Airliners-India.com

[d3vski]

Before I start I must tell you that this is my first trip report and I did not take any photos for the outbound journey to India and all the photos are from the return journey to London.

I booked First Class redemption on Jet airways using my American AAdvantage miles. The cost was 80K plus £117.80 which were the taxes and airport fees. I had four choices of flights to choose consisting of the two BA and two 9W direct flights from LHR-BOM. If I had used BA miles it would have cost me 150K plus £300, If I had used 9W miles it would have cost me 161K plus around £300 (not 100% sure because I am not a member of JP). Using AA miles is a bargain.

With AA miles, partner awards cannot be booked online so I called the UK phone number at 8AM and within 20 minutes I had my itinerary chosen and seats were available. The lady on the phone took down my credit card details for the payment of taxes. I received a PNR reference and I immediately punched it into AA.com and my booking was on the screen. I got worried when I saw the class of booking and it came back with R class/Economy but I remembered that R class is First Class redemption on Jet but maybe it was an economy bucket for AA. Anyway I would not make a fuss over this until I received my Jet PNR reference. Secondly I went over to www.jetairways.com and clicked on view PNR, I entered my details onto the screen and my PNR was displayed with First Class clearly on the screen. I felt a lot more relieved. I jotted down the Jet reference and immediately phoned Jet Reservations for seat reservations as I wanted a window seat. The helpful agent informed me that he would not be able to do seat reservation just yet as AA had not issued the ticket and all he had was what could be described as a provisional booking but he added my passport details and took my phone number to be added to the PNR in anticipation of the ticket being issued by AA. I thanked him and went to work as normal.

At around 4pm, I checked my email and I had received an email from AA confirming that the ticket was issued. Firstly I checked AA.com which duly showed the status as ticketed and secondly I went over to Jetairways.com too manage my booking. This function is very simple and you cannot get lost. I saw that Jet had now received my ticket number and I had the option to print my itinerary or e-ticket and update my booking. I chose to update my booking and it had my meal preference (interesting if you don’t choose anything, Jet will assume you would like an Asian vegetarian meal which is standard, makes sense for an Indian airline where a lot of passengers are Vegetarian and prefer their meals with a bit spice and masala) and passport details updated but nowhere could I select my seats so I phoned Jet again. I selected seats 1A for both Sectors and I was all set to go.

Over the next 30 days I visited the booking several times as I was paranoid something will go wrong and I noticed that Jets website has several faults and security breaches that I should inform everyone about. Firstly you can access anyone’s booking if you know that persons name. My neighbour a few doors down were travelling and I entered his name into the PNR screen and low and behold I had his details up. I used some trial and error and using the LHR-Amritsar and LHR-Bombay flights as a test using common names such as Singh, Patel, Shah, Kaur and Bains, I had several peoples booking up in front of me; I could not believe it as I had access to their passport details if they had entered them in already. I immediately logged into my booking and deleted all my passport details at once.

Jet airways allows First Class, Premiere and top tier members of JP to check in 48hrs before and the rest 24hrs before so two days before my flight while at work I checked in using the online function which was efficient and quick. I confirmed I wanted 1A and the rest of cabin was empty except 1D and I thought to myself, if the whole cabin is empty why the hell does this person want to sit next to me! Anyways I printed my boarding card and was all set to go and I was counting down the hours and was most definitely clock watching at work.



Online check in and printed boarding card
The day of the flight arrived and it was the 9W119 1005am B77W departure from Heathrow arriving into Bombay the following morning at 1235am. I arrived at Heathrow Terminal 3 around 0730 using the London Underground. My first task was to get an Itinerary for my flight so I can enter Bombay airport a few days after for my return journey. T3 has a lot of construction going on and the front façade looks very impressive. Entering the terminal you notice a lot of construction and because of this Jet airways does not seem to have a permanent presence for check in as in the morning they are on one side with the evening flights on the other side of the terminal. The Jet ticket desk is opposite the Air Canada check in at Zone D and I noticed it is manned by Aviance ground handling and not Jet airways staff. The polite agent handed me my copy of the itinerary and asked why I needed it in this day and age. I informed her that the wonderfully efficient Indian police needed to see it before they let into the terminal on my return journey. She was pleasant and informed me that Zone G at the far end is where Jet is conducting check in.

