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GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

Gold’s Own Country & The Neighbours – a Kingfisher Experience via BLR

I have attempted to write a few TRs in the past but never completed any. Besides this being my first TR, it was also my first trip to Kerala, Karnataka & Andhra.

1. Background

I was to join my family, friends & relatives on a 10-day trip to visit Kannur, Mysore, Tirupati, Bangalore & Calicut. Everyone was to reach CCJ on 06th July early morning, from where the trip would commence onboard ‘an Airbus on Road’. This road trip was planned about 3 months in advance, but I decide to join them at the 11th hour..!

Unlike BOM & DEL, CCJ does not witness around the clock flight movements. My folks were arriving on the first flight of the day- G9 451, from SHJ landing at 03:35. The earliest flight from BOM, S2 423 lands at 13:30 and the last flight from BOM lands at 18:40. And I was in no mood to wait around by arriving early, as the previous week at office was expected to be very hectic. Hence, I decided to join the entourage at MYQ, a day later and return from CCJ after the group departs early morning. Kingfisher is the only airline that serves MYQ and nor was I complaining, as this trip would get me some Tier Points as well.

2. Booking

The KFA website was promoting discounts for ‘Return-Fares’, but since my trip would be ‘Multi-City’ there was no discount for me. Hence, I booked 2 One-way tickets, as the fare rules for Return tickets were more restrictive (also as a provision for a less-expensive date change, if any). I booked myself onto KFA (ICAO code is KFR, but I use KFA, so as not to confuse with KF Red flights), which turned out to be priced the lowest as they were the last tickets on the 7-day APEX fare quote. Also, I was to transit via BLR on both the segments. Each leg would involve a Kingfisher Red & Kingfisher Class segment. This cost me about INR 7700, while I checked that BOM-BLR & return for the same dates, was priced at INR 6300..!

As soon as the transaction was processed on the website, I received the email with my confirmed itinerary. The BlackBerry Travel app automatically picked up the itinerary and then I manually fed it with the info on hotels and the ground transportation.

Outbound: BOM-BLR-MYQ
Inbound: CCJ-BLR- BOM

3. The Trip

a. IT 103: BOM-BLR

IT 103: Mumbai (BOM) to Bengaluru (BLR)
Departure: 11:25 Delayed (Was 09:15)
Terminal: 1A
Gate: A16
Arrival: 12:55 Delayed (Was 10:55)
Aircraft: Airbus A320 (VT-KFG: F 20/Y 114)
Load Factors: F 12/20, Y 114/114

i. Check-In
Since I had ‘car-pooled’ with a colleague who was departing on 9W 301 to DEL, I reached the airport by 07:45, which was early. The fact that made it even more ‘early’ was that KFA had re-scheduled this flight to depart at 10:50. Although I was informed about it 48 hours before flight, I decided to stick to the original plan. Departing late would only have resulted in me being stuck in traffic.

First I dropped my colleague at T 1B and then proceeded to T 1A. I flashed my tickets & ID at the entrance and headed in. T 1A has plenty of check-in counters but, I have never seen all operating at the same time. There were a few lines on the counters to the left and there were a few pax who were attempting to check-in using the ‘Kiosk’ facility.

Since I had a check-in bag, I proceeded to walk the ‘red-carpet’. KFA has priority check-in zones for members of KingClub’s Silver, Gold & Platinum Tier. These counters are alongside the Kingfisher First section and at times are used inter-changeably.

When I proceeded to the ‘red-carpet’, the attendant confirmed my tier and took my bag and led me to a counter. I waited while a person before me finished his procedure. In the mean while, the attendant tagged my bag with ‘Priority’ & ‘Domestic Transfer Tags’. Next, I approached the counter and was greeted with a smile along with apologies for the delayed flight. Although, I frequently travel on ‘multi-stop’ or ‘via’ flights, I was concerned about my connecting flight from BLR-MYQ. The agent assured me that with the ‘Through Check-In’ would ensure that I make it to the connecting flight.

ii. Security & Lounge
After being handed the Lounge Invite & both the boarding passes, I proceeded towards the Security Check. With not much of a queue, I was scanned in stamped in less than 5 minutes. As I collected my belongings from the tray, I noticed an Arab family trying to get directions to gate A5. The CISF lady attempted to explain the directions, but they couldn’t make sense of it.

