Air India is the victim of a great number of jokes and as an Airline is often the focus of a huge amount of criticism. Air India is the state owned Airline of the country of India. Many people say that they would not fly Air India even if they were desperate for a flight which indicates that among some people at least Air India does have a image and even a reputation problem.....
Here writer, broadcaster and airline connoisseur Safiq Ali Patel travels by Air India and asks is the overall flying experience that Air India provide really as bad as Air India's critics say it is. Or are there good points and pleasure to be gained from flying Air India. Reporter and traveller Safiq Ali Patel investigates for you on Hubpages.com
I’ve heard all about Air India. Chances are you have heard too about the bad attitude of its staff to its safety record and more. But rather than allow myself to be guided by what I’ve heard about Air India I decided to take a return Air India flight from London Heathrow to Ahmadabad in Northern Gujarat.
Air India aside from operating flights out of its main bases at New Delhi Indira Ghandi International Airport, and Chatrapatti International Airport in Mumbai, also has a growing number of regional and secondary bases the airline flies in and out of. Along with Chennai and Kolkata the airline has an expanding number of services flying from Amritsar, Ahmadabad, and Trivandrum. These cities now have return Air India flights flying to Canada, The United Kingdom and The United States of America. Clearly Air India is one of the major airlines operating between the US, UK, Canada and India. The airline is also becoming a major force among airlines operating out of India. The Airline provides connection to Bangkok, Singapore, Arabia and plans flights due to start to Australia soon too.
It’s worthy of mentioning here that Air India and a former independent airline based in India known as Indian Airlines have now merged. Indian Airlines is now part of the aviation company of India and operates jointly as a part of Air India. As a result of this merge Air India has a large network of flights to every state in India and further afield to Hong Kong and other parts of Far East Asia. If you need to fly to any part of India in most cases for the longer journey’s that you’d take a long distance train for Air India can take you there for a very reasonable fare and at a much faster speed. I flew from Baroda in Gujarat to Mumbai at a total cost of around 30USD one way. A great price and at great speed too.
Now back to what I was telling your about. I wanted to find out for myself what it was like to fly Air India. I arrived at London Heathrow to check in for my 9.30pm Friday evening flight outbound from London Heathrow to Ahmadabad. Much to my surprise by 4.30pm, with over 5hrs to go the Air India check in desks were open much earlier than other airlines do. Though there was a long line of people ahead of me waiting to check in, this line of people moved fast and in no time at all I was at the front of the queue. The Check in staff was personable and friendly and check in was quick. The baggage allowance allowed by Air India was truly amazing. Air India allows a staggering 45 kilogram’s of luggage to be transported on a economy class ticket. A great feature if you have a large family or are on business and need to fly into or out of India heavy than most airlines permit.
Most airlines only allow 28 Kilogram’s of baggage to be flown onboard their aircraft including the so called five star airlines such as Emirates and Qatar Airway. On top of this huge baggage allowance of 45 kilogram’s Air India also permit this amount of baggage to be carried in two suitcases rather than the conventional one suitcase allowed by most of the world airline carriers. What a plus was my reaction. Always check with Air India for their most up to date baggage allowance before you fly. And on top of this large allowance for baggage I was a permitted to take up to 10 Kilograms on board as hand luggage, though I personally chose to board light carrying only a passport wallet.
After check in I still had time to spend time talking on my mobile and to do a little shopping before making my way to the departure gate to board. The pace of boarding was swift and Air India’s welcome was amazingly packed with colour, style and tradition. A Air Hostess dressed in a violet sequined fanned uniform put her hands in the prayerful and gently bowed her head to welcome me on board air India. She said “Namashkaar” with her inviting sparkling eyes and polished cheekbones. I replied to this dashing welcome by saying Namashkaar to you too.” Of all the airlines of the world that spend huge amounts of money and staff training to come up with their welcome Air India had to be about one of the best. The welcome was fiercely Indian and emotive. The colours of the outfit and the elegant tone of the greeting tantalised my senses. The welcome was packed with mystery and radiated confidence and genuine humility customary with people who live spiritual lives devoted to the service of gods in India.