I approached Check-in and the line split into two: Economy and First Class/Premiere. Economy had around 30 people queuing and the premiere line had just one person. There was 1 First Class desk and 2 Premiere desk and the rest of them all economy. A Premiere desk became empty and overall I waited about 3 minutes before I saw the agent. All the ground handling at Heathrow is done by Aviance Ground handling and the agents were a mixed set of nationalities but were all professional. There were about two three Jet staff lurking around translating, helping, guiding the Aviance team. I handed over the my web checked in boarding card and the lady started to punch in my passport details, It took her about 2 minutes to realize that I was travelling First Class and she remarked “you are travelling First Class?” to which I replied “yes I am”. She replied that I was too young to travel First Class and she asked who paid for the ticket. I replied I did and she replied how impressed she is with me. I must stress that she was not rude but genuinely shocked as I am 25 and dressed in Jeans and sweatshirt. I don’t mind these kinds of questions as long as I don’t feel insulted and I chatted to her for a few minutes while the procedures were completed. I found out that I was the only one booked in First Class that day I was hoping it would stay that way. I was impressed that my bag tags and boarding card were pre printed before I had arrived. My bag was tagged and had an assortment of tags attached including MAAS (meet and assist), Priority, Premium and a red sticker on the bag tag itself which also had priority printed on it. I now see that cost cutting has taken over and the new Jet boarding cards are generic for all classes with a blue background rather than individually patterned one depending on which class you were flying. The Boarding cards were still impressive with blue background and patterns compared to boarding cards from AA, BA or SK for example. I received a First Class lounge invite which was at the AA Admirals Club and off I went. I was not escorted through but I don’t mind as I feel weird with a chaperone. I know T3 like the back of my hand. I made my way through fast track which took 5 minutes and then the famous T3 shoe check. There was a backlog and the BAA Muppet just waived me and few others to just walk around the side of the machine.

I went over and purchased some Baileys for a friend and went to buy a magazine. I then made my way to the AA Admirals club which had plenty of seating but otherwise it is very simple with IT stations, TV with News, Newspapers etc. It had basic amenity and some good views of the apron including my Jet flight which was parked on gate 23; I was not expecting anything more as this is a business class lounge not First Class. There were plenty of snacks available I and took some pretzels and a few glasses of Tomato Juice. There were plenty of alcohol available but I certainly did not feel like drinking that early in the morning, it was only 0845. I proceeded to phone my hotel to make sure everything was ok and that a car would be picking me up at Bombay airport as I don’t want to be chasing a Taxi at midnight. I phoned my wife and told her that I will be boarding soon and my phone will be switched off soon after.

At 0935 an announcement was made for Jet airways passengers and I collected my belongings and made my way to the gate while still talking to my wife. As soon as I exited the door, A Jet airways lady called me, I walked past her as I was still on my phone before I realized she called me. I apologized for ignoring her and she in turn apologized for interrupting my phone call. She mentioned that I did not have to make a move to the gate just yet but I mentioned they made a call for Jet inside the lounge, she stated it was business class passengers only. I told her not to worry, she had organized a buggy but as Gate 23 is very close, I wanted to walk and I thanked her anyway. During all this time, my wife is shouting down the phone that I should not be so nice to everyone I meet but that’s just my nature I cannot be rude to anyone and I will not trouble anyone without just cause. I leisurely walked up to the gate and arrived at the gate where two private security contractors checked my passport and boarding cards. The problem in the west is that private security has taken over and I feel that I am more secure going through a third world airport with police and military doing checks rather than some private security manned with recent immigrants with very limited English and all certainly on the minimum wage. I mean what reason they have for doing a good job when they get treated like crap by the management and are paid a pittance.

T3 has gates which are like holding pens; you see that agent and then wait in the secured seating area until the jet bridge door is opened up. Jet airways open the gate at around 0830, a whopping 90mins before the flight. It’s good as it gives the people with limited English and those who need help plenty of time, the queues are never long to enter as the seasoned traveller knows that you do not need to get to the gate 90 minutes before and people arrive sporadically over the 90 minutes.
I entered the gate area and only one jet bridge was being used, I joined the back of the line which was spilling into the seating area. The agent who checked me in spotted me about 30 seconds later as she brought a child’s buggy back to the gate. She shouted at me “Why are you queuing up? Did you pay all that money to queue up? Come follow me”. The agent was great and I was escorted to the door where the In-flight manager, a guy named Santosh, escorted me to my seat, 1A, and offered to stow my rucksack away. I asked if it was ok for me to keep it under my buddy seat for takeoff, to which he replied I could. I got comfortable and this is when the fun started.

