Airliners-India.com Forum Index Airliners-India.com
Flickr Group & Facebook
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

IC is worse than ever; BOM-MAA (114 pics)

 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Airliners-India.com Forum Index -> Trip Reports
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 5:27 pm    Post subject: IC is worse than ever; BOM-MAA (114 pics) Reply with quote

Hey guys, welcome to this report. This is a domestic 2 hour flight on the BOM-MAA sector I flew yesterday. The flight number was IC 994 and the aircraft type was the A320 which had the routing of KWI-BOM-MAA. Having flown down to Mumbai in 9W's J on it's 737s (a classy regional product I must confess), I chilled out for an entire day in the island city meeting up with friends before continuing my trip onwards to MAA.

I booked my tickets a week before the flight, and the only reason I chose this IC international flight was because I couldn't get a free seat on any other morning flight in the period from June 24-28. The inter-metro routes seem to be doing well I presume. However, I could find a couple of evening flights on Jet and Spice. If you've been following my TRs, you do know that I was bugged of Spice; and I'd just taken a few Jet flights recently so I decided to take this IC flight for the experience.

I clicked a lot more pics than I would for a short 2 hour flight, I hope that makes the report more enjoyable.

First, let's begin with a few pics of our financial capital.

The Taj Hotel







Pigeon invasion.



The BSE building.



How can Varun be at BOM without at least a shower?



Chowpatty.



The Air India building in the distance.



Now for the flight.



Airline: Indian Airlines
Aircraft: Airbus A320-231
Registration: VT-EVR
First flight date: 19th May, 1992

Load in J: 10%
Load in Y: 100%

Scheduled Departure Time: 8:20 AM
Actual Departure Time: 10:40 AM
Scheduled Arrival Time: 10:00 AM
Actual Arrival Time: 12:00 AM

Flight Time: 1 hour, 40 minutes


I arrived at BOM only to find out that the flight was delayed by a couple of hours coming in from KWI. However, I checked in, received my boarding card and waited in the terminal. Mom was with me so I did have somebody to talk to. At 9:30AM, our gate had opened and we bypassed immigration and waited outside the jetway with around 25-30 other pax. The AI/IC official explained that ground staff were cleaning the aircraft and we would be allowed to board soon. From the glass windows I could make out the bird. It was in a hybrid AI-IC colour scheme, with the AI tail without the Indian chakra; and it had the trademark IC metallic belly. VT-EVR would be flying me to MAA today, it's livery indicative of how the merger has been handled.

Copyright Rutvij. Wink


The official then received confirmation to let us through and he did. At the jetway, we were stopped to let a wheelchair through. We entered just as the cleaning crew were leaving. The 2 FAs at the door didn't even bother to look at us as we entered the cabin. We took a right and entered the J cabin, which was completely empty.





I have a question here- does IC not sell J seats on it's Gulf sectors?

At the Y cabin, there were another 2 FAs. They didn't bother to assist us either. The cabin appeared to be around 60% full as we entered and we found our seats- 26E and 26F to be empty. Row 26 is the third from last row from the rear galley and the toilets.

A pic from the seat. 4 FAs would be serving us today. 3 were female and appeared to be from the North East, and the male one was strangely in a pilot's uniform.



All four of them were in the AI uniforms and the seats were the new AI colours too.

There was something wrong with my seat though, it would recline even if the button waasn't pressed. So to keep the seatback straight, I had to sit straight, applying no pressure to the back. Evil or Very Mad

Seat recline.



Legroom- that is just average Y. I thought IC 320s had a lot of legroom- has AI stuffed in another couple of rows or something?



Safety card. Notice that it says Air India, not Indian Airlines.



Newspaper stuffed into my seat pocket.



Swagat. Notice that it says Indian Airlines, not Air India. Smile



Nimbu paani was the welcome drink- I'll never make a mistake of drinking that again.



We were parked at the International terminal, so we could se some widebody action on the tarmac.

Saudi 744, Qantas 333, Emirates 77W going to Riyadh, Brisbane and youknowwhere respectively. Notice the crow perched on the wingtip.



AI 77W and 9W 737 parked behind us.



MS 738 taxiing to the runway.



Operations on the runway behind us never took a break, there were landings going on all the time- a lot of Kingfishers and Air Indias and a ton of Jets too. I also spotted the navy blue GoAir and one of the few remaining AI A310s land, in addition to a delayed(?) Thai 346.

A few minutes later, our view was blocked by this Skychef catering truck. Since we were just a few rows ahead from the rear door, we could feel the warm air and the humidity seep through the cabin as the crew opened the door to receive these meals.



