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BLR-COK on 9W

 
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iflytb20
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Joined: 27 Jan 2007
Posts: 1079
Location: Next to the Airport

PostPosted: Wed Nov 19, 2014 9:32 pm    Post subject: BLR-COK on 9W Reply with quote

Background blah blah
Before I start my TR, let me give you some background information.

My present company hates pilots with excessive leave balance. I had a bit left over from last year and they decided to give me some "forced leave" just before my annual leave of 23 days. The end result was that I got leave for 33 days. So I decided to split my leave between Bangalore (where my folks live) and Kochi (where my Home Minister's folks live). So after 10 days in BLR (out of which I was sick for 8 Rolling Eyes ), I started phase 2 of my leave. And this meant flying from BLR to COK.

Selection of flight
The choices of carriers were 9Wk, 6E, I5, AI & SG. AI, SG & I5 were eliminated due to the timing of the flights. This left 9Wk and 6E. A quick comparison of the fares revealed a difference of INR 4000. While 2 seats on 9Wk was working out to 6.5K, 6E was 10.5K. So I booked the seats via the 9W website. The entire booking took about 5 min but it took them almost 1 hour to email me the tickets. Nevertheless, armed with the tickets, photo IDs, biodata, horoscope and whatevertheCISFchapsmightrequire we made our way to the airport.

Check-in, Security, Munchies etc

The counters were mostly deserted when we got there. 4 Y and 2 J/JP counters were open. With just 3 people ahead of us, the entire check-in process took about 5 minutes. The lady at the counter told us 3 times about the lack of PAs inside the terminal building and to be positively at the gate atleast 40 min before the departure time. Having dropped off our bags, we made our way to the post office...er...CISF stamping center aka security screening. With 3 stamps, we were now "safe" to proceed. After security HM wanted to grab a quick bite. So we ended up having Sambhar Vada (me) and Button Idli Sambhar (HM) at Malgudi. After washing it down with some filter coffee, we made our way to the gate.

Boarding

Our designated gate was Gate 4, which is in the lower level of the departure building. This was a new thing for me but hey - last time I traveled domestic from BLR was in July 2013 Wink . Boarding process started at 1340 hrs with the gate staff enforcing row wise boarding. The first bus left with pax seated in rows 1-10 and the rest (including us) were shipped in the second bus. Before we could reach the bus, one has to pass through a 2-Tier CISF security. The first guy checks the various stamps and hands us over to the second guy who ...... wait for it ..... checks the same thing again Shocked


Personalised Boarding Pass

Since our aircraft was parked quite nearby, the bus journey took about a minute. Just before the door an 9W ground staff checked our boarding pass and tore off the stub. On boarding we were greeted by both the crew and we made our way to our seat. Seated across the aisle were a german couple who were trying to have an conversation with a mallu chap in English. It was worth overhearing Wink From what I could make out, they were trying to get directions from the airport to their hotel.
The chap went like :
" ja ja ve vill come to de hotel on our own. How ve get taxi ...... ja ja ourside arrival... German taxi ja das is gut... so they spek german ja....vat....oh government taxi...ok "

I really hope they reached their hotel and not somewhere else Twisted Evil

Flight Details

FLIGHT : 9W 2660
SECTOR : BLR-COK
ACFT : VT-JCU ATR 72-500
SEAT NO : 12D & 12F
STD 1415L ATD 1400L early by 15 min
STA 1535L ATA 1522L early by 13 min
LOAD : LF 95%

Taxi, Take off and Climb

We were parked at Bay 20. After pushback & start we taxied out via taxiway H , A & A6 to hold short of R09. During taxi the Captain came on the PA and gave following details about the flight :
*Crew Names
*Enroute weather (slight clouding)
*Cruise Level (FL180)
*Airport closure at Kochi.


Legroom

Kochi airport has a NOTAMed closure every day between 1420-1520 hrs. We were expected to reach overhead CIA VOR at 1505 hrs, so we were told to expect a 10-15 min holding. After a short wait we entered the runway and started our takeoff roll. After a short roll, we were airborne at 1413 hrs.

Takeoff Video


Cruise

18 min after takeoff, we leveled off at FL180 or 18000 feet. The normal route to Kochi takes us over the Coimbatore VOR before turning towards Kochi, but it looked like we got direct clearance to the Kochi VOR.


Direct CIA

The onboard Food and Beverage service started at 1420 hrs. The cabin crew looked after the cabin while the SFS was busy cooking the pilot's meals Cool The service was done by 1435 hrs and the crew retreated to the aft galley for the remainder of the flight.


FnB Items

After passing abeam Coimbatore VOR we got direct routing to the CIB VOR. Now Kochi has 2 VORs - CIA & CIB. While CIA is located at the Airport itself, CIB lies about 20NM to the East of the Airport. CIB is available only for about 6 hours a day (PS: Outdated information Warning. Please feel free to correct me if you have updated info) but is perfect for arrivals from the East. It saves atleast 35 NM of travel and about 5-8 minutes of flying time (depending on the aircraft).


