#67 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings.
450 reviews
This is the second leg of my LAX - EWR - DEL - BLR flight.
And it was going be the longest flight, 15 HOURS in a stretch in economy class.
From my previous flight experiences, it was a big learning experience to always choose the aisle seat on long flights (9 hours, 11 hours in Lufthansa). So again, in the web check-in, I chose the aisle seat.
It was a heavy, windy, rainy day in New York, and I reached the airport some 2 hours in advance (My luggage was already with the airline), so I headed directly towards security. Terminal C. Gate 138.
I sat there for two hours. There was also a change in the gate number (The boarding pass says C108, but the new one is C138).
Surprisingly, there was neither an entry nor exit stamp for me! My passport has no proof of visiting the USA.
The boarding began about 15 minutes later than mentioned on the boarding pass.
I asked at the gate why there is no exit stamp on my passport. They said this flight is going directly to India, and you have an Indian passport, so there is no need for an exit stamp. The boarding pass scan is enough, but during boarding, they didn't even scan my boarding pass - Just look into the camera and go.
I was almost at the end of the queue. And when I came inside the aircraft – economy class! OMG!
Nobody was inside not even 20 people, max 25 passengers in economy class. Even the premium economy was kind of empty.
There was Hindi announcement along with English, and one cabin crew was Indian. (Which was not the case Lufthansa BLR-FRA-LAX).
As the flight began, they gave earphones, water bottles, basic cookies, and snacks.
I started watching a documentary on the entertainment screen. Then, after some time, there was dinner. In total, there were about 3 meals or snacks. And it was "dark" throughout the journey, like no sunlight from the window.
Because of the empty flight, I covered myself properly with two blankets, took one from the side seat. One of my t-shirt was wet because of full rain in New York I even took it out and put on the seat beside me to dry up! Haha.
Then I saw people were sleeping in the 3-3 seats. Only three passengers in the whole economy were awake and watching something on screen.
Here - distance covered 7319 miles/11779 km
There is nothing much to share about this flight because I slept throughout the flight, like lying down on 3 seats. I wake up only to eat meals and watch some movies, then sleep again for some time.
The flight landed some 10 minutes late. When I came out on the jet bridge, DEL airport ground staff asked everyone to collect the luggage, even if it was booked directly for another city/country. My luggage was directly booked for BLR. But I knew there would be something because it was a 23-hour layover at DEL, and I had planned to visit Delhi city, staying at a friend's place.
Here is a photograph from Delhi Airport Immigration. Around 10 PM, there was no crowd, all empty.
It was very smooth exiting Delhi airport.
I was under the impression that customs was going to check my luggage physically, everything, but nothing. It was an exit like any other domestic flight exit.
Then I entered Metro Station, situated at Terminal 3, DEL, used the cloakroom facility for 24 hours (500 INR), kept my suitcase and left for a friend's place.
Overall, I was not expecting this to be one of my super smooth flights, though it was 15 hours of flying time!
The food was good; the water was too cold to drink, so I always took hot water in a cup and mixed it with the water bottle. It was a complete night throughout the flight, so everyone else was sleeping, the lights were off, and crew members were not showing up unnecessarily.
I liked it and slept most of the flight. And didn't get the sleep full night when I reached Delhi. The jet lag hit me hard, and it took me about 3 days to recover nicely.
8 Comments
I’ve noticed this being an ongoing trend! I think as travel will ramp up for the world cup, eveything is becoming more effiecient and electronic. I could be so off in my theory, just what I heard from a fellow traveller on a flight recently.
I would have been so excited if I saw this! What a unique experience, more personal space than business class😂.
Sounds wonderful! What a way to fly. If I was guaranteed an empty cabin like this, I would be so happy. I am glad you slept well, but sorry about the jetlag. I had the similar issue as well for a couple of days last time in Asia.
I think United can do decently, the only issue with this flight on United is how much longer it takes over Air India due to not being able to use Russian Airspace. However, I think for the time being United is a better than AI (in my opinion) but I’ll be excited to see what AI has in store soon with the whole re-work of the airline.
Thanks for sharing this flight report! I was supposed to take this flight months ago but had to re-route so this is very interesting to see! Look forward to seeing more!
Thank you for reading the report in such depth.
One interesting outcome of this trip -->
India to the USA on going journey --> There was a day throughout the flight for almost 24 hours — constant sunlight on the windows.
USA to India --> Continue night throughout the journey; no sunlight.
The meal looks pretty small, but considered you received 3 meals, it makes sense.
Hope to see more. Cheers :)
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