And then, a newspaper wallah ground staff in the AI uniform came around distributing newspapers. I took a copy of the Mumbai mirror and so did my mom. Seeing that we had the same thing, my mom called him back and replaced hers with the Sunday Times. She is a fussy traveller. Smile



Luggage being loaded in.



AI 332 to PVG taxiing for take-off.



The catering truck had left and another one took it's place. It was Taj Sats this time. What's with this?



The seats were already getting uncomfortable to sit on. Apart from the reclining problem mentioned earlier, there were no footrests nor any pillows. mom called the FA and requested the latter along with a blanket, which she got with a pleasant "Here you are, ma'am".

The pillow.



Captain RR Reddy (or Adhar Reddy) welcomed us on-board and gave us our flight details, apologizing for the delay. The safety demonstration followed, no video screens so it was just the FAs; after which we began push-back.





The weather was great today, with a lot of clouds; yet very sunny.

IT 320 coming in.



AI hangars in the distance.



Ground vehicles.



The taxiway.



The AI 77W again.



And the 9W 738.



AI 319 about to touchdown.



The 9W reg was VT-JGU and the AI reg was VT-ALP.









The activity never ceased on the runway. Yet another 9W 737 coming in to land.



Holding short.



Just then, around 4 or 5 passengers wanted to use the toilets. The FA was rude and shouted at them to get back to their seats.

On the other cross-runway, there were aircreaft taking-off. Here's a 6E 320.



A 9W 737.



A 9W ATR.



The ATR crossed the cross runway and narrowly missed a 9W 737 taking-off. This stuff regularly happens at BOM. Shocked

Another 9W ATR.



After the second ATR had cleared the runway, we were cleared for take-off.



VT-ALP.



9W 332.



AI, AI, AI, IC.



Lift-off!



We passed the domestic terminal were there were a ton of AI 321s docked at aerobridges and rose over Mumbai heading in the direction of Juhu beach.

The lifeline of the city running in the bottom right.



Juhu.



Low-lying clouds.







Banking left and heading back to India.



"VT-EVR" painted on the wing.



The seatbelt sign was then switched off and the air-aunties started a drink service. Here is where I first noticed that they treated the labour pax with disdain. When a passenger in the row in front of me asked for coffee, she rudely replied that her coffee would come with the meal. When another one asked for a beer, she said that he was drunk enough on the previous leg and in any case, alcohol wasn't permitted on domestic runs. Mom smiled at the FA and she commented "Last night was so crazy, I hate flying to the Gulf!".

I opted for the orange juice which was served with a bag of assorted nuts.



Flying through Maharashtra.



After the FAs had cleared our cups, they started the meal service. I opted for the non-veg breakfast which was a chicken nugget of some sort and not one, not two but five triangles of omelettes. Not a great meal though. Sad



Mom took the veg option, which looked more like lunch. She also commented on how bland it was.



No PTVs on-board this aircraft. So no entertainment at all. Not even audio ports.



I spoke too soon. There was this loud beeping noise right behind us and the male FA ran towards one of the toilets. Another FA joined him and they banged on the door. A minute later, a dishevelled man exited and I could smell cigarette smoke everywhere. The male FA was understandably pissed.

"Bhai-saheb! Aap kitne saal se Kuwait se fly kar rahe ho? Pata hai, ki 2 minute mein aag yahaan se wahaan tak pohunch jayega?"

"Sorry bol-ne se koi faida nahin, aap captain ke saat bat karo flight ke bad, hum isko report karna hai."


Eventually though, he let him go. I wonder what you think about this. I personally feel that offenders should be escalated and strict action taken. Where's the guarantee that he won't smoke on-board another flight?

After the incident, the FAs commenced the beverage run, once again treating the labour pax rudely. Mom loved the coffee so she requested some more. The FA was surprised.

"You like the coffee ma'am? You have no idea, our previous beverage suppliers were even better than this. We have been cost-cutting recently, going cheaper."

After the meal service was over, it seemed as if the whole aircraft wanted to visit the two toilets at the back. The queue extended to our row and it was quite bugging to hear them speak loudly in their local languages.

After they'd left I chanced a visit to the toilet. Never again.



Have a few more pics, but I guess I won't be posting them. For your own good.

Another thing I noticed- the FAs were done with service and were no longer responding to cabin calls. I caught the male FA watching a movie on his laptop in the galley.

Took this shot as I was returning to my seat.



View from the window on the opposite side of the aisle.



As we were flying over southern Andhra Pradesh, we began our descent. The terrain became greener as we approached Chennai city.