A couple of minutes of ‘charades’ combined with my tooti-footi Arabic, ended with lots of ‘Shoe-krans’ and the Arab Family rushing to catch the Air India flight, while I prayed for absence of MNS & saffron brigade out here. Not for me, but for the Arab Family, of course..! Wink

I spent the next couple of hours in the Carnations Longue and clicking a few snaps in the waiting area of the T 1C.

View of the upcoming BOM ATC tower from the Carnation Lounge.

Here's what it’s likely to look like.

and here's an article about it.

On the wall opposite 'The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf', I spotted the Fiat Padmini spare parts being put to 'creative' use..!

At BOM, it's not just the ATC Tower that's awesome, the T 1C is good as well.

iii. Boarding
Finally, it was time to board and I headed towards my boarding gate, A16.

On the way crossed 'Terminal F'

Seating area of 'Terminal F', overlooking the tarmac.

I spotted these AI & IC birds in ramp- action. Looks like this frame compares Apples to Oranges and by merging them, I don't think it tastes good. Sad

This is the Kingfisher bird, that would fly me to its home.

An AI A321 (VT-PPE) arrived just then.

At the boarding gate, my boarding pass was verified & I then boarded the aircraft through the jet-bridge.

iv. Flight Time
Once onboard, the FA welcomed & greeted with a smile while directing me to the designated seat. I reached my 'extra leg-room' seat, 11 E before the bulkhead.

Next, the FA's distributed the welcome drink, 'LMN', along with headsets & a face wipe. Blankets were given out only upon request.

Soon Capt. Baruah welcomed all on board and also apologised for the delay caused to this flight. He also introduced FO Mohanty & Cabin Incharge Cinderella, to be assisted by Valeena. I am not sure if the FA's use pseudo names in the industry. Razz

This was followed by VJM's welcome video & Yana Gupta's safety video on the IFE screen. The latter one was once in English & again in Hindi.

We pushed back at 11:25, tagging behind a World Airways Cargo MD-11 on to the start up of runway 27/09. On the way there, I spotted AI B747 being scrapped, before finally taking off at 11:35.

I plugged into the Bollywood movie: Houseful and was soon given with the Menu for the meal service. Being a Herbivorous creature, I opted for the Veg. option which was a Paneer Chilla with Aloo Vada & Tomato Chutney. Apologies for not posting the pics of the meal service. It was too tempting & mouth watering for me to fiddle with the cam. Razz

I skipped the Tea / Coffee round as I have plenty experience of such 'Machine-dispensed' beverages at my office. Rolling Eyes

v. Arrival

The trays were cleared swiftly after the Tea / Coffee rounds as the Capt. announced descent into Bengaluru. At 12:55, we made a swift but smooth landing at the BIAL terminal. Capt. thanked the pax for opting to fly KFA & once again apologised for the delayed flight.

This aircraft was allocated a remote stand and thus pax were de-planed with a bus service to the terminal. As soon as the doors were opened, the FA announced the belt #, from which this flight's baggage could be collected. This a unique feature I have not seen on GF, AI, 9W, SG or G8. I am not sure about the others.

On the way to the terminal, I spotted a bird each from 6E & IT making a dash to the gate.

