Air India

My mother left on AI 43 MAA-DEL connecting AI 101 DEL-JFK on May 2 2014. Flight was slightly delayed from Chennai. She is 82 years of age and had a broken vertebra 6 months back and after my trip to SYD/MEL last Oct-Nov I decided that the transit is pretty good at Delhi and my mother could go unaccompanied in Business Class. The flight arrived 45 mins ahead of schedule at JFK and being a passenger in a wheelchair she was absolutely thrilled with the care the AI staff bestowed on her. The only issue I faced was getting a wheelchair at Chennai airport as the AI counter was closed and I was not allowed inside - but security staff were kind enough to offer a seat for my mother and advised me to get an AI staff and fetch a wheelchair. My mother informs me that the connection in Delhi (to AI 101) was very smooth and she was well taken care of. She was full of praise for the cabin staff. AI has definitely turned over a new leaf and there has been a tremendous improvement in their attitude as well as service - their hub at T3 Delhi is much better than what prevailed in Mumbai and the ground staff are wonderful at Delhi!

LHR-DEL-SYD. In both cases the plane was very lightly loaded in both business and economy cabins. Seats in B777 (LHR-DEL) and B787 (DEL-SYD) were lie flat and not too difficult to manoeuvre after a little experimentation. IFE: B777 has less choice for western tastes and the remote control was very fiddly in the end I gave up. B787 had touch screen which was much easier to use and more responsive. Service overall was very good except for one older female attendant on LHR-DEL who appeared to speak barely any English and could learn to crack a smile from time to time.

CDG-DEL-CDG. I flew on a dreamliner it was my first time with this airplane. Surprisingly the business class is simultaneously comfortable and neutral. There is no soul in it not an ounce of charm that you frequently find with other companies. However it is very comfortable to sleep on a flat seat.

My wife and I flew from Dubai to Goa and back. Check in Dubai was pleasant and the lounge offered average. On the flight to Goa there was no entertaining system available and very limited selection of beverages. Flight back from Goa via Mumbai to Dubai was however a complete nightmare. Check-in in Goa was very slow and there was no lounge facilities available. The flight it is self was OK but on arrival to Mumbai passengers from economy class rushed forward thus generated a chaotic that crew did not have the capabilities to manage. On arrival to Mumbai (3 hour stopover) we headed to the lounge offered but were not allowed to access as check in staff in Goa had not given us lounge access slips. After half an hour we were finally allowed to enter. On arrival to the gate we were informed that the aircraft had been dispatched from the gate and we would have to be re-routed to another flight. We now were asked to leave the departing area as it was necessary in regards of our rebooking and we had meet up with a duty manager. This process took 1.5 hours and finally we met up with the station manager. We did not have any other option than to buy a new ticket for the following day.

Out LHR to DEL on Boeing 777. Return COK to DEL (A321) and LHR (Boeing 777). All sectors on time with DEL to LHR arriving 30 mins early. Air India staff looked after us well. On return met at domestic terminal by ground staff and escorted to international terminal. Many aspects of the service were good but not consistently good to rival better carriers. Choice of English films/music very poor with virtually no new films or music available. Meals (we are vegetarian) variable but unimaginative and not at a standard acceptable in business class. Staff generally attentive and good but not on domestic sector. Both journeys from and to LHR only half full in business. Whilst the overall product is not the best it is still good value and the low cost.

Business class (AI 302) returning to Australia. I had read the poor reviews but the schedule was good it was non-stop the price was OK and I wanted to try out the new B787 Dreamliner. We were very pleasantly surprised. First the plane: it lives up to the hype. It was quiet and I can believe the pressurisation and humidity are closer to life on the ground. We slept well and felt good on arrival. The lie-flat seats were fabulous with cleverly designed spots to store your things. It was on time. Cabin service was fine if not notable. Ditto entertainment. One quibble: they served a large curry "supper" just before landing in Sydney early in the morning. Everyone else serves breakfast.

London-Delhi-Bangkok return in business class. Got a very good deal back in May which was only £100 more than my usual Etihad economy trip in economy for the dates. There were some good points to the trip but several bad points to mention. All flights on time except last leg back to Heathrow that was compensated though by my bag being first off. Lounge quality was varied which I'll review separately. LHR-Delhi on B777 - very good seat for sleeping (slept probably 7 hours) though privacy lacking. Good choice of drink selection but food for business class very poor in both presentation and quality. No amenity kits on board for overnight flight. Entertainment on demand but western choice limited with only 3 recent films. Delhi-BKK. Poor all around for a 4 hour flight except the seats were wide and drink choice good again (malt scotch whisky). As noted before chicken or veg should not be the default option for business class and the quality of both was poor even for airline food. No immigration forms on board and fast track vouchers only offered on landing after numerous requests from passengers. Entertainment system on the A321 from the 1990's - no on demand and a choice of 5 channels 1 English. Ended up watching an Indian cop movie. BKK-Delhi - more of the same but breakfast of better quality. Delhi - BKK - although late best of all the legs with attentive cabin crew calls answered on request for drinks a good quality meal this time. Still could see the cost cutting with the amenity kit in business class being a cheap pair of flight socks and eye mask. No explanation given either of 90 minute delay. Will not be returning even considering the cost paid.

AI 112 LHR-DEL. Check-in fast at a very crowded and pushy LHR Terminal 4 pre-Christmas. Plane left punctually. Crew polite but a little surly but put that down to just the 'Indian way'. Comfy big seats in Executive Class and 100% flat beds in 777-300. The cabin was quiet throughout the duration of the flight. Magazines only offered to first cabin? Crew could not work out my gluten free meal and kept having to replace my tray after serving. Cabin was too hot during shut-eye time and no waters handed out before sleeping. Amenities kit just socks and an eye mask however asked crew for toothbrush/paste which they supplied immediately and then left a pile in the toilets. IFE a bit of a joke…- terrible amateur looking interface which is a nightmare to use. Moving maps didn't work until the final half and hour of the flight…handy! This was a connecting flight via Delhi to Bangkok - see following review.

AI 332 DEL-BKK. AI lounge in DEL is fine but just don't expect too much non-Indian cuisine. Terrible wifi with a very confusing sign-up process. Showers working clean and enjoyed after connecting flight from LHR. Final call made to rush passengers on board only to be met with a massive queue in the various walkway bridges so not the best first impression. A321 business class seats were good and the way business class seats should be - real business class seats and not 'adapted economy' ones. Cabin crew definitely surly however once smiled at they immediately smile back. Drinks service was fine however only given a packet of French-fry style crisps seemed a bit amateur for executive class. My pre-ordered gluten-free meal left the crew somewhat perplexed and I was met with the response "veg or no veg" as an option. 'No veg' was nice enough however the chicken main contained only 3 small chunks of meat. The IFE was not on demand and the cabin was very hot and stuffy throughout most of the flight. We arrived in BKK early however there wasn't a single landing card to be found on the plane which quickly cancelled out any early arrival gains!

I was travelling on an executive class ticket on flight AI 047 from Kochi to Delhi on 9th Dec was disgusting. A very old A320 in all economy configuration. Cabin smelt of stale sweat and was incredibly hot. Of 3 toilets one was shut up with packing tape and looked like it had been for some time. The other 2 were filthy and stank of urine by the time we got to Delhi the floor of the front one had been covered in newspaper to soak up 'liquid'. At least on 3rd class Indian Railways you would not have had windows! My seat had a table located in the armrest it and its housing were filthy. The other armrest had a liftable cover and filled with food scraps and wrappers. Complaints to crew onboard and on the Delhi transfer desk were met with shrug and ignoring you.