Same day, same plane MLE turn on separate PNRs?
 

Looking to book a couple of back-to-back MLE-LAX MR trips. Is there a transit option at MLE? My recollection from last month was no... that everyone walks from the tarmac to C&I. My only concern would be check-in deadlines. Any reason I can't OLCI for MLE departures or check-in and get my BP in HKG earlier in the day?

Even if you can't or haven't OLCI'd for your ex-MLE departure (I'm not sure MLE is a port from where OLCI is possible), the lovely ladies at The Wing F lounge should be able to set you up with your ex-MLE Boarding Pass(es).

I've done this often enough for CMB turnarounds. If the first person you ask at the service desk says "no"; get them to ask someone who can do it.

All I know is that if you did it on EK, you'd be able to get into the lounge after arrival and sit out the wait there. Not sure what the case would be with CX though..

Yeah, I figured the Wing ladies should be able to do check-in. Too bad MLE is not like CMB where you don't have to clear C&I to wander the terminal, visit lounges and board another flight.

At MLE? The only lounge I saw last month was the Priority Lounge.

I just arrived in MLE today and because I will be doing a quick turnaround here later in the year, I checked my options.

There IS a "transit passenger" exit before immigration. Once you enter the building from the tarmac, just turn left immediately.

Even if that wouldn't work, immigration was quick, even when arriving after a seemimgly full UL flight today. 15 min tops from leaving the bus to arrivals hall. You could then turn left and go straight to departures again.

goliath, thanks for checking and reporting on the "transit" exit.

Has anyone tried HKG-MLE-HKG?
 

I am booked on two tickets on Cathay... both... MLE-HKG-ORD and return.

(I have layovers in HKG and fly separate tickets to do business in Asia.)

To keep the fare down, I am flying HKG-MLE (to end the first ticket) and connecting to MLE-HKG-ORD to get back to the USA.

The turn in MLE is less than two hours. Customs on the first ticket took about 30 minutes. I guess I will then go upstairs and check-in and go back through customs, also took about 30 minutes.

Overall, I think it will be do-able, but tight.

So the question remains - anyone try this yet?

Correct. I am sure I can add a note to the second PNR that gives the inbound flight. Also, I can try and print boarding passes ahead of time so in theory if they walk away from the counter (late inbound) I would still have a shot at making it.

The MLE-HKG flight is now bookable all the way through Feb 2015. Looks like this flight will remain in place, 4 days a week, which is exciting.

Unfortunately, the excellent ex-MLE I/D fares have not been extended beyond October 2014 :(

I will continue to hold out hope that they extend the fare through the end of the year, solely for my own personal benefit.

I did a MLE turnaround earlier last month. You don't have to clear immigration. On the arrival card there was a transit option, so I checked that and when asked which flight I indicated that I'll be on th return flight to HKG (you can imagine the look I got). So her supervisor went upstairs (or the back) to and got by boarding pass.

I wouldn't say they're used to people transiting in MLE but its certainly doable. You could also checkin in HKG and print out your return bp. For the record, I didn't have any checkin luggage



:D p.s. 1 year on FT

Correct me if I'm wrong but it seems like they did away the ex-MLE I fare and only D fares are available (which is still a great deal)

Thanks! I am going to be doing this a few times, so I am hoping it is painless.

So when you hit the customs building, you went to the left? (I saw the transit area, but, it looked closed.)

Any line?

Were you able to get into the club?

I can't remember the detail but there was no line, in fact MLE isn't a usual place where people transit but I would say the staff knows how to deal with transiting pax

There use to be a couple of flights that transit MLE... EK to CMB and there use to be a China Eastern flight that transited MLE to JNB... So I don't think transiting passengers is too much of a novelty for them

I did this run earlier this month at MLE.
Make a left turn when entering the terminal building and one will see a metal detector, the security guard manning this detector just waved me through. Then I passed through a short corridor which lead me to the departure hall, at the end of the corridor was another metal detector and an x-ray machine manned by a security guard who checked for my boarding pass. I was the only person that went this route from the CX flight and the security guard asked me 3 times if I am sure I am going back to HKG even after I showed him my connecting boarding pass. He wasn't rude or impolite but just a little surprised that I'm getting back on the same plane. He even wished me a pleasant flight. ^
After passing this very quick (20 seconds max) security check, one will find himself at the ground floor of the departure hall (Gate 1-3). Go up one floor on the stair and one will find the Duty-free shopping area and the Plaza Premium Lounge that CX uses. The airport itself is pretty run-down and there wasn't much to see. Lounge was very basic and crowded with very slow wi-fi and only a small selection of food. I believe the lounge was also shared with TK, MH and other airlines.
I had no problem obtaining the MLE-HKG boarding pass in HKG. Bag was also checked-in at the same time for the HKG-US flight the next day, CX accepts US bound check-in bags up to 24 hours prior to departure.
Maldives immigration card was not needed at all but I guess it would be helpful if one has it ready in case the transit exit is closed for whatever reason.