Similarly, I made a dash for the very 1st KFA agent I could spot and showed my boarding pass of the connecting flight to MYQ. She informed me that the flight was delayed and in fact, had just departed MAA sometime back. It was expected to arrive here in the next half an hour.

b. IT 2404: BLR-MYQ

IT 2404: Bengaluru (BLR) to Mysore (MYQ)
Dep: 14:00 Delayed (Was 12:00)
Terminal: 1
Gate: 7
Arrival: 14:55 Delayed (Was 12:45)
Aircraft: ATR 72-500 (VT-KAJ: Y 66)
Load Factors: Y 62/66

ii. Security & Lounge
I then exited the hall and turned right so as to enter the departures section. Once again I flashed my ID & Boarding Pass & dashed to the Security Check on Level 1. On the left side is the queue for the domestic departures. Thankfully the queues were not snarlingly long and I was there at the departures area in 15 minutes from my arrival into BLR. I was not eligible for Lounge Access as this was a Kingfisher Red flight and I am a KC Silver member.

iii. Boarding
Boarding was announced at 13:30 after the aircraft had arrived from MAA. This flight originates from MAA and goes on to MYQ, one-hop via BLR. Also, MYQ is solely served by KFA's single daily flight. The pax were bussed-to the ATR 72 aircraft.

Some Snaps en-route

iv. Flight Time

The pax were boarded from the rear of the aircraft. The FA greeted with a smile and her colleague distributed bottles of water in the mean time.

Capt. Duke introduced himself, FO Prateik and FA's Josey & Aanchal. I was initially allocated seat 03 D but all 4 seats in the 1st row were empty. I enquired with the FA if I could switch to 01 D, a window seat with extra leg-room. She approved and thus I jumped forward.

A 6E A320 next to an IT ATR-72.

The BIAL ATC Tower

The recently launched SQ Cargo B747F flight, rolling down for the return journey to SIN and a Blue Dart B757 in storage.

This flight was carrying 'Dead-Weight' on seat 01 A. Cool

We pushed back at 14:05 and instantly raced down the runway to rotate for the short hop. The FA's came around offering snacks & beverages, which I declined. I browsed through the 'Cine-Blitz' magazine for a few minutes and soon the Capt. announced descent. I peeped out of the window to view the lush green carpets highlighted by the coconut trees.

v. Arrival
We made a very smooth landing at the Mandakalli Airport and I was on the verge of bursting into fits of laughter when the Capt. Duke announced: "Welcome to My-Sore..!" But, thankfully we both went unnoticed. Mr. Green

The FA announced that the luggage would be delivered shortly on the belt in the Arrivals hall.

With a short hop on to the tarmac and I notice that the runway is not Tar or Asphalt but Cemented and so is the Tarmac & Apron.

Mate, it’s not a weighing scale..! Rolling Eyes

View of terminal from the tarmac.

Eureka, the Priority Tag works...!

Terminal View from the parking lot.

The Mysore airport reminds me of the Udaipur airport, similar building style / colour and the tarmac is cemented at both locations, although Udaipur has a larger asphalt runway.

The airport is located about 10 kms from the city centre, but directly connected to the State Highway. It took me about 20 minutes to reach my hotel.

End of Part 1.
Picture abhi baaki hai mere dost..! Wink

Disclosure: Some of the pictures are sourced from internet, credits to the actual owner. Kindly excuse the picture quality, I have used my Samsung mobile phone. Feedback & Comments are welcome.
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The more I fly 9W, the more I prefer AI | FlightDiary: 59 Boeing + 30 Airbus + 9 ATR + 1 Embraer