First of all a welcome juice was brought to me, I had a choice of three different juices plus water and then one by one came the hot/cold towels followed by the Amenity Kit which was placed in the locker followed by the rest of the items. The items were the Bose Noise Cancelling Headsets, Slippers, Sleep Suit, newspapers, magazines and finally the Drinks and food menu were placed at my side. I noticed the names of the crew and they were Namrata and Sabah and they both came and asked if everything was ok and should I require anything before push back, I should let them know.

The seat itself can only be described as a private suite and was huge (not as big as SQ suites but still impressive), I had acres of leg room and it was upholstered in cloth and leather with a maroon colour scheme. The fittings alongside the windows and the doors were a brown wood effect with the rest of the cabin had a light cream colour. The seat itself is very similar to what Emirates have on board the A345 and B77L but far less bling bling and far more classy. The IFE screen is a very generous 23inches and very comfortable on the eyes with the distance from the seat. The seat controls are on a touch screen handset which allows the user to adjust the seat into a variety of positions. The handset is the size of what the older generation seatback IFE screens in Y class are.
Seat Controls.

The captain came on the PA giving the usual spiel about the routing, weather and flight times. The aircraft had begun the taxi towards the runway for take off. While taxing out the IFE screen had an assortment of still image adverts similar to what you get at the cinema. The aircraft lined up on Runway 09 Right and began to accelerate. We were in the air in no time and climbing rather quickly over London and heading towards mainland Europe and onwards to India.

As soon as the seatbelt sign went off, Namrata came round and asked what I would like to drink and if I would be interested in the canapés. It took me about two seconds to choose the Krug Champagne and I accepted the offer for the canapés. While Namrata went to the galley I made a dash towards the bathroom and went to change into the sleep suit. I was intending to be drinking plenty of champagne and I certainly did not fancy spilling anything on my clothes and it is much more comfortable to sleep in. The Sleep suit was a beige colour with different shades for the arms and legs and 100% cotton. The bathroom had cloth towels to wipe your hands and had Bvlgari products such as the lotion and Eau de toilette. I returned to my seat and as I did so, Namrata brought out a Champagne Glass which she placed beside me and then showed me the bottle and the label for my approval before she poured it into my glass, all with a smile. So here I was, sitting in First Class with the sun shining through the windows and with glass of fine champagne in my hands, thinking it is not a bad life!

The champagne was chilled and before the glass could get empty Namrata would return and fill it up to the top. She also placed a glass of water besides my seat. I ate the canapés and was immediately offered more along with another top up of champagne. This was great, I did not have to press a button or say a word, she just continued filling up my glass with a smile. This was outstanding service.

I was given an option for soup but I chose to skip it and had a salad instead. The salad consisted of Roast duck and green salad leaves.
For this flight, Lunch would be served followed by snacks a little later on in the flight. Although I was born and bred in the UK, I am of Indian Ethnicity with all four of my grandparents originating from Undivided India (all of them were born and raised in Karachi in the Sindh in modern day Pakistan till the partition when my maternal side shifted to Bombay and my paternal side shifted to South Africa) and as they say “you can take the person out of India but you can not take the India out of them!” I chose the lamb curry, rice and aloo gobi (Cauliflower and potatoes), I was definitely in heaven, I was on a first rate airline from India, being served by stunning Indian crew, watching a bollywood film and now having Indian Cuisine for lunch. The main course was accompanied with a bowl of dal and raita. I was also given a choice of breads, ranging from western to Indian Naan and rotis.

I just chose to carryon drinking the champagne with my dinner. And again it was constantly topped up. The dinner was pleasant and one must remember it is food that is made earlier and heated up for you! One thing I must say I liked about the seat features was the ability to drop the hand rests down while I was having dinner so I could slip out to the bathroom in between courses without having to lift or adjust the table. This was certainly helpful as I was drinking copious amounts of champagne.
As I my main course was being cleared, The In-flight Manager, Santosh, came by to see how I was getting by and at this time Namrata came by to top up my champagne and offered me dessert, I had a choice of chocolate cakes or strawberry cheesecake or as Namrata mischievously mentioned “or you can have both!” with a devilish smile to accompany it. I had both and mentioned to Santosh, that Namrata is doing a fine job.
As I was the only one sitting in First Class and I was sitting in 1A, the seat next opposite me, 1D, was made up into a bed for me while I was having my dessert. After Dessert I had I one final glass of champagne before declining further offers. I must have got through around two and half bottles of Krug. I was definitely feeling a little light headed. I attempted to carryon watching a movie I had started while I was eating dinner but gave up and went to lie down on the bed on seat 1D. I was lying down and the ceiling had a starry effect and it was certainly relaxing with the mood lighting on board this fairly new aircraft.

