Aviation Archives : Page 8 of 9 : Plane Sailing

Too far to fly?

How long is too long to sit on an aircraft? I guess the answer depends on who you’re flying with and what class you’re in. And, perhaps, who you are sitting next to.

In any case, some Emirates airline passengers are about to find out, with a new direct service between Dubai and Auckland that will keep them aloft between 16 hours and 17hr 15 mins.

Now that may seem a long time to white-knuckle flyers, but those who enjoy the airline experience might see it as a bonus. If nothing else, it stops you wasting your time in a stopover when you could be getting to where you need to be.

The Dubai-Auckland route is one of several contenders for world’s longest direct flight, all made possible by new aircraft technology, lower oil prices and more efficient air-traffic control systems. And it’s an impressive thing, especially for those of us who remember long haul flight of yore than involved two or three stops.

This flight will use the Boeing 777-200LR aircraft which, while very impressive, doesn’t have all the attractions of the larger Airbus A380s that Emirates uses on other long-haul routes.

But as an Australian, in the tradition of friendly trans-Tasman rivalry, I do have to ask: why would anybody want to bypass Australia on their way to New Zealand?

What it’s all about

Anyone who has followed this blog since its inception — and I am pleased to note that that is not a class of one — will have noticed its evolution.

It began as a place for me to rant about what was going on, or not going on, in my life, and to make observations about stuff in general.

Rather quickly it evolved to its current focus on travel, and in particular my interest in flying — I do believe that the flight is a big part of the experience, not something to be endured before the fun begins — and cruise ships. (Mind you, I do reserve the right to rant occasionally.)

While the original URL of brettdebritz.net is still active, I’m encouraging people to access the travel stuff via www.planesailing.co — a name that reflects the content and new mission statement.

Of course, there are thousands of travel blogs and websites out there, but this one is different — really!

In a nutshell, it is not a site for young backpackers who want to find the cheapest flight, cheapest drink and cheapest hostel. It’s a site for more mature people (and by that I’m referring to outlook more than age) who want to travel in some comfort, take their time, and immerse themselves in the experience.

Of course, I will be looking out for bargains, but more along the lines of frequent-flyer point deals, specials and booking tricks that, for example, allow you to take a business-class flight for two-thirds of the going rate.

While I’ll be reporting my own experiences first-hand, I’ll also be publishing a selection of news that I think is important. And, yes, there may be some sponsored content along the way, but it will be clearly identified.

Let me know what you think, and how I can serve you better. You can comment below, or email me.

Happy trails!

Wi-fi in the sky

In an age when many of us are constantly connected to the internet, it seems like an anomaly that wi-fi is still not widely available on planes.

Mind you, it also seems like and anomaly that you can’t use your phone or other mobile device during taxiing, take-off and landing on most airlines. (Apparently the jury is still out on that one; if there’s any chance my device will interfere with the navigational equipment, I’m prepared to forgo its use.)

Anyway, Qantas has just joined the club of airlines that do offer internet to their passengers. Not just internet but, according to its media release, “fast free wifi”. Which, of course, is the very best kind.

According to the release, the new service, on domestic Australian routes, will feature speeds up to 10 times faster than conventional on-board wi-fi, giving customers the ability to stream movies, TV shows, the latest news bulletins and live sport.

But don’t get too excited just yet.

In-flight trials are expected to begin with a single Qantas Boeing 737 aircraft in late 2016. A full roll-out across Qantas Domestic’s fleet of A330s and B737s is planned from early 2017, with the aircraft to be fitted with modems and the advanced antenna that receives the satellite signal.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce is quoted as saying that the goal was to make Australia home to the world’s best inflight wi-fi experience.

“Bringing high-speed wi-fi to the domestic aviation market has been an ambition of ours for a long time and we now have access to the right technology to make it happen,” Mr Joyce said in the release.

