The good thing was the aircraft pushed back on time, and arrived 40 mins early into Mumbai.
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Introduction:
Air India has been in the news for (mostly) the wrong reasons of late. A lot has also been spoken about what’s changed post the management change. This is an account of my brief encounter with the Maharaja. Until now, I’ve only used direct point to point flights by Air India, but this was the first time I was making a connecting flight from one AI flight to another AI flight for my journey.
What’s changed?
Their ability to keep time; again, this is what I saw with many Air India flights in the two airports that I used.
Some cabin crew are really smart and provide excellent instructions – one of them was Yogesh!
The meal’s become leaner, and meaner – definitely not a satisfier!
What’s not changed:
Excellent pilots
Generous check in baggage allowance of 25kgs
Old aircraft
Run up to this trip:
I was to fly from Bengaluru to Vadodara, and the easiest option was to take the direct 1055hrs Indigo from Bengaluru. However, on the intended date of travel, the direct flight was offering a ticket close to INR 10k, while I was pleasantly surprised to see an Air India option, with a stopover in Mumbai, priced at just approx. INR 4,900. This was a noon departure with a 3 hour layover in Mumbai. When I visited the option the following day, the fare had risen to INR 6,500. Tickets on the direct Indigo flight, meanwhile, had crossed INR 10.5k.Since my dates were kind of firmed up, I took an immediate decision to go ahead with the booking. Although the fare option showed big cancellation/date change charges, I went ahead and booked myself.
Post booking blues#1 – Historical late departure:
After I’d got my ticket, I went online to see the performance of this flight, and to my shock, I found that the flight was a cool 2 hours, sometimes 4 hours late on multiple occasions. This data was coincidentally around the time Biparjoy was making waves.
Saving grace here, was that the flight from Mumbai to Vadodara also departed late on those same days. I said to myself, “Even if I have just an hour and 10 mins or so between flights, I’ll make the connection”. Why an hour and ten? ‘Coz Mumbai Airport is a walker’s paradise. One walks, walks, walks and walks endlessly to even make a connecting flight. Typical time taken from arrival to the next gate would be approx 40 minutes. One would have to be at the next gate 30 mins before departure, hence the estimate of 1hr 10 mins.
Post booking blues#2 – Baggage handling:
Well, this might have been thinking too far, but I never trusted this airline with baggage, especially on the domestic circuit. One of my most prized bags was damaged on a flight to Mumbai sometime in 2011. It was clearly gross negligence on the part of the baggage handlers, and ever since, I’ve been wary. Also, given this connection reliability, I thought it better to travel light, sans any scissors or razors, so that I could transit fast, clear security without fuss, at least make my connection even if the first flight was late.
D-Day minus 1:
I was so psyched by the “on-time performance” of my upcoming flight that I began checking the flight status everyday. Fortunately, the flights had started operating reasonably on time. However, I’d already decided to keep my second bag with me, hoping that I’d be allowed to carry it into the cabin.
D-Day:
No issues at check in, the staff were very happy to allow me the luxury of a 7 kg strolley and a larger back pack on board. Mobile boarding pass in hand, and I was off from the check in counter in a mere 30 seconds. Beat that if you can! Security was a breeze, and I was at my Gate in no time. At BLR Airport Terminal 1, there is this outlet tucked away behind the Tiffin Express right opposite Gate 17. It is called Eat at Bengaluru. I found their filter coffee really good.
Flight no.1:
This one was an A321 – a rather old one with someone having marked a cross on the outer window pane and some of the beige panels wearing out. The good thing was the aircraft pushed back on time, and arrived 40 mins early into Mumbai. Surprise (or disappointment) on board was the meal. I was expecting full service but out came a pack with Bon Appetit on it and I immediately knew it was just a heavy snack. This time, I got a window seat (IIRC my first window seat ever on an Air India flight) and I made full use of it to capture some shots.
At Gate 17 – BLR:
Colourful seats:
but, cross marks on the outside window – like how vandals would mark their presence on shiny cars:
Panel around the window:
Crumpled Emergency Instructions card – handiwork of someone who had a delayed flight:
View at take-ff from BLR:
What you see (Veg):
is not what you get (Chicken):
A clear view at descent:
Suddenly getting clouded:
Final approach to Mumbai:
And finally touching down:
Tarmac views – a Cathay Pacific Cargo B747 and a Sichuan Airlines aircraft:
With another Queen – an Air India B747-400:
AOG – Several GoAir aircraft not going:
Keyword: My first time experience of flying Air India using connecting flights