A NOUVELLE EXPERIENCE WITH AIR NEW ZEALAND
A few days later and it’s back out to the airport on another trip. This time it’s off to the warmer clime of New Caledonia.
For a change I wasn’t on an early bird flight (lost count of the number of times leaving home at 4am for the early flights), or going straight from work. This meant I could take it easy and take the bus. Since we arrive a little early and it’s a nice day I get off at domestic terminal and do the 10 minute walk to international terminal. The walk passes close to the edge of the tarmac so it’s always good to see the hustle and bustle of daily airport activity on the apron. Okay, also smell the A-1
Use the premium Air New Zealand check-in facility (available to Star Alliance Gold, business class and Koru Club pax when flying Air New Zealand) to bypass the large queues both at check in and at immigration. It’s a busy time of day and so plenty of people everywhere. Everywhere except, it seems, the premium check-in where one agent is very slowly serving an ever increasing line. This is my longest wait ever in the premium check-in, and after about 15 minutes a couple more agents arrive before we’re then quickly processed. Get a bulkhead seat, which is good, but doesn’t really matter for such a short flight (approx 2 hours 30 minutes). Through the immigration formalities and security and another visit to the lounge.
I had noticed earlier that a lot of arriving flights were running late so wondered if we’d depart on time (more likely due to connecting pax than aircraft arriving late in this case). So checked it out on the computer terminals – showing as one time. One of my minor pet annoyances is the departure screen in the lounge doesn’t show boarding time/expected departure time, only the scheduled departure time – which makes it impossible to tell if there’s delays without asking or looking it up on the website.
I grab a coffee or two to waken up properly and then it’s off to the gate. A first for me – first time I have used a bus gate at Auckland (had them plenty of times elsewhere eg Europe). The bus gates are downstairs and there’s a small delay while they wait for everyone to arrive including the last connecting passengers (apparently some came straight through from London and Paris). It always amazes me how everyone rushes to get on the bus first. It’s not as if the plane will leave without you, and in any case, those who board the bus last can get first off. As we are driven out to the A320 I realise the reason for getting a bus gate – the pier is full with a mixture of 747s and 767s of various airlines. No room for the assorted 737s and A320s, other than scattered remote stands.
I forgot to mention while boarding the bus we get a great nose-on view of an Air New Zealand 767 pulling up at the gate immediately above us.