Staff : I am not even talking about the hostesses, (that will be another point altogether) I can write a thesis on then. I am talking about the staff. A lady asks for a wheelchair to the aircraft. The wheelchair is arranged, but its being pushed by a man who seems older than the lady herself ! Now you can only imagine the guilt of her face. I think there was a point when the lady seated must have thought of swapping places with the old man. "Ab teri baari". And they are a rude bunch. If business class passengers are treated like this, then , i presume economy ones travel in animal cages !
When its time for boarding ,we are escorted to a bus to get to the aircraft. Seated in that bus for more than 15 mins the bus wouldn't move. AirIndia officials are running about here and there with walkie talkies. A few mins later , a staff peeps into the bus, "Ms Mulla in here ?". Damn right , Ms Mulla is here. I asked him "what is the matter ? ". He apologies for the delay. The staff at the boarding card scanning desk didn't scan my boarding card right. So in the systems Ms Mulla had gone missing. Hence they kept announcing my name so that i could board right. Can you imagine ? All one had to do is scan the damn boarding card right .. A co-passenger then pointed out, that while he was boarding he did hear a lot of " check again for Ms Mulla" going on around. Thank the lord , they atleast check for their pax.
Aircrafts :
Remember that shabby aircraft where people usually would make out , children would pee in & tobacco chewers would love to spit in..that was displayed at Juhu gardens is not there anymore. AirIndia uses it for Singapore sector. When you enter the aircraft, you are greeted by a whiff of pee. Thai Airways greets you with Lemon grass fragrance, Jet with jasmine, Emirates with Lilies and AirIndia is class apart..(ammonia organic).
The interiors of the aircraft take you back into history. AirIndia ensures one a travel experience in the 80's. I am not kidding. The fixtures, the systems, the television sets, the buttons everything is ancient and should only by displayed in museums. I sat in my seat star led of what i was seeing around me. Childhood memories came rushing back to me, then i was 4 now I'm 25.. and nothing has changed with this damn airlines. Out of the 24 Business seats, just 14 reclined, 4 of the partially reclined. Unfortunately, I was seated in the other 6. 2 other passengers complained. The air hostess (granny) gave us the permission to choose our seats. The three of us went hunting for a good reclining seat.
The granny has the nerve to ask me to compromise with a partially reclining seat. Grr. SO the leg rest comes up but the back stays erect. or the back reclines and the leg rest stays still. How could one decide ? Its a 5 hour night flight, sleep is dear to all of us. I grumbled and continued to look for a fully reclining seat.
I repeat, these are the facilities for business class passengers. What the hell are we paying for ?
Its a shame, India's national airlines is such a joke ! It is upsetting that Indians regard their national airline as the last option to travel, whereas other nationals always always choose their national airline first. AirIndia has the best sector connections out of India. The Government has put in loads of money and its all greasing the pockets of some laid back officials. Bureaucracy and red tapism has brought this airline to ruins. When will there be a change ?
I sat there in my partially reclining seat feeling ashamed of our national airline.
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