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Coming Back Home: AI, D7, and AK from DED-DEL-KUL-SIN

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  • Coming Back Home: AI, D7, and AK from DED-DEL-KUL-SIN

    (Part 1 of 10)

    Background: This is a continuation of my previous trip report which detailed the departure leg. With the celebrations over, it was time to head back home.

    Note: As was with the departure leg, some of the photos are taken on my Pixel XL as I wanted to see how well it did at shooting an overnight TR. These photos are in a 3:2 aspect ratio, rather than the standard 4:3.

    Flight Details

    Flight Number: 9I/LLR 610 (booked as AI/AIC 9610)
    Departure Airport: Jolly Grant, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (DED, VIDN)
    Scheduled Time of Departure: 1915
    Arrival Airport: Indira Gandhi International, Delhi (DEL, VIDP)
    Schedule Time of Arrival: 2020
    Cabin Class: Y




    Having left the house early due to reports of heavy traffic along the way adding up to 30 min to the traveling time, I arrived at the airport at a really early (for domestic standards) 6 PM.





    As I remarked in my previous TR, the Dehradun airport is really nice, and the best part is that it is very clean. It's a small airport, with just five check-in counters, and only one boarding gate (from where you are bussed to the tarmac), but there are all the amenities one would require.



    With the flight departing over an hour later, there was not much for me to do... right? Nope! It was (and still is, for now) IPL season, and being a cricket fan, I was content to sit down and watch Royal Challengers Bangalore fumble to a low total against Kolkata Knight Riders.



    When the innings break came, I tore myself away from the screen and went over to the waiting area past the security check. There, I saw VT-JCQ, an ATR 72-500 similar to the one that had ferried me here to Dehradun.



    Thankfully, there was still a TV here, so I continued watching KKR's opening batsmen destroy RCB's bowling as night fell.

    The aircraft was very late, though, arriving only at 1925, when we were supposed to have left 10 min ago. Admittedly, I was getting slightly worried for my next connection, given that there was only a 3 hour gap going by scheduled timings, and I'd have to exit and re-enter the airport, going through the check-in and immigration lines once again.

    Soon, we were on the bus, where I got my first look at the plane.

  • #2
    (Part 2 of 10)

    Aircraft Information

    Registration: VT-AIX
    Aircraft: ATR 72-600
    Engines: 2x PW100/150
    Config: Y70
    Delivered: 18 April 2016




    This was VT-AIX, the larger sister of the ATR 72-500 that had brought me here. It was practically a brand new aircraft at just 1.8 years of age, but I didn't have much hopes for it given how many cycles it flies in a single day.





    As we disembarked from the bus and began queueing for boarding, though, I realised that the plane was really really shiny, and the lights glinted off its fuselage beautifully. Furthermore, because it was blue hour, the contrast with the brilliant white of the fuselage and the sky was especially beautiful.



    The terminal building was looking great at night as well, and you could see the rest of the passengers on this flight waiting for the bus as it came back around again.





    New as it was, this aircraft's livery is actually outdated, for in March of this year, Air India decided to revert the name of Air India Regional to that of Alliance Air once more. The crew and all official booking documents had already updated to do so.



    The tail logo used, too, would be the old Air India centaur. That would be nice to see once more.

    Comment


    • #3
      (Part 3 of 10)



      As I got closer to the door, I took what is probably my favourite photo from the night, seen above.





      Soon I was aboard and got to my seat, and had a look outside. Here, the DSLR did better, minimising the reflections more than what the Pixel achieved.





      As I looked around the cabin, my jaw dropped. This wasn't the same type of dilapidated interior that the Jet Airways ATR featured, but a superbly well maintained, good looking, and well featured one. The seats were a lovely shade of maroon, and were very comfortable despite being thin. The recline was activated by a pull tab at the front of the handrest.





      Speaking of recline, the amount of it on offer was hugely impressive too. Legroom was also in the region of a few acres, being more than even what I've seen on every A320 I have been on (and I've been on a lot of them). I could honestly see myself on this aircraft for 5 hours with no issues.

