Review: Lufthansa's new Business Class onboard its Boeing 747-8i and Airbus A330-300 Mumbai Munich

Following an excellent trip in India, I started off on my return flight to the US. I got to Mumbai Airport around 22:20 (10:20pm) for my flight to Munich at 01:07.

Mumbai airport - A series of bottlenecks

Right now Mumbai Airport is in a bit of a transition phase as they construct the new integrated terminal so I suppose this is forgivable, but the ground-side experience at Mumbai’s Terminal 2 is just plain awful right now. Call it a lack of CISF personnel or a lack of planning, but all passengers are funnelled in to just two doors, and at peak times for international departures, 9pm onwards, the lines can extend up to 30 minutes long, and it’s a humongous bottleneck that the team at Mumbai airport must look in to on top priority.

Once you get into the terminal, it gets a little bit better but not much. In my case, Lufthansa’s local station manager came over and showed me to the first class check in line. Checking in was a breeze, and I headed over to the second bottleneck at Mumbai Airport, the immigration line. Now I’ll hope against hope that this issue will be fixed once the new integrated terminal comes up, but based on experiences of passengers at T3 in New Delhi, there are just not enough immigration counters or personnel to serve the peak demand both inbound and outbound. Wait times for the premium classes are 20~30 minutes and economy class from 45~60 minutes. I understand why most travellers from India are loathe to connect from domestic to international at hubs, especially Mumbai.

From this bottleneck, you are immediately funnelled into the next bottleneck -- the security check. Another 30 minutes, again thanks to a lack of adequate personnel. A lack of adequate English language knowledge and both the CISF end and many foreign non-English speaking passengers adds to the delays. These are issues the Ministry of Civil Aviation must address if they intend to succeed at hubs and improve tourism. The CISF too needs to explain why is it cannot provide adequate personnel and rendering such a poor service when it receives at least Rs. 130 per departing passenger.

I immediately headed to the Lufthansa Business Lounge opposite Gate 6, which was excellent (review to come soon).

Lufthansa LH765 Mumbai - Munich 

Around 1215, I left for the gate so that I would be able to board the plane early and get some unencumbered shots of Lufthansa’s new business class seat. Unfortunately, the boarding was on a remote gate and in-explicably there was no separate boarding for premium class/frequent flyer passengers versus economy class passengers.

Flight #1 LH765 BOM-MUC 0107-0555 Seat: 8K(business, aisle)- new business class product Aircraft: Airbus A330-300 (2-2-2 business configuration), 90% full.

I got onto the plane and managed to snap a few good shots of the business class seat before settling in. Immediately once we got into the air, the Lufthansa flight attendants immediately came around with hot towels, which were very useful given my state after running around Mumbai Airport.

Following this, they came around with a drink service along with some nuts, which while delicious, weren’t served warm as they are in some other business classes. Still, a meal followed in which I had an excellent Asian vegetarian palate, though the highlight was definitely the apple raisin pie for dessert, as well as the excellent bread basket. A hot dessert might have been in order, though this is just nitpicking.

Following this meal, I decided to check out the selection available in Lufthansa’s AVOD (Audio Video On Demand) in-flight entertainment system (IFE).

The content offering is sparse (especially in comparison to Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and even United). After some deliberation, I decided on the pilot for 2 Broke Girls on CBS (rapidly becoming one of my more favoured shows – for those that don’t know, I’m a TV savant – I regularly follow some 20-25 shows year round), followed by Battleship, an incredibly contrived big budget action film with gaping plot holes. Still, the impressive visuals from Battleship were pretty awesome on Lufthansa’s massive AVOD screen in the new business class.