“The sheer size of the Australian landmass creates some significant challenges for inflight connectivity but the recent launch of nbn’s satellite has opened up new opportunities that we plan to take advantage of with ViaSat’s help.”

When flights go wrong

We’ve all been there. At the airport, sometimes the wrong airport, waiting for a plane that’s been delayed.

I was once on a plane from Brisbane to Sydney that diverted back to Brisbane after almost an hour in the air (that is, almost in Sydney) because it didn’t have enough fuel to stay in formation for the period required by air traffic control.

As I result, I nearly missed a connection to the United States.

This was a long time ago, and there was no word of compensation for the inconvenience. I guess there would have been had I actually missed the flight.

On another occasion when I was living in Scotland, I woke up at 3.30am to catch a flight to Malaga that was scheduled to leave at 6.30am. It finally took off at 7.30pm. The airline, a charter carrier, gave us all a five-pound voucher to buy lunch.

I also had a flight from Brisbane to Fiji that was delayed by an entire day (not a great inconvenience because I was living in Brisbane at the time), then had to fly to Nadi via the Solomon Islands to pick up some stranded passengers.

More recently, I was at Abu Dhabi airport when I received a phone call from an Etihad ground-staff member. She found me in the check-in area and asked whether I would be willing to change flights.

I had a business-class ticket to Brisbane. Instead of flying via Singapore to Brisbane, she asked, would I mind flying first to Sydney and then to Brisbane. The departure time was 10 minutes later than my original flight and the total travel time was about the same.

I said it was fine. I wasn’t even thinking about compensation, but when I got to Sydney, an Etihad staff member was waiting for me with a US$300 travel voucher. And I received 20,000 Etihad Guest points for the inconvenience. I was also upgraded to first class on my return flight to Abu Dhabi.

So it was with some interest that I read this story about passengers on a “nightmare flight”. The Delta plane tried and failed several times to land at New York’s JFK airport and at least one of the passengers ended up deplaning in Manchester, New Hampshire and catching a train to New York.

Very little was offered in way of compensation, although the passengers suffered a significant time delay. But all this was the fault of the weather and safety concerns rather than any error or wrongdoing by the airline.

The take-home advice is:

+ Know what kind of compensation your airline is likely to provide in the event of a delay.

+ Make sure your insurance will cover you if the airline doesn’t.

+ If you’re running to a schedule, add in a little wriggle room for unforeseen delays.

+ Be thankful that pilots and airlines are not insistent on trying to land in blizzards or hurricanes.

Help the helpers

There’s a lot of discussion on travel blogs about the comfort factor of passengers, so I was struck by a discussion on the Quora website that began with the question: “What are some ways to make a flight attendant’s trip more pleasant?”

We may think that the women and men in uniform are solely there to serve us food and pour us drinks, but the reality is that that have an important part to play in the operation of the aircraft, and they are highly trained to protect our health and safety. And let’s face it, we really don’t want to be in a position to see them put that safety training into action.

The answers varied, and many of them are worth repeating:

Gigi J Wolf suggested: “Everyone could stay home that day. But that wouldn’t be very lucrative for the airline.”

Her more practical suggestions included acts of common courtesy (which seem to disappear when some people go flying): not constantly pushing the call button, not blocking the aisles, follow regulations (such as turning off mobile devices when asked) and be polite.

Nuralia Mazlan also emphasised politeness and following the rules. Those seatbelts are there for a reason, she says. Also: use the rest room before the food service begins, and take out your earphones when talking to the crew.

Others stressed the necessity to pay attention during the safety announcements (or at least shut up so others can hear them), not to push your way on or off the aircraft, and to obey the rules about the overhead lockers.

It’s really not too much to ask. After all, we’re all entitled to a pleasant flight.

Update: Of course, there’s always the occasional flipside, where the aircrew don’t respect you.

Farewell to a jumbo

This is how Air France farewell the last Boeing 747 jet. Once the biggest and best aircraft in any airline’s fleet, the jumbos are slowly going out of service, superseded by the larger A380 and a series of smaller, more fuel-efficient aircraft fro both Boeing and Airbus.