I also did the CX turnaround there last month. It's on the left, I simply told the staff I wished to transit and they wandered off with my ticket then came back some time later and walked me upstairs. There was not enough time to use the lounge.

+1. EXACTLY what happened to me

Thank you all. I suspect this will be a more common occurrence as this fare is/was just too good to pass up as a cheap way to get RT to the USA on a nice plane.

I go in two weeks. I will report back what happens.

Thanks again all!

This thread might not be this helpful since CX has raised many ex-MLE fares on March 1.

Anyway, I did my first MLE turnaround yesterday!
I actually arrived MLE on UL 103. It landed around 7:30pm and after deplaning, I headed straight to the transit desk. The armed guard sent a staff and she took my electronic ticket and passport to the CX desk. She later told me that CX desk did not open till 8:20pm, so I had to wait a bit at the transit area. The agent came back at 8:30pm and I was given my boarded passes and brought to the secured area. There were a number of staffs approaching me during my wait at the transit area, but they were all friendly.

However I will remind everyone to print out their electronic ticket receipt, which will definitely be helpful to everyone!

Cathay Pacific tried to speed up the turnaround whenever possible, and boarding time was fifty-five minutes prior to departure. The doors actually closed at 11:10pm, 25 minutes before our scheduled departure time. So if you are coming in from another flight, you need to be more conservative in your scheduling.

I presume if you can get your return boarding pass printed in HK, that will be great.

Carfield

Damn, it was such a good fare. So sad to see it go away

CX601 - CX602 Transfer in Male
 

As promised, I am reporting back on my experience...

My flights for the day...

BKK-HKG, HKG-MLE, MLE-HKG, HKG-ORD (Yes these are all back to back)

The very nice agent in Bangkok was able to print all boarding passes and all lounge invites in Bangkok, despite these being on three Itineraries.

As others reported, this was easy. There was no line for transfers. The guy there kept pointing me to customs (just getting off CX601) and kept pointing to transfer. It helped a Cathay employee was there. I handed him my boarding card. He made a phone call (about 1 minute) and then asked if I had my lounge card. I said yes, and we were off to security.

5 minutes later, I was in the lounge. Piece of cake.

As others have stated, at a minimum, have a printout of your flight info. Having your onward boarding card is a nice bonus.

I have this "turn" scheduled two more times in the next few months. I can breathe some relief now.

Too bad the fare is gone. I guess I'll be stuck with KHI turns now:D

I'd love to hear all about a KHI turnaround!

Did one last week, look out for a TR soon!!

yes they are used to this at MLE as a bit of Indian passengers transit to India via MLE from the Gulf and ive versa

Sorry to hijack the thread. Since we're talking about KHI turns, there's good and bad to it.

Fares are very good ex KHI. You can have BKK issue the boarding pass from KHI-BKK.

HERE'S THE BAD.

If your plan is going to the USA, expect SSSS on your boarding pass. You're GUARANTEED TO GET IT. If you have Global Entry and it's your first time doing this, you'll probably get a big fat XXXX across your picture. You'll be sent to a special area and will be interrogated for at least 20 mins. After that's done, you'll be accompanied by a customs officer to claim your luggage (if you have any). They'll go through it and you'll be on your way. This whole procedure wasted an hour!

The fares are very good but expect to be majorly interrogated. I don't do this anymore and haven't gotten the dreaded SSSS since.

+1. I flew to JFK on sunday and was SSSSed. I was also sent to the CBP office and questioned as gemini573 said. Although the officers were all extremely friendly and we ended up striking up a conversation but yes, I was asked about my itinerary and contact details(I wonder what they're going to use that info for) etc.



gemini573, have you gotten SSSS when you travel domestically within US or at times that doesn't involve itinerary to/from KHI? I'm a little concerned about my security status with TSA as I basically went from PreCheck to SSSS in 1 trip

I don't do much domestic flights, so I can't really say. On the inbound flight (back to Asia), I've most definitely gotten SSSS. It got to a point where CX ground staff knew who I was because they said I was one of very few DMs that would consistently get it. Also, some TSA staff recognized me and they thought it was a bit strange why I kept getting it.

When do you get the SSSS inbound, YOU MUST get CX staff to write down the PNR so TSA can do what they have to do with it. Mostly importantly, after going through the security procedures, GET THEM TO STAMP your BP. Can't stress enough the importance of that stamp. If you don't get that stamp, you'll have to do it all over again.

It's my first time on SSSS inbound (going through TSA). I assume you get extra screening, to what extent does it go? I've heard many horror stories about SSSS. Also did you stop getting SSSS as soon as you stop flying KHI?