I must have slept for around 3 hours before I woke up and headed to the bathroom to freshen up. I returned to my original window seat and it was now dark outside with about another 3 hours to landing. I fired up the IFE and began to explore the functions. The IFE was AVOD and had good selection of movies: Bollywood and regional, Hollywood, world cinema including Chinese, French and Arabic movies. There were numerous music albums and short features to watch and listen to. The IFE also had information on Jet Airways including the “Change how you fly” video alongside some games.

I am a big fan of history so I chose to watch “Jodhaa Akbar” and just as the credits started, Namrata came to my seat with some popcorn and a packet of what could only be described as masala flavoured twiglets. She offered me more champagne to which declined and instead she recommended an Iced Cappuccino as an alternative. She returned a few minutes later with the drink and offered me snacks of kebabs or pav bhaji. I declined the snacks stating I was not hungry. She said should I feel hungry, to let them know but at least 45 minutes before landing at the latest.

I continued to watch the film but realized I did not have enough time to finish watching it, Bollywood films are usually long and Jodhaa Akbar was no different, it was a 3 hours plus epic so instead decided to mess around with the IFE by listening to some music and reading the news.
The flight was nearing India and when it reached Karachi, I decided that I shall have some snacks. Namrata came out and I asked if I could have the Kebabs, She heated them up and placed them at seat 1D along with a glass of orange juice and some water. After the food was cleared up, I chatted to Namrata for some time explaining why I need to go to India so much and showed her pictures of my wife. It turns out that one of her best friends actually flies for Kingfisher Airlines and I duly took down the name to see if my wife knows this girl or not. I also spoke to Santosh, the In-flight manager for some time about Jet Airways and the aviation industry in India. He was very knowledgeable and he has been with Jet for about nearly 8 years. We discussed how the job is perceived in India compared to the rest of the world and I was shocked when he told me that Jet Airways has made his life. He told me how, teenagers in the colony where he lives would constantly ask him questions about career choices and he also told me that salary offered to cabin crew is considered a “white collar job” and how he has everything he wished for, he has financial security and a respected job.

With around 45 minutes of the flight remaining I decided to change back into my clothes and when I returned to my seat, Namrata came out with a glass of champagne and said that I should celebrate my arrival into India. I took her up on the offer and certainly enjoyed those final moments of my journey to India. Just before landing, I was given a small box by Santosh, the in-flight manager. The small box contained two small glasses and this is given to all First Class passengers as a thank you from Jet Airways. It was certainly a nice touch and I vowed to collect as many as I could as it would symbolise travelling by First Class as often as I could.
The aircraft touched down at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai just after midnight and the aircraft taxied to a hard stand, during the taxi Namrata came to my seat and chatted for a few minutes until the seat belt signs went off. She escorted me to the door of the aircraft and the Premiere passengers were being held back. The door opened and I walked down the stairs and into the waiting coach. I was surprised to see that I had the whole coach to myself; I also had a Jet Airways ground staff escorting me and a ported to hold my bag. One thing I must comment on is that the staff in India in the hospitality industry are all young, smart looking, well maintained bodies and all speak English to a high standard. Presentation wise, all staff were immaculate and well groomed and all are proud to be working for companies such as Jet Airways.

The coach arrived outside the immigration hall which was quiet at the time and I proceeded to the first empty counter and I received an entry stamp into my passport without the officer even muttering a word to me. For information only, if your flight arrives and it is busy at immigration and you have a PIO/OCI card, you can use the diplomatic/official passport line. It has a tensa barrier but show the guy standing there your PIO/OCI and he will lift the barrier up and let you pass. I received my passport and after taking ten steps, another guy checked to make sure I had an entry stamp in my passport despite me just passing through the immigration control. The Jet Airways girl and the porter returned to me as they have to enter through a staff entrance.

The arrivals hall looked far more spacious and airy and my bag was the third one on the belt. The porter picked it up and we proceeded to the exit. I changed some British pounds into Indian Rupees and went outside where I saw the driver picking me up. The driver signalled for us to go to the end of the concourse where the pick up point is and wait there while he went to get the car. The Jet Airways girl stood with me and we started chatting about the unsociable arrival times into India just to satisfy the west. If India had night curfews like at Heathrow and other airports around the world then airlines would have to be forced to alter schedules to more socially acceptable hours and I would definitely by for it because most times I arrive or depart, my family or someone has to pick me up or drop me off at 1am plus all these workers have to work night shifts and it certainly takes a toll on them.

