Review of AeroMexico flight Mexico City → Cancún in Premium Eco

Airline AeroMexico
Flight AM 445
Class Premium Eco
Seat --
Aircraft Boeing 737-800
Flight time 01:15
Take-off 02 Sep 16, 14:35
Arrival at 02 Sep 16, 15:50
AM   #69 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 101 reviews
MrMax
By 856
Published on 1st December 2016

BACKGROUND

Hi Everybody! Welcome to my flight-report series on my trip to Mexico last month. I booked these flights with Aeromexico at the last minute from SFO-MID (Merida), via GDL on the way there and MEX on the way back. I had one-hour connections both ways. Originally, my routing looked like this:

SFO - GDL AM 663
GDL-MID AM 2107
MID-MEX AM 516
MEX-SFO AM 664

However, we missed our connection at GDL (long story, explained in previous flight report), we rerouted GDL-MEX-CUN instead of GDL-MID for the remainder of our journey, while retaining the MID-MEX-SFO itinerary on the return leg. Our routing now looked like this:

SFO-GDL AM 663 HERE
GDL-MEX AM 225 HERE
MEX-CUN AM 445 HERE
MID-MEX AM 516 COMING SOON
MEX-SFO AM 664 COMING SOON

Here's our old routing:

photo screen shot 2016-10-24 at 10.01.19 pm


And here's our new one:

photo screen shot 2016-10-24 at 10.03.00 pm


Also, this flight-report is dedicated to the victims of the crash of LaMia flight 2933. This was a tragedy that should have never happened. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.






FLIGHT REPORT



After a delay and a go-around on AM 663, and a long customs line (took 1 hour to clear) line made me miss my connection at GDL, I proceeded to the customer service line. The wait was long
(about 20 min) but the agent was very helpful and rerouted us to CUN through MEX. Now instead of flying GDL-MID (there's only one flight a day), we flew GDL-MEX-CUN. Now after a layover at MEX, I'm relieved to be boarding my final flight. After looking at my BP (No pic, sorry) I realize that I will be seated in the bulkhead seat in the Y+ section of the cabin. But I don't get priority baggage or boarding, #FirstWorldProblem indeed. Its very weird that a bulkhead seat was available to someone on a ticket issued only a few hours before the flight's departure. The flight was pretty close to full too!

MEX T2:

photo img_6123


Boarding was underway at gate 63 (sorry for bad pic):

photo img_6124


Windows are definitely not kind to AvGeeks like ourselves, however I've found workarounds.

photo img_6128


T2 is AM and Aeromar flights. Lineup is mostly AM 737s:

photo img_6125photo img_6126photo img_6132


My ride for today. A three-year-old 737-800 (reg: XA-AMC) with sky interior whose exterior is adorned with an ad for aviations favorite phone (just kidding, sarcasm doesn't really work when you're typing does it?)

photo img_6130photo img_6131


Architecture of T2 is very modern. Here are some pics of the facade:

photo img_6133photo img_6134photo img_6136


Last exterior shot of a/c, I promise:

photo img_6135


Earplugs are offered in the jetway. There are some onboard also:

photo img_6137


Boarding shot:

photo img_6138


Legroom is obviously great!

photo img_6139photo img_6143


I like that the IFE is mounted on the bulkhead rather than in the armrest. I guess that it might be a little annoying to lean forward to use the touchscreen, but it wasn't much of a problem for me.

photo img_6140


Seatback pocket contents:

photo img_6141


The earphones are good for a short-med haul flight. On a long haul though, I'd want better ones. Quality is very good.

photo img_6142


We push back ahead of schedule (I think). Here are some spotting pics:




Lining up for an on time takeoff:

photo img_6155

Takeoff!!! Wonderful views as always with departure from MEX.



There were about 5 mins of ads on the IFE after departure but other than that the IFE was ad free (unlike EK, where you have to brave about 5 mins of ads for every movie you watch)

Shortly after departure, there is a beverage service. I have a water and a tonic water. Served with peanuts:

photo img_6171


I had a very friendly seat mate who insisted that I try a coconut water so here we go:

photo img_6175

It was good, considering that I'm usually not crazy for coconut water. it was a brand called Aculpulco that was advertised on the IFE.

