Six months late, the demise of Virgin Trains East Coast and issues with Class 800s after the launch on Great Western Railway in October 2017, the Class 800, or Azuma, finally entered service on London North Eastern Railway (LNER) on 15 May 2019. On Saturday 26 May, I travelled from London King's Cross to Grantham on 800113 and I am extremely impressed with the quality of the train. Well worth the wait.
Not only are the Azuma's six months late, the Department for Transport invited companies to tender for designing and constructing new trains for Great Western and East Coast main lines. 12 years ago with the ambition of the new trains entering service in 2015, and testing to commence in 2012. The Department for Transport delayed announcing the prefered bidder, a partnership with Agility Trains and Hitachi, until after the 2010 General Election. 
80 Class 800 train sets will have been constructed, 57 for Great Western Railway and 23 for LNER. Back in 2016 when the East Coast main line was operated by the franchise Virgin Trains East Coast, it was announced that the Class 800s would be branded Azuma, the Japanese word for East. Despite the demise of Virgin Trains East Coast in Spring 2018, LNER still retained the Azuma branding. Great Western Railway name their Class 800s Intercity Express Trains. 
I am extremely impressed with the quality and design of Class 800s. On average, the new trains have 100 more seats than the Class 91s and Class 43s they will replace. The seats have been ergonomically designed and have an extra seven cm of legroom, although they are rather hard. The seats are similar to the Class 700s that Thameslink use, and the seats on Class 800s, have been described as "Ironing boards" by rail enthusiasts due to their shape and firmness.
I have not been fortunate enough to travel in the First Class on a Class 800 Azuma. In a standard nine car formation, three carriages are First Class and the remaining six are Standard Class, with the onboard Cafe in Coach G of Standard Class. Seats in First Class are wider than Standard Class and can recline for additional comfort. LNER have changed their First Class menu for Azuma trains and advertise "complimentary two-course meal for lunch and dinner, and our popular breakfast menu in the morning", however, as far as I can tell from LNER's website, you can only receive these benefits if your journey is longer than 70 minutes. If your journey is less than 70 minutes and you travel in First Class you receive "a complimentary light bite and drink of your choice".
Throughout both First Class and Standard Class there are at-seat charge points so you can charge your phone or any other device. Standard Class on Class 91s and Class 43s there are only charge points for window seats. Whilst travelling on the new Azuma I wondered to the Cafe. In this carriage, there are two storerooms which look similar to toilets. Numerous passengers tried to open the storerooms but because they were locked, they thought a passenger was using the toilet. To avoid confusion, LNER may want to put signs on these doors?
I am also impressed with the seat reservation system. It features a 'traffic light' scale (green for free, amber for free now but reserved later in the journey, and red for reserved now) with clear messages of when the seat is reserved, thus making it is easier for passengers to find their seat or available seats. The seat reservation system also reduces waste from the traditional 'ticket' system and is much clearer than LNER's electronic reservation system on Class 91s and Class 43s that do not seem to work or assist passengers.
There are currently 11 services being used by two Class 800 Azumas. The third Azuma will enter into service on Monday 3 June, and by the end of June, three more Azumas will operate on LNER. If you get an opportunity to travel on a Class 800 Azuma, do it! They are impressive, modern and efficient, everything a passenger expects, wants and needs from an 'Inter-City' train. Well done LNER.
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