(Hat tip to allthingsaero.com)

Air-rage incidents

What is it that makes some people misbehave on a plane? The alcohol? Perhaps, but not everybody drinks. The different air pressure? The sense of claustrophobia?

Whatever the reason, “air rage” is an increasingly common occurrence, and something that cabin crew and the rest of us who just want to get where we’re going really don’t need to deal with.

In the latest incident, a passenger on an Emirates airlines flight was arrested for allegedly attacking crew members on a flight from Dublin to London. The man had to be restrained and three rows of seats had to be cleared. Other passengers said they were frightened by the incident and concerned both for the crew and the man himself, who is now facing court in London.

The case is not unusual. Similar incidents are reported every few weeks, and it is clear that others, of a relatively minor nature, go unreported.

I suppose the very unnatural nature of flying triggers many of these incidents. But so, too, I would argue, is a general breakdown in standards of behaviour.

Like children having tantrums, many adults no longer feel inhibited about the way they act in public, be it in a shopping mall or on an airplane.

We’ve all had our moments when it just gets too much, but for may people the trigger event can be extremely minor. Can’t find what you want on the supermarket shelves? Well, just yell at the nearest shop employee.

Yelling is one thing but, too often these days, many people stoop to physical violence.

The problem when we’re flying at 30,000 feet is that the potential consequences of bad behaviour are so much greater. And that’s why we should all support action of the airlines and other authorities to minimise these events and punish the offenders.

Best in the business

The news that Etihad airways has been named airline of the year by Air Transport World magazine, raises a question: What makes a great airline?

In accepting, Etihad’s boss, James Hogan, said the award “recognises what we set out to do as an airline 13 years ago – to be safe, profitable and simply the best”.

It’s interesting that he put the safety factor first, because it might have been tempting to put profit at number 1. Maybe that’s what the shareholders would expect. But Hogan, like all astute business operators, knows that one follows the other.

With any business where the customer has a choice, priorities are important. Nobody is going to fly with an airline they think is unsafe.

After safety and profit — essential to keep any business afloat — comes the intangible idea of being “the best”.

For airline passengers, that means a combination of things, including comfort and confidence.

Flying can be an unpleasant experience — just the idea of speeding through the air in a metal cylinder puts some people on edge. The ageing aircraft, cramped seats, rude service and cattle-herding mentality at the terminal gates that are par for the course on some airlines make things no easier.

So a good airline has to do all it can do to make passengers comfortable. That means both on the ground and in the air. There has to be a basic level of comfort and efficient, friendly service for economy passengers, and something special for premium passengers. That’s where business- and first-class lounges, limousine transfers, airport greeting services and other frills come in.

Confidence applies not just to the safety factor, but to the whole experience. Passengers need to be sure that they will have zero problems getting where they want to go. They want a no-fuss experience, and for the plane and their bags to arrive on time.

No airline gets this right all the time. As I’ve said before, Etihad has always got it right for me, but I know other people who’ve had problems. Again, the test of a good business is how they handle customers problems and how they put in place procedures to minimise or eliminate recurrences.

By winning this award, and a slew of others in recent years, Etihad is showing that it’s getting it right most of the time for most of the people.

Rant: idiots with lasers

Yes, flying is expensive. It’s a costly business keeping an aircraft flying and servicing it while it’s on the ground.

Which is why the aviation industry and its customers can do without idiots who sabotage flights by aiming lasers at planes in flight. Sadly, there are many of them.

In the latest incident, a New York-bound Virgin plane was forced to return to London because somebody shone a laser at it, creating a “medical issue” for one of the pilots.

Airlines and siports go to extraordinary lengths to ensure the safety of their passengers, but there are some things they can’t control: idiots on the ground.

I hope the pilot is OK and has a swift recovery, and I feel sorry for all the people who were inconvenienced by the inconsideration of the fool or fools with the laser.

