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Here's a flight review for a trip that I took w/ my mom and sister back in the summer of 1999. As you can see, it was a while ago, and I hadn't started aviation photography, so I don't remember each and every detail, but I still remember most of the trip. Anyway, hope you enjoy it! 
Date: May 23rd, 1999
Flight: American Airlines 1028
Scheduled dep time: 10:25a.m.
Actual dep time: 10:35a.m.
Scheduled arr time: 11:25a.m.
Actual arr time: 11:27a.m.
Aircraft: Fokker 100
Seat: 18F
Dep weather: Mostly cloudy and pleasant. S winds shifting to N at around 10 mph. Temp: 6?F Visibility: 10 miles
Arr weather: Warm and dry. Fair skies. S winds shifting to N at around 10 mph. Temp: 7?F. Visiblity: 10 miles
Boy, was I ever excited to be flying again! And not just because I was gonna fly, but also b/c it would be the first time I would fly a Fokker 100, an Airbus 340-300 and a Boeing 747-400!! 
And all in the SAME trip!! Well, eventually, May 23rd, 1999 rolled around, and off I was to India from Oklahoma City w/ my mom and my sister. Packed our four bags in the car and my dad drove us to Will Rogers Airport. Man, that terminal sure is looking a whole lot different now than it was back then! Even though the expansion's only 50% complete! Anyway, going back to the trip, once we reached the airport, we got off on the departures level curb, and my dad said he would park the car and come back. There was a cloud deck rolling in associated w/ a cool front (it was really just a wind-shift line, no cold air behind it) and thus made for another cloudy t/o from OKC. 
Anyway, we went in the terminal and stood in the American/Eagle ticket counter line. As I recall, the terminal was quite busy that day. Long lines getting longer by the minute w/ holiday travellers. Our turn to check in came up and we put our bags on the weighing scale and off they went on the conveyor belt. I couldn't wait any longer and my excitement was building. My dad came back after parking the car and we all went to the security checkpoint in Concourse B. Got through that fine and then went into the gate area. Our departure gate was B2. There wasn't much traffic at the time, but as time passed, planes started arriving. A TWA M82 from STL, a couple of American Eagle ATR 72-200s from DFW, a Continental 735 from IAH, some DL 'craft, an ASA Brasilia, 5-6 WN 737's, a United 733, a NW DC 9-30 from MEM, and finally, our F-100 to DFW! It was about 10 minutes late coming in, but ground crew did a gr8 job of turning the plane around, and we started boarding on time. First class, followed by economy from the rear. It was gr8 to be flying something other than the usual 732 or 722! We took our seats (18 DEF) and I stared out the window. The ground crew was loading some last-minute packages and bags. At this time, I wasn't into aviation photography, so unfortunately, no photos. 
Anyway, the observation tower was right above the aircraft (the obs tower is now gone, it used to be right above the gate B2 area.) The head F/A for the flight to DFW came on and welcomed us aboard. The app flight time would be 40 minutes. The pilot then came on and also welcomed us aboard and briefed us on the flight. We had to wait a few minutes longer for some late baggage. Looking up at the observation tower, I could make out my dad standing there behind the tinted glass windows watching the ramp activity. 
Then, I began to hear some muffled sounds, signalling the cargo doors being shut. The ground crew then took out the chocks from the wheels, and then came the signal guy w/ the plastic wands, and we were getting pushed back. The engines were then started. The sound of the engine start-up inside an F100 is another one that I love. 
We waited for the engines to come to idle power, and then the pilot spooled 'em up and we started the taxi to RWY 35L. On the way to the t/o end, I saw a DL 732 and another AA F100 land on the runway. (I think 35R had been closed to replace a section of asphalt w/ concrete) We continued to taxi to the end, and I noticed that the flaps had not yet been deployed. Hmm, I began to wonder. Has the pilot forgotten to set the flaps?? 