I decided to test out the full extent of Lufthansa’s new lie-flat product. And I have to say that the seat passed with flying colours. Lufthansa has this fantastic seat control system which allows you to adjust every single aspect of your seat, including the firmness, and it was pretty awesome for someone like me, who is a bit of a quirky sleeper. I slept like a baby and it was pretty much the best business class seat I’ve ever been in (out of 15 airlines) from a sleep perspective. I managed to squeeze in around 5 hours of sleep before waking up to an excellent breakfast service that finished around 30 minutes before our touchdown on-time in Munich.

Conclusion - Great seat, fantastic bed, excellent cabin crew

As a whole I would judge the new Lufthansa business class product as excellent. This is not to say that there are no flaws. The AVOD IFE content offering is a bit sparse, though this would be mitigated once Flynet (inflight WiFi) is available. Of course the use of your own devices over WiFi becomes less relevant if they run out of battery 3 hours in, so I think it’s critical for Lufthansa to add proper in-seat power outlets and really take Flynet to its full potential, perhaps using the hybrid outlets that accept both US and European plugs.

Edit: A Lufthansa spokesperson informed me that Lufthansa does in fact offer vegetarian meals, so it must have been a communication error on my part that precluded me from getting a standard vegetarian meal.

However, these short-comings are more than overcome by the incredible seat and something that I’ve grown to consider a huge Lufthansa asset; their cabin crew. On my last five to six Lufthansa long-haul flights, I’ve had great flight attendants in both economy and business class. I later found out from Devesh, that Lufthansa has been training its cabin crew with its partner, Singapore Airlines, which is famous for its "Singapore Girl" cabin crew.

I observed the Lufthansa cabin crew always extremely professional and courteous, but they have this critical extra touch of care and attention. Throughout this trip, from Newark to Frankfurt to Bangalore and from Mumbai to Munich, what struck me was the care and attention the LH cabin crew devote to helping out elderly passengers with mundane inflight stuff; like getting up to go to the bathroom, and dealing with wheelchairs and baggage post-flight; something we younger passengers take for granted.

Kudos to Lufthansa’s flight attendants for their excellent service; like their counter-parts in Singapore Airlines, the cabin crew adds those critical extra touches to the overall experience, that makes the difference between good and great.

So overall, I’d rate this a solid 8.5/10, falling behind because of the limited in-flight entertainment content and the limited amenity kit (though the kit bag itself was awesome), and limited food options, but these short-comings may not matter as much to the corporate traveller to whom, rest and service is critical, and there the new business class seat would get a rating of 12 out of 10 if it were possible, and the cabin crew a solid 9.5/10.

It is, by far, the best business class product offered ex-Bangalore today.

All we can say in closing, competitors ........ look out.

Editor's note: Lufthansa commences its Bangalore Frankfurt Boeing 747-8i service later tonight. This is the same Business class found on this new aircraft. Vinay's economy seat was paid for. Thanks to Lufthansa for upgrading him to the Business class on the Mumbai Munich sector operated by an Airbus A330-300. Lufthansa is upgrading its A333 fleet to the same new business class as the B748i progressively.

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Q.E.D. - Wrong security stamps on boarding passes

Last week I had discussed the need to review the requirement of Indian aviation security agencies of placing a stamp on boarding passes and hand luggage tags.

Many readers have commented about similar experiences and the frivolity of having such an archaic system which has become irrelevant in a modern world where threats are more insidious and require ever increasing levels of alertness from our security agencies.

To demonstrate how insignificant, security agencies treat the information on the stamp, a Bangalore Aviation reader sent in this picture.


Do you see the error?

The reader has travelled on April 8th, but the security stamp is dated April 18th -- six days in the future as of today. (Editors note: for privacy reasons the seat number, passenger name and airline sequence number have been erased)

The passenger travelled without a hitch, thank you. It appears that the CISF guard at the boarding gate was only concerned that a stamp was applied, and not with the accuracy of the stamp.

So what is preventing a terrorist from bypassing the security and attaching a hand-baggage tag which was stamped earlier?

Bengaluru International Airport has a very strong and fool-proof security system. If the security system is fool-proof and a person cannot bypass the security, then why need the stamp?

