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A day & a half, can't have enough! Mumbai, Oct'13

 
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sumantra
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Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4685
Location: New Delhi

PostPosted: Sat Jan 10, 2015 10:57 pm    Post subject: A day & a half, can't have enough! Mumbai, Oct'13 Reply with quote

A day & a half, can't have enough! Mumbai, Oct'13


http://www.airlinersindia.s4.bizhat.com/airlinersindia-ftopic14146.html

71.1 Introduction. Trouble in camera
I always look forward to Mumbai trips. I was a Mumbaikar for a
good six years, and every time I visit this super-efficient city,
I feel a sense of belonging.
And longing, too.
Will I ever get to live and work here?
I had a chance, and I blew it.
I am now back in the city I call my domicile.
Delhi.

There was a meeting scheduled on 18 Oct (Fri), 2013.
I jumped at the proposal.
Ah...here comes an opportunity to try to log some more domestic
miles on Air India wide-bodies!
I was sadly mistaken.
As the day of the journey came closer, so evaporated my hopes of
getting at least one wide-body trip, and then finally, none at all.
I had greedily thought of trying to log two trips on the Air
India B77Ws, on the New York JFK flights. I would take AI 102 on
the DEL-BOM leg from the international part of IGIA T3, and on
the return, take AI 101 on the BOM-DEL leg from CSIA T2, in spite
of the terminal being one I just do not look forward to: let the
reader be reminded that this journey was circa October 2013,
when the old T2 was in operation. I did not like the old T2 primarily
because one could look through the glass, with all kinds of patterns
plastered on it left, right and centre, and there being not
a single readily-available power-port in the waiting area.
However, a chance to do a domestic leg on Air India's flagship
route (well, almost) would over-ride all such objections to CSIA T2.

Fate willed, otherwise.
I would have six - yes, six colleagues joining me on this meeting.
Rather, I would be joining them, given my relative lack of
seniority, or importance, in the pecking order.
Talk about a hen-pecked job-holder in a semi-Government organisation.
I would not show good manners towards my senior colleagues if I
did not join them on the trip. They had singled out the two dinner
flights, the 7pm flight both ways. Unlike me, they work quite
hard, whereas I hardly work. They look forward to spending
a productive day in office, then trying to utilise the remaining
time travelling, and sleeping the night through.
I look forward to spending as much of office hours as possible
travelling, and doing other productive activities (eating,
primarily), and like them, sleeping the night through.
The Air India 7pm flights were the first flights on which dinner
would be served in both directions, and my senior colleagues also
patronise Air India meals. The second reason was that there was
not much to look forward to around where we were put up, in a
remote corner of Chembur, where food options were quite limited,
unless one was prepared to go `automatically' (i.e., take an auto
- an auto-rickshaw). We would be too tired for words.

I decided to try the AI 102 DEL-BOM option, at least, and cite
some personal work. This would also get me in time for some
dinner at a not-so-common location, which I did not mind, but my
colleagues with their fine tastes would not patronise it much
unless they had to. The added constraint was that the meal
service there closed early. I would get an Air India snack, a
wide-body B77W experience, and have dinner at this place.

Just then, fate decided that a trial on my schedule
would be held in camera.
In what may be a matter of academic interest to the regular
reader, yes, it was my favourite Analog SLR,
the Minolta Maxxum 50 with a 28-100mm lens, which needed attention.
I decided to take an earlier flight to Mumbai (the meeting was
on 18 Oct'13), in order to pay a visit to what is perhaps India's
best-known camera shop, J. J. Mehta at Dadar.
The camera was simply blanking out after some 6-7 snaps. The
battery was quite fine. After a few on-and-off cycles, it was
coming back on again, but of late, it had been also retracting
the film with it, either on switching it on, or when it turned
off on its own. Auto-off and auto-retract,
albeit with stochastics thrown in for good measure,
and the film thrown out, leaving me little leisure.