I hope these people are caught and that they face the maximum possible penalty.

Wrong way?

This picture is doing the rounds. As an advertisement, it does not inspire great confidence in the product.

A traveller’s tale

Picture this: you’re standing in a queue at the “bag drop” location in the airport. You know, the one that used to be called the check-in counter, but we’re all expected to check in online nowadays, so we can just drop our bags and go.

The only problem is that it takes longer to drop your bag and go than it used to take to check in, because there are fewer people to serve you, and most of the people in front of you haven’t actually checked in online, have some bizarre amount or type of luggage, or are just plain stupid.

So you’re looking at your watch and anticipating, with dread, the even longer queue at security and, if it’s an international flight, immigration.

By the time your turn comes at the bag drop, you’re angry. But you can’t appear angry because, if you do, your seat will be reassigned to the one next to the toilets and opposite the unaccompanied child passengers.

You are pleasant through gritted teeth, and you get through all procedures with enough time to steal a snack or a drink before boarding.

Despite the best efforts of the airline staff in setting out a boarding procedure, the scrum to get on to the plane resembles something from Dante’s Inferno. For a moment, you wish you were in hell; it couldn’t be worse.

And then you’re on the plane, and you find your seat. You are the only person in your row so far, and you pray to whichever deity you believe in that the other seats are vacant. Assuming this will not be the case, you start looking around to see if there are other vacancies nearby. As every traveller knows, once the “boarding complete” announcement is made, it’s open season on the empty rows.

But this flight is full to the brim, and there is no room to manoevre. You smile nervously as the last passenger — the one assigned to sit next to you — boards.

You size them up, and wonder whether they will be a talkative bore, a person with no sense of personal space, malodorous or a combination of all three.

It’s a red-eye flight, so you have the perfect way out. You pretend to sleep, even though you can’t.

When you arrive at your destination, you are tired and cranky. But you have to be polite to a whole new bunch of people, many of whom may not speak your language.

You cope with passport control, baggage collection, customs and even a taxi driver who, although you can’t prove a thing, you know is taking you the long way.

You’re shattered, but at last you are at your hotel. But the very pleasant receptionist tells you that you’re too early and your room won’t be ready for another four hours.

That’s when you dump your bags and go for a stroll. You see, hear, eat and smell things you’ve never seen, heard, tasted or smelt before, and you suddenly remember why you travel. The negativity floats away, and you’re already planning the next trip.

Emptying the bucket

The term “bucket list” gives me the creeps. Not because it references death — in that it’s used to describe the places we want to go before we die — but because it’s so limiting.

Of course, I understand the idea of drawing up a list of places you want to visit before you shake off your mortal coil, but to me, the perfect travel itinerary should include places you’ve never even thought about.

While I’ve had a ball ticking off the wonders of the world and must-see attractions, ranging from Disneyland to the Treasury at Petra, I’ve had an equally good, or even better, time visiting countries and attractions that were never even on my radar.

The best example I can think of is Belarus. Ten years ago, I’d have given it no thought at all. But then I met someone online, and that led to an invitation to visit, and suddenly I was entranced by Minsk (and by my new friend, but that’s another story).

I discovered the charms of Glasgow, and Scotland in general, because a friend suggested that I might be able to find work there. And a free trip to Manila, which came via a colleague, has made me eager to see more of the Philippines, which did not previously figure highly on my wish list.

My point is that circumstance can often throw up something new, and you most certainly should grasp it when you can. You may always have Paris, but you may never again get the chance to see Svetlagorsk.

Forget the bucket list, go where the four winds take you.

First-class foolery

I came across an article that appears to confirm at least one of my theories about securing upgrades on airlines.

Apparently, many frequent flyers behave like brats, treating airline staff or other passengers with contempt.

It quotes Christopher Elliott, a travel journalist and founder of the travel site elliott.org, as saying: “There is a class of entitled travelers that don’t just believe that they deserve to be treated better than the rest of us; they believe that they are better than the rest of us.”

