India-based Airlines - Del to ORD - Emirates or United

hi Folks
I shall be travelling to ORD from DEL next month. having ignored LH and BA, i am wondering whether to go by UA, which saves me around 6 hours due to direct or with EK via DFW which should be more comfortable.

EK is rated 4 star by skytrax and UA is 3 star.
Does UA still have projector based IFE or has it upgraded to on demand IFE.

In short which one to pick since fares are same on both.

welcome to FT. I would go with Emirates anyday.

So your options are DEL-DXB-DFW-ORD or DEL-EWR-ORD? I'd take the UA via EWR. The 772 used on the DEL-EWR has AVOD that is quite good, Seat is decent (some say stiff but I found it fine for 13 hours). When you get to EWR you will then have a short jump to ORD on a 738 (most with DirectTv or A320 (With nada)

EK you fly a regional aircraft (A320) to a widebody to connect to probably AA as DFW-ORD is hub to hub routing.
Less connecting and a decent aircraft beats the stigma of flying on EK for one long leg and 2 connecting regional aircraft.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry9000/5.0.0.822 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/102)

Wait a few minutes, and you will get a "choose AI because they're the best ever" sermon.

That said, I personally would pick the most convenient option, so long as it featured an acceptable product.

With that in mind, AI, though the only non-stop, can be far from convenient in the event of IRROPS. And honestly, are EK that much better than CO to make the extra time and connections worthwhile?

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry9000/5.0.0.822 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/102)

Wait a few minutes, and you will get a "choose AI because they're the best ever" sermon.

That said, I personally would pick the most convenient option, so long as it featured an acceptable product.

With that in mind, AI, though the only non-stop, can be far from convenient in the event of IRROPS. And honestly, are EK that much better than CO to make the extra time and connections worthwhile?

In economy, I would say no. Only do the longer version if OP needs EK miles.

OP, don't forget to check w/ ticket consolidators for other low fares, like on LH, BA, etc. (not sure why you have chosen to ignore them :confused:)

I didn't particularly like EK long haul J due to the 165 degree seat where I (at 5"11) feel like I'm falling down when trying to sleep. YMMV. I don't know what equipment UA is running on the same route, though. Service, however, on EK was fantastic.

What does it have to do with India based airlines? :confused:

Wait a few minutes, and you will get a "choose AI because they're the best ever" sermon.

You know it ;)



That said, I personally would pick the most convenient option, so long as it featured an acceptable product.


AI's product is acceptable. The flight is nonstop, which means that it is convenient. Chances are, the fare is reasonable too.


With that in mind, AI, though the only non-stop, can be far from convenient in the event of IRROPS. As is CO. The only airline in the world where I have had worse IRROPS probems than AI is CO.


And honestly, are EK that much better than CO to make the extra time and connections worthwhile?
No.

In summation: I suggest AI over both EK and CO, and CO over EK.

I agree with PVDtoDEL on this one. AI's product is comparable to that of UA (at the very least) and is the most convenient (only nonstop between DEL and ORD).

If AI is not an option, I'd stick it out with UA. Their AVOD is not bad enough that I would want to spend an extra 6 hours on EK.

hi Folks
I shall be travelling to ORD from DEL next month. having ignored LH and BA, i am wondering whether to go by UA, which saves me around 6 hours due to direct or with EK via DFW which should be more comfortable.

EK is rated 4 star by skytrax and UA is 3 star.
Does UA still have projector based IFE or has it upgraded to on demand IFE.

In short which one to pick since fares are same on both.

welcome to ft tchaikovsky21....while ek is a better airline than ua, don't go by the skytrax ratings....after all, they gave kingfisher a 5 star rating....

just save time & go with ua....

What does it have to do with India based airlines? :confused:

technically, it has nothing to do with 'india based airlines' but since the op is flying to india & doesn't know which airline to fly on, i guess its an acceptable thread....there are worse threads out these that have nothing to do with the forum they are posted in....

welcome to ft tchaikovsky21....while ek is a better airline than ua, don't go by the skytrax ratings....after all, they gave kingfisher a 5 star rating....


Off topic, but Kingfisher's 5 star rating has been revoked.

They probably couldn't afford to send the check to them...

Don't trust SkyTrax at all - their ratings are largely nonsense.

Off topic, but Kingfisher's 5 star rating has been revoked.

They probably couldn't afford to send the check to them...