I was offered help to find my seat but was able to find the seat on my own. The seat was broad, deep and comfortable to sit in. In fact though out the 8+ hours flight I wasn’t once sweaty or stiff which tells me that though Air India doesn’t spend millions advertising it seats like it’s rivals do, and yet Air India does provide a very comfortable seat to fly in. The emergency drill ran in English and Hindi and the flight left exactly on time. Not a minute too early or too late. The plane was fully boarded by 9.10 not too early not too late.
The decor of Air India planes is something to write home about. The seats are coloured deep red and paisley flowers decorate the panels of the airplane. An Air India plane is not a plane it is a Palace in the Sky. As I applied my watchful eye all over the aircraft I saw a painted floral sign that said “Air India-Your Palace In The Sky.” Air India planes are styled like royal places and named after planets and stars in ancient Hindi language. The airline has several mascots including Sagittarius with his bow and arrow painted bold red. This philosophy of the airlines is delicately embedded in the styling of the aircraft, it cabin crew clothing at key positions throughout its aircraft livery.
The Sari’, a traditional Indian silk fabric wrapped round the body is worn by some female Hostesses. Some Saris are red, some are gold, and some are green. Some Air India hostesses wear a Punjabi style knee length cotton dress with trousers in red and white. The male cabin crew wear white shirts with pilot styled lapels and black trousers with polished black shoes. The females wear floral sandals for footwear. The Uniforms carry some sign of the ranking of each member of Air India’s crew. The Air India Air Hosts and Hostesses discipline showed and so too did their teamwork, delivering authority, fashion, glee, blended with simplicity, austerity and commitment and an appealing regiment and rhythm.
Not long after take off the air hosts and hostesses came round in their smart attire giving us passengers’ juice and crisps for early snacks. As the vast Boeing 747 climbed into the night sky I laid back into my chair and sipped my orange juice feeling a sense of belonging in the moon and star lit sky that I have not felt before while travelling. Night flying can make passengers feel more exhausted than usual and can have stresses. But not on this Air India flight. I knew from my very brief interaction and from the maturity of the Air India Cabin Crew on this flight that I was in good hands. Already the fine blending of colours, the charming staff, the comfortable seats and the night flying had teased my senses into a feeling of deep satisfaction, trust and pleasure. I was set and happy.
Duty frees came round but very low key. The flight was non smoking and thankfully ran so well I had no interest in smoking. Flights are so often disruptive to the mind. Now I couldn’t quiet put my finger on it but Air India managed to inject a certain relaxation into my soul that most airlines fail to do. It wasn’t just me who was enjoying a quiet and comfortable flight, it seemed from the laid back people on board that everyone found the freshness and calmness and smooth tone of the flight relaxing. Rarely do I see passengers languishing in their seats as I noticed on this flight..
Our journey on this Air India Jumbo Jet continued and as we soared through the night sky over Europe. At barely on hour after take off the air in the plane was lit up even more by the gentle armour of soft spices fresh and from Southern India cooking. I knew from this that food was on its way. And while being heated in the Air India Galley ovens the smell said to me the food was going to be good. Around 1 and a half hours into the flight the hostess asked “Sir are you ready to eat,”. I opened my table and an aromatic dish of Pumpkin, Turnip, Potato, Carrot and Reddish with Rye seeds and spices rested in the corner of the dish. It looked good, it smelt great and it tasted like an odyssey of flavours in my mouth. This was served with soft thick grains of flavoured Pillau rice and a mixed courgette and Okra curry. I ate and feasted simultaneously. The food tasted better than words can describe. The portions were of a good size and there was even some sealed fresh Yoghurt to top the rice. The knives and forks were real steel and were embossed with the traditional air India logo. The food was so smooth and tasty and slid down my throat and into my stomach a treat. The mineral water was fresh and chilled and the salad was crunch. What made this Air India meal so special was the traditional cutlery and the basic ingredients which were all “health food” packed with protein and calcium and those glorious nutrients and flavour that are so natural to India and Indian Vegetarian cooking. The aroma was fit for the kings own private plane. So seductive I said to myself “Oh god....mmmm. This meal was definitely no boiled airline meal but a blended and calculated combination of nutrients designed to induce pleasure emotions and culinary joy”
After the meal I laid back and rested for a couple of hours. The blinds came down, the dim lights came on and people generally rested. Over 300 people on a Boeing 747 usually make noise but not so on what became a special flight. The crowd laid back as chilled as could be all enjoying the film that was subtitled in the speech. The overhead screens attached at each Galley entrance point display a map of the journey. That ambiance that is so lacking on flights these days was alive, well and renewed on board Air India.