Quod Erat Demonstratum(QED).

It is time for the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security to encourage airports which invest in security by removing archaic rules to help them improve efficiency and become role models for those that have not.

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Right sizing and re-focussing airport security in India

Thanks to the increasing security threats, queues at security checks have become the bane of air travellers across the world. However, during my recent trip to Malaysia and Thailand, I found reasonably fast moving lines. In contrast, at peak hours across airports in India, we experience extremely long lines at security checks and a boarding process that moves slower than the thickest of molasses. On one particular early morning flight, it took me more time to cover the 200 meters from the ATC tower at Bangalore airport to the boarding gate than it took for me to cover the 55 kilometres to the airport.

The constant refrain we passengers hear from the CISF, the agency entrusted by India’s Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) to enforce airport security, is of inadequate staff.

The main thing I observe is the excess deployment of CISF personnel at the X-ray, metal detector and frisking check point. Thanks to the rules mandated by BCAS this requires four CISF guards per lane, much higher than global standards. The insistence on a full body frisk adds to the check time, but is a good option in my humble opinion.

Not so good, is this archaic insistence on stamping everything from hand baggage tags to boarding passes. Hardly any other country in the world has this system.

In addition to burdening the CISF into deploying additional staff to check, then stamp, and then verify the stamp, the process appears to have given the CISF guards a form of tunnel vision. The entire security process now seems to be centred around "the stamp". A fifth guard is deployed at the boarding gate only to verify the stamps further delaying the boarding process.

While I was travelling out of Bangalore a few months ago, the CISF team at the X-ray point forgot to stamp one of tags of my hand baggage. I was made to trudge all the way back from the boarding gate just to get my bag stamped. The team at the X-ray point did not check my bag a second time, but just stamped my bag.

The very fact that only a stamp matters is, in and of itself, a very scary thought, implying that persons in the security process do not trust their predecessor in the chain. If the security chain is foolproof, then the very fact that a passenger is in the sterile security hold automatically implies he/she has been checked; in which case the stamp is immaterial. If the chain is not fool proof, then no amount of stamping will matter.

In a few months Indira Gandhi International Airport will inaugurate Terminal 3, one of the largest in the world with over 100 gates. What happens to flight timings if a passenger is made to walk all the way back from the furthest gate, which will be about half a kilometre to the security checkpoint just to get a stamp?

The CISF will insist that the event of security breakdown they can identify which guard checked the mischief monger. In the recent security flap when black powder was found on a Kingfisher aircraft, the security agencies first went back and reviewed camera footage, not bag tags, to ensure every passenger was checked.

It is time to right-size, re-focus, and use modern techniques. CISF staff currently deployed around "the stamp" should instead be used more productively to further enhance security by observing and profiling passengers. More than a bomb or knife, it is the predictable regularity of drunks getting aboard an aircraft and then creating havoc, that scares regular fliers.

This, the CISF claims, is the airlines' responsibility, not theirs. Should ensuring the safety of a flight by delivering a "sterile" passenger, be it a knife, gun, or bomb wielding terrorist or the equally out of control belligerent or drunk, not be the responsibility of the CISF?

Another pet peeve of mine is the fact that at almost all airports the gate is a double door. Yet the CISF guard will open only one door, block the other, and expect passengers to squeeze through the narrow gap. I just stop at the gate and tell them I am too wide. While this gets me a glare, it also opens the doors for me.

Read related article about the wrong stamp being applied to a boarding pass.

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Kingfisher Airlines "bomb" planter caught, BIAL security vindicated

Eight days ago, on Sunday 21st March, a so-called bomb was discovered on board a Kingfisher Airlines aircraft at Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) early morning.

As usual, TimesNow TV tried to make a huge mountain out of a molehill claiming that a "bomb" was discovered and defused.

