Favourite airlines

[PauloBarnesi]

Can’t complain about BA; upgraded both ways flying to Bangkok...

[NurembergVillan]

I'm flying with Air Canada for the first time next week.  Interested to see how that goes.  In economy class though so no doubt it'll be crap.

[drat01]

I'm flying with Air Canada for the first time next week. Interested to see how that goes. In economy class though so no doubt it'll be crap.

had some oft best upgrades with ac to Calgary :-) biggest frustration is the fact that every announcement has to be in English and French and that is every bloody one :-)

[leviramsey]

had some oft best upgrades with ac to Calgary :-) biggest frustration is the fact that every announcement has to be in English and French and that is every bloody one :-)

Tony and Brian approved, then!

[NurembergVillan]

I'm hoping we'll blag an upgrade, even though we've no rights to one.  I've barely flown at all this year.  It's been nice but I miss my points!

[thetrees]

Tbf to BA they know via the exec card where I like to sit , my meal choice and they always address me by my name and ensure I've had some champers before take off ... Their lounges have got over crowded and there does appear to be a clear cost cutting exercise going on in some of them however.

Mrs H came back from Hungary the other day and BA don't pay the airport to allow its biz passengers to use the fast track ... No biggie but it is a bit on the tight side for a big airline

But as a comparison I didn't get any personal touch off Qatar airlines.. with them I most certainly just felt like a passenger , though maybe if I had walked in with my wife 50 paced behind me that would have been different .... Malaysian airlines I did well to get a drink until about an hour after take off etc etc

So BA may do a few things wrong but they do get a lot right as well

If you are flying Qatar from Heathrow, you may well bump into an FO who is a big Villa fan!

 

No idea what they're like, I have never flown them and, after a weekend in Dubai the other week, I won't be visiting the Arabian peninsula again in a hurry.

 

Tony, you'll hate me saying this, but if you want absolute top service, in any class, from immaculately trained staff, then Air France long haul knocks spots of every other airline.

[Zatman]

norweigan airlines was quite good when I flew with them from Manchester to Stockholm. Pity they dont fly from Ireland

[tonyh29]

 

Tbf to BA they know via the exec card where I like to sit , my meal choice and they always address me by my name and ensure I've had some champers before take off ... Their lounges have got over crowded and there does appear to be a clear cost cutting exercise going on in some of them however.

Mrs H came back from Hungary the other day and BA don't pay the airport to allow its biz passengers to use the fast track ... No biggie but it is a bit on the tight side for a big airline

But as a comparison I didn't get any personal touch off Qatar airlines.. with them I most certainly just felt like a passenger , though maybe if I had walked in with my wife 50 paced behind me that would have been different .... Malaysian airlines I did well to get a drink until about an hour after take off etc etc

So BA may do a few things wrong but they do get a lot right as well

If you are flying Qatar from Heathrow, you may well bump into an FO who is a big Villa fan!

 

No idea what they're like, I have never flown them and, after a weekend in Dubai the other week, I won't be visiting the Arabian peninsula again in a hurry.

 

Tony, you'll hate me saying this, but if you want absolute top service, in any class, from immaculately trained staff, then Air France long haul knocks spots of every other airline.

 

 

 

that's you going on the list

 

TBH it's their flight safety record that stops me flying with them   ... I'm sure they aren't the worse but obviously Concorde and Flight 447 stick in my memory from recent time

 

I flew KLM to Taiwan and China last year and they code share with Air Frog  and so I had to make sure I got the KLM flight rather than the French one before I clicked the button ( for the record KLM were a bit average imo )

 

I mentioned my Qatar flight before but the business class seats are configured in such a way that the window seat occupant has to climb over the Isle seat if they want to get out ... it's a pain in the arse  to be honest ..but the service and food etc is top notch

[thetrees]

 

 

Tbf to BA they know via the exec card where I like to sit , my meal choice and they always address me by my name and ensure I've had some champers before take off ... Their lounges have got over crowded and there does appear to be a clear cost cutting exercise going on in some of them however.