Don't trust SkyTrax at all - their ratings are largely nonsense.

it had to get revoked....it was just a matter of time....skytrax ratings depend on the number of advertising $$s you spend on them....the more you spend, the better the rating....

You have BA, Lufthansa (Frankfurt and Munich), Swiss, THY, KLM, Air France, Royal Jordanian, Continental and Etihad all able to take you between Chicago and Delhi with one reasonable stop in either direction. Stretch the flying time / layover time a bit and one can add Asiana and Cathay to that list.

With so many one-stop options in addition to AI's non-stop, why would you want to go so much out of your way to fly Emirates? Even if they were wonderful and all the rest were crap. Clearly that is not the case.

I've never flown Emirates myself, but no matter how wonderful their service is supposed to be, 10-abreaSt in Y and middle seats in J do not constitute an acceptable offering to me.

You have BA, Lufthansa (Frankfurt and Munich), Swiss, THY, KLM, Air France, Royal Jordanian, Continental and Etihad all able to take you between Chicago and Delhi with one reasonable stop in either direction. Stretch the flying time / layover time a bit and one can add Asiana and Cathay to that list.

With so many one-stop options in addition to AI's non-stop, why would you want to go so much out of your way to fly Emirates? Even if they were wonderful and all the rest were crap. Clearly that is not the case.


Low fares?

The OP did mention in his post that EK and UA both cost the same amount. I'm guessing these two were the cheapest.

don't go by the skytrax ratings
Don't trust SkyTrax at all - their ratings are largely nonsense.

I think SkyTrax ratings are quite sensible in terms of providing an ordinal ranking. For example, in this case, EK is rated higher than UA. I think anyone in their right mind would agree with that.

I disagree with PVDtoDEL who thinks that SkyTrax ratings are largely non-sense. But I agree with Keyser in that the OP should not make his decision based on the ratings.

I think SkyTrax ratings are quite sensible in terms of providing an ordinal ranking. For example, in this case, EK is rated higher than UA. I think anyone in their right mind would agree with that.

I guess I'm not in my right mind, because I'd pick UA 10/10 times.

10 seat-abreast 777 configurations are just inhumane in economy.

EK doesn't have a fully flat bed, unlike UA in business. They also have a middle seat in J, which is also not quite an exciting prospect to fly in.

In First, EK is better, but the vast majority of people in the world cannot afford first and will not ever fly in it. Making the ranking based on quality of F will not help most flyers out there.

SkyTrax ratings are highly arbitrary, and don't mean anything in my book. Relying on facts (seat pitch, width), trip reports, personal experience, and FlyerTalk is a far superior way to choose an airline than considering SkyTrax.

Shashank Nigam, the guy behind Simpliflying (airline marketing company), wrote a great piece on SkyTrax a few months ago...

http://simpliflying.com/2011/why-skytrax-is-dead-plus-7-insights-into-the-future-of-airline-brand-ratings/

I guess I'm not in my right mind, because I'd pick UA 10/10 times.

10 seat-abreast 777 configurations are just inhumane in economy.

Well in economy, which I assume the OP is flying, most people (including me) would agree that EK has better food, service, IFE and legroom than UA. I guess you just have different preferences.

Well in economy, which I assume the OP is flying, most people (including me) would agree that EK has better food, service, IFE and legroom than UA. I guess you just have different preferences.
Food on EK and UA are usually similarly poor. Food on pmCO was actually pretty good compared to both EK and UA. (perhaps that's because they owned their own kitchen, and therefore were able to get more, better quality food for the same cost?)

I bring my own IFE regardless and leave the screen to flight map, so I can't compare.

You don't get much in terms of service in Y no matter what airline you're flying on. Staff on EK and UA have both been courteous and professional in my experience, but that's about it.

And legroom depends on the aircraft - on the whole, EK's average legroom on their longhaul fleet is slightly more. But honestly, I'd take a little less legroom for more width any day of the week.

But I guess everyone's preferences are different. Which just proves my point - SkyTrax ratings are useless. XYZ Airlines might give 36 inches of pitch and 16 inches of width. ABC Airways might give 32 inches of pitch and 20 inches of width.

I would pick ABC Airways every time. You would pick XYZ Airlines every time. So which deserves a higher star rating?

Preferences are subjective, and that's why the specific details about the seat, trip reports, FlyerTalk, etc. are all better ways to choose your airline than a star rating given by a company which has been accused of awarding ratings based on the size of checks from airlines multiple times before.

