After reading numerous threads about the travails of Air Jamaica on A-Net I wanted to experience them for myself. This coupled with the fact that my company will soon be ending its non-rev staff travel agreement with them made the task all the more urgent. So like so many other posters on A-Net I decided to take a day trip to experience a new airline just for the fun of it. I started my journey by taking Delta from Boston to Kingston via Atlanta. With the numerous trip reports on other Delta flights on A-Net I won't go into detail about this flight except to say I got to Jamaica on time and with little fuss. After clearing customs and immigration at Kingston's Norman Manley International Airport I went right back into the terminal and checked-in for JM37 to Ft. Lauderdale.
With only a small tote bag I was able to check-in at the hand baggage only counter. Despite this sign many other customers with bags to check were also here, but I was able to be processed quickly. The friendly agent said the flight looked fine for standby travel and said to report to the standby counter in the waiting lounge one hour prior to departure. When I reached security it was interesting to see that male and female passengers were being screened separately. With few other flights departing at this time this and passport control were also completed quickly.
Like many other airports around the world, the authorities here decided that with a captive audience waiting for their flights that they should turn the terminal into a shopping mall. Indeed there were many shops and food outlets to pass one's time in. With nearly an hour to go until my report time at the standby counter I decided to get a snack of a beef pasty and a diet Ting (grapefruit soda)--just the thing for a quick afternoon pick-me-up.
One hour to departure I arrived at the standby counter. But, where's the agent? Soon several other standby passengers arrived also wondering the same thing. We waited for about 15 minutes but no sign of him/her. A passing American Airlines agent tried to page for that person, but to no avail. With 30 minutes to departure one of the other standby passengers said for us to just go to the gate. We did, and I was glad I did. There was a crowd around the poidum also waiting for seats. Turns out there was a large number of other standby passengers and I ended up with one of the last seats on the aircraft.
my ride to Ft. Lauderdale
Upon boarding I was greeted with a friendly smile by the lead Flight Attendant. As a Flight Attendant myself I feel that how one is greeted at the door sets the tone for the flight. A dour expression or even no greeting or eye contact doesn't leave a good impression.
Despite receiving a middle seat I was grateful for getting on the flight. Legroom was non-existent and while the cabin was in generally good shape, there were signs of wear-and-tear, such as the pen marks across on the back of my tray table.
Prior to departure US Customs and Immigration cards were handed out, a wise move considering the short flight and full load. The Captain made an announcement welcoming us aboard and said that departure would be several minutes late due to the large number of bags still to be loaded. We finally departed 15 minutes late. The safety video was played on drop-down monitors from the passenger service units with the Flight Attendants in the aisle physically pointing out the location of the exits. Following the video the Flight Attendants were conciencious in making sure all window shades were raised and that all cabin luggage was fully stowed under the seat in front.
Once airborne, the lead Flight Attendant made an announcement introducing the entire crew by name--a very nice touch. Headsets were handed out--IFE consisted of the short subject variety program "Island Style" and several audio channels.
Inflight service consisted of a choice of banana chips or coconut cookies and a full range of beverages. The beverage selection had some local items such as ginger beer and fruit punch. In the spirit of the islands I had a fruit punch and cookies. The service had the snack cart followed by the beverage cart which meant many passengers were long finished with their snacks before they were able to receive their drinks. Duty-free sales were announced, however due to the full load and short flight time there wasn't time to offer it.
During the flight the Captain made several announcements describing our progress and of landmarks below. Soon enough we were on descent into Ft. Lauderdale. We arrived at the gate at 6:25pm, 20 minutes behind schedule.
I came away from this flight with a very positive impression of Air Jamaica. Despite the full load on a short flight with minimum staffing, the Flight Attendants were smiling and in good sprits throughout the flight. The sight of the Captain wishing farewell to disembarking passengers and shaking their hands speaks volumes to the pride the employees appear to have in their company. I wish them all well and hope for a better future under Caribbean Airlines stewardship.
LYchemsa From United States of America, joined Oct 2009, 686 posts, RR: 2 Reply 1, posted (2 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 15 hours ago) and read 5267 times:
ilanbwoy From Jamaica, joined Feb 2009, 157 posts, RR: 0 Reply 2, posted (2 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 15 hours ago) and read 5154 times:
Nice report. You brought back some memories i have of my former employer. I must say that you are a true aviation enthusiast to do such a day trip. Thats sounds very familiar....i used to do stuff like that.
trintocan From United Kingdom, joined Apr 2000, 3134 posts, RR: 5 Reply 3, posted (2 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 20 hours ago) and read 4438 times:
Thank you for this great little trip report. You are indeed a true aviation enthusiast to do a day-trip just to experience a new airline. It is good to hear that despite its many unhappy problems JM still gives a good product overall. I have only flown JM once, 10 years ago.
KIN looks so different now - again 2000 was the last of the 4 times I have been there.
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