Review Flying Air India SFO-BOM

The next few posts will be about my two sons recent trip out to visit us in India. I thought I would start by posting about the longest flight any of us have ever been on – Air India 180 from San Francisco to Mumbai in 17.25 hours.

First the prep – eventhough Air India is part of Star Alliance, I had to book a separate ticket on United for the MFR-SFO segment and we had a nearly 7 hour layover. We made the best use of it though. We booked a free room on points at the DoubleTree near SFO airport and found a very good seafood and steakhouse within walking distance called Kincaide’s. It was right in the middle of a park and we got to see all the planes landing in to the airport. It was pretty cool. We also knew it was our last chance to eat a real good, juicy, corn and growth hormone fueled USDA approved cut of red meat. So we did.

We had a great meal and I enjoyed my last few sips of Napa Valley wines for awhile. We came back to the hotel and headed for the airport.

I had read so many poor reviews of Air India and the entire experience. The worst part in my opinion was the delay. The day before the flight even left they delayed our takeoff time from 10pm to 11:55pm. Then when at the gate they delayed us another hour because they said the cleaning crew was taking longer. Regardless we didn’t take off till 1:15am. That was the worst part. The rest of it was better than expected.

Check in was a breeze and very quick. Since the SFO-BOM route is new they have discounted most tickets to increase ridership. I bought a business class ticket for myself and for an extra $100 each was able to put the boys in Premium Economy. The business class ticket gave me access to the United Polaris Lounge at SFO which is probably my favorite airport lounge in the world – they have their own restaurant (free), a free buffet, free drinks (including premium liquors like Lagavulin 16), showers, constantly cleaned bathrooms, and dedicated agents if needed. Anyways they wouldnt let the boys in so I just went in for a quick sip of whiskey and then met the boys back at the gate.

Then we boarded. My seat was lie flat. It was fairly comfortable although I have sat in better. The screen was smaller and they had a good library of both Hollywood and Bollywood movies. Here is my seat.

Here is the boys seat in premium economy. They had extra legroom, a bigger screen, and didn’t have a middle seat. They also got an upgraded meal. They got blankets and pillows.

This is the Tumi amenity kit they provided in Business. It contained a sleep mask, socks, a toothbrush and toothpaste, hand and face cream, and lip balm. They also provided two small pillows and a blanket for sleep.

As for food it was very good. You can see the menu and my dinner after takeoff below:

The food was very good. They actually served us three meals – dinner on takeoff (surprised I was hungry at 2am but given you have to eat when you can on long flights I indulged), a breakfast about 7 hours in to the flight, and a lunch about 2 hours before landing (which was odd because we got in at 6am). I guess another knock I would put on Air India is they are very careful about serving alcohol. They only served it with dinner and I never saw the booze again…which honestly I didn’t need it other than helping me get to sleep.

So what did I do for 17.25 hours flying? I visited with the boys several times. I drank a ton of water which led to multiple bathroom trips (one toilet got clogged which unfortunately I was the one to discover). I watched about 3-4 TV shows, watched the Gahndi 3.5 hour movie with Ben Kingsley (you must see it is fantastic), watched another movie, slept for 5 hours, and spent alot of time in my own thoughts…a very dangerous place mind you.

The flight attendants were very nice and accomodating to all requests. I have heard Air India has terrible service but I found theirs to be much better than old tired cranky grandma flight attendants found on some legacy carriers. These attendants and pilots looked like they enjoyed their jobs rather than resenting it.

We finally made it to Mumbai. We made it through immigration in about 20 minutes, bought some duty free gin, and met our driver for the 3 hour drive to Pune (yes the journey continues via road!). We finally made it home to my beloved wife, daughter, and yes even Ya Ya.

And someone call Guinness World Records..because I am pretty sure I just completed the longest Costco run (Oregon to India) in human history…

I will continue more posts about the trip soon….