Mrs H came back from Hungary the other day and BA don't pay the airport to allow its biz passengers to use the fast track ... No biggie but it is a bit on the tight side for a big airline

But as a comparison I didn't get any personal touch off Qatar airlines.. with them I most certainly just felt like a passenger , though maybe if I had walked in with my wife 50 paced behind me that would have been different .... Malaysian airlines I did well to get a drink until about an hour after take off etc etc

So BA may do a few things wrong but they do get a lot right as well

If you are flying Qatar from Heathrow, you may well bump into an FO who is a big Villa fan!

 

No idea what they're like, I have never flown them and, after a weekend in Dubai the other week, I won't be visiting the Arabian peninsula again in a hurry.

 

Tony, you'll hate me saying this, but if you want absolute top service, in any class, from immaculately trained staff, then Air France long haul knocks spots of every other airline.

 

 

 

that's you going on the list

 

TBH it's their flight safety record that stops me flying with them   ... I'm sure they aren't the worse but obviously Concorde and Flight 447 stick in my memory from recent time

 

I flew KLM to Taiwan and China last year and they code share with Air Frog  and so I had to make sure I got the KLM flight rather than the French one before I clicked the button ( for the record KLM were a bit average imo )

 

I mentioned my Qatar flight before but the business class seats are configured in such a way that the window seat occupant has to climb over the Isle seat if they want to get out ... it's a pain in the arse  to be honest ..but the service and food etc is top notch

 

KLM are very average, but it is all about the Dutch way and attitude to things. They really should be a communist country!

Your AF phobia is similar to mine about BA and all US carriers over the Atlantic. One day a terrorist is going to blow one out of the sky, and I won't be on board. Therefore I scroll through all the Delta options before I get to a nice, safe, Air France flight. If I have to pay a little more to fly with a European carrier, so be it.

[thetrees]

norweigan airlines was quite good when I flew with them from Manchester to Stockholm. Pity they dont fly from Ireland

Interestingly they will start flying from Gatwick to New York

 

Meanwhile Bangladesh airlines will start flying from BHX to New York!

[omariqy]

I have experienced the following airlines in my time

 

Virgin Atlantic - excellent and had a halal option.  Love their little entertainment system

Easyjet - rubbish

Ryanair - you get what you pay for

Monarch - average

BMI - most cramped I have ever been

PIA (Pakistani Int Airlines) - Probably the worst form of transport I have ever taken and that includes the horse and cart I took when I was actually in Pakistan

Cubaair - Wow this was bad.  Smoke came out when they put the aircon on.  Also no entertainment at all.

 

I am flying to Saudi and South America in 2014 so hopefully get to test out some new airlines.  Would love to go on an Emirates flight.

Edited December 5, 2013 by omariqy

[thetrees]

I have experienced the following airlines in my time

 

Virgin Atlantic - excellent and had a halal option.  Love their little entertainment system

Easyjet - rubbish

Ryanair - you get what you pay for

Monarch - average

BMI - most cramped I have ever been

PIA (Pakistani Int Airlines) - Probably the worst form of transport I have ever taken and that includes the horse and cart I took when I was actually in Pakistan

Cubaair - Wow this was bad.  Smoke came out when they put the aircon on.  Also no entertainment at all.

 

I am flying to Saudi and South America in 2014 so hopefully get to test out some new airlines.  Would love to go on an Emirates flight.

Apparently Pakistan's second airline, Air Blue, are very good. Unfortunately they have suspended flights to BHX.

If you fly from BHX and are going to Jeddah, I would suggest Turkish Airlines via Istanbul.

For South America, it very much depends on where you are going.

Emirates have a shiny allure about them, which fades immediately the moment that you fly with them. They're not bad, but no better than average. The ME3 carriers (Emirates/Etihad/Qatar) are trying to dominate intercontinental travel like Ryanair/Easyjet/Wizz have done with intra European travel, and things could become messy in the next couple of years.

[NurembergVillan]

I've always really enjoyed flying with Emirates, but the flights from Manchester are usually A380 if you're connecting through Dubai to Asia so even in economy they're spacious.  The food is good too.

