Review: Air Europa Express 737-800 Economy Class

I’m live-blogging my SAS EuroBonus SkyTeam Milion Mile challenge this week. Click here for background and route information.

a plane on the runway at night

It had been years since I flew Air Europa from Buenos Aires to Madrid in business class, so I was happy to give it another try, this time on a short-hop domestic flight in economy class. Talk about no frills, though, at least on the Air Europa Express 737-800 in economy class.

Air Europa Express 737-800 Economy Class Review

Boarding was absolutely chaotic in AGP, with boarding set to begin at 8:20 pm but it really did not commence until 8:50 pm. At 8:20 pm we were told to line up at the gate, but there were no agents and even the monitors did not specify it was our flight.

I had trouble with my SAS number repeatedly dropping out of my reservation and when I asked a gate agent (who finally showed up at around 8:30 pm) to ensure it was there and print my boarding pass, she only succeeded in removing it again. Thankfully, I was able to add it back on the mobile app, a very finicky app by the way.

a sign board with a couple of green screens

a group of people in a terminal

We did finally board and I liked the mood lighting onboard, which helps any aircraft cabin appear more modern. But that’s about it. There were no power ports, no screens, no wi-fi, and no seatback literature beyond the buy-on-board menu, or anything else that would have distinguished Air Europa from a budget carrier (point of fact, it is an odd mix—like Aer Lingus—of being a full-service longhaul carrier but a budget carrier within Europe).

a row of blue seats in an airplane

a row of seats in an airplane

a row of blue seats on an airplane

a person's legs in jeans and a mesh panel

a close up of a panel

a group of people sitting in an airplane

The seatbacks have two tray tables instead of one: the top one is intended to hold drinks and a tablet or phone for viewing while the small bottom serves as a more traditional table for working or eating.

a close up of a seat

Here’s how the flight went:

We managed to board quickly and took off roughly 10 minutes behind schedule.
The flight attendants quickly sprang up, came down the aisle with a cart selling drinks and snacks, then disappeared.
Augustine and I fell asleep and awakened during the initial descent into Madrid.
I sprang up to quickly use the lavatory, which was small and spartan, but clean.
We landed on a remote stand in Madrid and were bussed into the terminal.

a child reading a book on an airplane