AIR INDIA Passenger Reviews and Customer Trip Reports

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AIR INDIA review : 5 September 2008 : by Mike Causer

Customer Rating : 4/5

Economy LHR-JFK return in new B777, and on time. The 34 inch leg-room in economy was excellent news although achieved I believe by making the seat backs thinner! The individual IFE worked better than many other airlines I have travelled . The main meal was above average for economy - snack and breakfast were sub-standard though! Excellent value for money as I paid almost £200 less return ticket than more obvious transatlantic carriers.

AIR INDIA review : 16 August 2008 : by Nicole Barrot-Delfaud

Customer Rating : 2/5

When arriving at Newark airport, we discovered that our flight New York-Paris was cancelled without explanation (August 12th). Fortunately, they found two seats on a Continental flight for us , but we decided we'll never choose Air India again.

AIR INDIA review : 17 July 2008 : by Abhi Vijaykumar

Customer Rating : 3/5

Doha to Mangalore via Bahrain was the worst. Carpets soiled, seats dirty and the on time performance was poor. Flight was supposed to take off at 05:55am, took off at 08:00am. Snacks very bland. But the advantage of this flight is this is the only flight to IXE.

AIR INDIA review : 24 June 2008 : by Shivdeep Singh

Customer Rating : 3/5

DEL-NRT-DEL 747. Old plane on both the outbound and inbound flights. On the outbound flight I had requested a window seat from the ground staff but they put me in the middle row! IFE was abysmal - being a night flight no one really seem to care about it. The screen was shaky both on the outbound and the inbound flight. The flight attendants were polite but a bit bossy. On the inbound flight the service was a bit better and they were more obliging. The food was nice on both the flights and plentiful. They came around once or twice with a variety of hot and cold drinks as well. I would fly Air India again because they are the cheapest option on the Japan route from India.

AIR INDIA review : 10 June 2008 : by Donna Schminkey

Customer Rating : 3/5

Newark to Paris and back. EWR-CDG food was excellent, service excellent, restrooms no different than any other international flight. And the crew was very kind to our 2 year old who fell asleep easily in her approved FAA car seat and slept most of the flight. The return trip from Paris was a bit of a nightmare because the crew would not allow us to bring our carseat onboard. They acted like it was against airline policy. I feel lucky they didn't remove me from the flight because I was aghast, after it had worked so beautifully for us on the trip from Newark. My child did not do well with the freedom provided by a seatbelt, and she was much more bothersome to us and our fellow seatmates. Although the food, service and facilities were again satisfactory, the experience was marred by the car seat being taken at the door to the airplane. The crew acted as if I was a terrorist trying to get onboard with contraband.

AIR INDIA review : 7 June 2008 : by Tony Huang

Customer Rating : 3/5

EWR-CDG. Our flights were on time, though someone told us the previous day's outbound was cancelled. Outbound had IFE for each seat but poor movies and old maps, return had no individual IFEs. Service delivered without a smile, and instructions given by FAs were more like orders. A lot of corners cut on rules (seat belt sign turned off way too early in our ascent, overhead compartments still open as we taxied). Seatback trays fairly dirty, bathroom cleanliness hit and miss, but for a 500 discount, it will do.

AIR INDIA review : 31 May 2008 : by Lee Melbourn

Customer Rating : 4/5

LHR–ORD coach. Check-in was open nearly 4 hours ahead of the flight so no queues. Boarded on time and had a row to myself. The interior was very dated on the outbound but the service excellent. Flight back to London I asked for an exit seat and got one, once again the crew were really friendly and polite. Great service. 747 was old Malaysia Airlines fleet so modern and personal IFE.

AIR INDIA review : 23 April 2008 : by H Derksen

Customer Rating : 1/5

Delhi-Shanghai. Check-in okay and boarding on time. Service during the flight standard. Due to weather conditions plane could not land at Pudong Airport but landed at Nanjing Airport CN. From here all the trouble started. Waiting 6 hours in the cabin with only 1 glass off water offered. Don't speak about food! Finally announcement that all passengers should leave the plane. Then 2 hours waiting for luggage and another 2 hours transfer to hotel. At 05.00am arrived in hotel. Quickly after arrival at hotel with taxi to Wuxi trying to keep my scheduled meeting. Flight was okay, but cabin crew and airline not capable to deal with such circumstances. Decide never to fly with Air India again.

