Welcome to my trip report on Air India Express!
Photo: Sriram Hariharan
My ride: VT-BXU
Flying with Air India Express has been my mind for a long time and I wanted to fly on both Air India Express and AIX Connect (Formerly known as Air Asia India) aircraft and I found a chance to do so. The original route was Bengaluru to Hyderabad via Goa with the first flight being operated by I5 (AIX Connect) and the second flight was operated by IX (Original Air India Express), however it was not meant to be as the first flight, BLR-GOA was cancelled and I had to find another way. The cancellation took place on the day itself and thanks to Flighty app for notifiying me. If it wasn't because of the app, I might have missed the flight and may not be able to get to my Hyderabad on that day as flights were mostly full that day. Air India Express didn't notify me on the flight cancellation and I had to do a flight change immediately otherwise I would get stranded. With this flight change, I missed a chance to visiting Goa airport and also to try out AIX Connect's aircraft but it doesn't matter anyway since the flight was cancelled. I tried reaching out to the airline's agent on X (Twitter) but they were not able to help and insisted that my flight was not cancelled. Apparently flight I51983 was not cancelled but IX1983 (flying on the same exact route) was still flying (different timing). I was confused myself, along with the agent and it took me a while to understand what was going on. Anyway, I could have rebooked myself on another I5 flight to GOA but it was a mad rush to the airport and I didn't want to risk it so I rebooked myself on the direct flight (IX972) flight to Hyderabad. However, my seat assignment was gone and for this updated flight, I was allocated a middle seat. I tried to change it but had to pay for a new seat even though it was check in time and the other unfortunate thing is there was no window seat so its either the middle seat or the emergency row aisle seat. I decided to go earlier to the airport to sort this out.
Quite a bit of drama right? I was glad I took action before the worst happened. I thought my flight was cancelled as mentioned earlier, but it turned out, it was not. Then why did the mobile app mentioned that my flight I51983 was cancelled? Strange right? Read on to find out.
My original flight to Goa (Circled)
Booking with the airline
This was my original booking, I paid for the Vista Flex which allow me to change my flight for free and a free seat assignment for the standard seat.
There are 3 different types of tiers for economy class passengers. I recommend paying more for the Flex to avoid issues.
This was the direct flight to Hyderabad which I considered before selecting the stop-over flight. I didn't expect to end up flying on this direct flight. At that time, many seats were vacant.
I decided to try the popular chicken sandwich for my in-flight snack.
This was the flights I picked and only the 737 MAX 8 offers the business class product on these flights while for AIX's A320ceo aircraft, it was a full economy class configuration.
I tried to register an account with this airline but wasn't able to do with my local number.
This is my original itinerary.
Booking with the airline was a smooth affair.
I picked 6A for my flight to Goa.
My replacement flight
Luckily for me, my meal selection was still available after the flight change.
I could have swop for the I51453 flight but the option was not available.
That goes my chance of flying on AIX Connect's A320 aircraft.
About Bengaluru Airport
Kempegowda International Airport is an international airport based in Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, India. This airport is operated by Bengaluru International Airport Limited and was opened in May 2008. There are 2 passenger terminals at this airport with the 2nd terminal opened not too long ago in December 2022. All international flights were moved to this new terminal in September 2023 and apart from the foreign carriers operating in this terminal, Air India, Air India Express, AIX Connect, Star Air and Vistara are domestic carriers operating from this terminal as well. While for Akasa Air, Alliance Air, Indigo and Spicejet, they operate from terminal 1.
In addition, this airport also operates 2 runways 09L/27R and 09R/27L and operate 3 cargo terminals with a cargo village.
This is how the airport looks like on a map (Photo: Skyscapercity.com)
About Air India Express
Air India Express started operation in April 2005 as an answer to Air India, the parent airline, to compete against the low-cost carriers within the region. This low-cost carrier started with a fleet of Boeing 737-800 and have gone from strength to strength in expanding and operating point-to-point flights with mulitple hubs in India. In 2021, Air India, along with Air India Express were sold to Talace Private Limited which later handed them over to the Tata Group. This company intends to consolidate 4 airlines into 2 airlines with Vistara merging with Air India to be rebranded as Air India and Air Asia India (rebranded to AIX Connect) and Air India Express were to merge, with the AIX Connect's aircraft and crew were transferred to Air India Express. So with all the rebranding, Air India Express will operate around 170 aircraft in total, with a combination of Airbus A320ceo and neo and Boeing 737-800 and MAX 8. The A320ceo and Boeing 737-800 will eventually be replaced by the new generation aircraft.
This is Air India Express' old logo
Air India Express's old livery on this Boeing 737-800 with one of the many interesting different tail liveries. (Photo: Szabo Dani)
Air Asia India was renamed to AIX Connect after the shares of the airline was acquired by Tata Sons. This was done just before the merger with Air India Express. (Photo: OliverG)
The reason why AirAsia (Parent company) decided to exit India is because the company decided to focus on Asean market.