J. J. Mehta closed at 9pm, and it would be a bit tight for me, to
make it to the shop from our place of accommodation, to the shop,
on mass public transportation. Even though for a change, I had no
checked-in luggage (so as not to incur the wrath and ridicule of
my senior colleagues for always lugging a bag with me). However,
I had to drop my laptop at the place where we were to be put up,
and then head over to Dadar. So, it would be a narrow-body, after all.
Now, which would be the best choice?
Of course, one with a direct routing, and more importantly, one
where lunch would be served. The choice was clear.
My itinerary for this part of the trip was as follows:

Set out 17 Oct (Thu) for Mumbai from New Delhi
AI 863: Air India (A321) [Seat: 09F; PNR: HGGQH]
IGIA T3, New Delhi - CSIA T1A, Mumbai
New Delhi (DEL) - Mumbai (BOM)
[01:00 pm - 03:00 pm]

71.2 At IGIA T3, 17 Oct'13

After some anxious moments, I got a taxi to take me to my
destination (in Delhi, that is). My favourite cab operator was
not free at that time, and I had not booked a radio cab. I had
telephoned two taxi stands close-by, and I got tense as they said
that all their cabs were off on duty. The third one finally gave
me a ray of hope. A taxi came in, with the driver having a
receipt book with him as well. I reached IGIA T3 well in time,
and the check-in happened without much ado.
The same went for the security check as well.

There was a neat racing car after the security check, with a huge
razor on top, and some neat props all around.



I was air-side in no time at all, and ran to the part behind the
Citibank ATM, to catch a glimpse of the goings-on at the part
where the Air India domestic finger faces the international one,
which is primarily patronised by Air India itself.



I then hurried to the upward ramp, and up to the portion behind
the information counter. VT-JBN was moving away from the gates,
and an Air Arabia A320 had come in, and was taxi'ing in.



Another sight from there, was a first for me. I quickly bounded
towards the end of the domestic finger in the Air India part, to have a
better vantage point, to see the beauty side-on.
This was perhaps the first time I saw an Air India B77W at a
remote stand, in the domestic South-facing finger. I have seen
a B77L parked there, along with A332s, but never such a large plane!
This was `Goa', VT-ALL, in all her beauty.



Parked right beside it was RJD, the `political party' plane, VT-RJD.
Yes, a CR7 `masked bandit', one of my obsessions, in the Air
India Flying Swan livery.



Much to my interest, I also saw the Jet Airways B737-700 VT-JNG
coming out, a plane often dubbed, `Jet Naresh Goyal'. This is a
Boeing 737-700 with eyebrow cockpit windows.



We boarded well on time.
Captain Sunil Vashishth was in command - I have travelled with
him before, on a 2012 April trip to Indore.
Ms. Puneet was in charge of the cabin. The plane was coming in
from Chandigarh, and when we boarded (I was one of the first to
do so), I noticed a few passengers already inside, passengers
from Chandigarh going onward to Mumbai.
PU, the `plasticy' plane VT-PPU, was right next to us.



PJ, the `not-so-funny' plane VT-PPJ pushed back, soon.

71.3 Worms and Squirms, Ecstasy in Chickening Out

A few days before the trip, had come the disturbing report of
worms having been found in a sandwich aboard an Air India flight.
This was circa October, 2013.
Low-cost carriers in India, Indigo, GoAir and then SpiceJet
too, had been found serving expired food on board.
However, this was a new low.
Jason in his inimitable style, quipped,
Quote:
Idiot complained about being served worms instead of
enjoying the haute delicacy.

I replied,
Quote:
Eeks, Jason and Abhijith - that opens a new can of worms,
and...Pandora's box

Jason was not done with me, and my love for Air India food.
Quote:
Tell us the truth Sumantra... If you unwrapped your AI
sandwich to find it was wormy, what would you do:
1. Refuse to eat it, kick a fuss and complain
2. Eat it because it's still AI food
3. Eat it and complain as well

Quote:
Hobson's choice?
, I retorted.
Member The_Goat, who also loves pulling my leg on my gluttony, added
Quote:
The experience will 'worm' its way into another one of his
trip reports then

Since idioms and proverbs were flying high and low, I retorted,
Quote:
I guess I may as usual, rush in where AI-ngels fear to tread

Worms and squirms apart, I still looked forward to my meal.

