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XIAMEN AIRLINES (Xiamen Airport to Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport), BOEING 737-800

3/29/2015

 
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Route: Xiamen Airport to Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport

Departure date of flight: March 28 2015, 10.50pm

Flight number: MF8185

Flight duration: 1 hour 10 minutes

Class: Economy Class

Aircraft type: Boeing 737-800
 
Punctuality of the flight:
 
This short-haul flight departed from Xiamen to Hangzhou. My experience of Xiamen Airport was that it came across as one of the cleanest and efficient airports in China (only from my personal experience). Like every other building and airport terminal in China, space doesn’t seem to be a major issue as there is plenty of that here – they certainly have invested a lot here.
The best part of the flight were the views. While landing into Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport, the plane makes a turning over Binjiang District, providing a full on view of the river and West Lake, as well as the whole of the beautiful Binjiang area (where I lived for over a year).

Any baggage issues:
 
No issues- I only had hand luggage.

Comments on the check-in staff and any issues:

No check in issues. Everything went perfectly smoothly at check-in at Xiamen Airport. The check-in gates for domestic flights to second and third tier cities, such as Hangzhou, are located in the A-section of the departures building (though this may change later).

Comments regarding the pre-meal service:

Herbal Chinese tea, orange juice and some other drinks, including tea and coffee. 

Comments regarding the first meal:

For this short-haul flight, we were served with a packet of salted peanuts.
 
Comments regarding the drinks service:

A second round of drinks were offered before (orange juice and water), during, and after the meal. Plenty of milk, coffee, and tea.

Comments regarding the in-flight snacks (if any):

None

Comments regarding the second meal (if any):

None

Comments of professionalism of the cabin crew:

The cabin crew seemed proud to work for Xiamen Airlines, and provide a very warm and friendly service. The airline has a nice livery, which has recently been introduced.  

Comments on the interior of the aircraft (including seat comfort): 

Xiamen Airlines fleet consists of a mixture of Boeing aircraft, namely 787, 757 and 737 aircraft, with a variety of new Boeing 737-700/800/900NGs. All of the 737 aircraft come in the following configuration:
 
Economy Class seats have a pitch of 32 inches, and a width of 18 inches
First Class seats have a pitch of 38 inches, and a width of 21 inches (some aircraft have Economy Class seating).

Overall rating 1-10 (worst-best): 10
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Snacks on-board Xiamen Airlines: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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The spacious domestic terminal at Xiamen Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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The domestic terminal at Xiamen Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Xiamen Airport has a major maintenance facility- usually you see the Boeing 747 or a Boeing 777 parked. On this occasion, there was a Cathay Pacific 777, KLM 747-400, and an Evergreen 747-200F (pictured): Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Xiamen Airport has a major maintenance facility- usually you see the Boeing 747 or a Boeing 777 parked. On this occasion, there was a Cathay Pacific 777, KLM 747-400, and an Evergreen 747-200F (pictured): Photo Copyright Navjot Singh

SHANDONG AIRLINES (Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport to Xiamen Airport), BOEING 737-800

3/27/2015

 
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Route: Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport to Xiamen Airport

Departure date of flight: March 28 2015, 10.50pm

Flight number: SC1174

Flight duration: 1 hour 10 minutes

Class: Economy Class

Aircraft type: Boeing 737-800
 
Punctuality of the flight:
 
This short-haul flight departed on time on a rainy and dark evening in Hangzhou. This was rare because even under normal weather conditions, most flights are delayed in China, and for the flight to depart to depart on time during rain was something to cheer about, I guess. 

Any baggage issues:
 
No issues- I only had hand luggage.

Comments on the check-in staff and any issues:

No check in issues. Everything went perfectly smoothly at check-in at Hangzhou Airport. The check-in gates for domestic flights to second and third tier cities, such as Xiamen are located in the A-section of the departures building (though this may change later). For an airport the size of Hangzhou, it is somewhat underused and quieter than it should be (the international departures terminal is practically dead quiet 80% of the time).

Comments regarding the pre-meal service:

Herbal Chinese tea, orange juice and some other drinks, including tea and coffee. 