(I wasn't aware of the fact that the F 100 can t/o w/o flaps being deployed) But I had heard a sound coming from the wing during taxi. So my thoughts turned to that. Hmm, maybe there's something different about this aircraft, which can allow it to t/o w/o flaps being set. Well, I would soon confirm that. The pilot taxied the 'craft onto the runway, and I noticed the runway end-zone centerline lights had been turned on. Taxied into position and almost immediately, the pilot spooled the engines up a little, and then to t/o power. The rear portion of the cabin vibrated briefly, and we were rolling. After a quick roll, the pilot made a smooth t/o. I saw the terminal pass by, and we passed through the cloud deck pretty soon. It wasn't that thick either, and w/in seconds, we were above it, in the sun. Made the usual hard right to head in a SSE direction. The flight was very smooth, and even though the pilot had cautioned us about turbulence, there was little, if any, turbulence at all. I saw the Red River pass by after 20 minutes. The F/A's served us snacks and sodas, and after 30 minutes, we started descent to DFW. We took a course over the NE suburbs of the Dallas area, then turned W, and finally banked left for RWY 17C. Full flaps and gear were then deployed and DFW soon became visible. This airport never fails to amaze me. On the NE holding pad: AA M11, some company M80's and some Eagle RJ's. The pilot did a fine job and after a smooth landing, we took one of the rapid-exits off 17C. Saw some DL 76's at Terminal E, along w/ some company 75's. Pulled up behind a company M80, which was holding short for departing traffic. After an Eagle 340 and an AA M80 took off, we crossed 17L and made our way to Gate C36, which was being occupied by a company 'craft, so we ended up at C33. Saw a TWA M83 land on 17C on our way. There was plenty of ramp congestion (we passed by about a hundred feet of an AA 762 holding for its gate to open). After going up the jetway into Terminal C, we headed right for B. But we decided to walk it all the way (and I love walking through airport terminals) and I'm glad we did. Besides, we had three hours (later on, we would find out that we had four hours) till our next flight departed. So we went up to the Terminal A-C skylink, and much to my surprise, there stood an AA DC-10 at the widebody gate at the southern end of Terminal A, being boarded for a flight to San Juan. It looked awesome in the bright middday sun! Then, we headed right for the A-B skylink, and this provided a grand view of the International Parkway, the landside areas of the terminals and both sides of the airport. We entered Terminal B, and as I recall, there were a bunch of CO/COX, UAL, and some charter flights at the gates. Also an HP 733. We headed to gate B34, (the LH gate) and decided to wait out there. My mom and sister were hungry at this point, so they decided to get some pizza from the nearby Pizza Hut. I decided to camp out in the gate area. Saw a whole bunch of stuff: AA 727's, M80's and every other company aircraft in the fleet at the time, all DL 'craft. There were jets also coming from the other side of the field over the bridge. Time flied by and it was soon 2:00p.m.
Connecting flight #1: Lufthansa 438
Scheduled dep time: 3:05p.m.
Actual dep time: 4:15p.m.
Scheduled arr time: 7:30a.m.
Actual arr time: 7:35a.m.
Aircraft: Airbus 340-300
Dep weather: Hot and a bit hazy. Temp in the 90's. Light Nrthrly wind. Visibility: 8 miles
Arr weather: Pleasant. Temp in the upper 60's. Visibility: 10 miles.
Looking out the windows, I noticed that the same cool front that changed the wind direction in Oklahoma City had now indeed passed through the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, as planes coming off the bridge were holding, and then departing traffic was using 36R. Even though it was past 2 p.m, the LH gate agents had not arrived. The BA 772ER arrived a little late from LGW. At 2:30p.m, no gate agents, and no plane, and I began to wonder what was going on. A line began forming from the gate podium and finally, at 2:40, 2 LH gate agents arrived. My mom went up to the podium and asked the agents about the flight and everything. Turns out that if she hadn't gone sooner, we would have all been left w/o seats! You have to go outside at the LH check-in desk, even if you're a connecting passenger. How stupid, I thought. Must be the only airline doing that. However, turns out that LH was short-staffed at DFW, and that's why no one showed up at the gate area for so long. Since a lot of the passengers in the gate area were unaware of the deal, confusion ensued and everyone was scrambling for their seats. Luckily, I still got a window seat, 38K, and my mom and sister had seats further up front in the economy cabin. Finally, at 3:00p.m, I saw the nose of a grey and white jetliner appearing. It was, thankfully, the LH 343. It pulled up to the gate and it was my first time seeing this four-holer up close and personal. Since everyone's reserved seating assignments had been screwed up, 
the agents took a while to clear up the mess. Boarding was started at 3:30p.m. It was done in zones, as LH usually does it. Soon, we boarded the 'craft and I went right to my seat in row 38. Took 38K and looked out the window. Other passengers were still coming into the cabin. It was definitely a packed flight. Then I began to hope that no one was accidentally booked in my seat! What d' ya know. A middle-aged German man came up at said "Ahh, Thuhty-eight kay!" I took out my boarding pass, and showed that to him, and said I was booked in 38K as well. Hmm, problem, huh? Just then, one of the FA's came up and asked if there was a problem, and after hearing what it was, she said she could put him in business class. The man readily agreed. I didn't mind either, all I knew was I was glad the problem was solved by an awesome FA and I still had my window seat.