At 01:20 pm, the seat belt sign went off, and the cabin crew
announced that lunch would be served on board. The crew got into
action at once, and very soon, appetising smells filled the cabin.
Non-vegetarian. My usual choice.

Chicken is known as `murgA' in the chaste vernacular, in North India.
A day before my trip, member Rishul had quipped, in his usual
witty manner, as to what a chicken-lover would describe the
ecstasy of having chicken, as. `murgAsm'
I shared this with The Wife.
She immediately retorted back, saying that with my
perennial indigestion, it meant `more gas um.'

The meal started with a rock-hard butter slice, just as I like it.
It was to go with a rock-hard piece of coiled bread.
Not quite as I like it.
The salad was a delight, however.
There was a slice of tomato inside a sea of crispy cucumber with
the skins on. There was a small slice of lemon as ell.
I sprinkled most of the lemon on the salad, and took it with some
salt and pepper. With high hopes, I opened the main box.
There was a nice chicken curry to the right side, and some
capsicum in a tomato and cream-based gravy, which was simply
excellent. The medium-grained aromatic rice was very nicely done.
I had kept a bit of the lemon and salt and pepper specifically for this.
My hopes had risen even further, by having one look at the dessert bowl.
A chocolate brownie, in a thick-ish chocolate sauce.
By now, the beverage service had started.
Rather than risk ending the meal with a insipid coffee, I took it
right then. The coffee was just as expected. Quite insipid.
The brownie was simply heavenly.
The delight was not overtly sinful - the sweetness coefficient
was just enough to excite the senses of any one who patronised
brownies. It was nice and soft, well-embellished with chopped dry
fruits, and complemented the gooey chocolate sauce very well.
Completely contented, I sat down to type this report.

Here is something that has irked me quite a bit, on my flights on
Air India narrow-bodies, of late. They somehow do not turn the
audio channels on. I have long been an admirer of the play-lists
on the Thales i3000, and often see all 12 channels listed. The
five movie channels were active however, and I saw a bit of an
impressive action movie, `D-Day', starring Irrfan Khan, Rishi
Kapoor and Arjun Rampal.

71.4 At Mumbai

Captain Sunil Vashishth made a soft landing at Mumbai.
I looked at the sights around me, as well.
Here is a neat Go Air A320, VT-WAM, in front of Terminal 1-B, at
the CSIA, Mumbai:



The impressive new control tower, was then under construction:



I went to the place where our accommodation had been arranged,
dropped my bag there, took my beloved Analog SLR out, and hurried
to the closest BEST bus stand. I took a bus to the Khodadad
Circle, where I got down, and headed towards the flyover, which
took one towards the Western line station part of Dadar, over
train lines which I had crossed numerous times as a Mumbaikar
in the early 2000s, on the way to what is India's best-known
camera store. I handed over the camera to Mr. Bhosle there, whom
I recounted from my early 2000s visits to the place, to have my
Analog PNS repaired, and to buy accessories for the various
cameras the family has had, over the years. Somehow, I felt
completely at home walking on the streets there. I simply looked
on at the people around me. I felt the quiet efficiency all
around, in the city that is perhaps the only super-efficient city
in any developing country. Things went around, like clock-work.
Something that caught my eye was a lady walking towards a
pavement vendor, who had posters of Hindu gods and goddesses on
sale. The lady was in a family way, and had come there with her
Mummy. ``aaee, aaee,'' she nudged her Mummy to have a look at
a particular poster of the Hindu god Lord Krishna, partaking of
white butter from a pot, as a child. The poster seller rolled the
poster neatly, put a small rubber band around it, and handed it
to the lady. The momentary smiles exchanged between the two ladies,
and the vendor, made an interesting sight to remember.

I took another BEST bus back to where I would tuck in for the night.
Some SMSes announced the arrival of my colleagues, but I was too
sleepy after a filling dinner, and tucked in, a bit contented,
since for once, I had done my home-work for the next day.