I watched some travel videos on different cities in Mexico. then I started to watch a movie that I finished on the MEX-SFO leg.


Position at the end of beverage service:

photo img_6172

Moving Map pic:

photo img_6179


About 20 mins before landing, I see the beautiful blue sea below me. It made me want to jump out of the a/c and go for a swim!




On final approach I saw the densely forested Yucatan peninsula. Here are some pics:





There were these weird clearings. Why? Thanks for any insight:




Touchdown!!!!!




Spotting. Mostly US airlines plus European leisure airlines and AV:








BONUS




Tourism Bonus of Tulum:




Unlikely place for Italian food, but really good:

photo img_6285




SUMMERY



AM's domestic product is definitely very good. I'd think of it as being like what you'd find on a U.S legacy carrier but with long-haul grade IFE, free alcoholic beverages, and a free bag.

IFE is very good. better than what you get on some long haul legacy carriers (VS, I'm looking at you)

The cabin is clean and very modern. Nothing is broken.

IFE is very good. I'd be satisfied with this on a long haul flight.

The catering meets expectations but isn't remarkable.

CUN is a very efficient airport – deplaning to the taxi rank in 10 mins. However, it's very chaotic and unclean. It's a two hour drive from Tulum though, which is difficult.

MEX is a very nice airport. I've never been to T1, so no comment on that.

Thanks for reading. Please drop me a line in the comment section. See you next time!
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Verdict

AeroMexico

8.1/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew7.0
Entertainment/wifi9.5
Meal/catering7.0

Mexico City - MEX

8.1/10
Efficiency10.0
Access5.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness8.5

Cancún - CUN

4.4/10
Efficiency9.0
Access2.0
Services2.0
Cleanliness4.5

Conclusion

AM's domestic product is definitely very good. I'd think of it as being like what you'd find on a U.S legacy carrier but with long-haul grade IFE, free alcoholic beverages, and a free bag.

IFE is very good. better than what you get on some long haul legacy carriers (VS, I'm looking at you)

The cabin is clean and very modern. Nothing is broken.

IFE is very good. I'd be satisfied with this on a long haul flight.

The catering meets expectations but isn't remarkable.

CUN is a very efficient airport -- deplaning to the taxi rank in 10 mins. However, it's very chaotic and unclean. It's a two hour drive from Tulum though, which is difficult.

MEX is a very nice airport. I've never been to T1, so no comment on that.

Thanks for reading. Please drop me a line in the comment section. See you next time!

Information on the route Mexico City (MEX) → Cancún (CUN)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 11 avis concernant 3 compagnies sur la ligne Mexico City (MEX) → Cancún (CUN).

Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est AeroMexico avec 7.5/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 2 heures et 13 minutes.

  More information

3 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 377217 by
    MrMax AUTHOR 142 Comments
    Please Comment! Your feedback is much appreciated!
  • Comment 377667 by
    Rl 777 802 Comments
    Thank you for sharing this FR with us!

    I'm glad everything worked out in the end with the routing.

    Nice spotting shots at MEX!

    The Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge are good, thankfully. The Galaxy Note 7, that is a completely different story haha.

    The IFE looks good and so does the cabin. Was there no handset for the IFE?

    Nice aerial shots and stunning bonus at the end!

    Thanks for sharing.

    Have a good one, see you!
    • Comment 377762 by
      MrMax AUTHOR 142 Comments
      Hi RI 777

      The routing saga was stressful, but the AM people at GDL were amazing!

      Thanks for your feedback on my spotting! It has been an area of some improvement for me. It you look at my earlier FRs the spotting was terrible.

      Oops! Sorry about my mistake. Smartphones aren't my area of expertise.

      No, There wasn't any handset, but the touchscreen was very good so not a problem. It was actually nice not having a handset in my armrest!

      Glad you enjoyed my bonus. I had a great time in Tulum. It might be easier for you to go there one of these days bc of the new ARN-CUN nonstop on Thomson and TUIfly.

      Thanks for reading!

      -Max

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