This is AIX Connect's Airbus A320neo now operating for Air India Express. This aircraft will eventually be repainted from this livery (Photo: Konstantin von Wedelstadet)
To the refreshed livery of Air India Express. (Photo: Aneesh Bapaye)
On the day of departure
I was glad to check out from this disappointing hotel as the hotel lock wasn't working properly and the shower wasn't working so I took my shower at my next accommodation in Hyderabad. I wanted to get my room changed but because I didn't want to miss the Euro 2024 cup final and the ground staff wasn't the friendliest, I decided to save the trouble.
The surrounding area at my hotel
There were a few eateries nearby.
Thsi time, I decided to take a break from Indian breakfast and tried out the Macdonald's breakfast.
This meal consists of a milkshake, a packet of fries, McVeggie burger and a brownie. The food quality was ok, nothing to shout about.
After checking out, I took the ride to the airport which took about 10 minutes.
Welcome to Bengaluru Airport Terminal 2!
This has to be one of the nicest terminals in my list of airports visited.
This terminal handles both international and domestic flights. For domestic flights, Air India, Air India Express, Vistara and Star Air operate from this terminal.
The arrival drop off point
It is quite pretty from the outside, wait till you see the inside.
The waiting time to enter the terminal. Just like any other Indian airports, you need to show your passport/IC and boarding pass to the security guard before he/she allows you to enter.
That building is terminal 1(Photo below). Shuttle bus is available at a designated stop.
This is the departure hall (Landside)
The interior of the terminal blows me away, it is certainly spectacular.
As my check-in desk is located at the end of the terminal, I managed to take a few more photos of the land side.
The interior is based on forest belt's natural aesthetic and verdure. The hanging plants and skylights are to give a sense of warmth and comfort to every traveller that uses this airport.
There are 2 primary goals for the creation of this terminal and they are to achieve sustainability and operate the airport with efficiency. The roof of this terminal has to be one of the lightest in the world as they are made entirely out of domestically produced materials such as bamboo.
Here we are, this is Air India Express's check-in desks.
These are the airlines that allow you to use the self check-in kiosk.
As I wanted to collect the proper boarding pass, I went up to the gate agent instead.
I explained to the agent about my issue, according to him, my original flight was not cancelled but it was delayed and that was different information from the app. Anyway, even if I had proceed on with my original flight, I might not have been able to make it for the connecting flight, so perhaps it's a good thing I rebooked. Oh well! Anyway he was nice enough for me to reassign me to the emergency aisle seat and thankfully I didn't have to pay for it. With that, I have now flown on the front, rear and emergency row seats on the 737 MAX 8.
Here is the lovely boarding pass with the background of the terminal.
I am certainly a big fan of this beautiful terminal.
What I really like about the terminal is the amount of natural light in this terminal with lots of greenery.
I walked around a bit to check out the other parts of the land side (departure hall).
A little bit of Christmas feeling, do you agree? I can imagine those trees hanging are decorated with christmas ornaments.
After completeing the security screening, I was at the airside.
Waterfall
I can imagine how bright this place is on a clear sunny day.
A lot of shops awaits as you need to pass through them to make your way to the gate.
Tim Hortons seems to be everywhere, is this brand that good? What do you think?
There is an 080 lounge at the level 4, you can check out more information of it over here.
I decided to explore the terminal instead and skip the lounge.
There are resting areas over here.
This is like a shopping paradise.
Plenty of eateries to choose from.
If you decide to hang around, do not forget about your flight.
If shopping or eating is not what you want to do, you can head over to the gate area to rest.
Not much greenary on this side of the terminal but it is spacious and great for those who wish to burn some calories.
What do you think of the interior?
This is Air India's Airbus A350-900 VT-JRI. I had seen this aircraft a few times during this trip.
Vistara's Airbus A320neo was about to push back.
Air India and Indigo's Airbus A320neo
Another view of the beautiful Air India's A350
This is the far end of the terminal. Complimentary Wifi is available at this airport but like every other Indian airports, you need your mobile number to receive the code in order to log in.
It was a cloudy weather that day.
I went back to cover the other part of the terminal.
You are certainly spoilt for choices at the airside. It is worth coming in early to check them out before departure.
Checking my flight status, my flight was departing on time.
As my aircraft was parked at a remote parking lot, I headed to my flight's assigned gate at the ground level.
Every bits of detail of the terminal is well taken care of by the designer of this beautiful airport.
You can take a short walk outside of the terminal for a puff or get away from the cold. However at this time, it was raining so I didn't go far.
This is the ground floor for the bus-gate departure.
It is still nice to hang around while waiting for departure.
Charging ports are available at some rows of seat.