A river as we bank right.



Outskirts of Chennai.



Once again, pax were lining up for using the toilets. The FA tried everything- from "Ab land hone wale hain" to "Toilets are very dirty. Go use the one in the airport." When all else failed, they resorted to "Madam, bahar mat jaana. Cumod ke under jaana." Shocked Laughing

Banking left, blue skies above.



Flying past MAA. We will overshoot it, fly past the coast and return to land on runway 25.



Hands down Chennai has the best approach in India. The marina beach in the distance.



Chennai Port.



Overshooting the coast.



Ships in the water.



We flew for a long time into the Bay of Bengal, longer than usual. To my right and several hundred feet lower, I could make out jets whizz past, including an IX 738, some prop and a 9W 332. Smile



After around 10 minutes, we gradually banked right and landing gears were lowered.



The ships again.



Banking left.



Levelling off.



The coastline.



The Marina Beach.









Chennai city, with the half-done overhead EMU rail visible.



The Adyar river down below.





Greenery.





Chennai's suburban rail below.



The Guindy flyover; has helped ease congestion near the airport.





Entering the perimeter of the airport.







Touchdown!



Air-brakes being deployed.







Clearing the runway.



What do you expect to happen now? Half the aircraft stood up and started taking off their hand luggage from the overhead racks. The FAs yelled at everybody to get seated. I seriously sympathize with FAs who do Gulf runs. The job surely gets impossible at times.

MAA's International terminal.





We stopped before be docked at the jetway and the captain announced clearly that we hadn't reached the gate yet and asked all of us to be seated. But who cared? Laughing





After 5 minutes, we turned to park next to an IX 738- VT-AXF coming in from either one of Singapore or Colombo.









The sensible passengers on-board waited for all the hyper-excited labour passengers to dash out of the a/c before we got out ourselves, albeit in a much more relaxed manner.

Y cabin as we were exiting.



Some passenger has knocked this seat up pretty badly! Shocked



As we left the jetway I chanced this shot of a 9W 738 departing to DEL.



Immigration was deadly long and I wasn't in the mood to wait in the queue so I waited for everybody else to finish theirs first, watching the airside activity through the glass windows. I saw an AI 319 coming in and a UL 332 taking off. 3 IT ATRs landed in quick succession as did an SQ cargo 744 soon after. An AI official at immigration were hunting for a transit passenger to Trichy. As the queue thinned, I joined what appeared to be the shortest one. But the guy at the counter was a slowpoke and it took me 30 minutes to get it done. Our luggage was already out by then.



Scores:

Punctuality: 2/10
Seat: 3/10
Catering: 4/10
Aircraft Condition: 2/10
Entertainment: 1/10

Total: 12/50 = 24% = Two stars out of Five.



Conclusion:

There was nothing about IC that makes me want to fly them again. This sarkari airline with it's demotivated school-teacher crew are not for me, thanks.

Hope you enjoyed reading this report, up next is a report of AI's A319 on BLR-SIN. Thanks for reading!

Varun
_________________
Yeah.


Last edited by Spiderguy252 on Mon Jun 28, 2010 8:13 pm; edited 2 times in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
jasepl
Member


Joined: 26 Jul 2008
Posts: 4257
Location: bund-bay

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 6:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oh dear God! Whatever possessed you... Must be masochism!
_________________
four years free of jetya punti!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Nimish
Member


Joined: 16 Dec 2006
Posts: 9757
Location: Bangalore, India

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 6:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Varun - thanks for posting the report - definitely an eye-opener on the pax and crew and the level of interaction! Were the safety briefing/ announcements made in Tamil in addition to English/ Hindi? Would that have helped contain the crowds and their behavior?
_________________
We miss you Nalini!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
star*gold
Member


Joined: 29 Jan 2009
Posts: 187

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 7:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice pictures, liked the Chennai ones especially.

As for alcohol, no matter what time of the day, if it is free, folks don't seem to mind having one! Happened on a Lufthansa flight to FRA. A guy asked the FA for wine during the breakfast beverage service, prior to landing. She looked at him surprised, but did offer him white wine, but he wanted only red. Then she asked another FA, a more senior one, who said no wine with breakfast. It was funny.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
me111993
Member


Joined: 04 Sep 2009
Posts: 3225
Location: MAA/AMD

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 7:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice TR Varun!! Thanks for posting!! Very Happy

Quote:
It was in a hybrid AI-IC colour scheme, with the AI tail without the Indian chakra; and it had the trademark IC metallic belly. VT-EVR would be flying me to MAA today, it's livery indicative of how the merger has been handled.