At least give me that EK has younger and more attractive flight attendants than UA ;)

At least give me that EK has younger and more attractive flight attendants than UA ;)
Well, I can't disagree with that.

Even though I haven't traveled in economy on EK, I can't imagine 10 abreast seating on a 777 being comfortable to anyone but kids and super models :-). How good the food, service and IFE is, is irrelevant if the seat is uncomfortable.
So, as others have already suggested, my suggested preference would also be AI non-stop > UA >> EK. In fact, there are so many other one connection options for DEL-ORD that EK should not even come into consideration due to the extra connection and travel time.

Even though I haven't traveled in economy on EK, I can't imagine 10 abreast seating on a 777 being comfortable to anyone but kids and super models :-).

I'm neither, and rather on the tall side, but controlling for other variables (length of trip, e.g.) I would pick EK 777 over UA, even with the 10 across. But I would pick EK on some other aircraft if it were available.

I am flying Air India on this route (and all other routes usually). They have best food, best legroom, best seat space (very wide), nice FA, good maintenance, and competent staff on ground (although usually grumpy). No better option!

I am flying Air India on this route (and all other routes usually). They have best food, best legroom, best seat space (very wide), nice FA, good maintenance, and competent staff on ground (although usually grumpy). No better option!

Why do I get the feeling that the only reason you fly AI is because their 747s always seem to be in Bollywood films?

That said, I'm a big AI fan too - although sometimes I have to wonder about the competence of ground staff bit... The grumpiness certainly usually applies though.

Why do I get the feeling that the only reason you fly AI is because their 747s always seem to be in Bollywood films?

Haha, it is kind of true. I usually am staying away from Government companies, but all the movies made me curious about flying AI and how good it is. One time, AI was the best option on a flight for me (cheaper than Deccan!), so I chose to fly it. When I flew it, I realized that it is the best airline in India, so now I always fly it whenever they are flying my route.

My gosh. AI supporters rushing in from all over!

Granted, this was a one-off occurance and shouldn't be what I use to judge an airline, but the one time that I took AI ex-JFK in J, I got food poisoning and had a miserable trip, and so AI got the axe in my list of airlines.

Bathrooms were disgusting, and while it is mainly the passengers' fault for trashing the place, the FA's were letting Y-pax come and use the J restrooms. I'm not bothered that they were using the restroom - what bothers me is the volume of pax that were scurrying back and forth down the aisle and disturbing all the passengers by talking, bumping into seats, etc.. Also, higher volume means more of a need for cleaning them, which was non-existant.

All in all, I just can't do it on long-haul. Domestic, however, always comes down to IC vs 9W for me.

Granted, this was a one-off occurance and shouldn't be what I use to judge an airline, but the one time that I took AI ex-JFK in J, I got food poisoning and had a miserable trip, and so AI got the axe in my list of airlines.

Wow, I've heard AI criticized about a lot of things, but catering is a new one. It is one of the things which is consistently excellent on the airline.



Bathrooms were disgusting, and while it is mainly the passengers' fault for trashing the place, This is called the "flight to India effect" - interestingly, you can find it even on LH's BOS-FRA service sometimes.
the FA's were letting Y-pax come and use the J restrooms. I'm not bothered that they were using the restroom - what bothers me is the volume of pax that were scurrying back and forth down the aisle and disturbing all the passengers by talking, bumping into seats, etc.. Also, higher volume means more of a need for cleaning them, which was non-existant. Yeah, this is something which AI definitely needs to work on

All in all, I just can't do it on long-haul. Domestic, however, always comes down to IC vs 9W for me.
I am personally usually a *A loyalist for longhaul. However, I tried AI out on longhaul recently, and it beat any *A offering out of the water in Y. I also got a chance to check out at the J hard product, which was very comfortable.

And for domestic, it hasn't been a choice for a long time for me - since I fly Y, there is absolutely no comparison between AI and 9Wk (because mainline seems nonexistent here at HYD).

Wow, I've heard AI criticized about a lot of things, but catering is a new one. It is one of the things which is consistently excellent on the airline.

while the food is generally good, i have had my fair share of average & bad meals on ai as well....

...but the one time that I took AI ex-JFK in J, I got food poisoning and had a miserable trip...If by "trip" you mean "flight", it is rare for foodborne infections to kick in so quickly. It was probably something you ate before the flight.