My driver arrived with the car and I said thank you to the Jet Airways girl and we proceeded to the ITC Maratha which is literally less than five minutes drive from the airport.
My overall impressions of Jet airways were very positive, I thoroughly enjoyed my journey, it was comfortable and the crew, particularly Namrata, were very good.

My only criticism is the departure lounge, AA Admirals Club, for a First Class product it pathetic. Jet Airways has four departures per day, 2 to BOM, 1 to DEL and 1 to ATQ. They should think about investing in a lounge product and it would certainly improve the ground experience at Heathrow airport.

The ITC Maratha is, in my eyes, a wonderful hotel. My first experience with the ITC brand was when I went to Mumbai in April and stayed at the Grand Central in Parel which is located towards the central suburbs in Bombay. The hotel experience was great but the location for me was a big pain in the arse. I normally frequent the western suburbs where most of my friends reside. I was spending up to an hour trying to get to places like Andheri. I had decided that ITC Maratha in Andheri would be where I was based and in June I stayed there and loved the location. It was easy travelling to see my friends in Lokhandwala, Borivali and Malad as well as being close to Bandra and Juhu.

I had wanted to stay in the ITC Maratha for this trip but the quote of nearly Rs17000 per night absolutely extortionate so I booked the Le Royal Meridien at the slightly more reasonable Rs9500 per night plus tax. I would constantly check if I there were any special deals happening at the Maratha but no such luck.

I received a phone call from a friend who needed advise on how to come to the UK and all the nonsense that follows these kinds of calls. I do not advise my friends on these matters just in case things go wrong and they start to blame me but this friend mentioned that her sister in law worked at the Grand Central hotel in group sales so I decided to call in a favour in return and asked if she could find me a decent rate at the Maratha and two days later I received an email stating I could book for six nights at a rate of Rs11000 per night. Result, I cancelled the Le Meridien booking and shifted to the Maratha! This was actually cheaper than the Le Meridien because there you have to pay a tax and the total came to more than Rs11000 whereas in the Maratha, there is no tax to pay as it has a special status which is expiring next year. It was a plan to stimulate business at the hotel and it certainly won my business. The rate also included Buffet Breakfast, 30 minutes complimentary internet access and evening Cocktails between 6-8pm in the residents lounge.

I arrived at the hotel and with the formalities completed; I was escorted to a standard executive room on the 14th floor. The interesting part it that the hotel has only six floors but they are numbered L, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16. I asked the guy escorting why this is and he mentioned that it is to do with reputation and how all the big hotels have high floors. The guy was very knowledgeable and I chatted to him for a few minutes and thanked him. My luggage arrived shortly and I made myself comfortable and started to watch the highlights of the India Vs Australia test match. I fell asleep shortly after and woke up the following day; I must have slept for a long time because I actually missed breakfast.

I was relaxing in my room watching the continuing saga of the test match when the doorbell rang and my fiancé was waiting outside. I could not believe it as I was not expecting her until later that evening as she had told me that she was coming from Guwahati. It was a nice surprise and after just over a month apart we were both together again albeit for just five days.

I met my fiancé a few years ago and at the moment I am travelling to India nearly every month to see her. We are actually married on paper but not religiously, the idea was to make it easier for her to get a UK visa so that she could visit the UK and see what it is like. I do not want her to come to the UK for the first time after we are religiously married, I actually want her to visit and see what life is like in the UK, I want her to be prepared.

Most evening we would take advantage of the cocktail hours at the Resident’s Lounge. The lounge was always busy at cocktail hours and why not? If someone offers you free drinks and canapés, who in their right mind are going to refuse. I started off with a few Kingfisher beers and would make my way onto the hard liquor while my fiancé would be consistent with her White wine. It was not the greatest atmosphere at the lounge but I did not really care as I was enjoying the time with my soon wife to be. The waiters at the lounge were top notch and they would always top up and refill a drink without me having to say a word, this was first class service and they were a credit to the hotel.

While travelling out and about, we used the rickshaws more than anything because as far I am concerned they are the best way to travel around the city and very cheap too. The problem with Bombay is that the traffic is unbelievable and the almost lawless jungle attitude that the drivers have, the rickshaw is small and agile enough to weave in and out of traffic, which a car just simply cannot do.