Direct CIB

Descent, Approach & Landing
We started our descent about 25NM from CIB. Before descent the lady FO came on the PA to give the weather at Kochi (33 degrees pheeww) and that we would be landing about 15 min early. We entered a hold at CIB at 1502 hrs and the entry pattern gave pax on both sides great views of the Western Ghats and the Munnar area. As there were some chut-phut (AI terminology) clouds in the area, the hold was a bit bumpy. We eventually bounced our way out of the hold at 1512 hrs to start the ILS approach for R27. The Eagle landed at 1519 hrs and a quick Schumacher style taxi had us parked on stand 7 by 1522 hrs. 5 minutes later we were in the terminal waiting to be reunited with our bags.

Landing Video

Disclaimers

*All photographs & videos were recorded using my Phone.
*Any complaints about the poor quality of the photos would not be entertained as my phone is very sensitive about it Razz
*No mallus were harmed in the making of this TR.
*The German couple are still lost.
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ameya
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Joined: 09 May 2007
Posts: 3671
Location: Pune,Maharashtra

PostPosted: Wed Nov 19, 2014 11:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the TR - It was short & crisp, and certainly fun to read.

My love for BLR CISF is well known, but this double check at boarding is new? Wasnt it always one CISF
checking for boarding pass stamp and the baggage tag stamp ?

BLR boarding is a breeze, but the problem is at arrivals, where with the extended terminal, the bus travels even more
to take a U turn and come back. Certainly no complaints for aviation enthusiasts, who get to be on the
tarmac for so long!

You seem to have this interesting app - could we have more details please Smile

As for the CIA / CIB VOR - any reason why CIB is available for 6 hours only ? Military flying nearby /restricted airspace?


Thanks again !
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iflytb20
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Joined: 27 Jan 2007
Posts: 1079
Location: Next to the Airport

PostPosted: Thu Nov 20, 2014 12:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

ameya wrote:

My love for BLR CISF is well known, but this double check at boarding is new? Wasnt it always one CISF
checking for boarding pass stamp and the baggage tag stamp ?


Maybe he was bored. It surprised me as well because usually its one for baggage tags and another for boarding passes.

ameya wrote:
You seem to have this interesting app - could we have more details please Smile


Its Jeppesen Flight Deck Pro. A replacement for all paper charts on board Laughing

ameya wrote:
As for the CIA / CIB VOR - any reason why CIB is available for 6 hours only ? Military flying nearby /restricted airspace?


I never could find the reason for it. There is no restriction in using CIA when CIB is also available. Maybe someone here has the answer..
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sumantra
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Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4685
Location: New Delhi

PostPosted: Thu Nov 20, 2014 7:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It is wonderful to have a trip report from you after a very long time.
It is even more wonderful to have the views and experiences of a front office bearer, experiencing flying as a passenger! Wow, a Jeppesen Flight Deck Pro: wouldn't we amateur enthusiasts love to have Jeppesen Flight Deck Proone of these? As always, I enjoyed the digs at Mallus, and the little bits of humour, all of which builds up to a lovely reading experience. Thank you once again, for taking time out to write this for us. Please also try to include more pictures of the F&B: not just the cup of water Smile I would have loved to see the button iDlI floating around in a nice sAmbhar!
Cheers, Sumantra.
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Spiderguy252
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Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 4259
Location: Indian Ocean

PostPosted: Thu Nov 20, 2014 11:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the share - I haven't had a fun time with the CISF folks at BLR either!
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rakesh959
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Joined: 28 Aug 2012
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PostPosted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 9:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wonderful TR Captain!Thanks a lot for sharing Smile
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PAL@YWG
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Joined: 22 Dec 2006
Posts: 438
Location: YWG, Canada

PostPosted: Tue Nov 25, 2014 12:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hilarious TR! Short but entertaining.
Thank you iflytb20, it surely made my morning here Very Happy
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Optimus.Prime
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Joined: 21 Dec 2009
Posts: 302
Location: VAJJ (No, not Va-Jay-Jay)

PostPosted: Fri Nov 28, 2014 6:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice One ! Hope you enjoyed the flight aboard the ATR. Nice FD screenshots - is it the Wifi+3G model of the mini?
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jbalonso777
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Joined: 05 Jul 2012
Posts: 1501
Location: Never, never land

PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 10:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice hilarious TR from you!
Good to have you back here, and always a pleasure to have the conservations on the WhatsApp group Smile

I love the technical bits of information here too! Makes for a unique TR as a whole!

Nice Schumacher reference! I had to comment on this Smile
Hope he becomes normal soon....
I too had a Schumi style arrival in Colombo on the SpiceJet Q400 a few days ago, I'll post that experience very soon Smile

Looking forward to more from you!

Regards
Jish
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stealthpilot
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Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 2325
Location: BLR, DXB

PostPosted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 5:40 pm    Post subject: Re: BLR-COK on 9W Reply with quote

Hahahahah great TR!

iflytb20 wrote:
So we ended up having Sambhar Vada (me) and Button Idli Sambhar (HM) at Malgudi. After washing it down with some filter coffee, we made our way to the gate.

Nice snack before the flight .... I used to do that + fruit+custard in that cup thing (wasn't particularly good but still).
iflytb20 wrote:
The cabin crew looked after the cabin while the SFS was busy cooking the pilot's meals Cool

Razz
iflytb20 wrote:
It saves atleast 35 NM of travel and about 5-8 minutes of flying time (depending on the aircraft).

O you liar .... when was the last time you saved 5 mins Wink
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sri_bom
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Joined: 22 Dec 2006
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 15, 2014 10:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for posting the report it was an interesting read.

Sri_Bom
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