Apr 25, 2009 08:59 AM
2880 Views
I had to fly out to Chennai at short notice and took the Indian Airlines morning service from Mumbai. Wanted to highlight where I believe the airline is heading..
First things, they have changed their check-in approach considerably. When at the checking counter you are greeted with a good morning and are efficiently issued your boarding card. I remember a time when I was frowned upon for flying on their airline and the attendant peacefully finished his conversation over a cup of tea before attending to my boarding card request.
We were ferried on a dated Indian Airlines plane.There are 2 versions you can see on airports:
The ones with a orange/red air India tail and
Pure white planes with a red IA tail. We traveled by the latter. Onboard, the age of the aircraft was showing. Pale interiors, mustard colored seats. Although I had no complaints about cleanliness, the seats were uncomfortable and did not provide adequate rest.
The flight was delayed by over an hour after boarding the aircraft and the pilot informed us of the delay without citing any reasons. The crew also had no idea why the flight was being delayed. Finally the 7.05 am departure kicked off at 8.30 am and with a smooth takeoff, I was afloat in no time.
Once the seat-belt signs were switched off, the crew warmly presented the breakfast menu and I was actually surprised to see smiling and cheerful crew. Albeit the air hostesses were mid 35-40 but I dont consider hot looking crew as an asset to any airline. Having said that, there were probably only 4 members to take care of the entire craft (including executive class) and this led to delays in service.
I opted for the vegetarian breakfast meal just because I thought you cant mess up idli sambar. But to my surprise, they managed to do that!! There was too little sambar, the croissants were stale and the medu wada was completely avoidable. Although I ate the full meal in hunger, I was craving for more. The portions were just not enough for a wholesome meal.
Landing was smooth and we reached Chennai 90 mins after scheduled landing. The buses used to ferry us in Chennai were of very poor quality. Old country side Tata Buses with softer seats. Compared to what Jet Airways, Spicejet, Indigo and Kingfisher offer to carry passengers to and from the aircraft, these buses were definitely dated and uncomfortable.
I don't understand why a national carrier that has all the government funding support refuses to change in line with market standards. I am sure when my father traveled in the 1990s, he took the same physical aircraft and the same bus! Overall, it was no better than a low cost service and I would not like to take my family or friends on IC unless its the only flight available.