We shopped a lot and met up with several friends. I also tried to use my Kingfisher miles at the FAME cinemas but every time I could not use my miles to purchase tickets or earn miles because the computer could not connect. This happened to me at two different branches, once in Lokhandwala and the other in the Inorbit Mall. I ended up making cash purchases and was left thinking what good it is having all these lifestyle partners which you cannot take advantage of.

One night, we went to a restaurant called “Mainland China” which was recommended by a friend. The restaurant was excellent and the staffs were knowledgeable about the menu and spoke excellent English.
After five wonderful days with my fiancé, I had to return to London and she had to return to work, she was due to operate the 1230 flight to Goa and I was due back on the Jet Airways 1330 departure back to London. The times of these flights were great because we could wake up at a reasonable time, have breakfast, pay the bills and then check out at around 11am. To save the hassle I had chosen to use the car service provided by the Hotel, I informed them that first I would be dropping my fiancé off at the Domestic Airport and then I required being at the International Airport. This was no problem and I think Bombay’s favourite phrase is either “Adjust” or “ho jaye ga, ho jaye ga!” as the hotel told me, everything is possible.

I had checked in Online, the previous day and selected seat 1A for my flight back. After getting everything packed and double checking that I have not left anything behind, we checked out and were on the way to the domestic airport. It is around a 25 minute journey and not to eventful apart from the usual kids begging at traffic lights etc. I dropped my fiancé off, and I proceeded to make my way to the international airport. It took a further 25 minutes and I arrived at the terminal and it was not the busiest time and I actually prefer leaving at this time rather than the awkward and insane early morning flights.







Jet Airways, use Gate C as the entrance to the check in area and as I got
out of the car I noticed a lot of construction going on at the airport and I noticed a few coffee shops outside, I am sure they make a killing with all the hordes that come to drop off family members. I tried to look out for a Jet Airways representative but could not see any so I made my way inside.

First Check of the day was the CISF officer seated outside the door, I showed him my E-ticket printout and I was waived into the building. As I entered I noticed how much has changed and the airport is a huge improvement to what it was from 18 months ago. The thing that hit me the most was how clean it was and I noticed a bank of Self Service Check in Machines, though I am not sure if they are active for International flights out of Bombay. I saw a Jet airways porter and asked him where they check in, he pointed me to the direction of the check in desks and when I mentioned I am travelling First Class, he went scurrying over and got someone within two seconds to hold my small Tumi roller case. I was impressed; small bits like this are what travelling in First Class is all about.



The second check of the day was that baggage had to be pre screened and the porter told me to wait on the other side while he got the bag screened. After this, the line for check in split into two, the First Class/Premiere passengers onto one side and Economy onto the other. I noticed that before the economy passenger reached the check in desk, they had to go through a security check at a podium before proceeding further.









I checked in and the security check, third one for the day, for the First Class/Premiere passengers was done at the check in desk by the agent calling over a security agent. The agent checking me in was young, well groomed and easy on the eyes. She checked me in, again the boarding passes and tags were pre printed and I was handed a Jet Airways branded ticket jacket with all my bits inside including my boarding pass, baggage receipts, lounge invitation and a fast track immigration card for London. The kind agent even asked me if it was ok to stick on the security checked date sticker onto my Mont Blanc passport holder. She then proceeded to fill in my embarkation card and all I had to do was sign it. The only gripe I have about the service is that the agents are way too kind to question or challenge a passenger in First Class. I was wearing my black sunglasses and there was no way they could compare my photo in my passport to my face and yet they still did not ask me to lower them.
After check in, I was escorted by another Jet Airways agent through to the immigration desks past the Air India side of the terminal. The immigration check is number five and six for the day as after you receive your departure stamp, you have to show it to another immigration officer about two yards later. It was exactly the same when arriving into India I guess this way the government can say that they are doing social work by keeping more people in a job then they actually need.

The next thing I realized was that, in all my previous trips, hand baggage and metal detector checks were done just as you entered the gate area and now they are done centrally so that gate checks by the CISF are thing of the past. This check was the seventh of the day so far. The agent escorted me to a lounge by Gate 10 and it was shockingly small. It is called the “Premier Lounge” and it is shared with British Airways. The lounge had plenty of seats and the buffet counter compromised of the usual hard liquor, Kingfisher beer cans and soft drinks. The food on offer was vegetable cutlets and plenty of breads. There were magazines and newspapers a plenty and each side had a flat screen plasma TV on the wall tuned to the news channels. The big story of the day was that Barack Obama would be the next president of the United States. I also want to add that I have a new found respect for Americans for voting in a non-white man to be the next president.