In reality about a teaspoon full of black powder, the type used in fire-crackers, was found wrapped in a Malayalam (the state language of Kerala) newspaper during the early morning checks of the aircraft before it began its day with a flight to Kochi, the commercial capital of Kerala state.

The five layer in-line security at BIA has been rated at par with the best European airports, and video recording of all baggage scans are archived. The recordings of checked-in baggage screening showed nothing extraordinary. The CISF which checks hand-baggage also found nothing unusual in their screening process.

Given the wrapping of a Kerala newspaper, it was surmised that the black powder package may have been placed in the inbound flight from Thiruvanathapuram (Trivandrum), the state capital of Kerala, and the last flight aircraft made before its night halt in Bangalore. It is possible that the security of Kingfisher Airlines may have missed this minuscule package during their anti-sabotage checks in the dark of the night.

It is but natural that this hot potato was bounced between the airline, CISF at both Bangalore and Trivandrum, and AAI Trivandrum and BIAL in Bangalore over the last week, with no one wanting it to land in their laps.

The newspaper wrapping proved to be the downfall of the mischief monger. Trivandrum police discovered that the paper was of an edition distributed in one particular village, about 25 km south of the capital, and yesterday, arrested Rajasekaran who turns out to be an ex-CISF cadre, now working for a private company providing handling services to Kingfisher Airlines at Trivandrum. Investigations are on-going as to his motive, but mischief appears to be the likely cause.

The last few days prior to this incident had seen a heightened security alert at Bangalore, and after the "bomb" discovery, security at BIA went in to hyper-drive.

I was travelling to Malaysia on 21st night and was carrying a bag full of some electronic test components. I was given the full once over by BIA security who stripped my bag down, even opening up the lining for a complete inspection. This is despite the BIAL terminal operations officials accompanying me to the security check-point to vouch for me.

Not that I mind, in fact I welcome such vigilant security and I want to report to the readers of Bangalore Aviation the stringency of the security at Bengaluru International Airport and that no exceptions are made, even to known persons.

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My first trip to Kolkata and Guwahati, on IndiGo airlines - Part 1

On 27th August I took my first flight to Kolkata in my life. Even I was surprised that I had never been to one India's largest cities in all my 45 years.

My thanks to The Telegraph newspaper who invited me to speak on innovation at the Northeast ICT summit in Guwahati, Assam and making the trip possible.

The day began early at 4am, showered and was ready by 5:15am for my Meru cab, which I had booked the night earlier. At this insane hour we reached the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) in a quick 50 minutes. The cab ride was expensive by Indian standards, Rs. 670 including a tip. If I had taken my car and parked in the long term parking, it would have still cost only about half that of the cab fare. I also found out that the cabs are now dropping off passengers in the parking lot which is out in the open and requires a good five minute walk to the terminal. Thank god it was not raining.

A fast check-in led me to the long queues waiting at the security checks. I was surprised that four checkpoints were unmanned given that this is the peak hour of travel. At the boarding gate I sadly discovered that the CISF staff forgot to stamp my hand luggage tag, forcing me to trudge back to the security check point and get the holy grail.

I think this stamp only shows how unsure the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is, of its own procedures. A truly effective security system would self-ensure every passenger is checked, rather than requiring an easily forge-able illegible stamp to prove it. While the security system at BIA is of global standards, they are sadly forced to follow rules meant for less efficiently run airports in India.

After boarding the IndiGo Airbus A320-232 VT-INI, we were informed that the Captain of the flight had called in sick and a replacement Captain was rushing to the airport. IndiGo has the best on time departure record amongst mainstream carriers in India, and the replacement flight commander got on board the aircraft at 06:55, just 5 minutes after the scheduled departure, and we were pushing back 5 minutes later. Chalk one more "on time" (flight departing within 15 minutes of scheduled departure) for IndiGo.

