Airline - Akasa Air
Flight - QP 1354
Route - COK - BLR
STD - 1305
STA - 1415
ATD - 1330
ATA - 1427
Aircraft - VT-YAB (BOEING 737 NG / MAX - MSN 62875)
Towards the first half of the 2010s, Indian skies had gotten crowded with many new entrants into what was considered a lucrative market (well.. 1.2 Billion is not a small number
) . Fast forward 10 years - many of the upstarts have shut shop, the once dominant Jet Airways (9W) declared bankruptcy and almost every other airline scaled down their ops, leaving Indigo (6E) with a lion's share of the market. We havent had a new pan-India airline come up in a while - of course there have been niche regional players which have popped up regularly. But the last scheduled airline to launch in India was Air Vistara (UK) way back in 2015.Enter Akasa Air. Backed by maverick investor known as the Indian Warren Buffett , Rakesh Jhunjunwala (who in an unfortunate coincidence passed away a week after Akasa started ops) and helmed by former 9W and GoAir (G8) CEO Vinay Dube, Akasa Air (QP) was to be a low cost carrier, connecting India's Tier 2/3 cities with its major metros as well as operating flights between key metro cities. The airline had a highly aggressive plan of adding a new aircraft every 2 weeks and flying to international destinations by the end of 2023, once it had the requisite 20 frames in its fleet. The airline had also placed a massive 9 Billion USD order for 72 Boeing 737 Max-8 and Max-200 planes at the Dubai Airshow 2021. The first aircraft was delivered in Jun 2022 and registered VT-YAA
By bfi_watch_ca350, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.p ... =118352966
Akasa Air launched commercial operations with its maiden flight on 07 Aug 2022 between BOM and AMD. The next day it launched ops from BLR to COK, and soon afterwards launched BOM-BLR.
Given that I was based out of BLR, the best route for me to try was on the BLR-COK-BLR sector. As luck would have it, I had a wedding to attend in Guruvayoor - a temple town about 100kms north of Kochi. The wedding was in the morning and the last of QP's double daily COK-BLR flights was at 1305, which would be hard to catch. So decided to spend a night in COK and then take the QP flight the next afternoon.
Booking was done on the Akasa Air website (http://www.akasaair.com) and was easy and seamless. Akasa provides two booking classes - Saver and Flexi. Flexi includes a meal, free seat selection and waiver/reduction in change and cancellation fees. Since my plans were still fluid, opted for the Flexi option which cost me abt 600 INR (7.5 USD) extra.
Booking Options
Additional Services
Meal selection from Cafe Akasa. Flexi option includes a complimentary meal choice.
This by far is the most extensive choice that I have seen in an LCC BoB menu. https://a.storyblok.com/f/159922/x/4073 ... a-menu.pdf
Seat Selection. All seats except exit rows and bulk head (branded as A+) are complimentary under the Flexi fares
The payment was done via my credit card and the e-ticket was promptly in my inbox. Now all I had to do was wait for a month to fly the new bird.
The day before the flight, I travelled by train to Guruvayoor, passing by the Kochi International Airport.
https://youtube.com/shorts/6yPlKNFXYWk
Have always wondered why they never built a station near the airport. With a shuttle service to the terminal, this would have helped passengers across the length of the state of Kerala as all major trains pass by this route.
Back from the wedding, stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn Cochin. Excellent service and a great property.
However all my previous plans to catch up with friends were washed away in heavy torrential rains through out the night. In fact I woke up to dark skies and heavy rains around 8 AM.
Around 9 AM, the rains stopped and sun was out. So things were looking up.
This was at 0930
My flight was at 1305 and the drive to airport usually takes abt 40-45 minutes. But given the rainy conditions and possibility of waterlogging enroute, I decided to leave the hotel by 10 AM. It took me about 30 mins to finally get an Uber (most cabs were stuck in waterlogged streets). The driver informed me that the main road to the airport is flooded at places and with standstill traffic. So we decided to go through some of the bylanes to bypass that. Turns out almost everyone else had the same idea
We were stuck at many points on the way, sometimes standstill for a good 15-20 minutes at the same spot and it didnt look like I would be making it on time. In fact 45 minutes before departure, when check in was supposed to close, I was still a good 12 kms away!! I got a call from the Akasa ground staff to check if I would be flying today. I told them my predicament and the lady at the other end said that since I had checked in online, if I could reach in the next 15 minutes they would let me board.
15 minutes later, I was still about 7 kms away and I had given up all hopes of making the flight. I was already on travel websites. looking for the next available flight. At 12:50, we exited the highway and headed towards the terminal and I get another call from an Akasa Air ground staff. I told him my location and he said they would meet me at the terminal entrance. At 12:55 I reached the terminal and sure enough 3 ground personnel from Akasa were waiting for me.
