I must admit I was a bit worried on taking Air India after a series of complaints about travel on Air India. So what was it like for a little over 10hours on Air India? Read on….
While I was skeptical to fly on Air India after all that was in the news, I decided to take a chance as it was a convenient flight from Goa(GOI) to London(LHR) to be able to connect on Air Canada from London(LHR) to Toronto(YYZ) to get back home. I also didnt go in with high expectations as I had travelled on Qatar Airways from Montreal(YUL) to Doha(DOH) and then onwards to Goa(GOI). I also figured it will be a while for the service to improve after the tie-up with Tata/Singapore Airlines.
When I arrived at the airport, I noticed that there were two instead of the usual single dedicated business class check in desks. Check in was efficient and quick and my bags were through tagged all the way to Toronto and I was provided a boarding pass for AC also from LHR to YYZ.
After checkin, you need to make your way one level up for Immigration and Security. The International side was not crowded at all compared to Domestic as you can see the other side. I was however, asked to remove my pouch of all cables and chargers and put the bag through the screener again – but since there were not many passengers there at the time, one didnt have to worry about your laptop, phone etc. sitting in another tray on the other side of the xray machine.
Once you pass security, comes the really boring part. There is no lounge for international departures in GOI. There is also not a lot of choice of restaurants or stalls compared to what you have in the domestic departures waiting area.
Soon it was time for boarding and they announced general boarding at the gate. This caused a bit of mayhem as all passengers rushed towards the gate at once.
After a long walk towards the aircraft, we were asked to wait a few feet from the aircraft door. Here they announced that Business class passengers can now come forward and proceed to board.
There was no acknowledgement of passengers when we boarded and took out seats and/or being greeted/welcomed on board.
The seats were quite spacious and fairly comfortable with lots of leg room.
Across was an ottoman with the bedding and a pair of slippers
There was also a water bottle at each seat.
I mentioned earlier that there was no acknowledgement of the passengers by the cabin crew and I thought I spoke too soon as I then saw an attendant going around speaking to each passenger. She was going around saying “Don’t leave glasses, phones or AirPods on the centre console as it can fall in between and get crushed and also hard to retrieve.”
After most of the passengers had arrived, hot towels were offered and promptly cleared away.
Soon after the hot towels, we were offered a choice of coconut water or buttermilk. I opted for the coconut water which was quite refreshing.
We were then handed the menus. Wait!! Is this a black and white photo copy of menus being handed out???
The flight attendants soon came back and took our choice of meals and actually asked for the menus back.
A cart then came around offering magazines and newspapers. I quite like this concept actually and it appears a lot of airlines have stopped this service sadly,
Time now to look around at what was at the seat while waiting for the meal service to begin.
There was a set of headphone in a punctured paper wrapping.
The seat controls were clunky to say the least. For the screen, one needs to pull it out from between the seats.
Soon it was time to eat and since there was no lounge I had not eaten anything. The crew came and pulled out the trays and placed a table cloth on the table tray.
I opted for the Upma, Idli and Uttapam as I had found on my earlier flights that if Air India is good for something, its the Indian food on board. And I must say, it did not disappoint. The dessert was meh!
The flight attendants then came around again to offer corn flakes and hot or cold milk.
We were then offered a Banana Cinnamon Smoothie which was pretty delicious.
The flights attendants then went around with a tray of danish pastries. This was quite dry and it tasted like it was purchased a few days ago and forgotten in your bread basket on your kitchen counter.
The attendants then came around and offered a choice between still or sparkling water but then realised we were not given glasses to pour it in. So she quickly ran back, got a glass and came back again with the water.
The trolley rolled by shortly with a choice of coffee or tea.
We were then offered more Danish rolls – looks they wanted to finish off the stock as it appears no one wanted them.
After the meal, it was time to get some sleep as I was up since 2am when my ride came to pick me up from home.
There is no turn down service and one has to make their own bed.
The bed was not exactly comfy, but I was tired and sleepy at this point so I quickly feel asleep. I found the pillow very flimsy and flat.
Six hours into the flight, the cabin lights were turned on and menus were handed out. Real menus this time.
The flight attendants came by, pulled out the table tray and placed the linen on the table trays.
Two trays of two different types of nuts were passed around.
Soon our choice of main entree was taken and were were advised upfront that choice number 1 on the menu of Spinach and Feta stuffed chicken breast was running low. The menus were taken back immediately.
The drinks cart rolled by for alcoholic beverages and it had some premium spirits – Johnny Walker Black Label, Chivas Regal and the Indian brand Amrut.
A few minutes later we were asked if we want a refill of our drink and a fresh drink was brought from the galley.
A few moments later we were asked if we want our meal now with the drink or later after we are done with the drink.
I had opted for the Lucknowi Murgh ki Nihari and the the meal tray was delivered as below:
We were then offered a selection of roti, naan and papad.
Water glasses were handed out (unlike at breakfast service) and we were given a choice of still or sparkling
I would now like to take a moment for a shoutout to Yadhvi for being so gracious and great in her hospitality and awesome service.
This was followed by the cheese trolley with cheese and crackers. It was a lot of cheese and very few crackers.
This was followed by the Coffee/tea trolley offering some more refreshments.
A short while later all items were cleared and the cabin lights dimmed down again.
With 45 minutes to arrival we began our descent into London.
At 40 minutes to arrival the seatbelt sign was turned on and access to toilets was closed.
At 25 minutes to arrival, hot towels were handed out.
We had pushed back in Goa 9mins before scheduled departure and we landed 35 minutes before scheduled arrival time in London at Heathow.
Final Result:
It was a convenient flight to get from Goa to London without having to take two flights and transit either in Mumbai or Delhi.
The aircraft was dated and showing signs of wear and tear.
The flight attendants were gracious and provided great service albeit at times they seemed a bit lost and doing things out of sequence i.e. offering water with no glasses, offering more coffee, taking away the coffee cup and coming back with a pot of coffee.
Would I fly Air India again? In Business “Yes”, in Economy “No”.
Also, this flight was quite cheap on points as Air Canada flights were quite expensive due to dynamic pricing.
But given a choice, since its a long haul, I would opt for Emirates or Etihad as both can be booked with Aeroplan.
The cost of this flight was 124,000 points and CA$141.90 in taxes for AI in Business from GOI to LHR and AC in Business from LHR to YYZ.
Written by Dominic Fernandes aka Canada Points Guy.
Image courtesy of airindia.in.