I still had nearly two hours before my flight and I decided to stretch my legs. I asked if I could leave my rucksack in the lounge and the agent told me that he would keep and eye on it. The entire terminal has improved by leaps and bounds and the toilets are now clean and I had no problems in using them. There is a lot of construction work still going on and I hope Jet Airways and the other airlines get together and make a fantastic new lounge with all the trimmings for the premium passengers. I hope that they have one big lounge, jointly operated, rather than small individual ones, especially as the airport is not too big.

The airport now has a decent and improving duty free shop with all the usual tobacco and alcohol plus I also saw some boutique stands for brands such as Swarovski. The terminal has umpteen choices for food with small coffee shops and also saw numerous fast food shops. There is also a wonderful new food court with KFC, Pizza Hut, Noodle, Indianparadise and the coffee bean shop. It looks smart and I can not wait until all the construction is completed, Bombay will have an airport it can be proud off.

I returned to the lounge and sat down, after a few minutes a Jet Airways employee dressed in civvies approached me. She introduced herself as a member of the First Class concierge team. She mentioned that in my booking there were no contact details for me and the only number they had was of my friend in the UK as an emergency contact. She mentioned that the first class concierge team are there to make the experience at the airport as painless as possible, she told that they had rang my friend to find out what time I was going to be arriving at the airport but he did not pick up probably because of the strange number popping up on his screen. According the lovely lady, Jet Airways endeavour to find out what time the passenger(s) are due and have an agent and a porter waiting at the drop off point to escort them in. She gave me a business card for the First Class concierge team and told me to call them in the future should I ever be returning to Bombay and have any problems or if I require anything else. Jet Airways by this time had totally won me over and I made a mental note to try and travel with Jet Airways whenever possible, especially in First Class. This was the first time I was travelling with Jet Airways in First Class and I was most definitely a nobody in India and they still went out of their ways to make me comfortable and the personal touch was unbelievable and I hope they maintain this even with all the expansion that I am sure will take place over the next ten years.
I was feeling quite peckish but not wanting to risk anything from a buffet counter which gods knows when the food was prepared, I went outside and grabbed a KFC zinger burger and returned to the lounge where I grabbed a Kingfisher Premium lager can. I finished it and about ten minutes later, the agent who had originally escorted me to the lounge came and informed me that it was time to board the aircraft. She escorted me all the way to the gate and through check number eight which was the boarding pass scan and into the jet bridge where check number nine awaited us, check number nine consisted of a passport check and some people were having their hand baggage searched but being in First Class means that the agents are too scared to search your bags just in case you get upset and they just waive you through. Just prior to boarding was the tenth and final check with an agent standing by the door of the aircraft checking the boarding pass.

The ground agent escorted me through to the First Class cabin and pointed me to seat 2A and mentioned that this was seat 1A. I was gobsmacked and did not know what to say, by this time the gentleman who should have been in 2A was making himself comfortable in my seat and the agent had to be corrected by the cabin crew who told her that 2A was not 1A. The agent asked whether I wanted to sit in 1A and I thought for a moment but I really did not fancy becoming a “Do you know who I am?” type of person as I told her not to worry.





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The In Flight manager came and introduced herself and we had a pleasant chat. Shortly afterwards the welcome drinks were offered followed by the hot/cold towels and the amenity kits. The menus were shortly placed on the shelf next to the seat. There were a total of five passengers in First Class with one of them obviously a member of the pilots’ family as she was hugged and welcomed like a friend on board the aircraft. She was also escorted by the First Class concierge lady I met earlier. India really needs to stop worshipping pilots like gods, they need to be brought down to earth.

























I noticed that alongside this aircraft was the Virgin and British Airways bound for London as well. In the early morning, you have a choice of Jet or BA as the direct options to London and in the afternoon, the choice is increased with Virgin having the third flight to London.
The flight pushed back and I noticed how close the “shanty” towns are to the apron as we lined up for take off. On the take off roll, I noticed the Kingfisher A330 parked up in the corner still awaiting its maiden flight to London from Bombay at that time.

After takeoff, the drinks orders were taken and as I had Krug on the outbound to Bombay, I decided to have Dom Perignon on this flight. The champagne and canapés were brought out to me and again the label on the bottle was shown to me for my approval before it was poured into the glass. I was again in the clouds drinking champagne and the sun was shining beautifully. The glass was topped up consistently and was also offered more canapés which I declined.





