Johnniey Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I'm thinking of travelling to London with Air india in a month as they seem to be the cheapest. Anyone got any experience of this airline - safety, comfort, kid-friendly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geriatrickid Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 No. Based upon reviews on Skytrax, based upon really pathetic video accounts on youtube and based upon web sites in respect to safety issues. Yes they might be cheaper, but ask yourself why. Do you want to sit on a plane where the toilets are filty and blocked after an hour and where the PAx seem to behave as if they were the leftovers from a Ryanair/EasyJet/Jetstar package tour? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 IMHO, a horrible airline. The Indians call it "Chicken Air". My wife had a horrible experience with them, mechanical failure at altitude, emergency landing, oxygen didn't work, call center in India was clueless as were the staff here in Bangkok. Never again. Interesting articles: http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Worst-Airline-Safety-Ratings-Revealed/360481 (seems I've flown 8 of the 10 worst airlines!) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/02/business/global/airline-alliance-puts-air-india-on-standby-indefinitely.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnniey Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 Mmmm, thanks - could you recommend any airline to travel to London? I assume Jetairways is much the same as Air india? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Mmmm, thanks - could you recommend any airline to travel to London? I assume Jetairways is much the same as Air india? I don't know much about Jet Air...but one just went bankrupt, right? Leaving passengers stranded???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totster Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I have flown with Jet Airways and found them to be fine. Food and service is average and IFE is good. but one just went bankrupt, right? Leaving passengers stranded???? Is there a link to this story please. All I can find is that Jet Airways delayed salaries by 3 days. totster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Ah, it was Kingfisher. Sorry. But then again American Airlines went bankrupt not long ago, as has most of the US airlines at one time or another. http://www.indiantvtoday.com/kingfisher-goes-bankrupt-overnight/2011/11/11/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgthompson Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Ah, it was Kingfisher. Sorry. But then again American Airlines went bankrupt not long ago, as has most of the US airlines at one time or another. http://www.indiantvt...ght/2011/11/11/ Ah, it was Kingfisher. Sorry. But then again American Airlines went bankrupt not long ago, as has most of the US airlines at one time or another. http://www.indiantvt...ght/2011/11/11/ Not sure that Kingfisher went bust but they did cancel flights over the past month or so, I think they're still waiting for a bail out by the Indian Government. Try Emirates, they were having a sale last couple of weeks, I got a return from Manchester to Bangkok for £470 albeit flights from BKK to Uk are more expensive, still haven't fathomed out why though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonewolf99 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 there have been previous threads on T.V. asking the same questions.. First - Avoid Air India. Jet are ...only slightly better - it is the "Easy Jet" of India. Flights from Asia to Europe are always more expensive - there is less demand from this end because most people that earn 5,000 baht a month cannot afford air travel. Try Qatar or Emirates or Air Asia as long as you remember to de-select millions of boxes on their site that bump up the price like paying for a seat..."who the hell flies on a plane standing up?" unless they are wing walking at an air show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beano2274 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 (edited) The one that went bust was the airline flying from Birmingham to India, apparently a Spanish registered company, they asked the passengers for money for fuel, was on the bbc website about a month ago. ADDED - Was not Spanish (apologies to anyone from Spain), the company was Comtel they did charter flights Edited January 4, 2012 by beano2274 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Dang. I'm getting that travel bug again. Best fare I've found was on Jet Airways. Connection in Mumbai, then to Abu Dhabi, then Ethidad to Cairo. $675. Egypt is $881 direct. A no brainer for sure. I used Kayak. And searched the airlines sites directly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beano2274 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Don't EVA still have a sale on.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 In an effort to be fair to Air India I rated them very highly the time I flew with them last year.... Decent transit times decent food and very decent seating in economy.... New Delhi airport is very smart as well not what I was expecting at all... I would give them 8/10 for that return trip.