Air India - Newark to Mumbai - quick review..

The last post was when I travelled from mumbai to newark - then the kids had taken so much of my attention I had barely looked around. This times thanks to their cooperation I had a chance to experience 'Air India'. Here'a a quick review if you are planning to use it for your next travel.

The good:
1. The staff is extremely helpful and kid friendly. By the time we landed at Mumbai the air hostess knew kapil and tanisha by name and was chatting with them - a personal touch very different from my Continental experience last time.
2. They have a sky buffet in the centre of the aircraft - not a big spread but sandwiches, juices and tea, coffee laid out as a small buffet. This helps when you have kids that sleep and eat at odd hours (rather when they bring food at odd hours).
3. In flight entertainment was pretty good with the latest bollywood and hollywood movies and the usual F.R.I.E.N.D.s, How I met your mother etc.


The bad:
1. The dinner from newark to mumbai was below average. maybe other way round would be better.
2. Legroom was average but the seats were pretty hard with minimal cushioning so the 15 hr journey was a little uncomfortable.
3. The in flight entertainment for kids was very poor. Just 2 or 3 TV episodes and that too Indian tv shows. Wish they had some Nick Jr. shows too - especially considering we were flying out of the USA. I would recommend carrying your own entertainment.

The ugly:
1. The people in the flight! Made me feel I was in India the moment I boarded. There was no sense of consideration for the other - the 'sab chalta hain" attitude. Driving me especially crazy was an old uncle who at 11:30 pm (lights had been dimmed and it was supposed to be sleep time), minutes after my kids had finally slept, started playing "Aadha hain chandrama, raat aadhi.." on his laptop. I had to finally walk up to him and request him to put on his headphones, which he then hurridly did. So bothers me why he could not do so from the beginning.

Bon voyage..