71.5 The next day, all in fast forward

The next day had passed in fast forward, with a tight schedule,
the meeting, and a frantic setting out for the airport.
The itinerary for the return trip was as follows:

Set out 18 Oct (Fri) for New Delhi from Mumbai
AI 888: Air India (A321) [Seat: 09F; PNR: HGGQH]
CSIA T1A, Mumbai - IGIA T3, New Delhi
Mumbai (BOM) - New Delhi (DEL)
[07:00 pm - 09:00 pm]

We were a group of a total of 10 people, of whom three had left
before, one by a Jet airways afternoon flight, one on the 5pm Air India
flight, and one went back to Pune by bus, while the rest 7 of us waited for
two Meru cabs to come in. One came in on time, and one ten
minutes late. We arrived at the airport at a quarter to 6 pm, in
the heavy Mumbai traffic. We checked in without any ado.
I was lucky to have pre-selected my seat, as two of us who had
done a web check-in got seats of their choice, but the rest were
all saddled with middle seats all around the plane.
The seven of us gathered at the food court, at the junction of
terminal 1-A and 1-C. The other six started off with some
beverages, but I hurried to the runway-facing windows with a view,
with a view to catch some interesting movements on the tarmac,
and the runway. The highlight of the movements I watched with
interest, was an Air India B744 take-off from runway 27!
There were two other B744s in the Air India hangars facing the
main runway, at the South side of the airport. The wind-sock also
showed something really interesting: the ideal runway for
operations would have been the secondary runway 32!

I had missed the Air India B744 take-off, but caught some of the
much slower action, in the failing light. Setting out was
CW, the `direction/clock-wise' plane, VT-SCW.



Also having come in, was a B737-700 in JetKonnect livery, VT-SJA.



Setting out from its stand was PG, the `Post-Graduate' plane VT-PPG.



An Emirates B77W came in next.



The light had gone really bad by now. I was barely able to catch
PN, the `Diode' plane VT-PPN.



We boarded slightly late, as the plane had come in a bit late.
As I boarded, it was too dark to find the registration, but once
inside, I guessed it would have been one of the initial ones
planned for entry in to the erstwhile Indian Airlines, judging by
the patterned wall-paper, and the blue seat armrests, and PTVs.



I sat down on my pre-booked seat, 09F, and looked out over the wing.
It was PPD, the `pulses cake' plane.
Captain Sandeep Sharma was in command (I seem to vaguely remember
that I have flown with him before), and Ms. Raina was in charge of the cabin.

71.6 The dinner, aboard AI 888!

At about 10 minutes to 8, the much-awaited dinner service began.
Non-vegetarian, as usual. My two neighbours went in for the other
choice, and when they started their meal with the main course, I
was indeed wondering if I had made the correct choice. It had a
lovely `shAhI paneer' (a spicy preparation with cottage
cheese slices, in a orange tomato-based rich spicy gravy)
to the left, which looked extremely inviting,
beside the bed of some yellowish long-grained rice.
What would my main course have?
I wanted to start the way I usually do, but I had a look at the
the transparent zip-lock pack containing a metal fork, a metal
knife, and a big plastic spoon, and a small stirrer, along with
the salt and pepper sachets, sugar and milk powder.
It also contained a card naming the caterer.
Taj-SATS.
I touched the bun.
My finger went right inside.
I raised it to my nostrils.
`If there was a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here,'
said a voice inside my head.
The butter was rock-hard, just as I love it.
We were somewhere above FL29, but I was on cloud nine.
What is more appetising than the aroma of freshly-baked soft bread,
on a hungry stomach? It was simply heavenly.
The next item was my usual starter,
but I was looking forward to it, from its looks alone.
The salad, or koshambIr, as a Maharashtrian would have called it.
I put the salad tray to the left of my tray, just as koshambIr
would have been served, on a Maharashtrian thAlI
(literally a large plate, indicating a nice spread with items
neatly arranged all around the large plate).
It had finely chopped pieces of fresh and crispy cucumber and
tomato, and a small slice of greenish lime.
While I enjoyed the salad immensely, I set aside a bit of the
lime and the salt and pepper, for the long-grained rice.
It was not the more famous Basmati, but what the Mumbaikar
sometimes calls the `UP Basmati', where the grain is long, but it
does not have the charismatic aroma of a great Basmati, which
sends tingles down the taste buds of any food lover.
The right side of the main course had a nice spinach preparation,
done with a minimum of spices, and a hint of tomato and onion.
This was lovely.
To the left was a slightly sinful cream chicken curry.
There were quite a few pieces of chicken in the gravy, which were
very soft and succulent.
The dessert was quite grand, keeping up with the general trend of
the meal. It was a fresh apple pie, soft and an absolutely
melt-in-the-mouth preparation.
It is not for nothing that the Taj bakery products are well-known
throughout India, and represented in the airline food business,
as Taj-SATS. To my pleasant shock, the coffee was not bad at all.
What a lovely meal!