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossy Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 IGIA (Delhi) T3 is new and pretty nice at present, let's see what all that carpet looks like after a couple of years. AI also connect via Mumbai, this is a truly horrible airport with draconian and slow security, not a pleasant place to be. Family flew from LHR-BOM-BKK last year, two young daughters. No non-spicy food option for the youngsters, not particularly family friendly and of course packed with our friends from the sub-continent with the issues that go with some of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobalt60 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 It can sometimes work out cheaper to go Air Asia via KL and Stansted UK. Just have to keep an eye out for their special offers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keagan Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Just a few personal observations, I've flown several times with Jet Airways. Also Once with Air India, The Air India journey was an unpleasent experience. The Second leg of the journey from Mumbai to BKK, Was delayed by Three hours, no explanation given. People still boarding the plane until just before takeoff, It seemed the flight was waiting for late passengers. Resulting in Me missing my flight from BKK to Samui, costing 4000 bht, despite allowing a Three hour layover. So bad, Dial A Flight wont deal with them. The several times Ive used Jet Airways theyve been excellent, especially considering the cost. Always on time,within reason. Good helpfull staff,at the airport and inflight. A decent meal(s) and good choice of inflight movies, TV shows. How anyone can compare Jet to Easyjet is beyond me. I am travelling with Jet to BKK again next week, So no doubt now, I will have a terrible flight with them, after speaking highly of them. All the best, with your choice flight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw25rw Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 If you're willing to fly an airline like Air India, you might want to consider Biman from Bangladesh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lifer Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 In an effort to be fair to Air India I rated them very highly the time I flew with them last year.... Decent transit times decent food and very decent seating in economy.... New Delhi airport is very smart as well not what I was expecting at all... I would give them 8/10 for that return trip.... I have only had one experience on Air India, flying to Delhi and then Kashmir. The flight was not that bad and had individual video at each seat (In coach). I imagine sometimes the security checks hold up the departures some. The securing in Dehli leaving and in Kashmir leaving was intense, especially in Kashmir. Baggage xrayed twice just getting into the airport from town, then I believe, at the time, there was at least 6 or 7 security checks until you got to the departure gates. There are a lot of really bad airlines around the world. Sometimes one does not have much of a choice considering itinerary or monetary considerations. Hoping to go back to Jaipur or Kashmir in Mar or April from Bangkok. I start praying well before the trip. Delhi is actually a high risk destination for Westerners/tourists nowadays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNXSTEVE Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 (edited) Flew Jet Airways two months ago-great for the price,but Mumbai security is a bit of a pain, even for transit. One way tickets BKK-LHR with Air Lanka or whatever it is now are sometimes cheap (as low as 12,XXX last year) Also Biman was around 14,000 BKK-LHR if booked in advance on their website. Edited January 4, 2012 by CNXSTEVE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 (edited) Flew Jet Airways two months ago-great for the price,but Mumbai security is a bit of a pain, even for transit. One way tickets BKK-LHR with Air Lanka or whatever it is now are sometimes cheap (as low as 12,XXX last year) Also Biman was around 14,000 BKK-LHR if booked in advance on their website. Just check the connection times on Biman carefully....... Last time I flew Bangkok-London it was 28 hours with 5 stops and no delays.... Yangoon Dhaka Dubai Rome Frankfurt Heathrow !! Edited January 4, 2012 by Chivas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShopBoy Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 (edited) If you're willing to fly an airline like Air India, you might want to consider Biman from Bangladesh. Biman air attendant spill coffe right onto my groin area while serving me and took them more than 10 mins to get back to me with a miserable piece of tissue papper to wipe myself without even apologizing. How they spill it ? The serving cup they gave to me had a broken base it was not until they pour coffee onto the cup the base of the cup came out with the coffe right from the pot and it was freaking hot !! The attendant have to yell at passengers to sit down ! Edited January 4, 2012 by ShopBoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnniey Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 If you're willing to fly an airline like Air India, you might want to consider Biman from Bangladesh. I've been on t hem once from Bangkok to Calcutta - NEVER again. Surely, Air India can't be that bad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totster Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 It can sometimes work out cheaper to go Air Asia via KL and Stansted UK. Just have to keep an eye out for their special offers. Not really, I have flown with them before. When you add on meals, extra baggage (over 15kg), and the cost of renting the IFE it is not