This is formerly an AIX Connect's A320 aircraft which has it's branding removed and now operating under Air India Express which Tata group has merged the operation of both Air India Express and Air Asia India.
Fortunately for the passengers on this A320 aircraft, they could board or disembark the aircraft through the aerobridge in this dreadful weather.
This was where my assigned gate is.
This is one airport I would be happy to return.
The outside view of the terminal while on board the airport bus.
This is Air India's A350, VT-JRE being prepared for departure.
The view of the airport's apron, a familiar sight for pilots when they taxi in to park the aircraft at the designated gate.
Another view of VT-JRE
Away from the airport terminal we go.
This is our aircraft, VT-BXU.
Besides our aircraft is Vistara's Airbus A320neo.
This 5-years old aircraft would take us to Hyderabad.
I am certainly a big fan of this livery.
This cockpit nose is inherited from the Boeing 707, a first generation aircraft.
My ride: VT-BXU
Welcome on board, flight IX972!
Boeing 737 MAX 8
Shandong Airlines (Not Taken Up) aircraft
Configuration: C8 Y168
Engines: 2 X CFM Leap 1B
Delivered in May 2024
7625th Boeing 737 built
Built in Renton (RNT)
My Flight Route: BLR-HYD
Miles: 283
My seat: 14D (Emergency row) - (Seatmap.com)
Date of departure: 15th July 2024
Airline: Air India Express
Original routing: BLR-GOA-HYD
Revised routing: BLR-HYD
Flight number: IX972
Aircraft type: Boeing 737 MAX 8
Registration: VT-BXU
Seat: 14D
Airport Terminal: 2
Gate: D23 (Bus Gate)
Load: 95% (Y Class)
Flight Time: 1 hour
Current Flight Time: 52 minutes
Departure Schedule: 1440
Boarding: 1359
Pushed back: 1443
Take Off: 1503
Arrival Schedule: 1535
Current Arrival: 1551
Departure Runway: 27R
Departure Weather: Light Drizzle
Arrival Runway: 27L
Arrival Weather: Cloudy
My flight experience
We boarded the bus by zone, at least for this flight, boarding by the zone rule was enforced so before I know it, I was on the bus. As it was raining quite a bit, I was expecting to be wet when boarding the aircraft. However, it didn't turn out that bad when the bus drove as close to the airstairs as possible.
Once on board, I was welcomed by the crew as I made my way to the seat. The red and blue seats of the 2 different classes had definitely caught my eye. The cabin you see from the photos below is quite new and nice. I appreciate the spacious legroom space of the emergency row, it was at a generous 39 inch! Even the standard seat pitch was good. Anyway, once everyone was on board, we were on our way not long after, just 3 minutes past our departure time. We took off in this crappy weather but there wasn't much turbulence through out the flight. During the take off, I noticed someone was using his laptop at the emergency row across me and that is a big no for safety reasons, the cabin crew must have missed it during the pre-departure check.
Checking what is available on board, in-flight streaming and wifi were not available but at least USB-A charging ports can be used during the flight. About the Economy class product, I find the seats to be comfortable. These seats are designed by Recaro and is one of the most popular brands among both low-cost and full-cost carriers. For entertainment, one has to bring his/her own device to access the online streaming if it is available during the flight. This helps to save weight and cost for the airline without the IFE screen you normally see on full cost or hybrid carriers.
For the in-flight service, it was good, the crew came around to distribute the pre-ordered meals and then went on to do the meal/beverage in-flight service. As this flight was a short one, the crew had to rush to get everything done. I thought they did a good job with the limited amount of flight time to handle a full load of passengers. As I was given my meal quite late during the flight, I had to rush to finish off my sandwich as our aircraft had already started our descent when I received my snack.
Overall it was a nice and pleasant flight. I wonder how the older Boeing 737-800's cabin is like compare to this product on the newer aircraft. I might give it a try when the chance comes.
About the Business Class product
This aircraft is configured with 8 Biz Class seats in a 2-2 seating configuration in the front cabin of the aircraft. These seats come with a seat width of 21 inches, 38 inches of legroom space and can recline up to 6 degrees. Each passenger can charge his/her devices with a USB-A port available.
Photos of the Business Class cabin
(Do note that these seats could be different from the 737-8 aircraft you are flying on)
I was surprised with the choice of bright red for the business class seats. After checking the history of this aircraft, it was supposed to be delivered to Shandong Airlines, and the Chinese airline didn't take delivery of this aircraft so Boeing offered this aircraft along with other NTU (Not Taken Up) aircraft to Air India Express and the airline probably decided to retain the original airline's seats with some minor adjustments.
You can see the difference between the economy and business class seats.
Not a fan of the colour but they do look comfortable and certainly better than being stuck in the cattle class especially if the flight is full.
The red seat with the purple carpet look a bit odd in my opinion.
