Review of Flybe flight Lyon → Southend in Economy

ORITE BABES? Ya i'm going to SOuthend innit

Hello everyone!

Apparentely I am the first to report on this route!
 
Back in 2017, Flybe opened a new route to Lyon but from London Southend, the second airport after London Stansted to be located in Essex, a magical and new way of living.
I used to work just on the border and so I know how to speak with locals :P

If you don't know Essex, I highly recommend you to watch any video of Gemma Collins, the vocabulary is quite funny and she is super friendly and bubbly like everyone there.

So why Southend airport? Because by train is not that expensive to reach my home in East London, and because my office was closer than going to Heathrow, which means easier to catch the plane on a friday evening.
Also the airport is super small, even smaller than London City which of course is ideal to shrink the required time at the airport.  

Flybe was a small company and  member of the Avios scheme, which meant that I was still able to build up my miles.

Avios earned with this flight: 130

All in all I flew perhaps about 12 - 15 times with flybe, however I have not enough pictures to report the way out, just this return flight.

at lyon - saint exupery airport

My parents dropped us at what was the brand new terminal 1B, where from our flight was supposed to depart.

Well no luck we realised once inside the flight was now leaving from Terminal 1A, the old and historic terminal that is now attached to the new circular building.
At the time it wasn't and so you had to walk there - which was just a 5 min walk anyway. 

We received our new boarding pass.. where you see that once passed checkin you had to back to termina 1B…

onboard the E190

I don't particularly remember the boarding process I apoligise.
We boarded amongst the firsts. The view on another british colleague.. 

Aircraft: Embraer E195LR
Registration: G-FBEH
Engines: 2x CFM34
Age: 10 Years
Layout: Y100
Observation: Like every E190 of the fleet, the aircraft is painted with the old livery.

The cabin for the next hour or so, the seats were quite standard for an E190/195.

The safety briefing was done in the old school way - and by the way old school is the only school!

Take off::

A quick browse at the Buy on Board menu..

I have never tried to eat nuddles on a plane so why not!

and the flight magazine, an historical artefact now since the company filed for bankrupcy.

There were actually a lot of advice on the destinations offered by Flybe

and in case you hadn't looked at the buy on board menu, there was another one in there! 
I found the prices a bit dear, £4 for a ham croissant is a bit pushy. 

and the descent started..

on finals

flying over leigh on sea

and the touch down on the runway

The runway is only that big so even for an E190, there isn't enough lengh to leave the runway halfway, the aircraft needs to make a U turn.

And taxi back towards the exit… The taxi is a bit funny as you get really close to a church.

finally leaving the runway

Hello ATCs!

at london - southend airport

Desembarking happened with the stairs BUT without any paxbuses, a great thing at Southend.

It is always nicer to leave the aircraft walking. You can see how small the terminal building is!

Once passed the border control, you can leave through the same hall as departures

And the train station is just a few yards away! Amazing and perfect for lazy people like me!