The Indigo flight I took was fine.
I think I just needed the email pdf sent to me to get on board - I had printed it out but they just scanned the QR code from my phone
The return was during a rainstorm - and the flight was delayed and landed late without a gate
We offloaded to a ramp and the rain came through the sides.
But there were staff with umbrellas helping people walk 4 feet from the end of the ramp to the bus door!
Originally Posted by
Spongthrush
Like the OP, I hadn't been to India for a few years but last month, did a trip DEL-BOM-Goa (old airport)- Bangalore- Kolkata-DEL.
Delhi immigration was swift, maybe 5-10mins wait if that. Certainly nothing like my previous experiences. Once land-side I think you'll find it really odd. If I am kind and say that UK has stagnated since Brexit, India seems to have had a step change in 'customer experience'. At all the airports on our trip, I recall one guy rather tamely whispering 'taxi?' as we exited the terminal; they seem to have eradicated touts with Uber and it's all rather pleasant compared to the old days. DEL, BOM, BLR, HYD very easy and hassle free. Kolkata, where you used to exit the terminal and be descended upon by tens of people is nothing like that any more. They still have the Morris Oxford taxis which is at least a nod to the past; the other airports all seem to be white Suzuki Swfits, LPG, EV, modern vehicles. Biggest shock was everyone - aircrew to shops and hotels - banging on about recycling.
Yes you still have to show your papers to get in the terminal and for international flights a paper boarding pass needed. But Indigo now have 350 aircraft (some parked with engine issues) and use mobile BPs. Plus as they - like all Indian domestics - have a free hold allowance with lots of labour to unload the bags so there's no overhead locker dramas. Best for me was that they deplane - if at a remote stand - using both 1L and 1R doors, down ramps. I've never previously, in 2000 flights, deplaned from the right side of the aircraft!
If you've never been to India you may still find some aspects a drama, but for those of us who visited in the days of Indian Airlines, with paper tickets that had to be reconfirmed in person at a city centre ticket office scrum, you'll be very pleasantly surprised that they have embraced the low cost airline model and do it pretty well. Photography at airports used to be banned, now it's not a problem at all at the main hubs.
The taxis at MAA were prepaid and we walked in the rain (with the driver happily carrying my wheel on as a shield over his head - I was wet and he was dry at the end of it.
5$ for a 5 mile ride seemed very reasonable. and I arrived unharmed despite the rain and poor visibility