Economy Class cabin
This cabin consists of 168 Economy Class seats in a 3-3 configuration with 32 inches for the standard seat and for the emergency row seats, it is 39 inches. As for the seat width, it is 17 inches wide for all and all the seats except the last row can recline up to 3 inches. Each row of seats comes with 2 USB-A ports so one of the ports might need to share with another person if needed.
The mood lighting and the colour of the seats are quite matching.
This would have been my preferred window seat if I had a choice. (Below)
The Boeing Sky Interior is certainly a highlight on the 737NG /MAX aircraft.
Fortunately for me, my seat mates had not arrive which allowed me to take a a few more photos of these seats.
This is row 14 (D,E,F)
There are 2 rows of emergency seats on this 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
An overview of the Economy Class cabin
The seats of the emergency row on the left side (A,B,C).
Notice the spacious legroom space in these 2 rows?
The window on the emergency window is different from the standard window as these windows can be closed by sliding up. They are required to be opened during the take-off and landing.
The view from my row, facing the back of the aircraft.
This is the standard row just behind mine.
View from my seat
At this point, we were waiting for departure.
I went to a window seat after the flight to take a few more photos of the cabin and the window view.
What do you think of this cabin product?
More photos of my seat
Fortunately I wasn't assigned the middle seat.
What is supposed to be the IFE screen in front of you is a literature holder for this seat.
Some instructions to help the passengers sitting at the emergency row what to do during an emergency.
An USB-A port
Seat pocket for you to place your small items in it.
The emergency window, this was photographed during take off.
Foldable tray table is big enough for you to place your standard size laptop to do some work.
The space was adequate for me.
What's provided for each passenger?
In-flight menu
A safety card
A disposal bag
The in-flight magazine provides some useful information, for this case, it shows the destination this airline flies to.
The types of airfare and seats
AirFlix was not available on my flight, so I can't comment on this.
In-flight meal/beverage
The airline didn't forget my pre-order snack, so that's great.
This is the Chicken Junglee Sandwich.
It was tasty!
The wing of the 737 MAX 8.
I managed to take some photos while my seat mates were sleeping. Bye Bye Bengaluru!
We flew through some clouds but fortunately it wasn't turbulent.
At this point, we started our descent into Hyderabad.
Before leaving the aircraft, I went to this seat and took a photo of this (wing and engine shot). Beautiful isn't it?
Just like any other airports visited so far, it was cloudy.
My flight summary
Welcome to Hyderabad Airport!
With that, my trip came to an end after a short 50 minutes flight.
Thanks for the ride, VT-BXU!
The interior of the airport isn't as nice as Bengaluru.
After 10 minutes of walking, we reached the baggage carousel.
It didn't take long for my luggage to come out and soon I was on my way out to catch the uber to my accommodation.
There are shops along the way while walking out.
This is where you can take a taxi.
There is a transit hotel located just outside the terminal.
I follow the sign leading to where I supposed to go. (Uber stand)
This is the Aero plaza at Hyderabad Airport.
My ratings
Airline Mobile App/Website (User-friendliness): 1/5 (Conflicting information about my outbound flight)
Airport Experience (Bengaluru Terminal 2): 5/5
In-Flight Service: 3/5
In-Flight Entertainment: 0/5
Seat Comfort: 5/5 (Legroom space at the emergency row was my consolation)
Cabin Ambiance: 5/5
Seat Condition: 5/5
Punctuality: 2/5
In-Flight Snack: 4/5
Cabin Cleanliness: 5/5
Overall Rating: 35/50
Percentage: 70%
Conclusion
Despite the disappointment of missing out of flying from Bengaluru to Goa, my flight experience with Air India Express was quite good as the seats were comfortable, great legroom space for the emergency row and a good set of crew on this flight. I hope the airline can work on improving the communciation with the passenger whether there is a change of schedule due to cancellation or delay. Strangely I have to find out from the ground staff that my orginal flight to Goa was not cancelled but delayed while the mobile app mentioned otherwise, so this kind of issue can cause confusion for the travellers and upset some of them if they were not able to travel to the destination that day. Unfortunately, I won't have the chance to fly with AIX Connect's aircraft under the I5 flight code as it would be retired in October and all flights would be under the flight code of IX. What is more important for me is I managed to arrive in Hyderabad early and got to spend more time at the city so in the end, thing didn't turn out too bad.
Will I fly on this airline again? Yes, the in-flight product is quite comfortable and perhaps I like to try the airline's A320neo and Boeing 737-800 next time. This is one of the few low cost carriers to operate both the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX fleet, making it one of the more interesting ones out there.
Thanks for reading!
For my previous trip report (Akasa Air B737-8 BOM-BLR), click here.
For my next trip report (Indigo A321neo HYD-MAA), click here
Have a good one!
Charles
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