      Comment


      • #4
        (Part 4 of 10)





        The cabin looks really nice from the inside too, and it was about 90% full tonight. I liked the blue ambient lighting on offer as well. Free newspapers were inserted in the seatback magazine compartments, alongside the safety card and an inflight magazine.



        We finally made our move at 1946, a good half an hour after our STA. Given how small the airport was, there was no need to pushback as the parking bay just transitions into the taxiway.



        Lining up on the runway, I took one last look at the terminal as we held position before starting our takeoff run. We rotated smoothly, with little of the severe rudder input I had felt on my Jet Airways ATR flights.





        In a while, we were served a small snack box. Inside was a sandwich, a mango juice box, chili sauce, and some tissues. The sandwich was pretty good, better than the Jet Airways offering, and didn't need the sauce.



        Most people were busy reading during the flight, and it seemed I was one of the lucky few to escape a seatmate.

        Annoyingly, the panels above my seat were rattling quite hard during the flight. A smack reduced their intensity, but the flapping sound was still present. That was, to be honest, the only negative about the aircraft and cabin.

        Comment


        • #5
          (Part 5 of 10)



          Within just 40 minutes, we were banking over New Delhi's vibrant lights. At night, the city does look quite pretty.

          Our landing was quite uneventful, but the runway we used was very busy and saw a Jet Airways B738 depart right after we vacated the runway, with another aircraft on approach too.



          Thankfully, with the landing about half an hour past schedule, the taxi was quite short, which gave me hope that I wouldn't be too delayed for my next sector.



          As we pulled into the stand, I noticed something odd about the A320 parked next to us, before realising -- hey, that's an A320 NEO!



          With the bus taking us to the arrival hall, I took one last photo of VT-EXF, the A320-251N(WL) with its massive new CFM LEAP engines.

          That marked the end of my domestic leg, and it was now time to run outside the airport, and back into the departure side as fast as I could to secure a good seat (and obviously, to not miss my flight).

          Flight Details

          Flight Number: D7/XAX 183
          Departure Airport: Indira Gandhi International, Delhi (DEL, VIDP)
          Scheduled Time of Departure: 2310
          Arrival Airport: Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia (KUL, WMKK)
          Schedule Time of Arrival: 0705
          Cabin Class: Y


          As I rushed back into the departure end of the terminal, I was greeted with a sight that dismayed me. There was already a long queue for check-in, and with approximately five international flights operating from the other nearby check-in rows (KL, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, San Francisco) it meant that the immigration line was even longer.

          I had taken the 45 minute free WiFi package at the start of the check-in line, but it ran out before I was even halfway through the immigration line. With some impatient staring at the clock, I eventually made my way through the throng and turned towards the gates. At the juncture, I checked my gate number again.

          Gate 12. Near enough, given that the numbers are ascending from 17 onwards on my left, right? This meant just 5 gates (16, 15, 14...) until I hit the one for my flight, right? Nope. Apparently IGIA has a really weird gate numbering system that irked me greatly on the night that is as follows:

          ... 21 20 19 18 17 [entrance] 1 2 3 4 ... 14

          What even..? I have no clue why they would number their gates this way, but it meant a really long walk to the gate. Given that it was already 2225, it meant that boarding should have been underway, and I wanted to be seated as soon as I could. However, my rush was not entirely necessary as I arrived to find that the flight had been delayed for 15 minutes. The rush did mean that I would be the first in the queue, though, and thus first to board.

          Sure enough, after 10 minutes of waiting, the boarding commenced and I proceeded to quickly snap a shot of the cabin before it started filling up. Unfortunately, the interior glass was fogged up so I couldn't take a picture of the exterior of the aircraft before boarding.