AIR INDIA review : 22 April 2008 : by A Naseemuddin

Customer Rating : 4/5

Return trip JFK-DEL. I chose it because I had heard Air India were operating the new 777 LR's on this sector and price was very reasonable. Check-in uneventful. The ground crew are more casual than business-like. Flight attendants were not overly attentive but overall service was OK. Food fair for the Indian palate. Spacious seats for the economy section. IFE Movie selection was fair.

Air India review - by B Silverberg

15 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

JFK-LHR coach class. The good: acceptable dinner, bulkhead seat with extra space to stretch out (ie, flight not oversold), efficient check-in and flight staff, reasonable ticket price. The bad: poorly- designed website and ticketing office (wouldn't sell me the ticket over the phone even though the website was down), very old equipment with poor IFE, poor breakfast.

Air India review - by Mikele Singh

11 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Air India overbook pretty much every flight. Flying back from India to Heathrow, we experienced cancellations and overbookings resulting in a journey that should have lasted 9 hrs taking 2days instead. The aircraft was dirty on the way from Birmingham to Amritsar and cabin crew did not meet the standard I am used to on British Airways. They do not even smile. The in-flight entertainment is good providing it works. When I queried the scart lead that was dangling from the seat in front after getting my leg caught on it, the cabin crew apologised but offered no resolution. I had no screen the entire flight. The first meal you are offered on the typical UK to India route and vice versa is not too bad, but be prepared for the second. It consisted of a slice of bread that was buttered with a slice of tomato and a slice of cucumber - thats it! The ground staff representing the airline don't get any better either. The manager at Amritsar refused to speak to any passengers regarding the overbooking and no order was introduced. The staff are not able to empathise as they do not understand the commitments we have in the UK. Most just shrugged their shoulders and exclaimed that we should welcome the extra day off. If I could offer a tip it would be not to fly with Air India. They seriously need to consider the service they offer good paying customers. We booked as they offered a direct flight from Birmingham to Amritsar. However, now having experienced Air India service I don't mind making a stop or flying to an airport further away from home.

Air India review - by A Iyer

9 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

DEL-KUL in economy. Most of the faults with this particular trip stem from the fact the Delhi airport is a god-awful example of an international airport. Flight scheduled for 0030. No sign of inbound aircraft until 0100, boarding commenced at 0145 and flight finally departed DEL at 0230. Not an overly significant delay in the grand scheme of things, but none the less irritating. Flight itself uneventful. Aircraft appeared to be leased from LOT Polish, could not read any of the safety info. Cabin crew polite and happy to indulge our request for multiple meals as both of us were famished. Not bad for a relatively short sector, would not trust the airline with any flight longer than this though, seemed woefully disorganised at time prior to boarding.

Air India review - by Paula Loguda

4 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Unfortunately we are in agreement with most of which has been previously stated here. We flew Business Class HKG to DEL, a 6 hour flight. Plane appeared old and fragile. Our seat had masking tape on its arm and wouldn't stay in the upright position - but no problem, because they don't do safety checks anyway! Entertainment was a central screen showing only bollywood and music was mostly Indian selections. Dinner offered oriental or indian choices and was adequate. The flight had been delayed for 4 hours, so a few drinks led to nap time and we survived. Awakened with PA system "Wake up, we're landing" - and we were! Don't recommend this airline.

Air India review - by Stephen Jones

2 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LHR-BOM-LHR Outbound delayed 17hrs due to technical faults, return flight canceled - alternative flight overbooked.

Air India review - by Pauline Bladon

2 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

I have just returned from JFK using Air India - never again. Our flight out on 15 March was awful. It took us 3 hours to check in - once on the plane, the seat my brother in law was given had a disgusting brown stuff on the seat and up the back. We pointed it out to the air hostess who offered to put a tissue on it! This we refused and he eventually got another seat away from the rest of us. The inflight entertainment was so bad the pictures kept jumping and if you where not quick enough to get head phones it was just bad luck. The toilets on board where dreadful. The food was ok if you like curry - as I do not the options was take it or leave it. Our return yesterday was a little better, the check in was quick. The plane was a more modern one with your own TV screen, but only a few in the area we sat in worked - and again if you wanted head phones it was first come get them. The air hostess we had on the way back was the worst I have ever had the misfortune to meet - rude and aggressive and when she dropped water over me she found it quite amusing.