[thetrees]

I've always really enjoyed flying with Emirates, but the flights from Manchester are usually A380 if you're connecting through Dubai to Asia so even in economy they're spacious.  The food is good too.

Curiously seat pitch in economy is the same on the A380 as the 777-300, but I know what you mean.

Personally I prefer the Triple 7 over the 380.

[legov]

PIA (Pakistani Int Airlines) - Probably the worst form of transport I have ever taken and that includes the horse and cart I took when I was actually in Pakistan

 

 

[privateer]

I've meaning to throw my take on what I've thought of my experiences so, for what it's worth, here it is.

 

Air Asia/Air Asia X – Good option to fly around Asia cheaply. Taken loads of flights with them and they’ve always been fine.

 

Air France – Only flown with them once thus far and have no complaints, I thought they were very good.  As TT says above, it was as comfortable as could be expected in economy, the staff were nice and the food was good.  It all makes a huge difference when you are flying CDG-SFO because it takes about 14 bastard hours!

 

Air Malta - I only ended up on one of their flights because there was some kind of problem with the airline I was supposed to fly with to Egypt. They were really good and I had one of the best cottage pies I've ever eaten on the flight back! It was astonishingly good.

 

American Airlines – I know I’ve flown with them (maybe Miami-New York) but I don’t really remember anything about it so it was probably OK which in my experience is the best you can get from any US airline.

 

Ansett Australia – Flew with them ages ago and certainly had no problems. Nice staff and meal iirc.

 

Bangkok Airways – Took a couple of flights with them about 15 years ago including a rather memorable one into Koh Samui. The landing was, er, interesting, to say the least. I seem to remember the food was crud, though.  The other downside is them operating turboprops and I don’t like them.  I want jets on the wings.

 

British Airways – I know they seem to get some stick but I’ve flown with them many times, short haul around the UK and Europe and long haul to Australasia and South Africa and I have to say I have never had the merest hint of a negative experience.  Great staff, good food and drink, comfortable seats but maybe I’ve just been repeatedly lucky.  It’s a big shame they do sod all out of BHX anymore, not least because they used to do a Frankfurt flight that hooked me up to codeshare Qantas routes to Asia/Pacific.

 

Bmibaby – Flew with them once BHX-Bordeaux and they were really good.  New 737 and it was a really good flight at a bargain price.

 

Cebu Air Pacific – Flown with these guys several times and once you are on board it’s all good.  Check in can be a different experience though and don’t even bother calling their **** call centre.  Premium rate number before you get connected to someone who will be zero help.

 

China Airlines – Flew once AMS-BKK and it was OK. The staff were nice and food was fine. My only beef is that I have an irrational (or maybe rartional) dislike of McDonnell Douglas MD11 aircraft.

 

Comair – This one was quaint. About 15 years ago I flew J’Burg to Cape Town in a 727 operated by them.  It was a very nice flight and the stunning scenery pretty much took my mind away from how old the aircraft might have actually been.

 

Continental Airlines – Done them a couple of times BHX-EWR and they hit the pinnacle of being barely adequate.  Surly old matrons for cabin crew, food was edible but only that. It is a US airline so that is par for the course.

 

Delta Air Lines – Abysmal. I don’t care if they are a US airline and poor is the accepted standard, this is a shit airline staffed by shit people on board.  I’ve only come close to punching a crew member once on any flight anywhere, ever and it was during boarding en route to Newark.  Some stupid, fat, word removed of cabin crew member suggested that rather than him shift his worthless lard arse to help me find some space in a luggage locker somewhere, I should stick my carry on under the seat in front and leave it there for 8 hours saying “There’s plenty of space there”. That went down very badly with me as anyone who has flown economy anywhere will know “plenty of space” there certainly is not.  I suspect he thinks twice about saying that now having been on the receiving end of my vented ire, which was potent enough to stun him into gaping silence from the cocky word removed he'd been 30 seconds previously.

