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rakesh959 · Member Joined: 28 Aug 2012 Posts: 58 Location: Chennai

Trip Planning:
As almost all engineering students I was waiting for my exams to get over and longing for a quick getaway for a long time.So after taking into account Dad’s date preferences,We finalized two destinations for a weekend getaway.Cochin and Coimbatore.I almost booked my favourite 6E298/297 but just then Dad wanted to go to CJB.So started looking for tickets and this time decided to look beyond Indigo.So Spicejet it was owing to some very good timings and cheap fares as well.Indigo and Jet were very expensive than the normal fares on this route.I knew 6E would reduce the fares atleast at the last moment.And to add to this Spicejet had refundable fares.Dad had a trip to Mumbai around the same time so booked SG.The booking was done on the SG website which was good but one has to be very careful to remove all those addons.Inspite of removing almost all the addons,Spice Assurance was added to my itinerary without my knowledge.I got a mail immediately and an SMS too.The itinerary now was:

SG501 05Jun’15 Chennai(MAA/VOMM)-Coimbatore(CJB/VOCB) 09:05-10:05 B737-800(WL)

SG3024 08Jun’15 Coimbatore9CJB/VOCB)-Chennai(MAA/VOMM) 21:05-22:10 Bombardier Dash8 Q400

A week after booking these tickets,I saw Indigo had dropped fares an were now cheaper than SG.But the prospect of being on the Q400 was enough to overcome that Love for 6E Razz

I started tracking the rotation for SG501 and found it was an AMD based aircraft which does AMD-MAA-CJB-MAA-AMD-DXB-AMD with the aircraft being swapped after the 501 rotation very rarely.All sorts of Aircrafts were doing the rotation including the lone B737-900 and VT-SGx VT-SPx VT-SZx.I was atleast hoping to get a BSI bird.As the exams got over,I was very bored and Started tracking which aircraft I would get to fly on.SGH was operating for the last 5days or so but it got swapped at AMD a day before.A day before the flight I narrowed down to 3Aircraft.And Texted Forum Member JBAlonso777 on whatsapp to let him know about this.After a bit of analysis,We zeroed upon Sierra Zulu India(SZI).So he wished me luck and hoped I wouldn’t join him in his bad success rate at predicting planes Razz

The D-Day:
I got a mail from SG 48hrs before departure reminding me that Web-Checkin was now open for SG501.I went ahead and chose 27D,E,F for us.On the day of departure,left home at 06:30hrs and reached the airport at 07:00.The CISF guard was polite and wished us a good flight too!I went straight to the SG Baggage screening and got my baggage scanned and proceeded to the empty SG checkin Desks.The staff there were chit chatting and As I approached them,The response was cold Rolling Eyes

No greeting nor any smiles.The agent just asked my name and ID proof and didn’t bother looking at my M-Ticket.He asked for the check in bags and tagged them and ave us the boarding passes.I didn’t bother asking him about the loads.Security was very empty and I was airside in no time.Surprisingy,The terminal was very deserted.I quickly checked FR24 and found SPP had taken off 30mins late from AMD.So My success rate at predicting aircraft was not good.

FIDS at MAA

The Boarding Pass

I just had a look at the tarmac and it looked very empty.Just a lone 9W ATR and a 6E A320 at an aerobridge was all I could see.So I updated the whatsapp group abt the Aircraft that would take me to CJB.Spicejet was announcing a delay for its Q400 to BLR.VT-GOM landed on rwy25 from BOM and it would proceed to IXZ later.A4O-BM taxied to rwy25 to proceed to MCT and VT-JBL landed from PNQ and would now head to BOM.The Oman Air aircraft was followed by VT-IAP to DXB as 6E65.An Air Asia A320 from KUL landed followed VT-ESF from TRV.VT-IEL landed from PNQ too.I had breakfast from one of the stalls because of shear laziness to go to KFC/Pizza Hut at the other end of the terminal.VT-JFN landed from BOM 35minutes ahead of Schedule.This would operate 9W2491 to PNQ later.An Emirates B773 too landed around the same time.