Comments regarding the first meal:

For this short-haul flight, we were served with a packet of salted peanuts.
 
Comments regarding the drinks service:

A second round of drinks were offered before (orange juice and water), during, and after the meal. Plenty of milk, coffee, and tea.

Comments regarding the in-flight snacks (if any):

None

Comments of professionalism of the cabin crew:

The cabin crew seemed proud to work for Shandong Airlines, and provide a very warm and friendly service.

Comments on the interior of the aircraft (including seat comfort): 

Shandong Airlines fleet consists only of Boeing 737 aircraft, with a variety of new Boeing 737-700/800/900NGs. All of these aircraft come in the following configuration:
 
Economy Class seats have a pitch of 32 inches, and a width of 18 inches
First Class seats have a pitch of 38 inches, and a width of 21 inches (some aircraft have a only Economy Class seating).

Overall rating 1-10 (worst-best): 10
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My souvenir photo of Hangzhou's underused airport terminal: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Shandong Airlines in-flight offering from Hangzhou to Xiamen: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh

CHINA EASTERN AIRLINES (Qingdao Airport to Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport), AIRBUS A321

3/23/2015

 
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Route: Qingdao Liuting Airport to Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport

Departure date and time of flight: 17:28 on the 23 March, 2015
 
Flight Number: MU2381

Flight duration: 1 hour 50 minutes

Class: Economy Class

Aircraft type: Airbus A321

Punctuality of the flight:
 
The flight departed on time and landed on time.

Any baggage issues:
 
No issues- the bags arrived on time and in one piece.

Comments on the check-in staff and any issues:

Qingdao Airport is located on the outskirts of the city, with around a 30-mnute drive required from the downtown. Even though Qingdao is an international airport (Lufthansa flies using their A340-642 aircraft three times a week, at the time of writing). No check in issues. Everything went perfectly smoothly at Qingdao Airport. I arrived around five minutes prior to the check in counter being closed.

Comments regarding the pre-meal service:

Drinks, excluding alcohol, included tea and coffee were served. The beautiful thing about flying with China Eastern is that they are one of the few airline companies in China that offer sugar and milk powder separately.

Comments regarding the first meal:

A delicious helping of Chinese pork and rice (hot meal) was served straight after take-off. This was accompanied with a small tray containing four cherry tomatoes, and a packet of mustard pickle (hot and spicy!).
 
Comments regarding the drinks service:

A second round of drinks were offered after the meal. No alcohol was served, but plenty of milk, coffee and tea. Loved it.
 
Comments on the in-flight system (if any):

The IFE system was only activated once during this flight- prior to take off (for the safety demonstration). The PVT screens are not placed behind every seat but overhead.

Comments of professionalism of the cabin crew:

The cabin crew were professional and polite. Just a normal flight, without any incidents. The level of English spoken was good, too.


Comments on the interior of the aircraft (including seat comfort): 

This Airbus A321 aircraft for China Eastern has a seat configuration of 3-3 with an all economy seat set up. The plane was very clean and had the latest IFE system installed. The staff were professional and could speak some adequate amounts of English.

Overall rating 1-10 (worst-best):10 
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Pork with rice: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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The four cherry tomatoes: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Meal box: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Hot and spicy mustard pickle: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh

SHANDONG AIRLINES (Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport to Qingdao Airport), BOEING 737-800

3/21/2015

 
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Shandong Airlines Boeing 737-80NG parked on a rainy night at Qingdao Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
Route: Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport to Qingdao International Airport

Departure date of flight: March 22, 2015, 20.50

Flight number: SC4776

Flight duration: 1 hour 10 minutes

Class: Economy Class

Aircraft type: Boeing 737-800
 
Punctuality of the flight:
 
This short-haul flight departed on time on a rainy and dark evening in Hangzhou. The city had been experiencing a thunderstorm all afternoon, and there seemed to be no end to the horrible weather. However, remarkably, this didn’t stop flights from departing on time. This was rare because even under normal weather conditions, more times than not, flights are delayed in China, and for the flight to depart to depart on time during rain was something to cheer about, I guess. 