Elliot relates a story about an elite frequent flyer member who demanded that another passenger be bumped so his friend could take the seat.

It seems there’s not a lot the crew can do about it. Elliot notes: “One flight attendant said to me, ‘I fully expect my airline to tell me to shine the shoes of these elites.’ ”

As I’ve noted before, I’ve been upgraded a lot lately. I’m still trying to understand why – and, yes, I do think my social-media and blogging activity helps – but I believe one of the main reasons is that I am always polite, respectful, undemanding and grateful for the service I get.

As we were told as children, it’s nice to be important, but it’s important to be nice.

Costly connections

It’s been nearly five years since the United Nations declared access to the internet as a human right. But having something as a right and being able to afford it are two different things.

I acknowledge from the outset that what I’m about to address is a “first-world problem” given that many people don’t even have the devices they need to connect to the net let alone broadband access.

What I am addressing is the wildly fluctuating price of internet access for those of us who travel. It can range from free — totally free where it’s provided by governments (at bus stops in parts of Italy for example) or sponsored by corporations (such as at airports), or free-with-a- purchase, as it is at many, bars, cafes and coffee shops — up to well, name a figure and double it.

A friend once came back to Australia after a couple of weeks in New Zealand with a bill for more than A$1000 (which was then worth about US$1000) because he’d forgotten to turn off data roaming. If he’d signed up for a plan before hand, it would have been less than a tenth of the cost. Given that the actual cost of providing the service was the same, the only difference was the mark-up applied — and perhaps the way the providers in New Zealand and Australia divvied up the spoils.

As readers of this blog know, I sail a lot. One of the few things that annoys me is the high cost of internet access on the high seas. My conviction is that although satellite internet is not cheap, passengers are paying too much above the actual price of provision. Why? Because costs differ between cruise lines. What costs about US$55 with one company costs $150 with another. It’s a similar situation with airlines, if internet access is offered at all.

The simple fact is that providers and the middle-men are having a laugh at our expense. Phone companies and other internet service providers around the world have agreements on sharing costs when a customer from one country visits another; just as banks have agreements on interchange fees when I use my debit or credit card abroad. Certainly there is an additional cost, but it is marginal. However, when they can, big corporations will take advantage. And it’s time for travellers to complain enough about it to get governments to act on capping prices to this essential service.

Update: I am now at a hotel that wants to charge me more than $5 for an hour of WiFi access. They’ve got to be joking.

Life’s a Dreamliner

It took a while for me to get around to my first flight on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, but it was certainly worth the wait.

Sweetening the deal on my Etihad Airways flight from Brisbane to Abu Dhabi was the fact that I was upgraded from business class to first class. (Yes, this has been happening to me quite a bit lately. I try to explain why here.)

Continue reading Life’s a Dreamliner

Scoring points

One of the first thing frequent flyers, or would-be frequent flyers, should do is make sure they are enrolled in a loyalty or mileage scheme.

And it’s important that you understand the scheme so you can make the most of it.

Continue reading Scoring points

Airlines aren’t equal

The latest (although now not so new) Emirates airline advertising campaign starring Friends alumnus Jennifer Aniston struck a chord with many frequent flyers.

Those of us who’ve been aboard American planes in the past certainly recognised the scene with the cackling cabin crew. For me, it perfectly underscored the difference between the established US carriers and new airlines such as Emirates and Etihad.

And before anyone accuses me of being biased against older cabin-crew members, it’s not about age, it’s about attitude.

One of my favourite long-haul flights was with Qantas, where I was sat opposite one of the crew jump seats and had a long conversation with a steward who must have been the age I am now or older. He was welcoming, warm and wise, and everything I could have hope for.

But I also have flashbacks to flights on United and Continental, where bags of peanuts were tossed at passengers by people with a palpable demeanour of distdain for their job and the passengers.

