Air India offers a fabulous onboard product, even on domestic flights, on its Airbus A350-900 in business class. I very much enjoyed my flight from Delhi to Mumbai. I’ll offer my first impressions of the flight here and a full review at a later point.
Air India A350-900 Business Class – My First Impressions
I explained the backstory of this flight here…I was originally booked on a 777-300ER in first class, but made the switch to the A350-900 in business class and I’m very glad I did.
The business class seats are ex-Aeroflot, the same as you find on some Turkish Airlines A350s, and among my favorite in the sky). The cabin is open and spacious without a center overhead bin and the seat is very comfortable with a great tray table that doesn’t brush against your knees (unlike the Collins Aerospace Super Diamond seats).
There wasn’t longhaul bedding on this short domestic flight, but there was still a blanket and pillow and I did take a nap after lunch….the bed is comfortable and fairly private when the sliding door is shut.
But what really impressed me was the soft product onboard. The service was outstanding, with attentive and courteous flight attendants providing excellent care during the flight, including pre-departure beverages and two hot towels.
There was even a menu distributed…with four choices.
The high protein superseed bowl sounded good, but I went with the Indian option…the Amritsari Choley Tikki, which was very delicious (see, I do eat Indian food…).
There is no alcohol served on domestic flights, but I was fine with sparkling water and later mint tea. A very nice meal with a nice presentation as well.
Also, the aircraft was very clean…every little crevice of the seat looked clean and even the lavatory at the end of the flight was spotless.
The full in-flight-entertainment library was available with hundreds of movies, TV shows, audio selections, and games and my favorite feature of the A350, the tailcam, was activated. Furthermore, Wi-Fi internet was complimentary and worked well.
As you can see from the picture above, we arrived to a very wet and rainy Mumbai….it is monsoon season after all and it apparently had been raining for five days straight.
This flight greatly exceeded my expectations and now I’m really keen to try Air India on a longhaul flight, though it will be in first class so I can experience the new lounge in DEL. But in terms of two hour domestic flights, it really doesn’t get any better than this.
I’ll have more details and a lot more pictures from this flight in my full review.
Outstandingly good, especially for a domestic flight.
Indian regulations do not allow for alcohol on domestic flights..ughh
Dry on the flight; wettttt outside.
You may have seen that Ben at OMAAT also just reviewed Air India’s F on the 773, and honestly, regardless of the lounge-access differences, the on-board hard-product seems superior in J on their a350.
Saw that – I was scheduled for the ex-Etihad 777 which was much nicer and there was no swap, but still I’m happy to have tried the A359 in J.
Air India has so many aircraft from other airlines that they’ve incorporated, it’s kinda wild. Like, I can think of how Turkish got that a350 that was supposed to go to Aeroflot, but for sanctions (still has orange and blue interior). Then there’s Qatar’s 777 from Cathay, which they painted white on the outside, but interior is not too different from CX.
It’s just such a good seat in J – very comfortable. Other than the baffling lack of an armrest, hard to do better. And the wall is high enough that the door is not just a gimmick – it really feels private (versus, say, BA where the wall/door feels much more gimmicky).
Soft product is also excellent on long-haul.
If India can make their airports more friendly for connections (they are not the easiest to transit…) could have a winner with this product.
This is a good sign; like, when connecting in the Middle East is not looking safe or good these days. I’d much rather take this a350, if going to DEL/BOM), especially if they start flying them to NYC more regularly.