competitive. Also, for many, Stanstead is a bitch to get to if you don't live on the east coast (or thereabouts), and then there is the connection to BKK which they will not guarantee. Not for me thanks totster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nong38 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) Have not flown with Air India, their safety record is not good. Jet are ok, new fleet and food ok if you like Indian food. The big problem with Indian airlines is the Indian experience at their airports, its not a good experience, I have done it four times now and never again. I think Emirates have a sale on until the 9th of jan for flights up to 30th june, otherwise Eva or Thai might be worth a look for a direct flight. I came out with Emirates this visit, very good, flight times good, food and drink good, IFE was fine, plenty of room. Edited January 6, 2012 by nong38 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnniey Posted January 6, 2012 Author Share Posted January 6, 2012 Have not flown with Air India, their safety record is not good. Jet are ok, new fleet and food ok if you like Indian food. The big problem with Indian airlines is the Indian experience at their airports, its not a good experience, I have done it four times now and never again. I think Emirates have a sale on until the 9th of jan for flights up to 30th june, otherwise Eva or Thai might be worth a look for a direct flight. I came out with Emirates this visit, very good, flight times good, food and drink good, IFE was fine, plenty of room. I've had experience with Indian airport in the past - Bombay was chaotic and we actually just climbed over a fence to get into the country without going through customs! It was 20 years ago. Calcutta airport was really nice and clean, alsmost as nice as the Calcutta underground which was surprisingly immaculate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samuidreams Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I would recommend Emirates or Qatar. Flew with both from Manchester to BKK, enjoyed them both. The planes used on the Doha-BKK/BKK-Doha with Qatar were superb, brand new, lots of space etc. staff couldn't be more helpful. Have also heard good things about Etihad. Good luck finding a flight. Samuidreams Xo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw25rw Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 It can sometimes work out cheaper to go Air Asia via KL and Stansted UK. Just have to keep an eye out for their special offers. Not really, I have flown with them before. When you add on meals, extra baggage (over 15kg), and the cost of renting the IFE it is not competitive. Also, for many, Stanstead is a bitch to get to if you don't live on the east coast (or thereabouts), and then there is the connection to BKK which they will not guarantee. Not for me thanks totster They now fly out of Gatwick and not Stansted. I think I read they will be termianting the UK service altogether this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazes Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 there have been previous threads on T.V. asking the same questions.. First - Avoid Air India. Jet are ...only slightly better - it is the "Easy Jet" of India. Flights from Asia to Europe are always more expensive - there is less demand from this end because most people that earn 5,000 baht a month cannot afford air travel. Try Qatar or Emirates or Air Asia as long as you remember to de-select millions of boxes on their site that bump up the price like paying for a seat..."who the hell flies on a plane standing up?" unless they are wing walking at an air show. The Ryanair owner (thank God, I can't remember the douchebag's name) recently suggested, I think, that they could stuff more people on board if they had a standing room only section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazes Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 Play around with this website. It is probably the best on the internet for finding cheap fares from loads of airlines. http://www.bing.com/travel/ I have travelled Emirates...ok. Probably Etihad is good, since they are making a big push for recognition as sponsors of Manchester City. I like to break up my 12 hour journey from LHR to BKK, so Emirates and Etihad are excellent for that. Cheapish fares can be obtained on Austrian and SAS (and many other European airlines). Look out for Korean and Eva Air. It's all v competitive on the LHR - BKK route, and fares change from day to day. If you don't mind a non-stop flight, go BA or Quantas. Whatever you do, don't assume that the cheapest flight is the one you have to take. Travelling these days, all over the world, is a bitch, and it's worth paying extra for a little bit more comfort or sense of safety or just a smile from the crew. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parmo1 Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 (edited) I flew AirIndia Jumbo Jet Business Class once, it was fine, and of course the curry was excellent. But it wasn't transitting India. If you are looking for a cheap flight, I always go AirAsia via Kuala Lumpur TO London, and return via Paris, because of the extortionate UK air taxes. You have to pay for the onboard food, but it is very cheap on the outbound and delicious. Last year 2011, i flew Paris to BKK via KL for 100 quid, (opening offer sale). Edited January 8, 2012 by parmo1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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