          Aircraft Information

          Registration: 9M-XXU
          Aircraft: Airbus A330-343
          Engines: 2x RR Trent 772B-60
          Config: C12 Y365
          Delivered: 24 November 2014
          Aircraft Name: Rhythmic Xperience




          I really liked the decor switch from the previous all-black interior, as this provided a much needed dash of brightness to the cabin to make it feel more homely. The X-Men advertisement also tipped me off as to the aircraft's identity as a possible special jet, but I didn't know what it actually was. The 3-3-3 arrangement is also standard for LCC operated A330s, but the 2-4-2 is preferred by full service carriers.



          Everything inside was well maintained, partly due to the fact that the aircraft hadn't experienced too many cycles in its life just yet at the age of 3 and a half. The seats were quite plush and I loved the fact that each seat had a headrest. A+ from my end for an LCC seat!



          Legroom was great as well, and I could stretch my legs below the seat in front with no issues even if it was reclined. I did miss a footrest, but then you can't get everything with an LCC.
          Last edited by shikhargpt; 26 May 2017, 09:24 AM.

          Comment


          • #6
            (Part 6 of 10)



            I then turned my attention outside to notice an Air India A320 NEO being towed to its stand to begin its own journey. I liked the seat I'd got, with a nice view of the engine and the whole wing as well.



            I didn't turn anyway anytime soon, though, for immediately after, an Uzbekistan Boeing 767-33P(ER), UK67006, pulled into the stand adjacent to ours.

            I only turned my attention back to the cabin after the doors were armed, and was astonished to find that the load was not even 70%. The middle rows were occupied by many people looking for a nice lie-down through the flight.

            Soon afterwards, we pushed back, and after a quick flight controls check, were quickly underway. As we pulled out from the apron, I saw a Kam Air Boeing 767-222 registered YA-KAM parked at the remote stand.

            Apparently, Kam Air is an airline from Afghanistan and this aircraft was their first of eight jets. It is also extremely old, having been manufactured in 1983, and having had served United Airlines from then until 2005, when it was stored for 2 years before Kam Air's purchase.



            As we proceeded onwards, though there wasn't anything to see and the journey to the runway was taking ages for we were taxiing to runway 29, which meant a loooong route there. The line in red highlights the route we took, overlaid upon a (dated, but fit for this purpose) chart of VIDP. It seems that CW2 is either a one-way taxiway, or the pilots took the wrong turn initially.

            Finally, though, we lined up and were barrelling down the runway. As we built up speed, we flashed past MH191, also an A330-300 heading to Kuala Lumpur that had apparently been delayed even worse than we had.



            After we took off, there wasn't much to see, so I took one last shot as we climbed over New Delhi, and turned my attention to select a meal, for I was famished.



            The air stewardesses were great, although one seemed to be having a really bad day (but was professional throughout). The meal I had ordered was Uncle Chin's Hainanese Chicken Rice for 18 MYR, as I felt it was the safest choice in terms of a quick and fuss-free dinner. Plastic cutlery was provided, alongside a tissue. I eventually ended up ordering a Sprite for 6 MYR too, as I had exhausted my water bottle.



            The chicken was fine, if a little dry, but it filled me up well enough. Unfortunately, while this had been a safe choice for my palette, it wasn't so for my stomach -- it caused diarrhea for 2 days straight!

            I then settled in for a short nap. Eventually when I woke up, I noticed a stunning sight.

            Comment


            • #7
              (Part 7 of 10)



              The wings of the aircraft were illuminated by the moonlight, and highlighted the curves, edges, and rivets of the wing beautifully.



              What's more, at our cruising altitude, there were no pesky clouds in the way and our bearing was just right to allow us to see the beautiful stars!



              Wow, what a sight! And this, friends, is why I always insist on a window seat (and you should too). Truly breathtaking.



              Another short nap later, I awoke at approximately 0600 Malaysian time to see that we had commenced our descent and that the sun was slowly creeping up. Dawn was at hand.



              The ride got rather bumpy as we descended further, and spoilers were deployed to reduce our airspeed as we banked to loop around for a runway 33 arrival.