 

Emirates – They used to be a good airline but not any longer, in my opinion.  They have stolen passenger space and have removed the footrests in economy and their flights are much less comfortable as a result. Also, the flights tend to be packed now whereas with my first few flights with them there tended to be quite a few empty seats. The crew are invariably charming still and the food is usually pretty good but I’m pissed at what they’ve done with the seating and Dubai is a nightmare transfer airport.  An absolute hellhole.

 

Ethiopian Airlines – I loved flying with these guys. They were pretty random with the timetable as far as the domestic routes were concerned – they were just as likely to take off 45 minutes early as 45 minutes late so it sort of made it fun.  Not so much if they left you behind, I suppose!  If you want to fly around Ethiopia they are the only option, I think, so be prepared for some fun.  Boarding is reasonably chaotic, too but try to get a window seat for the scenery.

 

FlyBe – No. Just no. Once and never again. There was nothing good about them.

 

Hong Kong Express – Total words removed.  I found out by chance they had totally cancelled a route out of HK that I had a ticket for 5 days hence.  They’d dropped it 2 weeks before and had made no effort to contact me to let me know, despite having an email address and phone number.  As I asked their call centre, “At what point was I going to find out if I hadn’t found out by accident? At the airport when I arrived to board the non-existent flight?” **** arseholes.

 

Jetstar Airways – Always had good experiences with these. On the longer flights it’s worth paying a bit extra for the premium seats and if you book far enough in advance you can get some cracking deals.

 

Kenya Airways – They were very good.  Lovely staff and the food was fine.  Jomo Kenyatta Airport on the other hand… oh my.

 

K L M – I will never take another flight with these **** again.  Up until a few months ago I had taken many flights all around the world with them and always found them OK enough to use them again. Certainly not particularly good but they have always been competitive on price – their big attraction – but their service levels could be very variable. Most of the time they are fine but some of the crew are assholes and behave like the passengers are an inconvenience on the journey to the other side of the world for their crew jolly. The last flight I took was the most uncomfortable I have had on any airline.  A 14 hour nightmare in a seat too narrow and too short, with too little leg room that reclined about 2 inches.  It was scandalous.  They are just the low cost arm of Air France now and a total disgrace.  National flag carrier? Royal Dutch? Just get ****.

 

Lao Airlines – I’ve taken one flight with them and they were fine. Good online booking facility, surprisingly, and a good aircraft.  A few people will tell

you different now, though, as they lost one in bad weather within the last couple of months killing a bunch of people.

 

Lufthansa – Only once on a business jaunt Birmingham to Germany and they were OK. Can’t really say much more than that. Flight was only an hour.

 

Monarch Airlines – A bit bloody cramped! I only went to the Med, I hope to hell anyone going any further gets to go on a different aircraft with a bit more space.

 

Philippine Airlines – Really good. After those words removed at Hong Kong Express cancelled my flight they arranged for me to go with them and they could not have been more charming. The only pity is they are in the upper end of the price range so I would usually fly with someone else for economic reasons.

 

Precision Air – I used these between Dar-es-Salaam-Zanzibar-Arusha and they were fine, much better than I expected

 

Qantas Airways – I bit like BA, I suppose, never had anything other than good experiences with them apart from flying out of Frankfurt once when some stupid stewardess asked me to swap my seat on a full flight so some couple too stupid to arrive early enough to get sat together could sit together.  My window for a centre seat somewhere else on the plane on a flight from Frankfurt to Sydney, wtf?  Strange that she seemed surprised that I laughed at her and declined.  That said, she and the couple were German so maybe they had a weird sense of entitlement.

 

Qatar Airways – Only once with them from Dubai to Qatar and it was obviously a short flight.  Empty plane, in business and it was pretty damn nice.  The crew did a great job of knocking out a food and drink service in the short time they had as well as booting out the arabs who’d come from economy because they saw how much space there was in business. They figured it was their right to sit there but the ladies stuck to their guns and saw them off, which surprised and delighted me.