Still in Hybrid colours???!!? Shocked

Quote:
I have a question here- does IC not sell J seats on it's Gulf sectors?


They do!!! Just think of the 9W J you just flew in from KWI, and you'll get your answer!! Wink


Quote:
There was something wrong with my seat though, it would recline even if the button waasn't pressed. So to keep the seatback straight, I had to sit straight, applying no pressure to the back.


Expexted... Their one year old aircrafts are in sorry state...can't really expect much from these oldies!

Quote:
Safety card. Notice that it says Air India, not Indian Airlines.

That's good to see...

Quote:
Swagat. Notice that it says Indian Airlines, not Air India.


And we're back to square one.. Embarassed



Quote:
The 9W reg was VT-ALU and the AI reg was VT-ALP.


I guess you meant VT-JGU?? VT-ALU is an AI B77W to be delivered about 2 days from now!! Very Happy


Quote:
I personally feel that offenders should be escalated and strict action taken. Where's the guarantee that he won't smoke on-board another flight?


Amen..

Quote:
Another thing I noticed- the FAs were done with service and were no longer responding to cabin calls.


Happened with me once, when I was flying J from DEL-SIN, service/product was so very pathetic, I swore never to fly IC again... Evil or Very Mad

Quote:
Once again, pax were lining up for using the toilets. The FA tried everything- from "Ab land hone wale hain" to "Toilets are very dirty. Go use the one in the airport." When all else failed, they resorted to "Madam, bahar mat jaana. Cumod ke under jaana."


Jeeze... Shocked

In the approach shots, the wing-flex is lovely to see!! The approach is beautiful too!! Very Happy

Quote:

What do you expect to happen now? Half the aircraft stood up and started taking off their hand luggage from the overhead racks. The FAs yelled at everybody to get seated. I seriously sympathize with FAs who do Gulf runs. The job surely gets impossible at times.


This is not limited to Gulf runs, when you land here in AMD, more often that not you'll hear phones starting to ring even before we've exit'd the runway... Rolling Eyes

Quote:
Immigration was deadly long and I wasn't in the mood to wait in the queue so I waited for everybody else to finish theirs first, watching the airside activity through the glass windows. I saw an AI 319 coming in and a UL 332 taking off. 3 IT ATRs landed in quick succession as did an SQ cargo 744 soon after. An AI official at immigration were hunting for a transit passenger to Trichy. As the queue thinned, I joined what appeared to be the shortest one. But the guy at the counter was a slowpoke and it took me 30 minutes to get it done. Our luggage was already out by then.



Why did you have to go through immigration?? I thought in domestically operated international flights, if you're flying inter-India, you'll just be allowed to walk through, reflecting your boarding pass, this is what happened with me when I flew AMD-BOM...


Quote:
Having flown down to Mumbai in 9W's J on it's 737s (a classy regional product I must confess), I chilled out for an entire day in the island city meeting up with friends before continuing my trip onwards to MAA


This might seem awfully demanding, but can we expect a TR on this flight too?? Very Happy Very Happy

Thanks for posting again!!
Looking forward to BLR-SIN!! Very Happy

Cheers
Rishul
_________________
Causal Determinism : We are hardwired to need answers. The Caveman who heard a rustle in the bushes and checked out to see what it was, lived longer than the guy, who assumed it was just a breeze.

- Greg House
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website Yahoo Messenger
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 8:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for commenting, keep them coming. Smile

jasepl wrote:
Oh dear God! Whatever possessed you... Must be masochism!


To be honest I didn't have much of a choice here. Smile

Nimish wrote:
Hi Varun - thanks for posting the report - definitely an eye-opener on the pax and crew and the level of interaction! Were the safety briefing/ announcements made in Tamil in addition to English/ Hindi? Would that have helped contain the crowds and their behavior?


Thanks Nimish. Nope, announcements were only in Hindi and English. You might find this article interesting about a Tamil passenger's take on this.

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://www.dilipmuralidaran.com/2009/06/air-india-aka-north-indian-racist-pig.html

star*gold wrote:
Nice pictures, liked the Chennai ones especially.

As for alcohol, no matter what time of the day, if it is free, folks don't seem to mind having one! Happened on a Lufthansa flight to FRA. A guy asked the FA for wine during the breakfast beverage service, prior to landing. She looked at him surprised, but did offer him white wine, but he wanted only red. Then she asked another FA, a more senior one, who said no wine with breakfast. It was funny.


LoL, thanks for the comment.

me111993 wrote:
Quote:
The 9W reg was VT-ALU and the AI reg was VT-ALP.


