abhilife2001

Thanks for the response oliver.. Something away from this discussion..
Was wondering what could be the possible reason for LH to run Privat air services to PNQ if it has to have 2 class config ?? I mean can't they do it on a LH aircraft, maybe a smaller one like 737 if capacity is not that much..

Also, maybe my understanding is completely wrong, wasn't Privat Air mostly if not only for Private Aircrafts charter or only flights with C class ?? What does LH gain by giving the revenue to privat Air ?? I went to the Privat Air website and it has 5 product lines :Private charter, AC sales, AC management, Pvt airline services, privat training and ground dervices and in the bottom of the page its written that they run scheduled services for LH, LX and KLM ??
Dont know much abt Privat Air and hence asking ??

oliver2002

LH wants to service certain destinations but their aircraft are currently well utilised. So the alternative is to provide service to new destinations with dry/wet lease. They did this successfully (eg MUC DEL with OS 763 operated with Condor crew, A332 ex Sabena on many routes, etc etc) to launch new routes and establish service. Once the A380 and other aircraft join the fleet they can use existing aircraft to service the new routes.

The Privatair concept has helped LH (re)establish some routes like EWR-DUS etc. The past recession has created the need for Y on the routes as people are not willing to pay top dollars for C. Also LH had to deploy their (newly expanded) A321 fleet on the mid haul A300 routes hence the need for a midhaul 2 cabin substitute.
I expect the Privatair Y cabin to vanish soon when the A 380 frees 333s and 343s and more A321s join the fleet.

abhilife2001

oh ok.. so u basically saying tht LH is dry / wet leasing the planes from Privat air because they dont hv free capacity..hmmm... thanks for all the info..^

nbarve

Folks,
Traveling with my 7 year old son from SFO-FRA-PNQ. Wanted to find out if anybody knows what kind of kid friendly inflight entertainment does the PrivatAir 737 has on their FRA-PNQ leg in economy.
Appreciate your comments!
Thx

mp2

I flew this route 2 days ago. It has a touch screen based entertainment system, with 20+ movies, radio and CDs.

It has a Kid Entertainment section as well, with movies and cartoons. I think should be sufficient to keep people entertained for the 8 hr journey.

Hope this helps

mp2

I flew this route 2 days ago. IN terms of capacity, it was running full. From the Flight Attendants, it seems like the flight is usually running full, specially after they introduced the economy seats.

nbarve

Thanks a bunch!! That helps a LOT :-)

wbl-mn-flyer

Dear flyers,

Do they sell upgrades at the gate for FRA-PNQ? Wondering if there is a way to get up front rather than buying the C ticket ahead of time, by paying a few hundred usd$ or so?

I am wondering about getting to PNQ from my home in MSP (Minnesota). I could fly to BOM and then hire a car service for the drive to Pune. But have heard that there are good reasons to avoid BOM.

If stuck in the Economy section of this flight, any comments on that? My Delta options would be a 333 MSP-AMS and also a 333 from AMS-BOM. So am trying to compare the LH flight comfort and amenities against that standard.

Thanks one and all.

oliver2002

No paid upgrades for a 'few' hundred dollars ex-FRA, you'll have to slum it out in coach... the service of the A330/346 LH uses is comparable to the ex NW 333 in coach. Avoid the 744 service, its the worst Y on longhaul LH. The Privatair service to PNQ should be fine in Y.

wbl-mn-flyer

thank you.

sounds like I may as well do delta then.

kul007

Travelling with infant from YYZ-FRA and FRA-PNQ for first time with Economy Exp(s). Don't know what to expect. Any tips?

How is LH 768 - its Privatair. What is service level in economy?

Any info will be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

asdf1223

Sorry to bump a year old thread but does anyone have more recent experiences on this flight? Does it still operate the smaller 8 rows of C and 10 rows of Y plane? Is Customs/Immigration or connecting to PNQ a hassle because its smaller?

oliver2002

Its operated by a 737BBJ in the mixed Y/C config, and often does a fuel stop enroute to FRA since the PNQ runway is too short with limits on TOW.

asdf1223

Thanks Oliver2002. Any experience with the PNQ airport?

abhilife2001

Its a small airport managed by the Indian airforce..( It also serves as an Indian Airforce base ).. You can see IAF fighter jets and helicopters on the opposite side of the runaway from the terminal..
IIRC, LH is the only international flight operating from there other than Air India Express.. and yes, its quite near the city center ( 10-30mins, depending on where to go in the city and time of day/night)..