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Very nice and detailed trip report!
It is nice to see excellent loads on IT, for both segments of the journey.
Nice images of T1A and T1C, and perhaps the first pictures from inside the lounge, at least on this forum! The Premier Padmini taxi mural looks nice. Good pun on the apples and oranges part - the new AI colours vis-a-vis the flying swan AI colours! The snacks and beverages on the BLR-MYQ leg would have been buy-on-board, right? This is also perhaps the first trip report featuring the Mandakalli airport - thanks for sharing these pictures and descriptions with us! It is nice to see this major tourist destination enjoying air connectivity, that too, after a very long time. `My-Sore' is certainly not an eye-sore! I have very pleasant memories of a trip with TW and Jr (`The Wife' and Junior) circa 2009 - we had made it there by road from Bengaluru, taking a detour to visit the incredible symphony in stone: Halebidu and Belur on the way, and Tipu's palace and the place where his body was found, and the sand-buried temples, on the way back (Oh, we did not miss the beautiful Mysore palace when in the city, or the lovely Vrindavan gardens). I had gone there on work, but also got this chance to explore a very beautiful place. A stored Blue Dart B757 at BLR - any other information on this bird?
Announcement of the baggage belt? In an amazing first for me, I heard this on Air India! 05 Aug 2011, AI 701, CCU-DEL. We had docked at the international terminal, and were bused around (getting a nice view of the terminal airside!) to the bus arrival gates. Just prior to boarding the bus, the cabin crew had announced the belt number - possibly to clear any doubts about our having to go through the international section!). I will post this trip report hopefully, soon. This has some pictures and descriptions of the new gates 1 and 2A at CCU - a pleasant surprise in an otherwise fading and relatively unkept terminal.
Thanks once again, and eagerly looking forward to the next installment(s)!
Sumantra.

GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

Thanks for the kind words, Sumantra. I am glad you liked it.
I was getting a little worried there with so many views & not a comment. Thanks a ton.

This TR was just completed this morning. I was pulling off an over-nighter, and before clicking the Submit button, my sleepy eyes couldn't spot the grammar & spelling goof-ups. I will hopefully have the access to edit it in the evening..!

Thanks once again.
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The more I fly 9W, the more I prefer AI | FlightDiary: 59 Boeing + 30 Airbus + 9 ATR + 1 Embraer

Nimish · Posted: Fri Aug 12, 2011 12:05 pm Post subject:

Lovely TR - thanks for posting.

What caught my eye were the 2 lovely shots of the frontage of MYQ's terminal - though it seems like there's a lot of "congress grass (Parthenium)" flourishing right outside the terminal Smile

. And it seems like there's that weed even airside - surely DGCA has a ruling prohibiting congress grass airside Wink

?
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We miss you Nalini!

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Nimish, that PL-480 weed flourished aright across the length and the breadth of the country. This was rampant even in the 1980s - has there been a lull in its spread of late? I hope so, at least. In addition to skin irritations, this is notorious for some problems of the respiratory tract, too.
Cheers, Sumantra.

jasepl · Member Joined: 26 Jul 2008 Posts: 4257 Location: bund-bay

Nice, report, thanks for sharing. And that's a lot of places to visit in ten days!

Quick question, how was the security queues at Santa Cruz in the morning? I've usually found security (and queues in general) at the IC terminal to be much better than at the Jet terminal. But it's been a while, so I was wondering.
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four years free of jetya punti!

Spiderguy252 · Posted: Fri Aug 12, 2011 6:04 pm Post subject:

Great shots, keep writing. Smile

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Yeah.

me111993 · Member Joined: 04 Sep 2009 Posts: 3225 Location: MAA/AMD

Nice report Hiren, thanks for sharing! Looking forward to part 2!
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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

GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

Thanks Sumantra, Nimish, Jasepl, Varun, & Rishul. I am glad you guys have liked it..! I have just edited a few spelling & grammatical bloopers.

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

sri_bom · Member Joined: 22 Dec 2006 Posts: 2365 Location: Singapore

Great Trip report enjoyed reading it my suggestion is keep posting the trip reports and dont give it up.

jasepl · Member Joined: 26 Jul 2008 Posts: 4257 Location: bund-bay

GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

GuyFromBOM · Member Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 544 Location: VABB

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

...very, very interesting, thank you!
-Sumantra.

stealthpilot · Member Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 2325 Location: BLR, DXB

Nice TR, good to see pics of Mysore airport.
I've noticed KF announce the baggage belts in BLR more than they do at other airports, maybe it's just me not paying attention but on most flights to BLR they let the passengers know.
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