I guess you meant VT-JGU?? VT-ALU is an AI B77W to be delivered about 2 days from now!! Very Happy


Thanks for the correction. Got confused while typing it. Smile


me111993 wrote:
Why did you have to go through immigration?? I thought in domestically operated international flights, if you're flying inter-India, you'll just be allowed to walk through, reflecting your boarding pass, this is what happened with me when I flew AMD-BOM...


MAA is short-staffed, the immigration officials are the ones who waive you through.

me111993 wrote:
This might seem awfully demanding, but can we expect a TR on this flight too?? Very Happy Very Happy


Sure, when I get the time, I'll try and post TRs on all my flights. Wink

Varun
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
AIR INDIA FAN
Member


Joined: 20 Dec 2009
Posts: 105

PostPosted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 9:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

very excellent trip report,though indian airlines is very horrible,especially on old A 320s.

hope thatyour next flight on AI 319,will be excellent.


exactly,when are you going?


once again,ver awesome TR.
Thanks for sharing.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
77wfan
Member


Joined: 26 Oct 2008
Posts: 21

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Excellent TR- the pics are fabulous as well.

I wonder if the "IC is worse than ever" has to do with IC, or if it had to do with the kind of audience that flew along with the OP. I guess the tiered treatment handed to the different classes of passengers is definitely a sore point. But from the looks of it, it seemed like a pretty straightforward flying experience no?
_________________
Exclamation Exclamation Exclamation Click here to read my PVG-SFO Trip report on 9W!!!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
naresh
Member


Joined: 09 Oct 2007
Posts: 23

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 8:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice TR.
Apart from the delay, "worse"? Really?!

You got -
Welcome drink
Newspaper run
Drink / nuts
Complimentary meal service
Drink / coffee run
Pillow!

- All this on a sub-2 hour flight in economy!!
And yet you complain?!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
star*gold
Member


Joined: 29 Jan 2009
Posts: 187

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 10:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

As it is the procedures are complex, and most of them on these flights fly twice every couple of years, so announcements in languages other than English/Hindi would help. BA/Cathay Pacific/Singapore Airlines all make either announcements or play recordings in Tamil for their flights in/out MAA.

Can reasonably expect Sun Airways to start Tamil announcements soon. Will be nice.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
himmat01
Member


Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 1392
Location: DEL

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 12:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

star*gold wrote:
As it is the procedures are complex, and most of them on these flights fly twice every couple of years, so announcements in languages other than English/Hindi would help. BA/Cathay Pacific/Singapore Airlines all make either announcements or play recordings in Tamil for their flights in/out MAA.

Can reasonably expect Sun Airways to start Tamil announcements soon. Will be nice.


I am not too sure about that. I had flown Paramount on MAA-IXM sector thrice in 2006-07. No Tamil announcements were made.
_________________
Save Maharashtra!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger
jasepl
Member


Joined: 26 Jul 2008
Posts: 4257
Location: bund-bay

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 12:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That's another thing. Foreign airlines long ago started localising their inflight services, by adding meals, menus, crew, announcements etc in the language of the routes, where necessary. The desi carriers? Nothing.

For example, on all of the 9W flights I have taken (to BKK, BRU and HKG), absolutely everything was in desified English and Hindi (plus a bunch of movies in several Indian languages). Zero Cantonese / Thai / French / Flemish.

AI used to have European and Japanese crew on their flights in the past. Is this still the case?

We as a people go around demanding and expecting the whole flying experience to be tailored to meet our demands and expectations, yet none of our carriers make any such effort.
_________________
four years free of jetya punti!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
HAWK21M
Member


Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 8132
Location: Mumbai, INDIA

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 4:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Excellent Pictures Varun.Especially the Airside ones.

On the Smoke warning in the Toilet issue....The offender should have faced action for breaking a very serious rule.
_________________
Think of the Brighter side !!!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website AIM Address Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 4:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the comments,

@AIR INDIA FAN: I took the AI flight on May 16, it was much better than this flight.

@77Wfan: Thanks, good to know you enjoyed the photos.

@naresh: Are you comparing this flight with US carriers? In my opinion, IC is the sore loser amongst the other carriers operating this route- Jet, KF where I would never have broken seats, dirty lavatories, no IFE, etc. etc.

Wrt the language debate, Tamil is the recognized national language of Singapore so if SQ announce procedures in Tamil for a MAA fllight, they might be doing it on other flights as well. (?) In India however, Tamil is not the national language, merely an official one.

@HAWK21M: Thanks MEL, and I agree with you.