Moreover, while AI is known for its food (I am not sure if it is because of quantity or quality), it doesn't have its own kitchen at JFK. It gets the meals from an airport catering service such as Servair JFK. All it can do is pay more per person for larger/better meals.

what bothers me is the volume of pax that were scurrying back and forth down the aisle and disturbing all the passengers by talking, bumping into seats, etc.I am planning to fly AI (in J) after many years. I will choose a window seat for this reason. In addition to what you described, passengers tend to congregate in the aisles and talk.

@SeeBuyFly - I happened to be coming off of a very strict diet that I follow at home, so it was a rather simple process of elimination. Being an EMT, I'm somewhat adept at being able to roughly track this stuff. That being said, you are right, it isn't necessarily AI's fault. Nevertheless, this painfully repressed memory will forever be associated with AI in my head, and (as I said before), even though it's not right for me to do this, it is the reason I gave it the axe.

Regardless, I don't really see what's so special about its food service when compared to other airlines. I even liked 9W's meal services more (again, I only have a single basis of comparison, so take it with a grain of salt).

I wanted to take a window seat, and asked for it at the time of booking, but they weren't able to allot me one. I do normally prefer the aisle, just because you don't have to bother the other fellow when going out and about, but it's the regular tradeoff. Either way, FA's not enforcing the rule for Y-pax is really bad on AI's part.

I agree with PVDtoDEL on this one. AI's product is comparable to that of UA (at the very least) and is the most convenient (only nonstop between DEL and ORD).

If AI is not an option, I'd stick it out with UA. Their AVOD is not bad enough that I would want to spend an extra 6 hours on EK.

OP how often do you plan to fly ? Is collecting miles important to you ?

AI miles are not attractive unless you fly a lot with the. They expire in three years ?

...it was a rather simple process of elimination. Simple, but apparently not at all pleasant. Sorry, couldn't resist.

OP how often do you plan to fly ? Is collecting miles important to you ?

AI miles are not attractive unless you fly a lot with the. They expire in three years ?

Flying 2 roundtrips ORD-DEL-ORD in Business Class is enough for a redemption, and for status.

AI miles are the most attractive out of any in India, not because they are particularly good, but because everything else sucks more. (IT is bankrupt, 9W's JP sucks)

Simple, but apparently not at all pleasant. Sorry, couldn't resist.

:D

I can smile about it now, but yes, you hit the nail on the head.

Flying 2 roundtrips ORD-DEL-ORD in Business Class is enough for a redemption, and for status.

AI miles are the most attractive out of any in India, not because they are particularly good, but because everything else sucks more. (IT is bankrupt, 9W's JP sucks)

Well, JP sucks for sure if you're planning on redeeming on 9W, because, quite simply, you won't be able to (if you're looking for J, at least).

However, if you want to use the miles on partner awards, then your chances look a lot better. Earning levels aren't phenomenal, but they get the job done. That all being said, given that the OP is based out of ORD, 9W isn't an option unless he/she is willing to come to the east coast.

Why do I get the feeling that the only reason you fly AI is because their 747s always seem to be in Bollywood films?

That said, I'm a big AI fan too - although sometimes I have to wonder about the competence of ground staff bit... The grumpiness certainly usually applies though.

I agree. Trouble and heaps of troubles start anytime they have a medium to major hiccup.

that is the day you hope all your prayers will pay back !

I also dissatisfied with AI's FF program. Miles expire in short period.

I agree. Trouble and heaps of troubles start anytime they have a medium to major hiccup.

that is the day you hope all your prayers will pay back !

I also dissatisfied with AI's FF program. Miles expire in short period.

While I don't like AI Flying Returns compared to US Airways Dividend Miles or Aegean Airlines Miles & Bonus, it is the best program in India. Simply because the alternatives are all worse, not because it's particularly good.

Flying 2 roundtrips ORD-DEL-ORD in Business Class is enough for a redemption, and for status.

AI miles are the most attractive out of any in India, not because they are particularly good, but because everything else sucks more. (IT is bankrupt, 9W's JP sucks)

Will defer to you for best FF program in India. am an expat in US currently, the opportunity here are great to increase miles collections thru many non flying activities.

Will defer to you for best FF program in India. am an expat in US currently, the opportunity here are great to increase miles collections thru many non flying activities.

I agree completely - compared to the USA, ever program in India is terrible. Not only FFPs, but even things like credit cards aren't as good, probably because of less competition.

I agree completely - compared to the USA, ever program in India is terrible. Not only FFPs, but even things like credit cards aren't as good, probably because of less competition.

Yes CC s !

