Flying within India
 

Any words of wisdom for flying within India. I've heard various people say not to fly Indian Airlines. Is there a specifc reason ? Right now we've booked two flights thru Jet Airways & then have another 2 legs which were booked on Alliance Air & Indian Airlines. <BR> <BR>Thanx

A few years back, the FAA called Indian the most dangerous airline in the world. However, if you look at their site (www.faa.gov) now, they quote a study that says that a history of crashes doesn't mean that future crashes are more likely than on other airlines that haven't had crashes (or something like that). For a history of some of their problems, see http://www.airsafe.com/events/airlines/indian.htm

Jet Airlines would be fine. I have taken Indian airlines b4. The aircraft seemed from the 1980s, if not earlier! <BR>For JA, at least the stewardess look young and friendly. I cannot say the same for Indian Airlines!

We visited India two years ago and I had a "disneyland" book full of Indian Air Flights, some of which turned out to be on Alliance a subsidiary theirs. The planes are older and have a real problem with being on time. We had to wait sometimes as long as six hours overdue for one of our flights. If you have a choice Jet Airways is a much better airlines. It is privatized where as Indian is government owned. However, Jet does not have as many flights or destinations and in some cases you won't have an alternative. <BR> <BR>Aloha <BR>the coconut wireless

Hey, <BR>yes there is a reason why people advise you not to fly with Indian Airlines. I advise the same too. They are usually subject to many many delays and this will ruin you travel plans. The service is also not so good. I mean, if you can travel with any other airline without any more hassle, then you should definately do that. <BR>deepshika

Indian Airlines is govt. owned. And as with all govt. agencies, the things can be a little lax sometimes. I have mostly had very good experiences with Indian Airlines, and these have only improved over the years. But they do have hiccups from time to time and those are quoted by people most of the time. One the things that annoys people most is the fact that the flights can get delayed from a couple of mins to couple of hours. <BR> <BR>Keeping all these factors in mind, and for someone travelling for the first time, I would recommend Jet Airways. Indian Airlines is okay but second option.

IM A DUAL NATIONAL AND JUST GOT BACK FROM AN EXTENSIVE TWO MONTH HOLLIDAY IN WHICH MY AMERICAN WIFE AND I TRAVELLED ALL THROUGH INDIA. <BR>FIRST FOR SAFETY THERE ISNT MUCH TO WORRY ABOUT. FELL CONFIDENT ON ANY FLIGHT.ON AANY CARRIER. <BR>FOR COST. ALL ARE ROUGHLY THE SAME. HOWEVER INDIAN (IC) HAS SLIGHTLY LOWER FARES IF YOU SHOP AROUND DUE TO THE COMPETITIVE NATURE OF THE MARKET. <BR>JET SAHARA AND UB AND OTHERS ARE QUITE GOOD ALSO. <BR>FOR SERVICE I MUST RECCOMEND JET <BR>FOR PUNCTUALITY THEY ARE ALL THE SAME SOMEWHAT HOPELESS, UNLESS YOU HAPPEN TO BE ON A (C0MMUTER FLIGHT) <BR>AS A FOREIGNER YOU WILL BE GOUGED TO PAY TEH EXORBITANT ( FOREIGN NATIONAL) RATES WHICH ARE RIDICULOUSLY HIGH (DISCRIMINATORY) <BR>EMAIL IF YOU HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS .. <BR>SAM.

The old navigation systems in many smaller airports also contribute to the delays. For a modestly foggy day, the plane that your are expecting to take you to the next place in your tight schedule will probably not show up at all. It ruined my itinerary once.

First and foremost, you're going to need a lot of patience. I would have to agree with all of the previous posts about Jet being the better choice. Indian Airlines makes Air India look like Singapore Airlines. <BR> <BR>No matter what airline or method of transportation you use, expect delays and hassles. India has a lot of great places to see but it's not always easy to get there.