A4O-BM off to MCT

VT-IAP off to DXB

VT-JBL inbound from AUH/PNQ now off to BOM

VT-GOM off to IXZ

SPP landed from AMD at 08:43hrs and docked at gate 7 The left most jetway at MAA.A long line had already formed.And a delay looked imminent.The first boarding announcement was made at 08:50hrs for pax seated in row nos. 16-30.No one seemed to bother about this.Anyways I joined the long line and the agent scanned my boarding pass and let me through.We were made to wait at the aerobridge for a long time.This is one thing I hate.I understand this helps in quick turnarounds but not at the cost of passenenger discomfort.This time it turned out to be really long.I clicked a picture of the aircraft and saw the very Senior Captain doing the walkaround.

VT-SPP

The wheelchair pax were let in at last but since they had to get in first they had to be taken along the line resulting in another delay.Poor Handling of boarding by the SG ground staff.We were finally allowed to move in at 09:07hrs.The person ahead of me was stopped by the CISF staff as he was not happy with the stamping.This lasted for sometime before another CISF guard was called in to resolve that and My Bag was checked for the staming and I was let in.The SG agent at the door had disappeared leaving the service Provider’s staff who asked us to wait till he came.This was really frustrating for all the pax Evil or Very Mad

and the person behind me gave his mouthful to the SG agent when he turned up.He just tore the boading pass and let us through.No apologies or anything.Another issue was the lead FA was upset was something during this time and he too asked the agent to call some commercial staff immediately.The FA greeted us warmly though.So finally something good!

Confirmation!Rosemary it is Smile

Spicejet SG501
Chennai-Coimbatore VT-SPP Rosemary B737-800(WL) 09:05-10:00(09:30-10:30)

I was at my seat by 09:15.The baggage was still being loaded the aircraft was being refuelled.Meanwhile there was a tiff between the FAs and the ground staff.The FA asked him something but the agent just moved ahead in the cabin before he was stopped by another FA who asked him to move to the rear galley as she wanted to have a word with him.The agent didn’t bother but had to budge.She took him to the rear galley and gave him a piece of her mind.I really liked the way the FA handled the rude ground staff.She didn’t want to create a ruckus in front of the Pax.

Neighbours at the International Terminal AI A320,EK B773 and the favourite Airline of Jbalonso777 Razz

The UL A340

The Mandatory Legroom Shot!

Anyways the boarding was completed by 09:25hrs and doors were closed shortly.The FA made the welcome announcement and firstly apologized for the delay.Captain Soumil Vyas and First Officer Utkarsh Thakur would be flying us to CJB that day.The crew consisted of the Lead Male FA(Raghavendar)and 3 young female FAs.Coming to the aircraft,it was poorly maintained.The armrests were taped with cheap tapes and the windows were dirty.The seat pocket in front of me was broken.We finally pushed back at 09:30hrs and taxied to Rwy25 while the Safety demo was done.We were holding short for a SG Q400 to land.

Holding Short Rwy25

F/O Thakur came on line and apologized for the delay and told us we would be taking off in another 2mins after which it would take 50minutes to reach CJB.He also promised to come back with the update from CJB.
Captain Vyas made a very powerful and very long takeoff and we just lifted off at the end of the runway.Just a slight bank to the left and we were on course for CJB.The weather was very clear devoid of any clouds.The seatbelt sign was switched off at 09:47hrs.

The town of Kanchipuram as we climb out on a clear day

The crew started the BoB service.I decided to skip it and plugged on to my phone to listen to some songs.The F/O again came on the PA telling us that we would be landing into CJB at 10:33hrs and Weather at Coimbatore was good with cloudy skies and a temperature of 28*C and thanked us for flying with SG.

The Inflight Magazine-Spiceroute

The Temple town of Tiruvannamalai as seen from FL320

The western Ghats and the clouds start to appear as we commence initial descent

We slowly started descending and he landing announcement was made and one thing I noticed with the announcements was SG has got obsessed with the “With all our hearts”Slogan and slowly its becoming like the Aniwarya/Mahathvapurna Announcements of 6E Very Happy

The spoilers were in action to slow us down and we made a right turn and finally a sharp left turn to line up with rwy23 at CJB.Captain Vyas made a good landing at 10:30hrs but inspite of some hard braking and a burst of reverse thrust we couldn’t exit via the taxiway so we had turn around and head back to the terminal.I took a video of the landing.You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dtsq-U0qIQ4 We finally were at the gate at 10:33hrs.