As far as the extra screening, if there's a bright side, you bypass the line. They'll do a pat down (which might be invasive, but think of what they did in KHI). They'll open up your luggage and whatever belongings and swab it to see if you have any explosive residue. After that, they'll run your baggage once again to see if everything is ok. After that's done, you'll get a stamp on your BP saying everything is ok. As I said earlier, GET THAT STAMP...if not, you'll go through what I explained all over again.

I got it a couple more times after the initial interview.

Haha, hopefully that won't be too bad and I hope KHI won't be a bad choice that I'll end up regretting...

It goes with the territory. Yeah, fares are fantastic, but you have to go through a bit more scrutiny. You must ask yourself, is it worth having to go through it?

I did it for a while, but I must say, after doing the turnaround, you'll feel exhausted the entire day. What I'll do is go to Healthland and get a two hour Thai massage.

Will there be high chance of being ssss ed if the CX ticket is from Dubai to US and return? I plan to buy the ex UAE ticket to US because of the big discount. Many thanks

Yes, we had to go through extra security on a recent trip from DXB-JFK, not worth the hassle.

wow! DXB as well!! that's really surprising!!

Male Connection - Different Airlines
 

Not 100% the correct thread, but I do not think there is a correct thread for my question...

I arrive on a Bangkok Airways flight at 12:30pm.

Connecting on the Cathay Flight to Hong Kong at 9:30pm

I want to just hang in the lounge. (Day rate at the hotel is not available.)

In the past, I have gone from CX to CX... easy and simple. BUT, the CX agent had to get me through the connecting flight security. As I will assume no one from CX will be there, any chance, I can still use the connecting security?

(I am assuming I will have my CX boarding passes and lunge pass.)

Thoughts? Anyone do it?

You should not have a problem. Just hang left after you enter the customs hall entrance to the terminal and tell security that you have a connecting flight. If no CS agent is nearby, they will call someone who can escort you upstairs to the departures level.

I arrived on UL departing on the same CX as you, but didn't have a BP. Airport staffer (not even CX employee) took my passport and flight info and returned 15 minutes later with my BP/passport and escorted me upstairs to departures.

Thanks SFO777. In your case, CX was there to give you the BP. While I plan to have my BP with me, there will be no CX folks around. (I am also hoping the entry card for the lounge prints. I believe it did last time.)

Last year, I was able to go the CX checkin desk in Bangkok and they were able to print my MLE-HKG-ORD boarding passes and lounge cards. I hope to do that again this time.

I will report back Saturday what happens.. hopefully from the lounge!

Male Connection - Different Airlines (Updated)
 

Here is the complete situation and resolution for those interested – Flying Bangkok Airways, Bangkok to Male, 9:30 am, landing at 12:30. Flying Cathay Pacific, Male to Hong Kong to the USA, at 9:20 pm.

Problem –
Cathay Pacific only flies one flight a day in and out. Check-in desk opens at 5:20pm (or 6:20pm, depending on who you ask.) You can check in online but cannot print boarding passes. That would leave me with 5 hours in no man’s land.

So the options –
There is a day hotel, but runs upward of $200. You can pay $50 - $70 for the privilege of hanging out in their lobby and pool. Personally, I would rather hang in the club with internet access, air conditioning, food and booze. So I needed to get a boarding pass and a club pass before landing.

My only chance would be at the Cathay Desk at BKK Airport. At the Bangkok airport I went to the Cathay Desk. I explained to the nice agent my dilemma. She was thoroughly confused by my being in BKK but flying Cathay Pacific out of MLE and wanting my MLE boarding passes in BKK. The first three times I asked the agent, I got “no’s”. Having done this before, I knew it was possible. I insisted and after two calls to a supervisor, success! She printed the passes and lounge passes.

At the Maldeves -
Got a strange look when I showed the agent for connecting flights my boarding pass from CX. They took my bp and passport to verify the bp. (They could not understand how I was able to get my bp printed in BKK.) It took 20 minutes to get it all verified, but all is good. I am sitting in the lounge now.

So the summary…
Yes, you can get your Cathay Boarding Passes in BKK for flying out of MLE, without flying Cathay out of BKK. I now have gotten them every time in BKK. (I have tried in HKG to get my MLE boarding passes… sometimes yes. Sometimes no.)

How about the checked in luggage?
 

My apologies for reviving a (somewhat) old thread (sorry silly me did not see this was on a CX-specific board, but I suppose the same issue could happen on CX pax too). I am planning on doing the same thing (direct airside transit) very soon, arriving on EY and departing on UL.

I know that bringing in alcohol of any kind in any quantity past the customs is a big no-no for MLE, but how about having it in (checked) baggage while in airside transit without ever entering the Maldives? Is this permissible? Has anyone any experience with this? Really want to bring a little bottle of Blue Label for a friend but unfortunately this is the routing I chose have.

Any pax of EK652, MU713, BA2043 or any other direct flights that have a stop in MLE before continuing on to a 3rd destination have any experience/insight to share? :confused::confused:

Many thanks in advance.

LB