Flying good times!!!

I just came across this article today which rather got me thinking….
As the caption read “Flying isn’t fun any more”…Well, I couldn’t really agree more!!!

Gone are those days of glory in Indian aviation where “flying” would be preserved for the “privileged” few….when I would rather boastfully mention to my school friends that I “flew” to Calcutta(wasn’t Kolkata then, you see)…when the air hostesses would give airs to being second only to Bollywood “Queens”.....

Today flying is just a click away…Long live Indian economy!!! But in an attempt to make the experience accessible to common man, flying really isn’t very different to a travel by train any more…probably by first class(or sometimes even less)….Low cost airlines flaunt their cost-cutting strategies rather proudly….less cabin/ground crew, omission of catering services in-flight(Ah! How I miss those yummy croissants!!), runway optimization….there’s the cost-cutting bug everywhere……

I do remember this particular incident where our flight from Guwahati to Calcutta had been delayed by 2 hours and it really had hit the headlines the next morning….Big thing it was then indeed…when delays in flight departure was absolutely unheard of…any delay would be stuffed with compensations (in form of “refreshments”, added “smiles” from gorgeous airhostesses, and what not….)….And today a couple of hours do not really matter…After all they’re getting you to your destination in lesser time than those step-sibling of theirs down on those sleepers. Aren’t they???

And this free seating affair has indeed added to our miseries…No-one really bothers about etiquette when they have to get a FCFS seat…to hell with pregnant women or wailing babies or tired senior citizens….They don’t really care!!!

When the façade of a happy citizen raving about her nation’s economic progress wears off… deep down somewhere I do wish to re-live those moments of savored “air travel”…Borrowing the punch line from one of the less “low –cost airline”s, may I confess - I don’t really mind “flying good times”…:) once again…..

P.S. : This post has not been sponsored by any agency/company/organisation.The views expressed are purely the author's!!!