Here again, I was disappointed at not finding the audio channels
active, again. During the meal, I shifted my attention to the
video channels. The main Hindi film again caught my attention,
`Kai Po Che!', a cricket-based story interwoven around three
events of history in the early 2000s, based on a novel by
celebrated writer Chetan Bhagat.

Captain Sharma put her down on the new runway at Delhi like a
feather, and the seven of us distributed ourselves as 3-2-2, and
went our respective ways to our residences, in pre-paid taxies.
---
Links to my 71 trip reports:
https://sites.google.com/site/sumantratrip/
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Nimish
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 11:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Another great TR with lots of additional details around the planning and so on. Thanks for sharing, and giving us an opportunity to join you on your flights Smile
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ameya
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Posts: 3671
Location: Pune,Maharashtra

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 11:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks Sir for the wonderful picture filled TR as always !

The first picture which you posted - were they advertising the razor, car or vodafone Razz

The pictures are nice. .

VT_WAM which you have clicked was the first Go Air aircraft capable of
landing at IXL. It was then the 9th aircraft in the fleet when G8 started flights to IXL

For the return flight - AI888 was once paired with AI887 which used to do IXU runs. I assume that this
had already ended by Oct'13 when you made this visit

Another wonderful description of the food !

Btw - what happened to the camera ? How was that serviced and sent or given then and there ?

Thanks again !
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 12:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nimish wrote:
...with lots of additional details around the planning and so on. Thanks for sharing, and giving us an opportunity to join you on your flights Smile
Thank you very much, Nimish: I am glad that you find time to go through material on this part of the forum as well!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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himmat01
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 12:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

As usual a great TR. Coincidently I took the AI 888 on way back to Delhi on January 10, 2015. The chicken biryani was simply awesome.
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sumantra
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Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4685
Location: New Delhi

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 12:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ameya Sir, thanks once again, for the reply, and the in-depth information!
ameya wrote:
The first picture which you posted - were they advertising the razor, car or vodafone Razz
He he: the razor, the cut-throat competition in car racing, and the throat-cutting prices of Vodafone packages, I guess Razz
amaya wrote:
VT-WAM which you have clicked was the first Go Air aircraft capable of landing at IXL. It was then the 9th aircraft in the fleet when G8 started flights to IXL
Wonderful piece of information, Sir!
ameya wrote:
For the return flight - AI888 was once paired with AI887 which used to do IXU runs. I assume that this had already ended by Oct'13 when you made this visit
Yes Sir: I am glad you remember those days. It was the `leased' A319 VT-SCD, the `Optical Storage' plane, which has now been returned. SCD saw the seat covers change to the new Air India Ochre and Vermillion scheme. The earlier seats had (non-working) power-ports, and information in Spanish (or what I thought, was so).
The rotation circa Oct'13 saw the A321 come in on what was then AI 441 DEL-IXU-BOM, and go back as AI 888. The earlier AI 887-888 rotation was DEL-BOM-IXU-BOM-DEL on the A319, even as IC 887/888.
ameya wrote:
Btw - what happened to the camera? How was that serviced and sent or given then and there?
Unfortunately Sir, Bhosle-ji tried hard, but that overheating chip proved irreparable. I took it back on 24 Dec 2013, on my next trip to Mumbai. I have it in my cupboard, and hope to at least try and use up some of the nice ISO 400 reels I have with me. Thanks a lot once again for your reply, Sir!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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HAWK21M
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 1:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Amazing pics
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sri_bom
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 2:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you for posting the TR always a delight to read. The pictures were great and so were the description of the city of Bombay. It is a city that is always on the move.