Just got 200 K Avios from BA on two cards no spend minimums, just $150 each for fees over two years.

There are people out here who score over a million miles this way.

Now to figure out hot to avoid BA AA so don't have to pay those daylight robbery YQs on long hauls thru UK.

So your options are DEL-DXB-DFW-ORD or DEL-EWR-ORD? I'd take the UA via EWR. The 772 used on the DEL-EWR has AVOD that is quite good, Seat is decent (some say stiff but I found it fine for 13 hours). When you get to EWR you will then have a short jump to ORD on a 738 (most with DirectTv or A320 (With nada)Agreed - PMCO (Now United) flights to EWR non-stop are awesome in biz. Timings are even great.

Food on pmCO was actually pretty good compared to both EK and UA. (perhaps that's because they owned their own kitchen, and therefore were able to get more, better quality food for the same cost?)

I bring my own IFE regardless and leave the screen to flight map, so I can't compare.

You don't get much in terms of service in Y no matter what airline you're flying on. Staff on EK and UA have both been courteous and professional in my experience, but that's about it.I have only flown PMCO in biz, but some other FTers do it in Y quite often and are not displeased.

The FA attitudes on United (ex-COn crew) are very professional and not as horrendous as the United ones - the service on old UA can be really bad or quite good.

My gosh. AI supporters rushing in from all over!I know! :p

I even liked 9W's meal services more (again, I only have a single basis of comparison, so take it with a grain of salt).I just flew 9w biz EWR-BRU-BOM and the food was amazing - absolutely amazing.

Further, their AVOD is better now and the picture quality blows away LH's new First Class screens - which are still running with the older AVOD units....

However, 9w service is hot/cold, so not sure whether I would pay the extra money to fly them in biz - the lower biz COS are sold out anyway!

@SuperFlyBoy - Agreed, it's really a crapshoot as to whether service is going to be good that day. Since 2007, I've flown 9W J about 20 times between the US and India, and several other times between LHR and India. I'd say my luck has been 75%-25%, with the 75 being good service days...

I just flew 9w biz EWR-BRU-BOM and the food was amazing - absolutely amazing.

Further, their AVOD is better now and the picture quality blows away LH's new First Class screens - which are still running with the older AVOD units....

However, 9w service is hot/cold, so not sure whether I would pay the extra money to fly them in biz - the lower biz COS are sold out anyway!

But those are just one or two things that really don't amount to much in the grand scheme of things. Jet's IFE hardware is great, but the content has generally been rather sparse and bizarre. And hardly anyone will rate an airline on the food alone.

For me personally, the usual aspects of inflight experience are of surprisingly little importance. So long as the seat is fine, the rest doesn't matter all that much.

In my younger days, the bling factor and the height of the hemline and all that jazz was rather more important. But as I travelled more and more and more and (unfortunately) grew older, those priorities changed. I value reliability, convenience on the ground and peace in the air above anything else.

With the ground experience increasingly the most stressful part of travel, anything that eases the pain is welcome. On that count, Jet score a big fat zero. Especially at home base, where there is no difference if you're flying Jet or Al Yemda, if you're flying Jet's First class or Air Arabia.

Air India have typically fared a bit better in terms of ground service, only on picture perfect days, and even that's no guarantee. One drop of rain and AI operations can meltdown like no other. AI's meltdowns might be less frequent than in the past, but when they do happen, oh dear.

Just got 200 K Avios from BA on two cards no spend minimums, just $150 each for fees over two years.

Weep. Don't post stuff like this on the AoI sub-forum

AI's meltdowns might be less frequent than in the past, but when they do happen, oh dear.

Just backing you up here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtOuk5QDk1k

As for the bling factor - yup, still works on me. And will be, for quite a while. Then again, as much as my sister tries convincing me that I'm old by giving me blank looks when I mention Tom and Jerry, Roadrunner and Cayote, and Looney Tunes, early twenties is still young. :)

Just backing you up here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtOuk5QDk1k

As for the bling factor - yup, still works on me. And will be, for quite a while. Then again, as much as my sister tries convincing me that I'm old by giving me blank looks when I mention Tom and Jerry, Roadrunner and Cayote, and Looney Tunes, early twenties is still young. :)

Oh wow.

Many of us have experiences AI's meltdowns firsthand, and let me tell you that video is just the tip of the iceberg. And even if those experiences were from some time ago, those memories aren't going anywhere fast.

Most of us oldies lost our masochistic streak after 30 :D