ThaiA345 From Indonesia, joined Oct 2006, 814 posts, RR: 17 Posted (5 years 4 months 2 weeks 3 days 20 hours ago) and read 9880 times:
Reason For Trip:
This time, a colleague and I had to go to Semarang for a short 5 hour trip to Semerang and returning to Jakarta the very same afternoon. How wrong was I going to be.
I times my arrival at the airport perfectly, as when I arrived at the check in counter, I had 30mins to go before my flight. I hope there will be no delays as the rain was starting to come down real hard in Jakarta.
I spent all my time after checking in at the Garuda Lounge.
GA Lounge
Airside at CGK T2 Domestic
PK-GGQ (note the fast changing weather!)
In Flight
My 1st time on board PK-GGQ which is one of the newer B733 in GA’s fleet, with its first flight in 1998. Nothing much to talk about on this short hop although the take off itself was real bumpy and for most of the way into Semarang too, due to storm clouds which are blanketing almost half of Java.
Cabin and food pics
It’s a full load in both J and Y. It was a quick and short flight but they still managed to serve some snacks. Service was polite and efficient as usual.
PK-GGQ on arrival at Semarang
Service: 8/10
Food: 1/10
Aircraft: 6/10
The chaos that happened! Throughout my meeting, there was a tv on in the meeting room and I could see floods starting to build up all over Jakarta, and also from sms’s which my secretary and chauffeur have been sending to me. Semarang itself was about to have a heavy downpour. Alright, things only got worse when at around 11am, it was announce that CGK airport will be shut down mainly due to visibility was down to only 300m whereas the minimum safe visibility was supposed to be at 500m. After a quick lunch we still headed towards the airport to see what will happen with our flight (originally departing at 1450). When we got to the airport, naturally all flights that were posted on the screens were all showing delayed as CGK airport was still closed, and another amazing sight, Semarang is a small regional airport with parking for only 5 737 sized aircraft, but due to diversions, there were 12 aircraft already in Semarang! Well, I won’t go into details of the scenes at the check in counters. I realized that there is no point trying to find out when my flight will be delayed till as the situation in Jakarta was getting from bad to worse. So I calmly decided just to rebook us on the 0600 flight leaving the next day. Not a bad decision right? We even managed to get rooms at the Hotel Ciputra in downtown Semarang, only 1 problem. We had no change of clothes or toiletries as we were only prepared for a day trip!
Pre Flight
After a sleepless night in Semarang and getting back into my dirty clothes, we arrived at the airport at 0530, but was told the flight was delayed till 0745 which was expected as CGK was still overloaded with flights that were backlogged since the day before, and Jakarta was really flooded! Even the airport freeway was unaccessible, which meant a crazy 4 hour car ride home thru ‘kampungs’!
Primitive Check in area in Semarang
Great! Being a small airport, all my time was spent waiting at the GA lounge staring at the tv with news reports of the even worsening conditions in Jakarta
Small and boring GA lounge in Semarang
Walking to board PK-GWQ
In Flight
By the time boarding was called, I was happy to finally be going home but I was also so tired that I slept all the way back till final approach into CGK where the winds and storm clouds really started to have a good going at the tiny B734! After a hard touchdown, I just braced myself for the very long ride in the car. Can’t imagine with the airport roads still closed what time I am going to have to leave for the airport for my 1830 MH flight on Tuesday.
ThaiA345 From Indonesia, joined Oct 2006, 814 posts, RR: 17 Reply 2, posted (5 years 4 months 2 weeks 2 days 18 hours ago) and read 9260 times:
Quoting 9MMAR (Reply 1): The weather in Semarang in both photos look great though. But indeed, the worst flood ever in Jakarta eversince I live here.
Hows the weather in Kalimantan? Still ok? Actually once I departed, the weather really got bad in Semarang and even East till Surabaya, with floods in both places and in between!!
ThaiA345 From Indonesia, joined Oct 2006, 814 posts, RR: 17 Reply 4, posted (5 years 4 months 2 weeks 21 hours ago) and read 9028 times:
Quoting BA319-131 (Reply 3): What were the loads like on the flights?
Hi Mark, great to here form you again!....actually it seems like ages since I had such a hiccup on my travel plans, in all honesty, I really can't even remember where such a thing ever occured to me! All I think think off was back in 2005 where a United Express flight from LAX to Tucson was oversold (CRJ200) and I was given a voucher to be bumped off to the next flight 2 hrs later. Not too much of a biggie.
The loads on every flight and airline since the airport at CGK was opened was just full to the brim. Even some seats were oversold with 2 people issued the same seat number (only in Indonesia huh!)
Ryanair!!! From Singapore, joined Mar 2002, 4664 posts, RR: 27 Reply 5, posted (5 years 4 months 2 weeks 8 hours ago) and read 8914 times:
Quoting ThaiA345 (Reply 4): Even some seats were oversold with 2 people issued the same seat number (only in Indonesia huh!)
I was once assigned to the same seat as another person. Golden Club Class KUL-SYD 16A on the upper deck. That Caucasian man wasn't very nice about it as I approached his seat...
"Oh I am not moving..."
So the crew came and sorted this mess out while he sat there and sulked, and reiterated to the crew that HE PAID for this seat and wasn't moving no matter what they said.
When the IFS returned, he loudly told me (so that the Caucasian man could hear it too), "Mr Soh, you have been upgraded to First Class, please follow me!"... Sometimes it pays to be nice.
There is more to to this flight because we were a few hours delayed, we busted the curfew in SYD and got diverted to MEL. All JCL and YCL pax stayed at hotels around the airport while the PCL pax (ME included) had a free night's stay at Hyatt downtown.
Welcome to my starry one world alliance, a team in the sky!
ThaiA345 From Indonesia, joined Oct 2006, 814 posts, RR: 17 Reply 6, posted (5 years 4 months 1 week 6 days 8 hours ago) and read 8811 times:
Quoting Ryanair!!! (Reply 5): When the IFS returned, he loudly told me (so that the Caucasian man could hear it too), "Mr Soh, you have been upgraded to First Class, please follow me!"... Sometimes it pays to be nice.
Ahh...you are certianly true about that Mr Soh! Once on a TG flight from BKK to FRA, I was sitting in J while another guy was approaching my seat then looking at his boarding pass and at me at the same time, he had that 'you better get out of the seat punk coz its mine!' look. So in no time the lead fa came by and within moments together with the ground dispatcher told me to get off my seat as I am being upgraded from business to First class! hahahaahha..I am certianly not complaining, hey come on, I was even nice enough to warm up the J seats for the guy that wanted it and off to F for me
B747forever From United States of America, joined May 2007, 16598 posts, RR: 11 Reply 7, posted (5 years 4 months 1 week 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 8642 times:
ThaiA345 From Indonesia, joined Oct 2006, 814 posts, RR: 17 Reply 9, posted (5 years 4 months 1 week 2 days 20 hours ago) and read 8526 times:
Quoting CXA330300 (Reply 8): Was where you are living badly affected by the floods?
I actually stay right in the heart of the CBD area. Not so much affected though, but the main issues were with the roads leading and to the airport as it was under 1 metre of water! But everything was back to normal since last Monday
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