JJ Mehta is the place to get all sorts of cameras repaired, but I am sure getting analogue cameras repaired will be a challenge as digital is all over now.

Sri_Bom
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 7:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

HAWK21M wrote:
Amazing pics
Not quite production standard, and not even from an SLR, Meljoe. However, it is nice to see you reading TRs on this part of the forum, thank you!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 7:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you for going through this TR in detail: I know Mumbai will interest you since you have been based in this wonderful city for quite some time. I always get goosebumps when I land up in Mumbai, and get a homely felling, unlike Delhi, a city I have lived in the longest, and call my hometown!
sri_bom wrote:
JJ Mehta is the place to get all sorts of cameras repaired, but I am sure getting analogue cameras repaired will be a challenge as digital is all over now.
Unfortunately yes, Srinivas: as I posted in the reply to Ameya's post above, I have had to put this camera in storage, and switch to a digital medium after all, after all this while. I had tried Sunshine in Delhi's Connaught Place, and JJ Mehta in Mumbai, to no avail. These parts are simply not available. Thank you once again, for the reply!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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jbalonso777
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 10:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I made sure I had my dinner while reading this TR, and it was a good option Wink
Although, while being reminded of the worm incident was a bit uncalled for, it is part of the Sumantra brand humor! Very Happy

As usual sir, great TR, fantastic! Very Happy
With pictures now in your TRs, its only going one way: Skywards! Very Happy

I loved every single part of it!

Now, to hijack your amazing piece of work for a bit:
Jishnu has to say something about the race car Smile
Clearly, it is a McLaren Mercedes car. Which exact model? Who knows.
On first thought, it looked like a 2006 'MP4-21' model (driven by eventual 2007 world Champion Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya), or a launch spec model of the 'MP4-22' (driven by 2006 World Champion Fernando Alonso, no intro required Razz and eventual 2008/2014 world champion Lewis Hamilton).
On further observation of the nose/front wing end plate/front suspension/brake cooling ducts, I think it is safe to say it is indeed the Adrian Newey designed MP4-21 of 2006. While it was quick over one lap, it didn't achieve a single race victory. Mind you, Newey was the brains behind the 1992 Williams cars and the 2009-2013 Red Bull cars which gave Sebastian Vettel his successes.

Furthermore, I also believe that this 2006 chassis because I sat in one at a Vodafone event in Phoenix Mills, Mumbai. It was a new chassis for Kimi Raikkonen, which in fact delivered 3 pole positions, but no race victories.
The car also has 2013 colors - Lucozade drinks, Jenson Button's car number 5 illustrated, and that is in fact his crash helmet Smile
The 2006 livery had Fly Emirates and Johnnie Walker stickers.

ENOUGH WITH THAT, OH GOD!

VT-JNG is no more, she's scrapped Sad
With your trend of aircraft having personalities, can we call VT-WAM the 'locomotive' plane? Smile

Couldn't agree more with your apt descriptions of Mumbai. Like I've said countless number of times before: I miss Mumbai Sad Have you been on the local trains there, sir?

J. J. Mehta, Mr. Bhosle! I went there once in late 2010, mere days after Sebastian Vettel stole the Championship from Fernando Alonso's hands, thanks to a Ferrari strategic own goal Sad I was delighted to see the variety of lenses and cameras Dad and Mr. Bhosle showed me - that's when the photography interest in me arose Very Happy

Superb spotting pics. Sir, could you tell me more about the food court spotting in T1-C? Is T1A/B/C now linked completely?

Thanks for a fabulous TR!