Varun
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
naresh
Member


Joined: 09 Oct 2007
Posts: 23

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 6:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Spiderguy252 wrote:
Thanks for the comments,

IC is the sore loser amongst the other carriers operating this route- Jet, KF where I would never have broken seats, dirty lavatories, no IFE, etc. etc.



Going by your description --people, who should know better, smoking in the lav, people queuing up to use the restroom even on short flights, and generally being demanding -- IMO, the passengers have their fair share of responsibility for the shoddy state of affairs. One cannot reasonably expect the crew to clean up the lav after every passenger!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
binaiks
Member


Joined: 15 Jul 2007
Posts: 162
Location: VOBL/VOCI

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

himmat01 wrote:
star*gold wrote:

Can reasonably expect Sun Airways to start Tamil announcements soon. Will be nice.


I am not too sure about that. I had flown Paramount on MAA-IXM sector thrice in 2006-07. No Tamil announcements were made.


Paramount is owned by a tamil businessman, not a group that is making everything out of tamil. I am sure, once Spice becomes Sun, we'll have "Sun Airways" written in tamil - not transliterated but translated in Tamil. We'll see all instructions translated to tamil, announcements in tamil, even expect names of the aircraft to the written in tamil.

Love of a language is good, but the current "rulers" of Tamil Nadu are taking it a bit too far.
_________________
Regards,
Binai
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 8:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

binaiks wrote:
Love of a language is good, but the current "rulers" of Tamil Nadu are taking it a bit too far.


*Cough*Maharashtra*Cough*
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
binaiks
Member


Joined: 15 Jul 2007
Posts: 162
Location: VOBL/VOCI

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 8:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Spiderguy252 wrote:
binaiks wrote:
Love of a language is good, but the current "rulers" of Tamil Nadu are taking it a bit too far.


*Cough*Maharashtra*Cough*


Maharashtra is nothing compared to what is happening in TN now.
_________________
Regards,
Binai
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
star*gold
Member


Joined: 29 Jan 2009
Posts: 187

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 8:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think you are refering to the recent order that all stores display their signs, also in Tamil, in addition to English. Not sure what the problem with that is. If a license to operate a business is a requirement to display a sign in the language of the state, then it needs to be complied with. The law is Tamil, then another Indian language (if desired), and then finally English. I see nothing wrong in writing names in Tamil, or any Indian language.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
jasepl
Member


Joined: 26 Jul 2008
Posts: 4257
Location: bund-bay

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 10:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

star*gold wrote:
I think you are refering to the recent order that all stores display their signs, also in Tamil, in addition to English. Not sure what the problem with that is. If a license to operate a business is a requirement to display a sign in the language of the state, then it needs to be complied with. The law is Tamil, then another Indian language (if desired), and then finally English. I see nothing wrong in writing names in Tamil, or any Indian language.


As if English is a "foreign"language! And I doubt most people in TN would prefer signs in Hindi to English.
_________________
four years free of jetya punti!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
star*gold
Member


Joined: 29 Jan 2009
Posts: 187

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 6:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Smile True
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
ranjanmehta
Member


Joined: 29 Jun 2007
Posts: 108
Location: Dilli

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 6:40 pm    Post subject: Re: IC is worse than ever; BOM-MAA (114 pics) Reply with quote

Spiderguy252 wrote:

At the Y cabin, there were another 2 FAs. They didn't bother to assist us either.


Assist you with what? Lifting your baggages?

Quote:

and the male one was strangely in a pilot's uniform.


IC male crew members wear a white shirt, black trouser and a black tie with red AI symbols on them. Also they have a half wing. Whereas their pilots wear white shirt, black pants and a black tie with brown AI symbols and a full wing.

You sure he was wearing a full wing and a brown/black tie ?


Quote:
Legroom- that is just average Y. I thought IC 320s had a lot of legroom- has AI stuffed in another couple of rows or something?


Is this an IC A320 or a leased bird?

Quote:
Nimbu paani was the welcome drink- I'll never make a mistake of drinking that again.


LOL !

Quote:
The catering truck had left and another one took it's place. It was Taj Sats this time. What's with this?


One for unloading and one for loading perhaps !

Quote:
mom called the FA and requested the latter along with a blanket, which she got with a pleasant "Here you are, ma'am".


Thats nice..

Quote:
I opted for the orange juice which was served with a bag of assorted nuts.


In economy? On a domestic leg? Wow..

Quote:
There was nothing about IC that makes me want to fly them again. This sarkari airline with it's demotivated school-teacher crew are not for me, thanks.


