After the journey with Citilink to Padang, I continued my journey overland to Medan and Aceh. From Aceh and Weh Island (Sabang), I returned to Medan. The overland journey was done by buses. Then it was time to return to Jakarta by air. After trying Citilink, I was curious about Batik Air, a subsidiary of Lion Air Group. If you had read any reports of Malindo Air, yes, it had an almost similar situation with Batik Air. Several Indonesian sources refer Batik Air as a "hybrid" airline, in a category between full service carriers and LCCs.
August 19th of 2015. After a short time city tour in Medan, I took a bus to Kuala Namu airport.
On the way to airport.
I reached the airport at 04.10 p.m. while the Batik Air carrying me to Jakarta was scheduled to depart at 08.00 p.m. Why did I arrive very early? I had been very tired after the long overland journey, and I had felt some symptoms of influenza. That's why I decided to go to the airport and have some rest there.
Kuala Namu International Airport (KNIA) is the main gateway to Medan, capital of North Sumatera and 4th largest city in Indonesia. The relatively new airport was officially opened in 2013, replacing old Polonia Airport at the city center that is used for military purpose today. KNIA mainly serves domestic destinations, but there are also international routes to Penang (Lion Air, AirAsia, Sriwijaya Air), Kuala Lumpur (AirAsia, Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, recently Malindo Air), Singapore (Garuda Indonesia, SilkAir, Jetstar), Bangkok (AirAsia), Colombo (Mihin Lanka), and Hajj flights to Jeddah and Medina by Boeing 777-300ER aircrafts of Garuda Indonesia.
This was the large TV showing flight schedules. Very informative. International flights to Singapore, Penang, and Kuala Lumpur were shown.
Check in counters without any long queues.
And this was the place for me to check-in.
As I arrived too early, I had to wait to check in. While waiting, I checked any stuffs I bought in Medan and Aceh as gifts to my family and friends. Bika Ambon, an authentic cake of Medan. If you hop flights from Medan, there would be sooooooooo many Bika Ambon boxes at the baggage carousel in the destination airport.
Bolu Meranti, another popular cake of Medan.
This was "Keukarah", an Acehnese traditional snack.
Finally they allowed me to check-in and give me this powerful paper.
There were still about 1.30 hours before boarding. Let's check some spots of the "airport mall".
Gate 10, the gateway to the aircraft. Sorry, I didn't take pictures of the waiting room, as I waited at the coffee shop close to the boarding area.
Some aircrafts had been ready to depart.
Then we had to board the aircraft through the stairs, without aerobridges.
Entering the cabin, a female cabin crew greeted me and other passengers. She then gave me directions to my seat.
The aircraft was equipped with IFE screens on every seat. But we just could use them after take-off.
At 8.00 p.m. the aircraft then flew to the sky, without any turbulences. After the seat-belt indicator switched off, the IFE could be used. Cabin crews started to sell headphones for IDR 25.000, but we could also connect our own headphones with 3.5mm jack to the IFE. There were also USB slots, but only for charging. The screen was sensitive enough, but the IFE contents were still less variative compared to Garuda Indonesia. There were American and Asian movies, and I chose a Tamil movie.
Safety card and magazine.
Then the cabin crews started giving the dinner set. It consisted of rice, chicken fillet, "sambal kentang" (spicy cooked potatoes), a slice of "Bika Ambon", and a beverage. It was not too delicious, but good enough to fill your stomach.
After completing the dinner, I continued watching the Tamil movie. About 20 minutes before landing, the cabin turned to blue.
At 10.20 p.m, finally the Batik Air landed safely at Soekarno-Hatta Airport. Fortunately we got the aerobridge. Time to say goodbye.
Other than Batik Air, there were Citilink and Aviastar.
The luggage carousel of 1C Terminal.
And as usual, I left the airport by bus to reach my lovely home.
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Verdict
Batik Air
7.4/10
Cabin7.5
Cabin crew8.0
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Meal/catering7.0
Medan - KNO
7.3/10
Efficiency7.5
Access7.0
Services7.0
Cleanliness7.5
Jakarta - CGK
6.0/10
Efficiency6.0
Access6.0
Services6.0
Cleanliness6.0
Conclusion
I'm impressed by Batik Air. It's a great option to try a full service airlines with relatively cheap ticket prices (only IDR 800.000 / USD 62 while Garuda's ticket price is around IDR 1.050.000 / USD 82). The food quality was good enough, but I hope they can make it more delicious (Garuda's food quality is still better). The IFE was interesting, sensitive touchscreen, but less variety of contents. Cabin crews were good looking, friendly, and helpful.
As a native North Sumatran people, I'm very proud of the modern Kuala Namu Airport. Personally, the design and quality of service at KNIA is far better than the Soekarno-Hatta Airport. I can't wait longer for their expansion plan and more international routes.
Soekarno-Hatta Airport? No comment.
Thanks for reading. Any feedbacks are appreciated. Thank you very much.
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