I
take a few factors into consideration when deciding to fly: the flight
schedule, the layover if any, the cost but of course and the airline. For my
trip to Azerbaijan, I decided to fly Etihad as the ETA in Baku was in the early
afternoon and the cost was about RM2,000 less than Qatar (and Qatar’s ETA was
in the evening when I checked). I last flew Etihad in May 2016 and was actually
looking forward to flying the airline again.
My
first problem was when I tried checking in for my flight. On the website, it
says online check-in is open 48 hours before the flight. However, when I tried,
I found that while I could check-in, I could not select or change seats as the airline now charges for ‘desirable’ seats and my seat was only resolved
less than 24 hours before my flight out after I tweeted about it. (The same
problem recurred for my return flight; again I had to seek help and tweeting
the airline didn’t help.)
I
was pondering if I should bring my inflight socks (I usually wear socks to
sleep) and had almost decided to ditch them before changing my mind at the last
minute and it was a good thing too because Etihad no longer provides amenity
kits. I asked a cabin crew about it and she said they had done some research
and found that the amenity kits are not fully utilised by passengers: some only
wanted the toothbrush/toothpaste, someone wanted the socks only, and there are
those who didn’t want the kits at all. I don’t know about you and they may not
be much, but I find the amenity kits useful.
Another
thing I noticed was the absence of menus for the economy class (perhaps it
should be renamed economoney eh). But I did find a menu for snacks that you can
purchase inflight. That struck me as strange as Etihad should be a premium
airline and not a low-cost or budget airline. I remember once we had a main
meal and even snacks in between (ice cream was served and instant noodles too!)
besides the snack brown bag (usually served when the lights are off and
passengers were mainly asleep) and you could decide whether to have the snack
inflight or bring it along with you.
I
sometimes change seats once all passengers have boarded and the door has closed
but on my return flight, I was told that while I could move seats, I would have
to pay extra if I wanted to sit at the middle front row (where there are four
seats and where the bassinets are fixed if you’re travelling with babies). I
thought it was strange as the seats were empty anyway with no one willing to
pay extra money in advance to sit there. One British couple decided to make a
big fuss about it all and while I concede they had a point, they were also not
doing themselves any favour by drawing attention to their grouses.
And
while I wasn’t one to avail of the service, Etihad has also withdrawn its
complimentary chauffeur service for first and business class passengers.
So
while the airline has introduced changes like Business Class Studios, FirstClass Apartment and The Residence, the airline is in decline (unless their
focus now is just on business and first class passengers).
Will
I fly Etihad again? Like I mentioned earlier, I still have to take factors like
schedules and cost into consideration so if Etihad flies to certain
destinations that no other airline does or Etihad’s ETA is more favourable, I
would still fly Etihad. And if Etihad can fly me at a lower cost, yes, that is
a factor too. As much as I like to collect air miles whenever I can do it, I’m
not really brand loyal. I flew Turkish Airlines to Algeria because it was not
only one of the few airlines to fly to Algiers but it also offered me the most
economical fare. Never mind that Turkish Airlines is a member of Star Alliance
and not oneworld.
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