Well, it has been a long time since I last wrote one of these, but here we go again. This trip report will feature the all new and 100% arbitrary SMessier scoring system: accept no substitutes.

This was a long trip and a long way to get from where I was to where I wanted to go, but it featured many miles and a domestic flight with a chance of elite upgrade in the process, so it all made sense. Besides, the ticket was cheap.

Itinerary: STR-AMS on NW3793/EW93 (10A)
AMS-DTW on NW 53 (12A)
DTW-DCA on NW 226 (3A)

I awoke Sunday morning in our lovely Stuttgart apartment and immediately booted up the PC to check on my itinerary on the dependable NW web site. Just as advertised, the newly introduced automatic upgrade for Silvers had worked its magic. My DTW-DCA segment was now listed as First. So, for having an automated upgrade system that works even for Silvers, NW gets +3 points.

The fianc�e and I make our way to the lovely airport that is STR where the EW check in counter features a friendly employee and no other customers. I recognize the fellow from my last trip out of STR, and begin to think I am starting to travel a little too much. He hands me my 3 boarding passes and wishes me a nice trip. I have some time to "explore" the airport, which allegedly has 4 terminals, though no Terminal 3. The gates in Terminal 4 have numbers in the 400- range, but those in Terminal 2 just high 100's. Nice move. Terminal 2 is really just a corner of Terminal 1 anyway where they have concentrated the charter airlines.

I board the flight to AMS, and once again service on this EW flight is very efficient and friendly, and the snack served is quite decent for an all coach flight of this length. (+ 1 point). The flight is on time and I arrive in AMS with plenty of time to visit the DC lounge. Said lounge is (as is usually the case for me) nicely quiet, though their selection of English or French papers is nonexistent except for a French sports daily that is of little interest. I compensate by using the bar and listening to the guy singing along to the music his walkman is producing.

On my way to the gate I stop by a KLM transfer desk to ask how full the flight to DTW is. Completely I am told, because (and I quote here): "Detroit is a very popular city for some reason." Right. I would say this woman has never been there. For making silly claims about DTW I have no other choice but to institute a -1 point penalty.

Those who have flown NW from AMS will know that NW likes to run its own security check before boarding. While I appreciate the extra security, one consequence of this is to make a mockery of the early check in privileges of Elites/WBC passengers, since all I ever see is one huge line before being asked the same questions one had to answer earlier in that day. Given that this was a full flight and that the overhead bins quickly overloaded, another -1 penalty.

I settle into 12A next to a friendly WP Gold Detroit resident. (Though he did concede that DTW does suck big time.) After we reach our cruising altitude the meal service begins, with a choice of Ginger Chicken or not. My neighbor had requested a special meal, as indicated on his boarding pass, but it was not loaded up and the FA seemed unwilling to deal with the situation. (She did later come back to ask what he had requested and made a note of it, +1 point). The accompanying salad is missing salad dressing, but when I ask the FA if she knows what became of it, she replies: "No, I don't personally know what happened to the salad dressing." Ok, thanks! Service throughout the flight is fine though nothing fantastic. The snack served before we land is the same exact one I had on my February flight on NW from Europe, so for that I must again assess a -1 penalty. A little variety please!

The entertainment selection is scheduled to be "Small Time Crooks" and "X-Men" both decent though not great films (Along with assorted TV shows after the movies). I had however seen the former on my AZ flight last month, which made it the second time this year NW was showing a film one of its partners had been screening the month earlier. (-1 point)

The channel knob on my seat is however showing its age, since it is near impossible to turn and many of the channels do not align properly, i.e. the knob has to be between some numbers to actually be tuned to an audio selection. On top of which, the NW magazine does not specify on which channel specific programs are being played, and (at my seat anyway), for much of the flight channels 3, 4, 5 and 6 have the "Focus on Business" interview thing (or whatever it's called), which is always nothing more than free advertising for the companies featured. (And of course NW continues to play "Japanese Favorites" on its flights to/from Europe, for reasons that are not clear to me.) After the two movies, someone apparently decides that although we have another 2 hours to go, we have been sufficiently entertained as the video program ends and we do not see the rest of the scheduled selection. Unless of course the flight information/Blue Screen of Boredom (BSoB) is considered entertainment. So, to sum up on the entertainment front: for having a crappy knob, confused program listing, and no other audio program for the last 2 hours but the previously mentioned Business crap, a big -3 penalty. Those little things should be easy to fix, yet they are not. Very annoying in my view.