My in-air experiences with airlines including Etihad, Cathay Pacific, Air Asia, Qantas, Virgin Australia, Swiss, British Airways*, Air Serbia, Alitalia and Air Brussels in the past few years have been largely very positive, due to two factors: comfort and service.

It’s been a while since I’ve flown on a major American carrier, and I hear that at least some of them have lifted their game. I’m certainly happy to report that my most recent American airline experience — with Silver airways, on a tiny plane flying from Tampa to Fort Lauderdale — was excellent. The sole cabin crew member was delightful.

I do hope standards have improved across the board in the States, but the fact that Emirates’ advertising agency saw crew attitude as a vulnerability of American characters indicates a widespread public perception.

The reason this is so important to Emirates is that the American carriers have been lobbying against an open-skies agreement, accusing Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways of unfair competition.

I know there are other issues, but if training and encouraging your staff to be pleasant and helpful to your customers is unfair, then I guess I’m pro-discrimination in this case.

* With one exception, where a BA premium economy seat on an ageing Boeing 747, flying Heathrow to Miami, was remarkably uncomfortable.

Third time lucky

It’s becoming an embarrassingly common occurrence. I rock up to the terminal gate with my ticket in my hand, the attendant takes it from me and a little red light shows up on the scanner.

She presses a few buttons on the keyboard and then says: “Oh, you’ve been upgraded. And, just like that, seat 5E becomes seat 1A.

I’ve just scored a hat trick with Etihad Airways. For the third time in a row, my business class seat has been upgraded to first class. On a long haul flight (from Abu Dhabi to Melbourne in this case), it’s simply the best way to fly.

The experience was, of course, luxurious. The seat is huge, even for a big bloke like me and makes for a comfortable bed, and there was plenty of attention from the cabin crew, including the onboard chef, who made me a marvellous steak, — and, remarkably — the same person who looked after me on my previous flight, from Munich to Abu Dhabi (She said: “I know you; the last time you were wearing a very colourful shirt.”)

As I’ve written before, I don’t really know why I’ve been so lucky to get these upgrades. However, I think being happy to share the experience is definitely part of the mix.

So too are these common tips (after photo):

+ Be polite and cheerful in all your dealings with airlines staff. That really shouldn’t have to be said, but a lot of people do get grumpy when they’ve had to queue, or they are tired or running late. I’ve done it myself. The trick is to try to snap out of it when you’re face to face with the person who can make your life more enjoyable (or miserable).

+ Be a frequent flyer with that airline.

+ Be flexible. I once got an upgrade and 20,000 Etihad Guest points and a US$300 voucher because I changed flights — it cost me all of 10 minutes in terms of arriving at my destination.

+ As I’ve already said, spread the word and say thank you to the airline, which is easy to do in this age of social media.

The only problem, as I’ve also said before, is that you might just get hooked on the experience.

A class act?

I understand why travel advertisements often feature pictures of beautiful young people frolicking about in exotic destinations or relaxing in impossibly large airline seats. It’s because young people do travel a lot and airlines and hotels want their business. But these pictures don’t reflect reality.

The real money in the tourism industry isn’t made from beautiful young people, because beautiful young people generally travel on the cheap.

Continue reading A class act?

Back to the future

In honour of its 95th birthday, Qantas has painted one of its 737-800 aircraft in 1960s livery. It’s strange to see those markings — complete with the winged kangaroo — on a modern jet, but it’s a clever move by the Australian carrier.

For many Australians, Qantas is a “lovemark” — a brand that we love because it reminds us of home. Like Vegemite, it may or may not be the best product in its category, but it’s ours.

Qantas has long traded on this phenomenon, which is why it’s most successful campaign based around Peter Allen’s I Still Call Australia Home, is best remembered and often repeated.

Of course, the big challenge in commercial aviation is to keep up with the competitors. Nostalgia will only get you so far.

Hopefully, the folks running the show understand that and Qantas will continue to innovate, find its place in the pantheon of airlines and remain aloft.