First of all, Cathay Pacific has chosen to partner with Indian Airlines. This is not a good start, because IA is desperately in need of a makeover. I would prefer that they went bankrupt and all their staff was on the streets, but that is unlikely to happen while the govt. is there to prop them up (mis)using taxpayers’ money.
The IA connection means you can’t check in your baggage through to the final destination. Not only that, you need to run to the counter at Singapore to get your onward boarding cards. Good luck if IA does what they’re best at - running late - and you are left with 30 mins instead of 4 hours at Singapore.
The aircraft was servicable. The toilets were not particularly clean. The food is okay, but with very limited choice even if you are not a vegetarian.
Business class seats are no match for Singapore Airlines. In flight entertainment is okay, but gets boring after the 2nd flight as they don’t have much of a choice.
The number and duration of layovers is a pain.
Then on the way back you have the dubious pleasure of flying IA back to India. If you try to stay an extra day in Singapore, you have to pay around Rs 10k. Extensions in Hong Kong are free. This is unacceptable for a business class ticket and fare.
How this airline got awards is beyond me - apparently they were the world’s best airline in 2005. SQ, MH, and even Thai are much better.
I wrote an email to their PR and complained about my overall experience and got a printed (!) letter back. No email id, no way to respond.