Taxied down to holding point on runway 27 with a British Airways Boeing 747-400 on the runway revving up for its flight to London, GoAir's Airbus A320 VT-WAK holding in front of us. Here I experienced the chink in BIA's runway efficiency. Since all aircraft are required to climb about 3,000 feet, it forces the air traffic control to provide two minutes between departures. Five minutes later we were airborne and soon punched out through the clouds in to the brilliant sunshine with the IAE V2500 Select One engines pushing us along.

The flight was turbulent all the way to Kolkata, and my plans to catch up on some sleep were badly shaken. The cabin service was good, efficient, and with a smile, something I experienced on all four IndiGo flights. IndiGo has it's share of glamour, and I find those scarves around the necks of the cabin crew very flirtatious and sexy.

Landed on runway 19L at Kolkata's Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose airport, quickly deplaned and promptly discovered why Indian's like point to point travel. The transit experience was poor to say the least. An arriving passenger in Kolkata has to collect their checked-in baggage, go out into the non-sterile area, and essentially perform all the steps of a check-in all over again, including showing your ticket, ID, etc. It is painful.

The terminal building is quite shabby and I could not help but compare, and feel proud of the terminal at Bangalore. The toilets like most other AAI run airports was filthy. Suddenly realised, I was in the heartland of communism in India. Even though their masters in China and Russia have dropped communism, the India communists are there to carry the red flag forward.

After a brief wait we started boarding IndiGo's first Airbus A320-232, VT-INA for the onward flight to Guwahati, thankfully via an aero-bridge since, by now, the rain was coming down hard. Felt bad for all the ground crews of the various airlines scuttling around the tarmac ensuring their flight operations. Who ever thought airlines were a glamorous job.

The North American captain had a bee in his bonnet taxing the plane like a Formula 1 ace, and then he performed a take-off any Air Force pilot departing Baghdad would be proud of. Full throttle followed by a steep 28 degree parabolic climb, wow!!!!

Despite the heavy clouds, the arrival in to Guwahati was a feast for the eyes. Lush greenery, mountains swathed in mist, green farms stretched out like carpets, intersected by flowing rivers. A beautiful land populated by beautiful people. All I could think of as we landed on runway 02, was I need to earn a lot of money quickly and retire here.

Got my bags and five minutes later was in the cab heading for my hotel.

The return trip tomorrow.

Images are my copyright and may not be used without written permission.

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American held for carrying gun at airport, Jet to cancel Boeing 777 order, Vijay Mallya's debt troubles

US national arrested for carrying loaded handgun on board a flight

The Times of India is reporting A US citizen was arrested earlier this morning at the Chennai airport for carrying a loaded revolver. Central Industrial and Security Force (CISF) personnel who secure airports across India, found the weapon while scanning the baggage of Mr. Semilar, 58 years old, when he was about to board a Mumbai-bound flight. Read the full story here.

What was this guy thinking ?


Jet Airways in negotiation with Boeing to cancel its one remaining 777-300ER order

The Business Standard citing the Press Trust of India is reporting that Jet Airways is negotiating with aircraft manufacturer Boeing to cancel its one remaining 777-300ER on order. The aircraft order estimated to be worth Rs 725 crore ($145 million), is scheduled for delivery in August.

"The management is in talks with Boeing over canceling/finding another buyer for the Boeing 777 (Capex at $145 million) that was due for delivery in August 2009," brokerage firm IDFC-SSKI said in a report on Jet Airways after a management interaction.

Through much of the last year, Jet Airways has been busy leasing out its Boeing 777-300ER fleet to Turkish Airlines THY and Gulf Air. However, recently Gulf Air decided not to proceed with its four aircraft wet-lease beyond the initial six months. These returned aircraft too will add cost burdens to Jet.

Read the full story here.


Dr. Vijay Mallya's debt troubles mounting courtesy Kingfisher Airlines, White and Mackay

Forbes India has written an excellent article about the mounting debt crises for Dr. Vijay Mallya.

