I’d definitely do again. I’m not sure I’m man enough to do it in basic economy (which features 4 less inches of legroom), but the cabin service was good enough to add it to my “yeah, I’d fly that again” list.
Pros
I liked the 3-3-3 cabin layout. It didn’t feel cramped at all.
The quality of the dinner (but not the breakfast) was surprisingly good.
Decent seat recline! It was enough to make a noticeable difference in overall comfort.
Cons
Glossy video screens. Unless you’re a huge fan of glare, that is.
The earbuds they provide are super duper cheap. It’ll be difficult to hear anything you watch.
Beware of the pancakes. Closing your eyes and praying (even if you’re an atheist) will be necessary to get through the first bite.
The opportunities to fly Delta 757-200 first class are getting rarer and rarer these days, which is precisely why I…
14 Comments
“In other words, I came prepared wearing the loosest and most worn out pair of underwear I had.” I nearly spit out my coffee when I read this Scott. Thanks for the laugh!
Pretty nice how KLM now flies to San Diego! I watched Patrick Shea’s video on the inaugural and there unfortunately weren’t any celebrations at AMS, but SAN did put a decent party. Were you able to see it land?
As for Economy Comfort, it looks pretty decent. The towels and large bottles are a nice way to differentiate it from regular Economy, the cabin looks good, the IFE is solid, the seats seem well-featured, and the Dutch wallpaper in the lavs is pretty cool. And yeah, regarding the food, I’ve heard several other people call it above average for Economy fare. Other than the slimy pancakes of course. Maybe they would’ve gone down better with a Fanta? Haha
Also, this has to be the best livery to serve SAN at the moment. KLM’s livery isn’t as flashy as other non-Eurowhite liveries, but it’s clean, elegant, and of course far more colorful than 90% of liveries out there. I’m a big fan!
I’m actually surprised that it took them this long to show up at SAN. With British Airways going double daily to LHR now, that pretty much confirms that there is a ton of demand between San Diego and Europe. Now we just gotta work on getting more Asian carriers here…
I wasn’t able to make it down there tap to see the inaugural flight land or takeoff. Doing so would’ve given me FOMO anyway, so it was probably best that I stayed away haha.
And it is indeed the best livery at SAN right now! At least until until Etihad comes to their senses and decides to start flying to San Diego. #amancanwish
I love your reviews, very informative but so funny while actually funny, some of your comments put me to tears in a good way that is. Hopefully you do many more of the reports going forward and I wish one day you can do one on Air Serbia. Thanks
Hi Scott – I’m thinking about starting a new channel for aviation, so do you have any tips on voiceover, getting footage, or something else? It would be greatly appreciated.
I have no tips other than just diving in head first. There’s no right or wrong way to do this – you just have to find a style and technique that’s most comfortable for you. For example, I find it too stressful to talk on camera as I’m traveling. That’s why I do voiceovers. Some people are the opposite though, and that’s OK.
You know there is Fanta – and then there’s Fanta. Mexican Fanta is all artificial stuff. European Fanta has some real juice in it and is not nearly as bright orange in color as the Mexican variety.
If you’re in the Netherlands I suggest giving the Fanta Lemon a try – real lemon flavor, and contains real lemon juice. Almost as good as the Spanish Fanta Limon.
Interesting! I had no idea that the European version was different. I’m kicking myself now for not giving it a try while I had the opportunity to do so.
“In other words, I came prepared wearing the loosest and most worn out pair of underwear I had.” I nearly spit out my coffee when I read this Scott. Thanks for the laugh!
I’m willing to bet money that I’m not the only one who does this lol
“4 extra inches where it mattered the most” – Scott
“Ayo what does he mean? Hold on wait that’s what he means” – Me
My mind always ends up in the worst places trying to come up the titles for these reviews. I can’t help it!
Just checked the flight log – Juicy stuff with 4 in of extra length coming up. Looking forward to it!
Pretty nice how KLM now flies to San Diego! I watched Patrick Shea’s video on the inaugural and there unfortunately weren’t any celebrations at AMS, but SAN did put a decent party. Were you able to see it land?
As for Economy Comfort, it looks pretty decent. The towels and large bottles are a nice way to differentiate it from regular Economy, the cabin looks good, the IFE is solid, the seats seem well-featured, and the Dutch wallpaper in the lavs is pretty cool. And yeah, regarding the food, I’ve heard several other people call it above average for Economy fare. Other than the slimy pancakes of course. Maybe they would’ve gone down better with a Fanta? Haha
Also, this has to be the best livery to serve SAN at the moment. KLM’s livery isn’t as flashy as other non-Eurowhite liveries, but it’s clean, elegant, and of course far more colorful than 90% of liveries out there. I’m a big fan!
I’m actually surprised that it took them this long to show up at SAN. With British Airways going double daily to LHR now, that pretty much confirms that there is a ton of demand between San Diego and Europe. Now we just gotta work on getting more Asian carriers here…
I wasn’t able to make it down there tap to see the inaugural flight land or takeoff. Doing so would’ve given me FOMO anyway, so it was probably best that I stayed away haha.
And it is indeed the best livery at SAN right now! At least until until Etihad comes to their senses and decides to start flying to San Diego. #amancanwish
I love your reviews, very informative but so funny while actually funny, some of your comments put me to tears in a good way that is. Hopefully you do many more of the reports going forward and I wish one day you can do one on Air Serbia. Thanks
Thanks Dan! Yes, there is a lot more to come. I don’t have any immediate plans for Air Serbia though – but it is an airline I’d like to try someday.
Hi Scott – I’m thinking about starting a new channel for aviation, so do you have any tips on voiceover, getting footage, or something else? It would be greatly appreciated.
I have no tips other than just diving in head first. There’s no right or wrong way to do this – you just have to find a style and technique that’s most comfortable for you. For example, I find it too stressful to talk on camera as I’m traveling. That’s why I do voiceovers. Some people are the opposite though, and that’s OK.
Just do it!
Great advice – appreciate the insight!
You know there is Fanta – and then there’s Fanta. Mexican Fanta is all artificial stuff. European Fanta has some real juice in it and is not nearly as bright orange in color as the Mexican variety.
If you’re in the Netherlands I suggest giving the Fanta Lemon a try – real lemon flavor, and contains real lemon juice. Almost as good as the Spanish Fanta Limon.
Interesting! I had no idea that the European version was different. I’m kicking myself now for not giving it a try while I had the opportunity to do so.