Any baggage issues:
 
No issues- I only had hand luggage.

Comments on the check-in staff and any issues:

No check in issues. Everything went perfectly smoothly at check-in at Hangzhou Airport. The check-in gates for domestic flights to second and third tier cities, such as Qingdao are located in the A-section of the departures building (though this may change later). For an airport the size of Hangzhou, it is somewhat underused and quieter than it should be (the international departures terminal is practically dead quiet 80% of the time). Qingdao is only less than 45 minutes away from Hangzhou, but it is a world away: Qingdao has clearer skies and a seemingly much better lifestyle because of it being a coastal city.

Comments regarding the pre-meal service:

Herbal Chinese tea, orange juice and some other drinks, including tea and coffee. 

Comments regarding the first meal:

For this short-haul flight, we were served with a packet of salted peanuts and a packet containing cream crackers.
 
Comments regarding the drinks service:

A second round of drinks were offered before (orange juice and water), during, and after the meal. Plenty of milk, coffee, and tea.

Comments regarding the in-flight snacks (if any):

None

Comments regarding the second meal (if any):

None

Comments of professionalism of the cabin crew:

The cabin crew seemed proud to work for Shandong Airlines, and provide a very warm and friendly service.

Comments on the interior of the aircraft (including seat comfort): 

Shandong Airlines fleet consists only of Boeing 737 aircraft, with a variety of new Boeing 737-700/800/900NGs. All of these aircraft come in the following configuration:
 
Economy Class seats have a pitch of 32 inches, and a width of 18 inches
First Class seats have a pitch of 38 inches, and a width of 21 inches (some aircraft have a only Economy Class seating).

Overall rating 1-10 (worst-best): 10
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Interior of the Boeing 737-800NG belonging to Shandong Airlines: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Peanuts served on Shandong Airlines: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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Lemon flavored cream crackers: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
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    Navjot Singh inside an Airbus A320 cockpit of British Airways at Heathrow Airport

    About Airline PR

    This is a special section on Airline Branding, and Airline Public Relations written by me on all the flights I have been fortunate enough to have been on. These are not records taken from somewhere else, but are actual flights I have been on. Most of the flight trips are officially sponsored by the airline companies in order to promote their certain routes, and aircraft. Airline promotion and PR related work in the aviation industry is one of my expertise. 

    This section of the website will grow in time, and will include detailed reviews of the in-flight meals, the airline seats, the comfort of the overall trip, the customer service both at the check-in-desk as well as by the Cabin Crew; and how good the assistance has been by the airline staff. All the reviews are honest, fair, firm, and non-biased.

    I am proud to have worked with some of the largest PR agencies, and some of the most powerful airline brands in the world, including but not limited to: Air Canada, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Qatar Airways, Lufthansa German Airlines, Air China, Turkish Airlines, British Airways, TAP Air Portugal, Air Malta, Air France, KLM, CityJet, and many others. 

    All the flights I have taken in my life are documented on this weblog except for any flights that were taken before 2003. These included Syrian Airlines (747SP in 1985), British Airways (2003 to Dubai), Aeroflot (IL-62, and IL-86 in 1989) and a few others. I regret not documenting them because I never thought of doing that back in those days.  

    I am hoping to bring to life the joy of reviewing airlines. 

    Note Regarding Photos

    For all media reviews, special permission has been granted from the airline authorities, and even from airport authorities for the photos/videos taken on-board the aircraft and on the ramp because it is strictly forbidden to take photos and videos on and around the aircraft without permission. 

    The purpose of this blog is to provoke thought, inform, intrigue and amaze you.

    You read it first here!

    Click on the particular airline below and see my flight review. When you click on an airline, it should list all of the flights taken with that airline.

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    Navjot Singh at a Chinese Military Airfield
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    Watch exclusive videos below taken in the cockpit of a Boeing 777-300ER in-flight over Chinese Airspace. 

    Special thanks goes to 
    Turkish Airlines 

    B777-300ER Cockpit Video 1

    B777-300ER Cockpit Video 2

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