Mallya has been leading a double life. He has spent the past few months negotiating for the survival of his empire. His debts have zoomed. So have his losses. The economic slowdown has made his daring bets of the boom period look like risky gambles. He must stem the losses, or even the healthier parts of his business will fall prey.

Mallya has accumulated about Rs. 14,000 crore [$2.8 billion] worth of debt spread across his liquor and airline businesses through costly acquisitions of global liquor companies like Whyte and Mackay and a bleeding balance sheet courtesy Kingfisher Airlines.

At the core of this battle is Kingfisher Airlines, losing cash at an alarming rate in the middle of the decade’s biggest fall in passenger turnout. The debt on the airline’s books is over Rs. 5,000 crore, much of it guaranteed by United Breweries Holding Ltd., the group’s holding entity. As the airline’s monthly losses have crossed Rs. 200 crore, Mallya has no option but to push for more corporate guarantees from his other companies. Already, UB Holding is seeking shareholder approval for doubling the limit of its corporate guarantees to Rs. 12,000 crore.

However, I fully agree with the article's conclusion - Dr. Mallya is a seasoned and passionate corporate warrior. It is a matter of time before he pulls off deals and recovers. The stemming of losses at Kingfisher is another story for another time.

Read the article here.

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Ladder point checking to be introduced at airports

With terror threat on the aviation sector looming large, Government has decided to introduce checking of passengers at ladder-points in all functional airports across the country and enhance the strength of sky marshals on more flights.

These and other measures were reviewed at a meeting Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had with airport operators, airlines and all concerned agencies.

"The ladder-point checking (of passengers) will be introduced at all airports progressively," Patel said, adding that security at all functional airports, big or small, was being "re-looked, reviewed and strengthened".

He said the strength of the sky marshals would be enhanced and the number of domestic flights, on which they would be deployed, increased.

Among other measures was to strengthen security system on the perimeter of airports and introduce biometric access to airports, he said. "I would urge all those concerned, including the passengers, to cooperate in strengthening the security measures. Everyone should cooperate." Asked whether security surcharge would be introduced to meet the additional costs, the Minister said this was not yet being considered. Security systems would be introduced at all airports "whatever it takes. We will put in place sophisticated equipments at the airports."

Airports in major metro cities have been on high security alert in the wake of intelligence inputs that terrorists may attack them. PTI

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CISF commandos denied drinking water at Bengaluru Airport?

The remote location of Bengaluru International Airport adds to the responsibility of the airport promoters BIAL, to ensure proper and adequate facilities for the people who work at the airport. I have always maintained that it is imperative to take care of the people who take care of us. Their comfort ensures efficiency and alertness. Two vital aspects in any operation, more so in an airport.

This report by Express News is most concerning.

They have been guarding the airports round-the-clock for a week now after a red-alert was sounded that there could be possible air-borne attacks and hijacking of aircraft.

But, for the 40-odd Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos posted at various locations at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), the world-class airport is nothing short of a parched fortress.

The commandos who are part of the Quick Reaction Team (QRT) which was formed after the Mumbai attacks and the sounding of the red-alert, on 12-hour duty, alleged that they have not been provided with basic facilities at the airport.

“We are treated badly whenever we head to the water container to quench our thirst. We are shooed away by the airport officials. They ask us to fetch water from elsewhere,” a CISF commando told Express.

The commandos who have been posted at the parking bays and outside the terminal area among other locations, said that facilities at the HAL airport were better when they were posted there.

“At HAL airport, it was the AAI which was at the helm of affairs. But here the private promoters are not bothered about the CISF,” added a commando who moved to the BIA upon the closure of the HAL airport.Besides, CISF commandos say that they have to confine themselves to vehicles for accommodation.

I feel that the Express reporters should have requested for a response from BIAL, to understand their situation, reasons, and given a more balanced story. Assuming this story is true, I am horrified. Denying drinking water is not the done thing, EVER.

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