INTRODUCTION
Hello everyone
The 25th July I took up the State Exam to become an architect
I've been adviced to try the exam in a small university, since the correction may take long time in universities with many students. For this reason I choose to make the exam in Pescara, considering I've a house by the sea in a nearby town.
With the exam being on Thursday I decided to flew there on Tuesday evening and came back to my workplace near Bergamo in the weekend.
BOOKING OPTIONS
In order to have an entire day before the exam I flew to Pescara on Tuesday. I wanted to come back to Bergamo on Sunday evening (to spend more time with my family), but only a 7-am flight is available on PSR-BGY route. Therefore I took the flight back on Saturday evening
For a few days I'd have get the small bag only, by the way I need to carry my computer and some books for the exams. So I choose to buy the Priority to get an additional cabin baggage. The whole flight costed me 84 euros.
ROUTING
Flight routing
- 1
- 2FR3509 - Economy - Pescara → Bergamo - Boeing 737 MAX 8
Personal stats
6th flight of 2024
BEFORE THE FLIGHT
The day before Ryanair allowed me to check-in
At first I wanted to grab a window seat (considering the daytime flight) but the cheapest option was 11 euros. Not worth it
So I decided to play again with luck and fortunately the system gave me 1C, on the front row
AT THE AIRPORT
With the flight departing at 17:45 I asked my parents to bring me at the airport one hour before. PSR is a small airport and my flight was the only one scheduled for that moment of the day
We left home around 16:30
Italian Coast Guard (Guardia Costiera) Piaggio P166 welcoming passengers at the airport
At 16:50 we arrived at Pescara-Abruzzo International Airport
This large glass vault gives the terminal's design a sparkle
The check-in hall was used by Ryanair only
Getting straight to the security check-point
2 out of 4 lanes were opened, I got airside minutes before 17
The boarding area offered plenty of seats due to the fact only one flight was waiting to board
The departure lounge hosts a bar, a shop selling local food (De Cecco is the main pasta manufacturer of the region) and another one with hand-made jewerly
According to the FIDS my flight resulted delayed of 40 minutes
Only another one was expected to depart later that afternoon
The inbound flight was scheduled at 15:55, by the way it departs at 17:07
Landing in PSR was expected to be at 17:57, almost 15 minutes later than my flight scheduled departure time
We won't never arrive in BGY on time…
Contrary to my expectations PSR offered some spotting opportunities
This A320neo ACJ is owned by Comlux Malta, a VIP charter airline
It had landed from Naples before during the day
As I was waiting it was tugged to another apron
Around 17:40 a pre-boarding procedure started, without distinction of Priority passengers
After document and BP check passengers queued before the door leading to the apron
Meanwhile the inbound flight was still on air, 20 minutes away from PSR
As shown on FlightRadar24 the inbound BGY-PSR flight had to interrumpt its descent twice, probably due to wind
After the second failed attempt it was redirect on the opposite side of the runway
At 18:13 the flight finally touched down
Even if disembark was yet to start we waited on the apron, right outside the terminal
Our bird is a Malta Air Boeing 737 MAX 8, 9H-VUA
Equipped with 197 seats in all-Y layout, it carries Malta Air livery
Gran Sasso d'Italia, the highest mountain in the Appenines (2912 metres)
Due to its silhouette is usually referred as "The Sleeping Beauty"
Disembark was a bit slow due to a few PRMs
Moreover the plane was set for refueling
At 18:30 we're finally admitted onboard
The engine looks massive
Instant door…
…and istant nose
The plane seems almost full
It's equipped with SkyInteriors and Malta Air colours
Even if the system assigned me 1C I asked the lady at 1B for it
She agreed considering we both had plenty of legrooms
Lacking seat 1A I got my window seat
At 19:00 (the scheduled arrival time in BGY) doors were closed and armed
Leaving the gate ten minutes after
Bye bye Pescara
We'd depart north-eastward, pointing to the Adriatic sea
THE FLIGHT
At 19:23, one hour and forty minutes after scheduled, we finally start our take-off run
State Highway (Strada Statale) 16, connecting the main towns on Adriatic coast
Pescara town just north of the airport
Pescara main station and the city center
Banking over the coastline, pointing north…
Pescara with the airport behind, which looks very close to the downtown
Flying along Adriatic coastline we immediately reached our cruise altitude
Parma, in Emilia-Romagna Region
Crossing Po river
Around 20:00 the descent was announced and cabin prepared for landing
Descending over Brescia and Bergamo countryside, landing from east
Oglio river, the boundary between Brescia (on the left) and Bergamo (on the right) provinces
Last moments on air, descending parallel with A4 motorway
At 20:20, one hour and twenty minutes later than planned, we roughly touched down at Milan-Bergamo "Il Caravaggio" Airport
The landing was heavy (Ryanair style), but the braking smooth and long
Ryanair, WizzAir and Norwegian line up at the terminal
Reaching our stand a couple of minutes after touching down
It took around 10 minutes to disembark, but fortunately the bus ride was very short
Having no checked bag I made my way straight to the exit, where a friend of mine was waiting
The arrival lounge and the roadways outside the airport were very busy
Nice! The gamble worked much better this time! And you got lucky being in the front row since the legroom is tighter on the MAX 8s vs the 800s.
And then you even ended up with a "window" seat, haha...really lucky. Also good to know that you can see out the window from 1B in the MAX.
Thanks for sharing Carlo!
Yeah I was definitely luckier this time :D
Moreover being in the first row guarantee me a lot of fresh air during the longer-than-expected wait for departure
Hi Carlo! Thanks for this look into Malta Air which I had no idea was owned by Ryanair😂. I hope your exam went well!
Wow, what luck with the first row! With all of that legroom as well!
That is quite the turnaround time, 17 mins from touchdown of the inbound to boarding, quite impressed.
It sucks about the delay, but it sounds like a fine flight with a beautiful sunset. Those colors on arrival look spectacular. Thanks for sharing this flight report!
Hello
My pleasure!
Yeah, it was strange for me too to board a Malta-branded flight
The flight overall was pleasant, apart the delay
And yeah, that time of the day is the best to land :D