Air India review - by D Glynn

1 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LHR-JFK-LHR. Both outbound and inbound planes were tired, scruffy, and very dirty. Bits of food were on the floor. The seatback pockets were full of crumbs and bits of food. On each trip one of the overhead reading lights didn't work. One of the seats would not recline. Another had a broken armrest (which we got them to fix before we took off). The headphones were not sealed in a bag, and many were broken. The backseat table tops were filthy. The toilets were dirty. The inflight entertainment was ancient - a projector showing a movie (no choice) on a screen at the front of each cabin section. The onscreen flight info (which was displayed when the film finished) gave the wrong destination local time (one hour out on each trip). All small problems on their own, but put together makes you wonder if the safety of these flights is of a similar poor standard. On the plus side, the cabin crew were friendly and courteous, but you can be sure we won't fly Air India again.

Air India review - by Eric Mueller

15 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LHR-JFK return - pleasantly surprised. Departure and arrival as scheduled. The aircraft was an old 747-200 but clean, good condition with plenty of leg room. The food and the service was very good and staff very friendly and attentive. My criticism would be in-flight entertainment which was very poor and could be improved upon. For the money I paid for this flight from London to New York (£250.00) I got real value for money, you would have to pay a lot more if were to travel with most other carriers.

Air India review - by M Sarhaya

9 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Delhi-LAX. Due to Technical problem passengers has to stay in Frankfurt for two days. No contact number of Air India was available at the Hotel. Nobody knew when representative from the arline will come.

Air India review - by H Bhatt

7 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Heathrow-Ahmedabad return. Flight was in poor state, not cleaned at all. Bathroom flush was not working, another bathroom overflowed. planes outdated and tatty with minimal leg room in economy. Staff member not willing to help or not allowed to use other toilets in front! In flight service was poor. Return flight canceled hence sent to Bombay - reached London 26 hours late! No responsible person to answer, not a word of apology, no communication during whole saga. I don't say that such incidences do not happen for other airlines, but the way the issues were handled by Air India were atrocious. As an Indian I am ashamed and let down by Air India.

Air India review - by T Shaw

26 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

JFK - Heathrow - Delhi return Outbound on time and Business class Seats are large, but do not fully recline - so you spend time tossing and turning and try not to slide off. Quick 1 hour turn in Heathrow. Flight to Delhi re-routed (after akeoff ) to Mumbai, which has the worst Lounge I've ever seen. Eventually transferred to Delhi, but not before they lost all our luggage. Baggage claim in Delhi is a nightmare rum by clerks paid to deny everything, and by the number of times they can pass people from one clerk to another. Return flight was delayed 8 hours before boarding and then another 6 hours after boarding. On arrival at JFK were given $ 500 coupons for future Air India flights - never to be used!!

Air India review - by S Jeyakumar

21 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

MAA-CMB return. For this 1 hour sector I did not expect a meal from a budget carrier, but we were given light snack. Clean aircraft, almost full as one would expect, prompt on time departure / arrival. Will fly again, when necessary.

Air India review - by Ron McGeary

21 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

It is a national disgrace - old aircraft, tatty interiors, dreadful IFE (unless you like Bollywood), earphones socket that don't work, and only the very newest of its fleet has screens in the back of the seat. The cabin crew are indifferent, and I have never come across an airline which allows passengers to blatantly break the rules regarding the position of seat trays/seats during take off/landing, or the use of mobile phones inflight! I've never taken off on time and, like some of the other commentators here, have been delayed over 24 hours in the past. The ground crew at Mumbai airport are useless when delays occur and you are never given the correct information, if you get any at all!

Air India review - by J Willis

15 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LHR-Mumbai-LHR in economy - outward leg left an hour late but no real drama, planes are outdated and tatty with minimal leg room in economy. IFE very poor quality bollywood. Return leg a disaster flight delayed 24hrs - my advice stay well clear of this airline