Parked at CJB

I went ahead to have a word with the flight deck crew.Capt.Vyas had gone outside.I just spoke to F/O Thakur who was really nice and told me we were cruising at FL320 and wished me a pleasant stay at CJB.I saw Capt.Vyas at the end of the aerobridge and thanked him for a good flight.He reciprocated with a smile and a “thank you see you soon”.The baggage was already on the belt when I reached the arrivals.Headed straight out to find our Cab!That was one flight which I had a very contrasting Experience.

End Remarks:
While the In flight experience was really good,The delay,The aircraft and the ground staff at MAA Left a lot to be desired.The crew were very polite and smiling especially the lead FA and a female FA named Ekta who handled the ground staff issue very well.This did surely impress me because small things Like these differentiate them from others Smile

They didn’t have the typical LCC robotic Attitude.They went about their job efficiently and with a warm smile.Just as SG recovers from days of turmoil,It was very good to see the Inflight experience being so good.The aircraft was full.I counted hardly 2empty seats.The aircraft as I said was bad to say the least.The legroom was marginally better than other LCCs in India.The ground staff at MAA was indifferent and Inefficient but Hope its a one-off Incident that day.Overall If you ask me if I’d prefer them again,Yes would be the answer but definitely not the first choice.

Ratings:
Aircraft:2/5
Crew:5/5
Ground Experience:2/5
On time Performance:3/5
Overall:3/5

Return TR coming up soon!

Thanks for the patient Read!Sorry for the poor quality of pics.Some are from my phone and some from my camera.Comments and Suggestions welcome as always!

P.S:Thanks to Sumantra Sir for helping me with the DGCA photography rule documents and Jbalonso777 for the help in posting this TR!

Cheers!
Rakesh.

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

Thank you for a nice trip report, Rakesh!
I enjoyed this TR right from the planning part with the prices, other related trips, and finally, zeroing in on this one, to the description of the movements prior to boarding your flight (I have often got the left-most gate at MAA!), to the detailed description of the goings-on (the surly ground staff and the cheerful cabin crew doing a good job), and the description of the flight itself.
I also enjoyed your analysis of predicting the aircraft for the trip, and analysing rotations. I am sure you know why Coimbatore has good connections to Ahmedabad. I have written a bit about it in my first air trip to Coimbatore, a trip which happened almost exactly two years back.
56. Co-imbibing Coimbatore's Combination Culture: May'13
http://www.airlinersindia.s4.bizhat.com/airlinersindia-ftopic13511.html
Coimbatore is a nice city with an amalgamation of many peoples, within the overall cultured environment one associates with the state of Tamil Nadu.
We look forward to part 2 soon!
Cheers, Sumantra.

ameya · Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2015 1:19 pm Post subject:

Thanks Rakesh for the wonderful TR! How much was the difference between SG – 6E – 9W in terms of fares? 6E has some good connections on MAA-CJB.

Very nice pics and information on the flight ! How many opted for BoB for this short sector and what were the AMD-CJB loads if you know. This is one historic flight of SG which has been operating very well
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jbalonso777 · Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2015 11:14 pm Post subject:

Ah Rakesh - I was looking forward to this!

Good to see a TR with pictures from you! Very Happy

SpiceJet looks reasonable, albeit shaky on the ground level (no pun intended!)

I look forward to my SG flight soon. And your Q400 TR!

You really didn't have to, with all the mentions and all! Very Happy

Btw, with regard to VT-JBL: the only international routes she can possibly fly are BOM-CMB, DEL/BOM/CCU-DAC, BOM/DEL-KTM and (strangely) BOM-MCT. So I think she did DEL-PNQ-MAA. JBL (which is the 3000th B737BG!) is not a HGW bird. Smile

Regards
Jish
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rakesh959 · Member Joined: 28 Aug 2012 Posts: 58 Location: Chennai

rakesh959 · Member Joined: 28 Aug 2012 Posts: 58 Location: Chennai

rakesh959 · Member Joined: 28 Aug 2012 Posts: 58 Location: Chennai