Isn't it a little harsh calling the crew demotivated especially after how well they treated you and your mom? Agreed, they were rude and non responsive after a while, but you have to understand the kind of passengers (labour pax as you call them) they were dealing with.

Ranjan
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 6:55 pm    Post subject: Re: IC is worse than ever; BOM-MAA (114 pics) Reply with quote

Thanks for the comments Ranjan. If you don't mind me asking, are you IC cabin crew?

ranjanmehta wrote:
Assist you with what? Lifting your baggages?


Maybe not, doesn't mean they become statues either. Smile

ranjanmehta wrote:
IC male crew members wear a white shirt, black trouser and a black tie with red AI symbols on them. Also they have a half wing. Whereas their pilots wear white shirt, black pants and a black tie with brown AI symbols and a full wing.

You sure he was wearing a full wing and a brown/black tie ?


If I remember, it was a half wing, so thanks for correcting me- he was cabin crew.

ranjanmehta wrote:
Is this an IC A320 or a leased bird?


Looking at pictures, VT-EVR used to be in the old orange IC livery before being painted into this hybrid scheme. So it can't have been a leased one....

ranjanmehta wrote:
Isn't it a little harsh calling the crew demotivated especially after how well they treated you and your mom? Agreed, they were rude and non responsive after a while, but you have to understand the kind of passengers (labour pax as you call them) they were dealing with.


So are IC crew much better on other legs (domestic and S.E. Asian)? I flew an AI 319 to SIN last month from BLR and if that was operated by IC crew, I suppose they are.......

Varun
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
me111993
Member


Joined: 04 Sep 2009
Posts: 3225
Location: MAA/AMD

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 8:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

VT-EVR is an IC owned bird (now transferred to AI, as is reflected) delivered to IC in 93'! As old as I am! Wink
_________________
Causal Determinism : We are hardwired to need answers. The Caveman who heard a rustle in the bushes and checked out to see what it was, lived longer than the guy, who assumed it was just a breeze.

- Greg House
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website Yahoo Messenger
ranjanmehta
Member


Joined: 29 Jun 2007
Posts: 108
Location: Dilli

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 8:36 pm    Post subject: Re: IC is worse than ever; BOM-MAA (114 pics) Reply with quote

Spiderguy252 wrote:
Thanks for the comments Ranjan. If you don't mind me asking, are you IC cabin crew?


No sir, I'm not Smile

Spiderguy252 wrote:
Looking at pictures, VT-EVR used to be in the old orange IC livery before being painted into this hybrid scheme. So it can't have been a leased one....


me111993 wrote:
VT-EVR is an IC owned bird (now transferred to AI, as is reflected) delivered to IC in 93'! As old as I am! Wink


All EVx and EYx series of A320s that IC has/had were leased. Only EPx and ESx series were owned.

DGCA's website confirms the same:

EVR belongs to:

GMT AIRCRAFT LEASING 12,LLC
C/O GMT US REPUBLIC AVIATION, INC 3300 SOUTH
PARKER ROAD, SUITE 500, AURORA COLORADO
COLORADO

Quote:
So are IC crew much better on other legs (domestic and S.E. Asian)? I flew an AI 319 to SIN last month from BLR and if that was operated by IC crew, I suppose they are.......


You've answered your question sir.

Ranjan
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
AirIndia0001
Member


Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 391

PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 10:03 pm    Post subject: Re: Reply with quote

Varun, thanks for a nicely written trip report. Lovely Pics too!

From your report this is what I gathered...

1) IC/AI ground staff appeared to have kept you all updated on the reason for the delay and boarding was commenced at the earliest! ... in fact! way too early! ... they did not even wait for the cleaning staff to leave the a/c.

2) You were one of the first to board ... and the FA's were still dealing with the ground crew as you entered the a/c, so this could be the reason why they appeared disinterested to you. Your pics do show them helping passengers with their luggage so don't know what made you think otherwise.
Maybe... AI should have waited another few mins so that the FA's were 'ready' to receive you on board! Razz

3) The J class pax, if any, must have deplaned at BOM.

4) It is sad to note that the seats were in a bad state .... this is something AI/IC needs to urgently look into and rectify across their fleet.

5) The FA's do seem to have tried their best. It is easy to critisize them but put oneself in their shoes (esp. when dealing with half-literate labour-class traffic) and one is sure to react likewise.
Maybe... 9W/IT does not see such pax on their flights or that the same pax act better-behaved (knowing they are not flying a sarkari airline!).

6) Catering quality was debatable but did look decent quantity-wise.