We rushed through the terminal, bypassing the check-in counter and headed to the passenger security check. My check-in bag was also brought along and went through security. I had to abandon a pair of scissors and some powder containing chilli, but otherwise cleared security in no time. We ran like mad men to the gate and boarded at 13:03!! Just in the nick of time. My baggage was taken down to the belly of the beast, and a smiling QP crew welcomed me with a much-needed bottle of cold water!!
Just making it to the aircraft was a story in itself and I was highly impressed by the Akasa Air ground staff and Kochi, who went above and beyond their call of duty to accommodate me. I cant imagine any other airline in India doing something similar. Hope they carry forward the same attitude once they grow in size.
Now onto important matters...
I had originally booked 2C, but turned out both 2A and 2B were vacant, so I shifted to 2A.
Leg room
Seatback
2B and 2C
The rows on either side of the aisle are staggered. Anyone know if this is a better arrangement?
Seat recline and adjustable headrests
One of the biggest USPs of Akasa. USB charging points at every seat.
Very convenient and makes total sense, given there is no other entertainment options provided.
6E birds at the neighbouring gates
Once Akasa announced their initial routes, 6E responded by increasing the frequency and reducing prices. Let us see how this will eventually play out.
Push Back
Akasa Air makes use of Spicejet's ground equipment at COK.
The 737-Max winglet, with Akasa Air's logo
The Akasa Air logo is pretty symbolic - it encompasses a mountain with a river flowing through it, a bird, the letter A and quite uniquely an aircraft wing
Taking off from COK in a westerly direction.
https://youtu.be/3MxhXzqpqvU
Above the clouds
Seatback pocket contents
Cafe Akasa BoB menu
Akasa Air modifies their menu regularly and often has themes associated with major festivities. They had on board menu to celebrate Ganeshotsav, Diwali and Christmas.. Huge plus - considering other LCCs have a near stagnant BoB menu.
Crossed over to the skies of Tamil Nadu for much calmer weather
Given the short duration of the sector, the crew quickly came forward with the meal service. Most passengers in the forward rows seem to have opted for the Flexi option as most had a pre-booked meal. The meal came with a beverage of your choice.
Cafe Akasa Meal Box with Coconut Water
Chicken Burger, with wedges and sautéed veggies
The burger was soft and moist, definitely a good choice
Overall the meal was excellent. The only gripe I had was that no cutlery of any kind was available. It is ok if it was just burger/fries. But this dish also had sautéed veggies which are messy to eat with your fingers. Hope they rectify that aspect of the service. Otherwise the crew were very warm and friendly, with plenty of smiles.
Decided to do a loo review, before the seat belt signs came on.
Lotsa mirrors around, giving it a spacious look.
Akasa branded soap dispenser. Nice touch
We had already commenced our descent and the crew came around to secure the cabin.
Outskirts of Bangalore, with the NICE Expressway
The concrete jungle of the erstwhile Garden City of India
We landed into the newer Runway 09R at BLR, with a nice view of the toll plaza and the trumpet flyover. Also in view the new statue of Kempegowda (the founder of Bangalore), after whom the airport is named.
https://youtu.be/KCZRhTiMRms
The new Terminal 2 - then still under construction. Would be open to public by Jan 2023
6E A321
The current terminal
We taxi-ed all the way to the other side of the terminal
Almost all airlines present at BLR
Spicejet ground crew and equipment once again
New Akasa crew ready to operate the next sector to BOM
Akasa Air crew uniforms reflect the warm youthful nature of the brand. They were the first to introduce sneakers as part of the uniform and the sneakers are made out of recycled materials. The airline has been very consistent with their branding and the use of their signature colors of orange and purple.
Deboarding at BLR
Boeing Max Interiors
Akasa Air has an all economy configuration on their 737-Max birds. However recently they have taken up a few 737-max birds that were originally destined for the now defunct Jet Airways. These were fitted with a 12 seater Business class. Akasa now sells them as A++ seats where they charge an additional INR 2500.The service remains the same as rest of the cabin now.
Generous Seat Pitch
Finally the bird itself - VT-YAB. Couldnt take any pics of it at COK.
The Max Engines
We were bussed to the terminal in a GlobeGround bus
Baggage on Belt#2
FIDS at BLR
The new train service from various point in Bangalore city to the newly constructed railway halt station near the airport
Not exactly very convenient. The trains are far and wide apart and getting to the halt station in itself is a hassle. While this was launched with much fanfare it hasnt seen much adoption. Hopefully the new metro line to the airport that is under construction will change things.
Akasa Air counter at BLR
BLR celebrating Ganeshotsav with a depiction of the Hindu God Ganesha. The flower arrangement changes with each festival/occasion
Overall Verdict
Overall impressed by both the soft and hard product offered by Akasa Air. It is indeed a breath of fresh air in the Indian aviation market where Indigo today has a stranglehold. Akasa Air has been very judicious in how their route network has been planned and as of today operate to almost 12 destinations across the length and breadth of the country. There are few rough edges that hopefully the airline would rectify soon.
The experience with the ground staff at COK is extremely commendable. Hopefully that attitude is all pervasive and continues to be prevalent even when they have grown much bigger.