              Soon I spied the clouds that were responsible for our bumpy ride, with the big man -- cumulonimbus -- surely at the heart of the strong winds.



              Lightning was flashing pretty regularly, and I managed to capture a shot of it flashing behind the clouds.

              Comment


              • #8
                (Part 8 of 10)



                Soon we came up over the harbour off the Western shore of Malaysia before making our final turns to align ourselves with the runway.



                The flaps and slats were deployed as we descended further, and you could almost feel the city slowly waking up for a dreary Monday workday, with fog rolling down the mountains into the plains.

                We landed fairly smoothly (and on time), with condensation rapidly forming over the low pressure area above the wings. A really interesting phenomenon, if you have the physics knowledge about it.





                As we vacated the runway, we taxied past 9M-AQH, the special liveried AirAsia A320-232 as it joined the early morning departure queue.



                The sun's golden rays were beginning to peek through as we parked next to another AirAsia X A330-343, registered 9M-XXJ.



                The portside wing looked pretty in the morning light as well, but it was as I turned my attention to the rest of the plane did the penny drop that I had been on board a special liveried aircraft.

                Comment


                • #9
                  (Part 9 of 10)





                  9M-XXU, with the special livery for 20th Century Fox's 2016 release, X-Men: Apocalypse.

                  Unfortunately, it was now time to bid goodbye to this pretty lady as I proceeded to the next leg of my journey that would finally bring me home.

                  Flight Details

                  Flight Number: AK/AXM 705
                  Departure Airport: Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia (KUL, WMKK)
                  Scheduled Time of Departure: 0840
                  Arrival Airport: Changi Airport, Singapore (SIN, WSSS)
                  Schedule Time of Arrival: 0950
                  Cabin Class: Y


                  Finally, it was time to head home. I'd be traveling on an A320 once more, ending the journey as I had started it.

                  With KLIA2 being the low-cost carrier terminal here in KLIA, it meant there was no shortage of A320s, especially the AirAsia ones. I spied 9M-AHE in the Honghe Nativeland special livery taxiing for departure as I proceeded to traverse the terminal.





                  It was my first time traveling through KLIA2, and truth be told, it felt exactly like the myriad of malls here in Singapore, and totally unlike any of the airports I had transited through on my journey (including our own shopping haven, Changi). Some of the feeling is probably due to the narrow and long corridors that were present.

                  After passing through the throngs of passengers squeezing through the security checkpoints -- where I even had to remove my shoes -- I finally made my way to the gate at 0740, ten minutes before boarding commenced.

                  Aircraft Information

                  Registration: 9M-AHY
                  Aircraft: Airbus A320-216
                  Engines: 2x CFMI CFM56-5B6/3
                  Config: Y180
                  Delivered: 18 May 2010




                  Yet another special to round off my AirAsia journey! This was the "BIG Duty Free" special livery, advertising AirAsia's inflight services to all who saw the aircraft go by.



                  Next to ours were one of the newer A320s, equipped with sharklets.

                  Not long after, we entered the cabin of the A320. Unfortunately, I had been unable to secure a window seat even upon request, so it meant I was stuck at the aisle.



                  The legroom was standard, and the seats were unfortunately in the standard all-black configuration.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    (Part 10 of 10)



                    The cabin was being sprayed with the cooling mist as is usual on AirAsia flights just as the cabin crew made final preparations before pushback.



                    Sitting at the aisle seat wasn't going to stop me from snapping pictures outside, however, and that's exactly what I did as we began pushback.



                    Not before long, we were in the air after a rapid junction takeoff from runway 33.

                    The journey home was carried out at FL230, and was an extremely bumpy one. The clear air turbulence was so severe that the seatbelt signs were kept on the whole while.

                    Personally, I have always looooved being in turbulent skies, for I have faith that the pilots and aircraft would bring me to my destination safe and sound. Turbulence has thus turned into sort of a roller coaster ride for me, and I was smiling throughout this flight. I'm pretty sure the elderly uncle across the aisle saw me, and thought I was demented thanks to the huge grin I had.