I woke up after a comfortable snooze and decided I wanted to stay awake for the rest of the Air India flight to India to enjoy the colours, the flavours, the charm, the overall symphony of pleasure that was taking place around me. Gradually 5 hours into the flight the light of day, the bright yellow sunshine over southern Russia was visible.
I was in the grips of yet another sensory delight. The cabin crew raised some of the window covers and allowed a refined amount of sunshine to warm the cabin. The colour of the sun was beautiful and lit up the inside of the plane like a rare gold and bright Indian morning in crispy pale gold colours. My indulgent senses were given another pleasure boost when the soft scent of breakfast could be smelt cooking on board Air India flight AI 120
Just a short while later I was served with Puri a soft warm and crispy Indian bread breakfast with morning vegetables and soft Indian butter fried eggs. Oh reader I have to say pleasure was all mine for every moment I was resting this food on my taste buds. I say sheer.....and then words fail me again. This breakfast or Nashtaah as referred to in Air India’s home language which means breakfast was so good so indescribably good.
So here I am onboard an Air India jetliner, glancing at skimmed streams of steam flowing from the 747 engines. I’ve forgotten and forgiven every sad joke I ever heard or told about Air India. In fact I was full of repentance for so many bad jokes. I was even wondering while breakfasting why so much criticism is in the air when Air India had turned what is usually flight that is a chore in a flight with Air India that was uniquely India and so uniquely Air India. The airline meals served on this flight for late supper and then as breakfast the following morning were just out of this world good. The quality of meals served on Air India are a thoughtfully blended combination of meals that taste good and feel good when eaten and give you a lasting feel good afterwards. The refreshments like milk cooked teas were memorable too. Air India is no joke. It is seriously an Airline and key elements of the service it delivers are just excellent.
I could feel the aircraft dropping altitude and I knew soon I will be landing in India. This journey into Ahmedabad International Airport was quick and smooth. The ride itself was like taking a cruise into the stars. The aircraft was smooth flying and I know rarely are flights as hassle free, as smooth running and as relaxing as this Air India flight. At around 8 and half hours after boarding we had arrived in India. Touch down was firm and well co-ordinated. I disembarked onto a bus to journey to the airport building, and from my place on the airport bus I placed both hands together and gave Air India a deep and heartfelt salute in traditional Indian hands placed together. I was deeply thankful of Air India all the way. Looking back I am deeply in admiration of so much about Air India. Airline travel on so many airlines has lost it’s something special. Air India still has that something special on board. I’d been fed and comforted all the way to India by Air India’s staff. I said thank you to the Cabin Crew and I meant this most sincerely. I admired the beauty of an Air India plane one last time as I travelled towards the Airport building. I’d completed a flight that wasn’t just a flight it was a journey into pleasure. It was just as you’d expect, a flying palace, a palace in the sky with goodness, esteem, bright white mist and so much more. Air India was certainly much more generous and better planned than many 21st Century Airlines.
Air India’s enduring mascot since the airline first commenced airliner services to London, Geneva and Cairo in the 1940’s is the King or “Maharaja”. This Air India flight that I’d flown treated me like the Maharaja’s own guard and son. I’d bathed in style, eaten like a decorated soldier, and rested like a flying prince. I’d read a deeply satisfying Air India In-flight magazine “Namaskar”, and I’d enjoyed the glitz of the evening stars and the serenade of morning colours. I come face to face with Indian beauty, my expectations of hospitality had been surpassed, I’d arrived flown in a melody of pleasure. I just could not see the joke. Air India was royal and Indian all the way.
Thank you Emperor Maharaja and thank you Air India I said to myself. My flight with Air India was so much better than I could ever have imagined. Finely blended pleasure put together by the King. The Maharaj’s airline was better than I could imagine in this age of low cost and cost cutting travel. Every moment lined with respect, duty and care. I believe that Air India has made its journey from being a developing world airline to being a full service industry delight in the 21st Century. Not a joke but a secret gemstone. What a pleasure flying is with Air India.
In my next hub about Air India later this year I will tell you about the Journey back from Ahmadabad to London on board Air India. In a separate hub later this year reader I will tell you more about Air India’s journey from its beginnings to today.
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