[hserus]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

We're planning to carry some jewelry on a domestic flight in our cabin baggage. I did not find any restrictions as per the aviation/aircraft rules.

It's some bridal jewelry we're carrying and not really gold biscuits or bars, so I guess there shouldn't be a problem with the security asking too many questions ?

No issues at all. If there's several kilos worth of jewellery you may have some interesting questions to answer though.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by vpillai

Do you recommend booking a separate seat for a 10months old infant (probably with a child seat fit on that) ? Flight duration around 22 to 24 hrs.

I would say don't book a separate seat, ask for the front rows which can attach a bassinet (which the airlines will provide).

Originally Posted by vpillai

And, are we allowed to carry the food for infants to the flights?

I think you can, but why don't you ask for infant food for the baby? SQ/SilkAir are well-stocked, and they will take good care of travellers with infants.

Originally Posted by vpillai

Also, I would like to hear from somebody who has used the "Silkair + Singapore Airlines" combo for traveling to SFO from TRV, on how good their services are?!! And if there is anything not so good about choosing these two airlines?!!

Don't take it as two airlines, its the same with SilkAir flying to the so called nearby tourist destinations in Asia. Its slightly on the expensive side, but probably one of the best flying experience for International travel.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

We're planning to carry some jewelry on a domestic flight in our cabin baggage. I did not find any restrictions as per the aviation/aircraft rules.

It's some bridal jewelry we're carrying and not really gold biscuits or bars, so I guess there shouldn't be a problem with the security asking too many questions ?

Watch out for anything sharp, especially with pins.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

We have some liquid medicine to carry with us on a domestic flight from Bangalore Airport. I'm assuming putting it in the check-in baggage won't be a problem ? I saw a restriction of 100 ml liquid in the cabin baggage so I'll check it in.

Do carry the doctor's prescription and cash memo for the medicines, just in case.

I was quizzed over Jawaar atta that I was carrying in my hand luggage from Mumbai to Delhi. Thankfully the CISF jawan understood what it was and let me pass.

[AltoLXI]

Security in Mumbai and Pune airports beefed up.

Question: Under what law can a person be added to no fly list - (for lawlessness )?

[noopster]

Has anyone flown international in/out of Pune? I believe there are flights to Abu Dhabi, Frankfurt, Dubai etc. directly. 2 advantages I can think of are escaping that horrid drive to Mumbai especially in late evenings; and not having to queue up in those unending lines for security, immigration and customs since Mumbai serves an indecent number of flights especially at night.

First-hand opinions welcome.

[hserus]

The one sort of disadvantage is that pune airport is relatively tiny and primitive

But then again it is right in the city so easy to reach so you have to turn up in the absolute nick of time.

You'll be in a long queue in a crowded airport because those few flights that PNQ serves are more than enough to fill the airport. Mumbai airport is at least fancy and new so it doesn't hurt as much as to wait in an overgrown bus stand like PNQ.

Originally Posted by noopster

Has anyone flown international in/out of Pune? I believe there are flights to Abu Dhabi, Frankfurt, Dubai etc. directly. 2 advantages I can think of are escaping that horrid drive to Mumbai especially in late evenings; and not having to queue up in those unending lines for security, immigration and customs since Mumbai serves an indecent number of flights especially at night.

First-hand opinions welcome.

[sschivate]

Originally Posted by noopster

Has anyone flown international in/out of Pune?
First-hand opinions welcome.

@noopster, I flew out of Pune to Abu Dhabi (onwards to US) in June 2015. At that time, the PNQ - AUH flight was scheduled at 2030 HRS. Even at that hour, it was a smooth experience. I understand that now it leaves at 4AM, so the airport should be close to empty.

The best part of the experience was landing directly in Pune, and driving home The arrival, immigration and baggage claim was hassle-free as well. The only challenging part is - these Jet flights tend to get delayed...

Other option is - fly from Pune to Delhi, and then hop onto an international flight. It works better when you go out, but on the return journey, either you have to take a red-eye from Delhi to Pune (2-3AM), or you would have to wait for 4-6 hours in Delhi (depending on your arrival time).