Maybe yor next one on IC/AI will be better. Cheers! Wink
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 7:05 am    Post subject: Re: Reply with quote

AirIndia0001 wrote:
Varun, thanks for a nicely written trip report. Lovely Pics too!


Thanks, Sankalp!

AirIndia0001 wrote:
Maybe... AI should have waited another few mins so that the FA's were 'ready' to receive you on board! Razz


Yes, they should have boarded when they were ready.

AirIndia0001 wrote:
5) The FA's do seem to have tried their best. It is easy to critisize them but put oneself in their shoes (esp. when dealing with half-literate labour-class traffic) and one is sure to react likewise.
Maybe... 9W/IT does not see such pax on their flights or that the same pax act better-behaved (knowing they are not flying a sarkari airline!).


This is another interesting point. Do these types fly 9W and IT at all? They definitely do not fly domestically, they will be in the unreserved compartment of a train. Internationally, IT do not operate extensively to the Gulf, so you can rule them out. As for 9W, they've expanded heavily out there in the past couple of years so I wonder in what ways these pax are getting the crew demotivated. Razz

Other than that, why would they fly anything but the airline offering the cheapest fare vis a vis IX, AI, IC, etc.

AirIndia0001 wrote:
Maybe yor next one on IC/AI will be better. Cheers! Wink


Hopefully yes. Smile
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
AIR INDIA FAN
Member


Joined: 20 Dec 2009
Posts: 105

PostPosted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 12:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

hey sider guy,nice trip report.

keep it up.
and post AI flight TR.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Jaysit
Member


Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 4346

PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2010 4:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

That seemed like a perfectly acceptable inflight experience on a short flight.

I don't see why anyone needs more than an ontime departure, a decent seat, and a refreshment on a short flight. But if you do, then I suppose there is always Jet and IT.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2010 9:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jaysit wrote:
I don't see why anyone needs more than an ontime departure, a decent seat, and a refreshment on a short flight. But if you do, then I suppose there is always Jet and IT.


I didn't get that did I? Smile

The flight was delayed a couple of hours (which is more than the flying time!), the seat was in bad shape, as for the refreshments, okay.
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
sri_bom
Member


Joined: 22 Dec 2006
Posts: 2365
Location: Singapore

PostPosted: Mon Jul 12, 2010 8:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice report as always.

Liked the small details that you captured the Bombay suburban train system passing through Vile Parle station as soon as we take off and the metro train in Madras on approach. Also thanks for capturing Bombay in its monsoon, I miss that now as I am overseas.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
stealthpilot
Member


Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 2325
Location: BLR, DXB

PostPosted: Tue Jul 13, 2010 5:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yikes what a horrible flight!!!
Nice TR.

Looking forward to your BLR-SIN one....
_________________
eP007
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the replies, sri_bom and stealthpilot.

I'm strapped short of time, I hope I'll be able to post the AI TR soon.
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
saif.747
Member


Joined: 03 Jul 2010
Posts: 39

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

amazing TR
was co incidently spotting at jari mari mumbai ths v day.bt u took off a lil b4 i arrived the spotting spot.nice pics.VT-EVR is a strange livery haha Razz Very Happy
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

saif.747 wrote:
amazing TR
was co incidently spotting at jari mari mumbai ths v day.bt u took off a lil b4 i arrived the spotting spot.nice pics.VT-EVR is a strange livery haha Razz Very Happy


Thanks. Wink

Have you ever captured VT-EVR? Which sector is she usually flown on?
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
californiabrahmin
Member


Joined: 01 Jan 2007
Posts: 16
Location: Anaheim, California

PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2010 9:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Horrible pictures. Out of focus.
You seem to complain about everything.
_________________
Vande Mataram
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
yash777
Member


Joined: 12 Jun 2007
Posts: 901
Location: Chicago, IL

PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2010 10:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

californiabrahmin wrote:
Horrible pictures. Out of focus.
You seem to complain about everything.


That's the best you can get out of a cell phone camera. You seem to be complaining about everything tbh.
_________________
Jetphotos Flickr gallery
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
Spiderguy252
Member


Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Tue Oct 05, 2010 12:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

californiabrahmin wrote:
Horrible pictures. Out of focus.
You seem to complain about everything.


Whoa! Smile

yash777 wrote:
That's the best you can get out of a cell phone camera.


Correct.

Check this report out, you'll find a bunch of good pictures in there. Wink

http://airlinersindia.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=7219
_________________
Yeah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Airliners-India.com Forum Index -> Trip Reports All times are GMT + 5.5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © phpBB Group. Hosted by phpBB.BizHat.com