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Regional C *A RTW & (hopefully) finishing flying every route (100+) for an airline

Regional C *A RTW & (hopefully) finishing flying every route (100+) for an airline

Old Sep 17, 2008, 7:40 pm
  #16  
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Transit in Christchurch (CHC)

With a late night arrival and early morning departure I was unsure what to do. I could book a nearby hotel and get a maximum of 2 hours sleep, likely less, (+ risk missing my flight by sleeping through alarm), or stay in the airport for the few hours it shuts down. I opted to stay at the airport.

As I'd arrived on the last flight of the night, all the best positions for resting had already been taken by the couple of dozen fellow travellers who were spending the night here. The domestic terminal and international terminal check in areas were both locked, which is a shame as the only truly comfortable seats in the building are by international check in. International arrivals area is kept unlocked through the night, with lights kept on and about every 30 minutes an announcement to keep an eye on our bags as this is a security conscious airport.

A tv showed some football with the volume fairly low. I noticed there was a lack of power points for using laptops or other devices - with just a few jealously guarded by those lucky enough to have nabbed them.

I didn't sleep but took the opportunity to catch up on some reading, pick up some bus timetables for the upcoming do, and go for a walk in the chilly night. The other landside parts of the building were opened up around 4am, but the domestic security didn't open until 4:30am and the Koru Club until 4:50am.

This was my third different airport that I've spent the night (or rather a few hours) at in recent weeks. It ranks last in my view, for having no real amenities and being the most difficult of the 3 to sleep in (if that is what you want).
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Old Sep 17, 2008, 9:00 pm
  #17  
 
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Can I hazard a guess that your last NZ route is the seasonal DUD-MEL?
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Old Sep 18, 2008, 12:57 pm
  #18  
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good guess
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Old Sep 20, 2008, 3:07 pm
  #19  
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CHRISTCHURCH to AUCKLAND (CHC-AKL) on Air New Zealand 737-300 in economy class (space+ zone)

The flight was called not long after I'd entered the lounge. The load was moderately light, and I was the only passenger with lounge access. Most of the passengers were Japanese tourists connecting to Air New Zealand's flight to Tokyo.

I got an empty middle seat, but did not get my preferred seating as the seat selection had been blocked out during the time I checked it in the days ahead of the flight.

There was an early morning fog building as we taxiied out. I managed to stay awake long enough to see the pre-dawn lightness shining on the snow-draped Kaikoura Ranges, and then was out until we touched down in Auckland ahead of time.
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Old Sep 22, 2008, 9:22 pm
  #20  
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CHRISTCHURCH to AUCKLAND (CHC-AKL) on Air New Zealand 777-200ER in business class

Normally business class is not able to be purchased on this domestic leg of an international flight unless you have flown business class on the Tokyo/Osaka to Christchurch leg, or, as in my case, have booked it as part of a special business class ticket. Regular business class tickets ex-NZ to destinations other than Japan book into economy on this flight.

Anyway, I'd booked this in business class to not only maximise comfort should I actually be able to take the flight, as well as maximising flexibility if I should not be able to take the flight. It turned out that I could take the flight. I was looking forward to it, as it has been a while since I've flown it in business class despite my regular jaunts to Japan.

I arrived at international check in a couple of hours before departure only to find it closed with a sign indicating it would not be open for some time. Rather than hang around landside, perhaps at the cafe in the international terminal, I headed through security for the domestic lounge.

The nice agent inside checked me in. No need to show the photo ID that is required for the international flight (as opposed to domestic flights which require no ID) - she knows who I am. I was a bit sleep deprived and so didn't notice immediately that she'd forgotten to give me a "D" sticker and also forgotten to take the paper ticket coupon. When I remembered she slapped on the sticker over one end of the thin domestic boarding pass, and I realised then I'd forgotten to check which FFP I had entered and so had to ask her to look it up for me. Because domestic business class is not normally bookable the earning rate is rubbish on Air NZ Airpoints and I wanted the flight credited to another program.

The agent also let me know what time immigration was opening - in about 30 minutes time. I had enough time for a much needed 3 coffees and a quick check of email messages and it was time to head over to international terminal.

With no bags to check, and boarding pass with "D" sticker in hand I was soon past the departure fee checker (waived for domestic passengers) and up to immigration. A small delay there as the officer was thrown a bit by having a domestic boarding pass and an old style "D" sticker. I guess that is what you get when international check in desk is closed - whatever the domestic lounge has on hand is not the latest stock. I managed to avoid the random manual check at security and headed on up to the lounge.

This too, did not open very long before departure. It was shut when I arrived but opened soon after at 1 hour before departure. I was first in, but only narrowly ahead of the international through passengers.

I grabbed a bite to eat and managed to restrain myself - just a couple of glasses to drink. Boarding was called late in the process and I was one of the last to board. I hadn't long settled into my seat in the half empty business class cabin, and started watching some tv shows, when a ground staff came up to me asking for the coupon. That was easily dealt with. I thought about trying to watch a short movie - with gate to gate IFE there might just be enough time to see one. However, if the flight time was short I'd miss the tail end so I opted instead for some tv shows. No newspaper offered, but fortunately I'd grabbed one in the lounge.