                    We landed on runway 20R, and immediately braked really hard (I assume it was manual braking) and even deployed thrust reversers to ensure we didn't stray too far from Terminal 1, especially since we had a long landing (i.e. floated above the runway for too long). This elicited some concerned murmurs from the cabin, but nothing so much as screams, at least!



                    Turning off at W6, the iconic control tower came into view, and I smiled. A lovely sight for sore eyes! After a long journey by plane, I was finally home. It was great to celebrate with my grandparents, but there truly is no place like home.



                    Turning into NC3, I spied another familiar face -- a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-312(ER), 9V-SWG, taxiing to its departure runway to start its own journey.



                    Finally, we came to a stop, but it wasn't time for me to stop shooting just yet! Since we had parked at C11, I breezed through the immigration (thank god for automated gates) and quickly made my way to the T1 Viewing Mall to capture a proper shot of the aircraft that had ended my journey.

                    Goodbye, AirAsia, and I would love to fly with you again (you too Air India)!

                    Thank you so much for reading, and that's all from me for this trip! Hope you liked it, and I'll be sure to write more if I go anywhere else too. Ciao!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Thanks for the report, another stunning one with crisp pictures.

                      So what was the fare both on the way up or down. I can't imagined how much cheaper compared to the 500 dollars return that Jet and Ai sometimes offers between Singapore and Indian cities ...

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        My family booked first, and came back a week later via LKO instead (they took a train to LKO from DED), and their breakdown was:

                        $109 - SIN to JAI
                        $70 - JAI to DED via DEL
                        $139 - LKO to SIN
                        -----
                        $318 - Total

                        Since my tickets were bought much later, and depended on the scheduling of my leave as well, they were more expensive.

                        $109 - SIN to JAI
                        $140 - JAI to DED via DEL
                        $50 - DED to DEL
                        $260 - DEL to SIN via KUL
                        -----
                        $559 - Total

                        I couldn't change my routing going to DED, since I was traveling with family, but in terms of the return leg, AI/9I was about half as cheap as the 9W ticket from DED to DEL, and AI and 9W both were charging $410 or thereabouts one-way from DEL to SIN. Next cheapest was SQ at $365, followed by MH at $320. The cheapest was D7/AK at $260.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Liked the TR, good photos and commentary across a range of carriers and aircraft types i'm not familiar with.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Very nice TR, shikhargpt! Enjoyed the pics and the write-up!

                            The AI ATR-72 looks very comfortable inside.

                            Originally posted by shikhargpt View Post
                            Gate 12. Near enough, given that the numbers are ascending from 17 onwards on my left, right? This meant just 5 gates (16, 15, 14...) until I hit the one for my flight, right? Nope. Apparently IGIA has a really weird gate numbering system that irked me greatly on the night that is as follows:

                            ... 21 20 19 18 17 [entrance] 1 2 3 4 ... 14

                            What even..? I have no clue why they would number their gates this way
                            The old Delhi international airport terminal used to have a quirky gate arrangement where they one section of the airport with gates 1,2,..,n, running sequentially, but one gate number was missing. That gate was located in a slightly different area. The sign listed the numbers "1,2,4,5,6,7" etc...I omitted 3 in the example, but I can't remember which gate it was that was left out. Unless one looked at the signs very carefully, one might assume (Not illogically) that the whole sequence of running numbers was in that section...

                            Originally posted by shikhargpt View Post
                            The 3-3-3 arrangement is also standard for most A330s, LCC or not.
                            Actually for A330's the standard is 2-4-2. The 3-3-3 is fairly uncommon, probably seen more on charter airlines and LCC's.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by loldude333 View Post
                              Liked the TR, good photos and commentary across a range of carriers and aircraft types i'm not familiar with.
                              Thanks loldude333!

                              Comment

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