We land in DTW on time and taxi around for a while. By the time I am off the plane and through a quick and easy Immigration/Customs experience, I have 2 hours to go before my flight to DCA. I occupy my time at one of the crummy restaurants DTW has to offer. I had not been here since July, but I must say it continues to be a nasty, dirty, and disgusting place. The "Laptop Lane" place where I was hoping to get online for a bit is closed (it closes at 4pm on weekends!), but then again surfing for one hour runs $45, so maybe I should not be going there at all regardless.

Around 6h40pm I head to the gate where boarding has already begun. They are boarding rows 11 and up when I get there, but I have my nice FC boarding pass so I make my way to a full FC cabin. The two FA's working that evening are extremely friendly and efficient, getting people's jackets, offering drinks, and displaying the attitude one would like to encounter more often when travelling. For this I am happy to award +3 points. The snack service consists of a sandwich with turkey and enough bacon to satisfy even Homer Simpson. For a lifetime supply of bacon in my already clogged arteries, I will award +1 point. Nothing like storing a little extra fat as Winter gets here.

We land at DCA right on time, and after a couple of minutes my suitcase arrives and I am on my way home thanks to the friendly DC metro system.

Totaling up the points I see that this trip ranks a +1, a reasonable but undistinguished score. Not all the way there to CO standards I would venture, but making some improvements. (I will note as well that the in-flight magazine stated that NW is in the process of upgrading its audio equipment, so perhaps this will be better soon.)

Edited for UBB coding and spellling. Ha ha.

[This message has been edited by SMessier (edited 12-06-2000).]

Thanks for the descriptives and the report. I share your dim view of the twice-around security at AMS.

Last time I flew SEA-AMS and return in WBC, the audio/video was as technically (and editorially) lame as you describe -- maybe we had the same DC-10. There is no explaining the Japanese pop channel on there. There was also no explaining the spectacle on the eastbound flight of all the WBC F/As plopping into unoccupied chairs in our cabin, reclining the seats fully (one of them right into my knees) and going to sleep for two or three hours. If we wanted water or anything we had to go figure out the galley ourselves. It all went into my trip diary in red ink. Red ink, I tell you.

BearX:

Thanks for the reply. The technical and editorial lameness of the video/audio program is truly baffling to me, as I cannot imagine that dealing with such concerns need be a major endeavor.

Japanese pop, I have to guess, is on there because it is much simpler to manage a bank of audio programs with only two options: domestic or international. But such a goal should not take precedence (in my view) over the entertainment offered to passengers. This is not the way to save money if one wants to offer a competitive product.

When I first flew CO last year, there was no Japanese pop on flights to Europe. Furthermore, video selections started pretty much as we reached cruising altitude, and did not stop until about 30 minutes before landing. I think they squeezed in 3 movies on the flight from EWR to DUS. Now that's entertainment! They even paused the video program during all announcements over the PA system. It is a small thing to be sure, but when one is stuck in 31-32 inches, every little bone they throw you is appreciated. (And CO has Kahlua so I can indulge in Black Russians - to say nothing of Coke!).

Although service was ok, it certainly was below what I have received from CO on transatlantic flights, and the level of attentiveness was a little lacking. Yet the flight from DTW to DCA in F was simply outstanding. One of the FA's who was in F during boarding worked the coach section, and he was also very friendly and attentive, so I presume that this was not only a F thing for that day.

I am going back to STR on the 17th and will see how it goes. At least this time there will be no double security, as EW flights to Germany are a pretty casual affair.

I enjoyed your report, thanks! Glad to hear about improvements with NW, many people's least favorite major airline.

Gee, now even the VP will hear about my problems with the audio equipment on this flight!