We left a few minutes late. The first 30 minutes of the flight were rather turbulent with strong & gusty cross-winds - a classic nor'wester (aloft at least). Meal and all other service was suspended until we reached Cook Strait when our flight became more settled.

A snack was on offer - no menu card. A few bits of cold meat, cheese and rocket. Accompanied by some fruit or a sponge cake. Plus drinks.

IFE was turned off while we approached over AKL. So much for gate to gate

A good portion of the Air NZ longhaul fleet was parked up at AKL for the day - 3 747's at remote stands, plus a couple of 777's. We got a gate at the end, thus Air NZ did it's bit to help us work off the food and booze consumed onboard with the long walk to immigration. As a domestic passenger no point in stopping by duty free, and I rush to the shared domestic/APEC/aircrew line at the far right. I had a small wait for an officer to man the desk. Then through to customs and waved through there. The guy on x-ray may have been new as he wanted a completed arrival form from me (no immigration forms on departure or arrival for "D" passengers) and also wanted to x-ray my stuff. His supervisor waved me through.

It was a good time of day for non-"D" passengers too, with no queues at immigration or customs.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 12:19 am
  #21  
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VISAS

After a hectic few months of international travel I am now in a deliberate window free of international travel in order to sort out the necessary visas. My country does not allow secondary passports and so I have to carefully plan when I will get visas arranged in times that I do not need to use it. With my travel schedule and just a 3 month window before travel to each country to get a visa (other than places where I can get multi-visit visas and already have such), it is a delicate juggling act co-ordinating it all.

As regular readers of my trip reports may recall, I prefer to leave it to a specialist visa company to advise me of the requirements and manage the visas I need to get in advance. This saves me a lot of time and hassle, which can be considerable when you live in a country that has no official representation for many countries, or at least none that can issue visas and those that can are mostly in a different city.

I visited their offices and had a wee chat. They know me well. The lovely lady asked where I was off to this time, and I said "lot's of places - it is a bit complicated". She started printing out stuff for the first few countries I mentioned but then decided it was indeed complicated and they needed a more careful look at my itinerary.

"I've been working here for 15 years and have never seen an itinerary quite like this one" was the next comment

After more than an hour looking up stuff in their big book of visa requirements, various online databases and much scratching of heads, we had the visa requirements sorted ... except for a couple of countries. For those the expert said there was more than one interpretation, and I'd have to take my luck.

Just like some fare rules, some visa requirements are unclear in the treatment of multiple "and" and "or" conditions. Simply put, parts of my itinerary are so odd that the circumstances would not have been envisaged by those who write the rules.

As with my RTW earlier in the year when I visited Kurdistan, I also have a visit to a place not yet recognised as a country by all other countries, and whose status changes by the week, which naturally also complicates the visa requirements. That one, however, is not my main concern as I write this post.
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Old Sep 28, 2008, 6:29 pm
  #22  
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A bit has happened in the past few days.

I've changed my upcoming travel a little bit.

Air NZ has confirmed a previously announced new domestic route Auckland to Masterton starting 16 February 2009. Flying every route of an airline is a never-ending goal!

I hunkered down in a hotel in my own city for a couple of days to try to beat, by eliminating most distractions, a major milestone that I was in danger of missing. I made it, and picked up a lot of points while doing so.

I have been invited by Qantas to fly a promotional A380 flight over Auckland! After hoping to fly the inaugural SQ flight and missing out due to a Oneworld RTW, then hoping to fly the inaugural EK flight and missing out due to commitments, then hoping to fly the inaugural QF passenger flight and missing out due to a Star Alliance RTW, then thinking my first A380 flights might be EK on AKL-SYD route next year; this is indeed a pleasant surprise. It will be my first A380 flight Woohoo.
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Old Oct 1, 2008, 9:51 pm
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Gotta love the sweet irony that you missed the SQ A380 inaugural passenger flight due to a OneWorld RTW and you'll be missing the QF A380 inaugural flight due to a Star Alliance RTW...
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Old Oct 1, 2008, 10:00 pm
  #24  
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Yes there is a symmetry there, and it goes further. Flying QF on the SQ A380 inaugural and flying SQ on the QF A380 inaugural.
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 12:22 pm
  #25  
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AUCKLAND to OKIWI (AKL-NZOX) on Fly My Sky Britten Norman Islander in couch class
Okiwi is so small it does not have a 3-letter IATA code, so I've used the 4-letter ICAO code instead

I'm not one to stay grounded for long so I decided to book a wee trip that should have some stunning views, and nicely contrast against the upcoming A380 flight.

map

I had a choice of two airlines for the trip, Great Barrier Airlines and Fly My Sky. Fly My Sky used to be called Great Barrier XPress but was forced to rename. (Apparently there was no love lost between the airlines - google brings some bizarre tales!) I chose Fly My Sky for being the underdog.

I also had a choice of destinations, Okiwi or Claris. Okiwi airfield is sometimes closed due to weather conditions, and so locals on Great Barrier Island tend to book to/from Claris since that is more of an all weather airfield. So I figured I'd select Okiwi to ensure I'd get to visit both airfields, weather permitting of course.

