Air India

DEL-IXE on Airbus 321. Pushed back ahead of time early arrival as well. Breakfast adequate. Good all round and would recommended.

11 June 2013 from RUH-BOM-DEL (business class). Flight from Riyadh - check-in counter chaotic no separate counter for business class airport lounge was decent. Boarding was chaotic nothing special for business class. I actually felt I was treated as a premium economy passenger. Welcome drinks were served on the ground extremely small glasses terrible presentation. I did not feel I was flying business class the presentation was casual. However at the domestic terminal I had to wait 3 hrs for my DEL flight the lounge smelt television not working no air conditioning and no magazines or newspapers. Flight from BOM-DEL business class was great food was excellent great seat and service level was very high. Return DEL-BOM was economy class food and entertainment was great. Lounge in BOM international airport had good snacks but limited variety. Washrooms dirty. BOM-RUH business class only a regular meal served just before landing in Riyadh. I would not recommend this airline.

Chicago-Delhi-Bangalore. Aircraft from ORD-DEL was a Boeing 777-300 majestic look from outside but once you get in the flight you get to see a few unpolished areas seats are ok not great. Decent leg room. Cabin crew don't smile much and have to be called a thousand times to attend your request. Choice of inflight entertainment was limited with a lot of ancient Hindi movies and English movies. Food was good. The ticket price was sky high because I booked it 3 days in advance but the service I got was below mediocre. Once you arrive in Delhi having to collect my checked in bags and to check in again is a complete hassle.

LHR-BOM-LHR. Check in at T3 was a little busy but it did not take too long to get airside. The lounge was OK although lacking a little atmosphere. Boarding was quite funny. When they announced that passengers with children plus first and business class passengers could start boarding about 300 people all got up and jammed the departure point! On board the crew were very efficient helpful and friendly. Very spacious seats although slightly uncomfortable when they are fully reclined. The quality of the food was excellent although the presentation could be improved a little. Although I did not pay for the ticket I was told it was well over half of the cost of travelling with BA and as such represents excellent value. Would definitely travel with Air India again.

Delhi to Singapore and Singapore to Chennai. I am an Air India loyalist but I mostly fly them within India wherein I find their service quite good. There is a marked difference while flying them International. They use an A319 on their DEL-SIN route which is generally packed to capacity. Luckily I got upgraded however their business class seat is very poor. The recline is as much as that of their economy class seat and most foot rests were broken. There were PTVs but nothing was playing not even a flight plan. There was a snack served at take off (midnight departure hence I refused) which was the end of any service for the rest of the flight. A cup of tea had to be asked for before arrival at Changi. SIN-MAA on a tired A330-200. Flight absolutely packed. Service was quick and efficient with dinner served however I was very surprised that their bar only had beer or whiskey not even wine. Over head TVs showing a Bollywood movie with subtitles but terrible picture quality like they were running a pirated movie. Fares are cheap and you do get what you pay for. I don't them to fly close by but I pay a premium and fly a gulf or SE Asian carrier for long haul.

AI 863 on IXC-DEL-BOM. Airbus 321 with decent leg space but poorly maintained. Two overhead bins had been taped shut one of our video screens did not work and the seat reclining mechanism did not work on some seats. Flight was on time but average food and standard non-smiling crew does not make it exactly a pleasant experience.

Return trip to Hyderabad India from London Heathrow. Overall I was extremely satisfied with Air India. They improved service a lot. May 17th 12.30pm from London Heathrow to Delhi and connecting to Hyderabad reaching 18th May 2013 at 9am. Flight was a bit old. Interiors were dull but the leg space was really good and better than many other airlines. Food was fantastic and the entertainment was excellent as well. Flight started on time and reached Delhi on time. Domestic from Delhi to Hyderabad was OK. Return trip on 24th May 2013 at 9.30 am from Hyderabad to Delhi and to LHR. Domestic was OK. Flight from Delhi to LHR was excellent. New Boeing 777. Food average and reached London 1 hour early.

AI 864 from BOM-IXC via DEL. A321 with decent leg space slightly lacking in maintenance (one panel in a toilet would not latch) personal video screens but a choice of only 5 channels standard breakfast fare. ground staff and cabin crew efficient but absolutely no smiles. lovely touchdown at DEL but shaky approach to IXC.

LHR-DEL-KOL and back. Staff were helpful and I did get a seat with extra legroom on one sector. I don't find this airline good. Toilets are not kept clean during the flight. There were no seat covers on any flight sector. Problems with website on smart phone many options simply don't work. Online check in was therefore not possible for me. My seat area also wasn't up to Western standards of cleanliness. There is no menu for food. 'Continental chicken Indian lamb or Indian vegetarian' isn't really enough info. Drinks selection is very limited. Only one beer choice only 4 spirits (no rum). Entertainment: Of the 10 buttons on my console 5 were ripped out and so using the console was tricky. TV selection doesn't exist at all if your language is English movie selection is very limited. Games are so badly produced they are not fun to play at all. The inflight entertainment system is about where it should have been 15-20 years ago.

Early morning departure from Delhi to Chennai. Aircraft was old A330-200. Interiors looked worn but were clean. A surprising part was that my seat and the one next to it had a safety instruction card for the Boeing Dreamliner! Wonder how that happened and who is responsible for ensuring that safety parameters are adhered to? Hot breakfast served in flight. Landed on time in Chennai. Good value for money.