I'm thinking of travelling LON-Male via Bangalore so that I can use my BA points on the LON-Bangalore sector. Then I would travel Bangalore-Male on Indian Airlines. However, my travel agent tells me that IA is still unreliable and that the flights are often cancelled at short notice. Clearly I don't want to get stranded in Bangalore. Can anyone advise re this, please?

Thanks.

Micky

IC's international flights arent that unreliable. And IC is large enough to have backup planes available.

OK. Thanks.

Micky

Indian Airlines has enough number of planes to back up. Their flights might not be new but chances of getting stranded in Bangalore will be almost zero. Definitely they are much better than all American and many european airlines.

At the worst case you might end up reaching your destination a hour late. And in case of weather / unexpected delays I have seen Indian Airlines taking care of passengers with 5 star accommdation and proper food and transport. So dont get mislead with that travel agent who is going with stereo types or he might be wanting to sell some better profit from you.

Thanks so much for your comments!

Micky

Definitely they are much better than all American and many european airlines.

I don't think that you will find many people who would agree with you on this. My understanding is that Indian Airlines has improved from the period when safety was a real concern for those flying on their planes, but to say that they are better than all American airlines? The chaos that I see in front of Indian Airlines check-in counters in Chennai and Delhi makes me question that assertion. Now if you were talking about Jet Airways, I might find it easier to believe.

That said, I think the essential point that Indian is basically reliable as far as meeting their schedule, unlike some low-cost Indian airlines who do not have enough aircraft to fly their schedule, is true.

Well .. their people management is where they suck. Their fleet is relatively new (no old DC9 / 757 birds, AB3s are the oldest planes they have, most of their regular fleet is 318/319/320). And their punctuality record is quite decent too, thanks to their larger fleet.

For flights that are 2:30 or less (domestic indian flights) planes being on schedule is sometimes more important than "good food" or "hot stewardesses in bright red micromini skirts"

Indian Airlines has enough number of planes to back up. Their flights might not be new but chances of getting stranded in Bangalore will be almost zero. Definitely they are much better than all American . .
Agree...Now indian Airlines is much better than many maerican airlines

I don't think that you will find many people who would agree with you on this. My understanding is that Indian Airlines has improved from the period when safety was a real concern for those flying on their planes, but to say that they are better than all American airlines? The chaos that I see in front of Indian Airlines check-in counters in Chennai and Delhi makes me question that assertion. Now if you were talking about Jet Airways, I might find it easier to believe.

That said, I think the essential point that Indian is basically reliable as far as meeting their schedule, unlike some low-cost Indian airlines who do not have enough aircraft to fly their schedule, is true.

Tell me one American airline which provides decent food that comes atleast close to the one served on Indian airlines. A 30 min IC flight has much better service and food than transamerican American carrier. Kingfisher or Jet, forget about comparing with them. I still stand no American airline today is able to meet the service levels of Indian Airlines. I agree with queues. But what better queue management shall I expect with American airlines?

What better queue management? Priority boarding for elites rather than "everybody pile into the plane as fast as you can", to start with. And gate upgrades.

"no American airline today is able to meet the service levels of Indian Airlines"

I think that service is more than food on board the aircraft. Service is the entire package, from check-in, to inflight (including cancellations and delays), and baggage delivery at the end. On short-haul flights, food is the least of my concerns.