On the day, the weather was not ideal and with an approaching front I was unsure if we'd even be flying today. The air was warm-sticky with moisture, not yet summer heat but damp with rain not too far away. The wind was blustery from the northwest - cross winds for much of the trip.

I had a little time before departure so I went into the Qantas Club for a quick coffee. I noticed they'd finally repaired one of the computers that had been out of order for the past few months.
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 1:42 pm
  #26  
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Mindful of the time, no boarding calls and flights not showing on any monitors (whether in Qantas Club or in the main terminal), I left the lounge early to check in.

I was checked off the passenger list by the pilot upon giving my name. No ID necessary. No boarding pass issued. No checked luggage. Boarding will be in 10 minutes.

A few Air NZ prop flights get called and then it is our turn. We group in front of the doors to the prop gates until we're all here, then the pilot escorts us through (since there is no boarding pass to check the Air NZ gate staff can't just let us through).

For this first flight there are just 4 passengers so we get a row each. This isn't the smallest aircraft I've flown in, but it has been a while since I've been in one this small. The seats remind me of couches you might have at a cheap seaside bach/crib. There are 4 rows of couches, plus a seat beside the pilot. No steps to help you inside, but I'm surprised their is overhead air vents as well as the little perspex circle in the window. Seat pitch is about 26" - my legs have to go on an angle to fit which would make it particularly uncomfortable if 2 adults share the same couch.

We taxi out on time, and right behind the Great Barrier Airlines aircraft. We take-off in a very short distance thanks to the strong winds. Even before we've passed the hangars we are airborne and seem to crawl through the air past the domestic and international terminals before turning sharply right to get off the flight path of the jet aircraft.

We fly low over the city at around 1000 feet (that is not a typo). Visibility is about 20km and it is rather humid so a good view of the vicinity but we cannot see distant islands and ranges. Nice views of the suburbs, beaches and cliffs. Even some seagulls flying below us are visible. Over Brown's Island and the Waiheke Island ferry. Past Rangitoto, Motutapu and Rakino Islands. Then the city recedes behind us and we head into the gloom. Despite the low cloud we are flying below it, gradually climbing across the Hauraki Gulf to 2500 feet. Great Barrier and Little Barrier Islands become visible out of the murk.

We fly over dense bush - so dense that only one river is visible in a couple of places were it widens into pools of deep green. Other rivers are invisible but for the crease in the rugged land, trees on both banks hugging and their tops blotting out all below. In the calmer waters of Port Fitzroy there is a tall ship at anchor, waiting out the weather in the lee of Kaikoura Island (there was some controversy about public buying this island a year or two ago for the conservation estate in the name of Sir Peter Blake). The view reminds me of the Marlborough Sounds, bush and highly variegated shoreline, but less settled and more rugged. Here and there a roof sticks out through the bush - the only signs of habitation.

As we descended over the ridgeline we suddenly emerged in a open farming area of Okiwi, circled the basin to land from the sea. But not before seeing one of the Great Barrier Airlines aircraft land off to our right. With a decent and gusty cross-wind we crabbed on a large angle over the harbour mouth, just clearing the small sand dunes and landed on a little grass strip.

Last edited by Kiwi Flyer; Oct 5, 2008 at 2:11 pm
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 2:23 pm
  #27  
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OKIWI to CLARIS (NZOX-GBZ) on Fly My Sky Britten Norman Islander (BN-2B) in couch class

One passenger disembarks and a young family loads their luggage in the back and hops onboard. A few minutes on the ground and we take off in opposite direction to that which we landed. I guess that is one advantage of cross winds! As we took off I thought our take-off roll is probably shorter than the length of a 747 or A380.

As the map linked above shows, this is a short hop. Not quite as short as the Westray to Papa Westray inter-island 2 minute flight in the hebrides, but not particularly long either. By straight line it is about 6 miles, but we fly around the hills instead of over them, adding a good 50% to the distance.

I forgot to check the time when we took off so I'm not sure exactly how long the flight took, but it was not long. For this flight we kept at 600 feet around the headlands before landing at Claris again from the sea.

This is a bigger airfield, but still very small. It has one sealed strip seemingly no wider than a car, and a grass cross-strip. We land on the grass beside the sealed strip and then use the grass cross-strip to taxi up to the "terminal" (aka shack). It is a busy time of day with 2 other aircraft parked up in the process of boarding.

Last edited by Kiwi Flyer; Oct 5, 2008 at 7:41 pm
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 3:05 pm
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So did you fly to Claris just for the flight, or is it a place worth visiting?
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 3:42 pm
  #29  
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I can see myself visiting for a long weekend getaway. There's not much distractions on the island other than hiking, fishing. But this time I had no time for a stay.
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Old Oct 5, 2008, 4:35 pm
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Smile

Love it Kiwi Flyer.
"Couch Class a new way to fly!", a bit like SQ new J we give you the width but not the pitch!
Of course if you had to share it would be like several of my bus trips during my backpacking adventures through Asia.
Is this going to be linked to your Mini-Tour of NZ?
What about the other smaller airlines of NZ?
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