Regards
Jish
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 14, 2015 8:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you for the detailed comments, Sir!
Yes, I agree the worms part of it does not give good vibes especially while having dinner, I apologise: it is more of my macabre tendencies Sad
jbalonso777 wrote:
Jishnu has to say something about the race car
Now, that is an amazing bit of history: I wish I knew that much about F1 cars, or...WAMs and WAPs. You are one enthusiast in anthing with wheels on them, and an amazing source of knowledge!
Oh sorry, I did not know about JNG being parted out.
jbalonso777 wrote:
Have you been on the local trains there, sir?
Countless times, Sir. Also with luggage, in the rush hour time! Now, that was not pleasant.
jbalonso777 wrote:
J. J. Mehta, Mr. Bhosle!
I am intrigued that these two names also incite sweet memories for you! Plus a F1 racing angle to your memories...makes it all linked!
jbalonso777 wrote:
could you tell me more about the food court spotting in T1-C? Is T1A/B/C now linked completely?
Sir, I have actually never done the T1B-T1C journey: in my case, it has always been doing departures out of T1A, which is fully connected to T1C, and I have roamed all around. there may be a security check in T1B just prior to T1C, so I do not know about this part. This T1C food court is possibly the best spotting location out of T1, since the 09 end of the main runway is right in front. And...planes, and food: isn't that the best combination for some of us? Razz
Thank you Sir, once again,
Sumantra.
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jbalonso777
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 15, 2015 10:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

sumantra wrote:
You are one enthusiast in anthing with wheels on them, and an amazing source of knowledge!

Not the one with two wheels though - I'm pretty bad with bikes and bullock carts! Razz

sumantra wrote:
Oh sorry, I did not know about JNG being parted out.

She left the fleet soon after this trip of yours me thinks..

sumantra wrote:
Countless times, Sir. Also with luggage, in the rush hour time! Now, that was not pleasant.

Reminds me of my many trips of going to school on the Mumbai locals, although the times of the day meant it was relatively empty. Oh, seeing the long distance trains at Mumbai Central, especially the Rajdhani - bliss!

sumantra wrote:
Sir, I have actually never done the T1B-T1C journey: in my case, it has always been doing departures out of T1A, which is fully connected to T1C, and I have roamed all around. there may be a security check in T1B just prior to T1C, so I do not know about this part. This T1C food court is possibly the best spotting location out of T1, since the 09 end of the main runway is right in front.

This is a vital bit of info, thanks so much! Very Happy

Regards
Jishnu
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 15, 2015 10:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jbalonso777 wrote:
sumantra wrote:
Oh sorry, I did not know about JNG being parted out.
She left the fleet soon after this trip of yours me thinks..
Oh sorry, did a regular AI flyer cast his evil eye on the competitor's plane with the Chairman's name?

jbalonso777 wrote:
Oh, seeing the long distance trains at Mumbai Central, especially the Rajdhani - bliss!
Yes, and I remember longingly looking at them, and more so, when the new ones with the Alstrom coaches: oh just when would I get some official work to be able to travel on them? All my personal travel was in sleeper class, and official trips by air were rare.

Cheers, Sumantra.
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Spiderguy252
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

sumantra wrote:
Yes, and I remember longingly looking at them, and more so, when the new ones with the Alstrom coaches: oh just when would I get some official work to be able to travel on them? All my personal travel was in sleeper class, and official trips by air were rare.


Sumantra, if you're referring to what are called LHB coaches, they are in almost all of the Rajdhanis and Shatabdis now. Certain Durontos have them too, and ICF are now making 'hybrid LHB' coaches for SL and 2S on the regular 'blue' trains that span across the country.

As for the planes and your accounts of them, they're delectable as always. Wink

Does VT-PPE also have the baubles on the wall panels? At which alphabet do the 321s effectively become AI's, with no trace of IC in them? It is VT-SCG for the A319s in this regard IIRC.
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sumantra
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 18, 2015 10:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Spiderguy252 wrote:
Sumantra, if you're referring to what are called LHB coaches
Yes Varun, sorry I did not mention the timeline: this was in the early 2000s, when they were less common. Yes, the ride is smoother, but those jolts on a start are not!
Spiderguy252 wrote:
Does VT-PPE also have the baubles on the wall panels? At which alphabet do the 321s effectively become AI's, with no trace of IC in them? It is VT-SCG for the A319s in this regard IIRC.
Oops Varun, I do not remember this, except for the fact that the first few A321s had the patterned wall-paper, and the blue seat hand-rests, and the blue PTV casings. I have forgotten the part with the A319s as well. The `fight' plane SCF was delivered without the PTVs to the erstwhile IC, I do not remember about the `balanced' one, CG. Thank you for the read, Varun!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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