 

Royal Air Cambodge – Now defunct but noteworthy for me for having lovely crew, offering probably the worst in flight meal whilst thinking they were giving you something nice and edible. They were so sweet I almost felt I should eat more than a bite of it so as not to give offence. Almost. I feared for my health more than any perception of my manners.

 

Singapore Airlines – By far the best airline I’ve flown with. I’ve taken several flights with them and they have been flawless.  They also operate out of what I think is the best airport in the world in Changi.  If only they flew every route I wanted to fly, I would never use any other airline.  They are like the anti-Dutch.  They are just the polar opposite of KLM and their crew, rot their lowlander eyes.

 

Southwest Airlines – Unmemorable so they must have been OK. 

 

SriLankan Airlines – I liked these.  It was comfortable, decent food and charming crew.  Nothing to not like.

 

Thai Airways - Ditto above. Can’t go wrong with these.

 

Thomson - Ditto Monarch. Another cramped flight to the Med.

 

Tiger Airways – Booked with them twice and used them once.  The flight I took was fine but the boarding was a bit of a free for all.  Second time I made a mistake with the online booking and unless you phone them up you are basically boned in that situation.  No ability to edit personal information (the info I made the error with) and no email support.  Since I was in the UK at the time I didn’t fancy calling Asia to rectify the error and get to pay call charges and the admin fee they would have whacked on so I wrote it off.  **** ‘em, they are operating in a competitive market and have lost my business.

 

United Airlines – They are an American airline, I won’t bother repeating myself.

 

Vietnam Airlines – Fine. I can’t remember too much about it so it was obviously OK.

 

Virgin Australia – They were good too, decent food and good staff but that reflects my experiences of Aussie airlines and their crew.

 

[tonyh29]

 

Cebu Air Pacific – Flown with these guys several times and once you are on board it’s all good.  Check in can be a different experience though and don’t even bother calling their **** call centre.  Premium rate number before you get connected to someone who will be zero help.

 

 

I know what you were up to you old dog 

 

Virgin Aus were quite entertaining .. when I boarded in Fiji the chief steward was wearing a snorkel mask and  flippers as she welcomed everyone on board ... when we bounced down into Sydney , she announced over the tannoy welcome to Sydney and please give a big round of applause for our pilot on his first day at work ..... shame Virign UK are so shite

 

I've flown Precision Air as well  .. my wife left something on the plane when we got off at Arusha , some souvenir type stuff  that she suddenly remembered when we got to the hotel  .. the plane had already turned around and gone back but they delivered it to our hotel the next morning 

[AshVilla]

Venga Airways

[tonyh29]

 

I've always really enjoyed flying with Emirates, but the flights from Manchester are usually A380 if you're connecting through Dubai to Asia so even in economy they're spacious.  The food is good too.

Curiously seat pitch in economy is the same on the A380 as the 777-300, but I know what you mean.

Personally I prefer the Triple 7 over the 380.

 

 

I like the A-380 ever since i saw it nearly doing loop the loops at farnborough  .. I figure no tubulence is bringing one of those boys down 

 

If i'm flying an airline and a route that has them then invariable I'll pick the flight time that is operating them

 

my only gripe is that with 76 seats in Business on some routes it can be a little crowded at the bar

[privateer]

 

 

Cebu Air Pacific – Flown with these guys several times and once you are on board it’s all good.  Check in can be a different experience though and don’t even bother calling their **** call centre.  Premium rate number before you get connected to someone who will be zero help.

 

 

I know what you were up to you old dog 

 

Virgin Aus were quite entertaining .. when I boarded in Fiji the chief steward was wearing a snorkel mask and  flippers as she welcomed everyone on board ... when we bounced down into Sydney , she announced over the tannoy welcome to Sydney and please give a big round of applause for our pilot on his first day at work ..... shame Virign UK are so shite

 

I've flown Precision Air as well  .. my wife left something on the plane when we got off at Arusha , some souvenir type stuff  that she suddenly remembered when we got to the hotel  .. the plane had already turned around and gone back but they delivered it to our hotel the next morning 

 

  I'm taking the Fifth on what I may or may not have been/am up to!

 

Nice touch from Precision.