Hope this helps.

[AJo]

Originally Posted by noopster

Has anyone flown international in/out of Pune? I believe there are flights to Abu Dhabi, Frankfurt, Dubai etc. directly. 2 advantages I can think of are escaping that horrid drive to Mumbai especially in late evenings; and not having to queue up in those unending lines for security, immigration and customs since Mumbai serves an indecent number of flights especially at night.

First-hand opinions welcome.

I have flown thru' Abu Dhabi & Frankfurt a few times, on my way to the US & back. The best part is when I land back in Pune - I am home probably within 45mins from landing. Even when flying out of Pune, the immigration & security check is a breeze. The early morning departure & arrival means you do not encounter any traffic at the airport either.

Abu Dhabi is not the best experience, but certainly tolerable. (Less number of toilets even in the business class lounge is really surprising. You have people queuing up!).

I personally prefer flying from Pune over Mumbai. In some ways its a "homely" experience. However a colleague of mine prefers Mumbai since it "feels" like a "real international airport"

Hope this helps,
AJ

[ptushar]

Originally Posted by noopster

Has anyone flown international in/out of Pune?

First-hand opinions welcome.

Have flown PNQ-AUH-JFK.
You have got both the reasons spot on. Just avoiding the Mumbai drive is worth flying through Pune. The immigration is a breeze as well.

Would any day prefer flying through Pune. And since Jet now flies to Abu Dhabi, this opens up immense possibilities to catch the Etihad flights to Europe and USA.

[sdp1975]

I saw the recent United Airlines video where a passenger was forcibly de-boarded after tickets were oversold on that flight.

What are the rules in India ? Can tickets be oversold and passengers forcibly be asked to get off ? Any compensation in such cases ?

[sdp1975]

Here are the rules for forcibly offloading a passenger in India :

According to the guidelines by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), an amount equal to 200% of booked one-way basic fair plus airline fuel charge subject to maximum of Rs 10,000 has to be paid to a passenger in case an airline arranges another flight that is to depart after one hour but within 24 hours of the booked scheduled departure. According to the DGCA, 5,586 domestic passengers in India were not allowed to board and compensation worth around Rs 1,562.12 lakh was provided to to them in January and February this year.

Source

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

I saw the recent United Airlines video where a passenger was...

Came across this article in The Hindu. A nice take on airports and air travel. Reminded me of Yeti's style. Please have a look.

http://www.thehindu.com/thread/refle...le18055696.ece

A sample:

Some months ago I had the opportunity to take a short flight from Chennai to Bengaluru for a family function. First I had to show my passport and ticket to enter the airport. Then I had to show my ticket but not passport to stand in a line. At the end of the line a third fellow wanted to see my passport and ticket to give me a boarding pass. Then a fourth policeman wanted to see boarding pass but not passport, and my ticket he treated with contempt. And then I told Mrs. Mathrubootham that she can go to Bengaluru by herself, I am going back home because even Veerappan was not investigated so much.

But she persuaded me and I proceeded to the departure hall. There I approached a pleasant young lady in a modest shop and purchased two vegetarian samosas and two cups of tea. For this I paid so much money that I told my wife that we will share one samosa and keep the other one in bank locker in case of any family emergency.

[Prafful_Rathod]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Another nonsensical thing in vogue is the so called Silent Airport. No gate announcements, boarding announcements, nothing.

In fact I also find this rule difficult to understand. A week back I was traveling to Chennai from Mumbai T2 terminal on Air India, Had received an sms day before from AI that as it is a silent airport no announcement will be made so please ensure to check your boarding gate.

But at the Boarding Gate, One of the crew members was making announcement for boarding passengers. She was literally shouting on top of her voice for all the late coming passengers, yet to board. I was watching all this since my flight had still time to go and boarding of another flight was going on.

I started wondering if silent airport means no announcements on speakers, but manually calling everybody is fine. But then google says only emergency announcements at silent airport.

[honeybee]

Silent airport probably means no announcement through the public address system. But of course one doesn't need the PA system to shout!