Kingfisher Airlines IT 308/309

I don’t usually write trip reports but because its a relativly new airline i thought i would give it a whip.

Kingfisher Airlines IT 308/309

Now Kingfisher Airlines is the pet project of Indian brewman Vijay Mallaya who owns the United Brewries, initially famous for the Kingfisher beer.

Mr. Mallaya used to be a workaholic, when handling only the beer brand and got a heart attack. The doctors told him to change his lifestyle or he is sure to visit the big man in the sky and not get a ticket back to land.

Taken aback by this, a total transformation within the UB group took place and Mallaya ventured into other projects including his biggest one, an airline.

Today he is seen as the Indian version of Richard Branson, with all the extra PR around the airlines branding and himself. Flanked with the hottest models in the Bollywood circuit his airline has quickly overshadowed brands such as Jet Airways.

Me being a loyal Jet Airways customer thought of giving them a try. I have tried other new airlines in the past in India, Air Deccan, SpiceJet and GoAir and have had unpleasent experiences so i was apprehensive about Kingfisher.

My flight was from Delhi to Mumbai and back… a 4 day trip. Went to the airport at 10:30 to catch the 11:50 am flight. Another reason why Kingfisher is a good choice, atleast till now is that it has struck a deal with Indian Airlines to use there terminal, i.e. the state carriers terminal (IC/AI) which is not crowded at all, unlike the private carriers terminal that is overflowing.

After entering the airport the Kingfisher staff take your luggage off you and get it security checked while you stand in the que for your boarding pass. The whole security check process is done quick and fast.

After a 20 min. wait and some appauling food from the cafe we boarded a bus which took us to our A321 called “Kingfisher First”. The 321s have more business class seats than the A320s hence carry the “first” titles.

The interiors of the aircraft is loud, bathed in red with a very inviting business class. My cattle class seat bosted of PTVs, first of its kind in the Indian domestic circuit. The legroom was very good on these busses.

We took off from New Delhi at about noon on our way to Mumbai. Pretty soon a video of a famous Indian model (pics later if anyone is interested 😉 ) taking us through the safety drills and later Mr. Mallaya himself coming onto the screen and enlightning us about his airline.

Anyway, the pilot announced that the flight will get bumpy as we come closer to Mumbai. Its monsoon season here an the rains are slowly creeping there way upward from the Indian western ghats to the northern Indian plains. The air hostesses were very friendly and not to mention pretty good looking as well.

The whole experience was good with inflight entertainment and some good radio stations. But one place IT seems to have faultered is in-flight dining. The food was miserable! Poorly served and un-inviting. The tea was served cold and the lemon juice was served warm.

The whole flight was good, but not upto the hype the airline has created. I wouldnt mind taking IT again but will gladly stick to 9W for my domestic travel, and international as well now.

IT 309, Mumbai and Delhi was an exact replica of 308. Decent flight with bad bad food.

But its clear the airline is here to stay, and will definately improve in the future, and now that it bought 26% in India’s biggest loco, Deccan they have a very very strong hold on the Indian aviation market.