The order for lunch was taken and again I chose to have the tomato soup as a started and the Indian non vegetarian option of Chicken curry with rice and okra. The In flight manger came to prepare my table but it would not budge and several attempts were made to prize it out of its casing but it was not to be. I was now regretting not moving into 1A and cursing the agent who screwed and being super nice about it as the only free seats that I could see were 1D and 2D, the middle seats. Luckily for me, Seat 2K was free and I shifted over to that seat. The flight attendant helped me move my stuff over and apologized for what just happened.
My glass was topped up and the table was prepared, I had the starter of the soup and for the main course I also decided to have some wine instead of the champagne. The crew suggested a white wine and it went down nicely.

I finished with the dessert which was ice cream and a caramelised banana which was rather pleasant. After the food, I decided to watch some films and get some rest. I must have slept for about two hours and the crew came round offering snacks. I was not hungry so just passed but did take them up on the offer for some grape juice which was more like a smoothie than juice.

I played around with the IFE system and it crashed once as I selected the games option. It took about five minutes to restart and it worked for the next few hours as I watched some films and listened to some music. I noticed that the crew were a lot less personal but still very good compared to the crew I had on my flight from London.





















Around three hours from London, I decided to have some snacks and it consisted of chicken tortilla and salsa mix. It was nice and I chose to have a “Golden Martini”, which is one of Jet Airways signature cocktails. In my eyes, any cocktail which uses Dom Perignon as a mixture is always worth a try.

The rest of the flight was uneventful and I was offered tea or coffee as I do not drink either, I had some juice instead. The flight landed early and we made our way over to the new Pier 5 at Terminal 3 and docked at Gate 3, just before the seatbelt signs went off, I was thanked for my custom and given a set of two glasses as a gift from Jet Airways.

The crew held back the business class passengers to allow the first class passengers off first and at the top the escalator, there was an agent holding a sign with my name on it, they had arranged a buggy for all the First Class passengers. I declined the offer as I wanted to walk after sitting on my backside for the last nine hours and I also had IRIS registration so I could use the booth instead of seeing an immigration officer.

I passed through immigration barrier and made my way down to the baggage belt and there were two baggage handlers unloading all the priority baggage onto the floor. My bag was the third one on the belt and I made my way through the Green Channel at the customs area. I went outside to the drop off/pick up point where my friend was waiting and my adventure with Jet Airways was over.

Overall I was very impressed with Jet Airways product but there are definitely areas in which they can improve on. The main area which they need to sort out is some decent lounges to go along with the otherwise First Class service they provide. I would definitely fly with them again and they have certainly set the marker for other airlines in India to follow. They should be ranked amongst the world’s best regarding the service on board but the lack of ground facilities, which admittedly is out of their hands, lets them down.

I hope you enjoyed reading and I can not even begin to tell you how hard it is to right a trip report.

[ryder1650]

Great report, thanks for the pictures.

Can't believe you got the flight for only 80k miles! When I flew AA on SFO-ORD-DEL in F they charged 180k miles (though of course it was a much longer distance), and the quality is much lower than the 9W F class.

[lambuhere1]

Damn Good Report, Loved reading it.

To tell you frankly, Initially I was confused with your description on Wife and Fiancee. It was cleared when you gave the clarification later.

[Nimish]

Great report Dave - thanks for posting. The details and the personal anecdotes were great in keeping connected...
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We miss you Nalini!

[stealthpilot]

Great TR, and congratulations!
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eP007

[d3vski]

Thanks for the comments, they are appreciated.

I have to admit, it felt weird taking pictures on a plane but now i am confident to do it again.

I just hope my next TR does not take six months to write up!

[avbuff]

Amazing TR! very well done.

Nice to know you enjoyed your trip.

[Karan69]

Great report Dave had a lot of fun patiently reading it,

Maratha is a great hotel and it seems like you got an amazing deal for 2 ppl @ 11K ,

Congrats on the wedding, all the best

Karan

[shivendrashukla]

I must say this is one of the best TR i have read in Recent times. Good TR there Dev...

Cheers
Shivendra

[sri_bom]

Great Report...Enjoyed the detailed reporting...

Sri_Bom

[Spiderguy252]

Really well written TR. Thanks for sharing. *thumbs up*
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Yeah.

[bardosjozsef67]

Thanks for such a nice share I might also plan to travel with it