Anyway, at exactly 4:10, the doors were closed and we were finally on pushback. The engine startup was quick, and a after a few minutes, we were on our way to 36R. I was surprised how less noisy the 340's engines were. Just a hiss of the air coming from the engines and we were moving! And what surprised me even more was the flap deployment. Not a sound!! They just silently dropped down. Man, it was neat to watch. Well, not much traffic coming in, but a lot going out. We held short of the active on the SW holding pad. After a DL 762 in cs #1 went down the rwy, we were given clearance to taxi into position and hold. The pilot took the 340 on the rwy and did a full hard right to get as much runway length as possible. I saw a long line of AA M80's queing up for the runway from the hold short line to almost over the bridge. We were immediately given t/o clearance, and the engines were spooled up to t/o power. Again, I was pleasantly surprised at how less noisy the engines were. For a four-engined aircraft, I must admit, Airbus has done a wonderful job of keeping the noise level to a minimum. Rotated approximately 2/3rds of the way down, and we took off right before Terminal B. Saw the BA 772ER getting ready for its flight back to LGW, w/ the fuselage navigation light flashing. We continued heading N, and after the pilots had cleaned up the aircraft, we headed NE. I don't remember much about the food, but I had an Asian vegetarian meal, w/ rice and two veggies, and the rest of the usual stuff-bread w/ butter and jam, crackers, cheese and a nice assortment of fruit. It also came w/ sparkling water. Don't remember what movies were shown, anyway, I was too busy looking out the window.
As we passed over the U.S. east coast, it was pretty dark, and after a few hours, I saw the naviagtion lights of about 6 other aircraft at different altitudes and distances from ours. One of them passed right over ours, and I think it was a Finnair M11. The pilots did a gr8 job of making up for the hour-long delay. We were catching up w/ time. Abt 4 more hours, and it was nice and sunny outside, w/ a temp of -60F something. The FA's came by w/ breakfast, since I had the Asian veg meals, I got some kind of Indian parathas or something (Indian breads). Along w/ a croissant, a roll, fruit preserves and butter, and I had some tea also. Soon, the FA's came by w/ disembarkation cards for those staying in Germany. Descent started soon after all the trays had been picked up by the FA's, and after they had come by w/ some duty-free stuff. We started our approach to FRA from N and continued S to the Frankfurt area. I could soon see all the small homes w/ the red rooftops, parts of suburban Frankfurt. The weather at FRA was nice. Clear skies w/ good visibility, and light westerly winds. The spoilers were deployed twice, and we began final approach. Flaps were deployed about 5 miles out from the airport area. I had an awesome view of the downtown skyline, and right after we passed it, the gear was down w/ full flaps. We landed w/ a rather soft bump on RWY 25R. The 340 gently bounced back and settled on the main gear. Spoilers up w/ full reverse thrust. Another surprise for me was the fact that I could actually see one of the thrust reverser doors being activated on the furthest engine! First time for me. After exiting the rwy, we headed to one of the remote stands. Early morning rush hour traffic at FRA: lots of LH 'craft, a Singapore 744, Malaysia 744 and several UA 'craft. The pilot hit the brakes a bit too hard while coming in to park though, and the entire rear section of the 'craft welled up. Still, kudos to the crew for bringing the plane in on time at FRA.
We deplaned and went into one of the waiting buses. I love the FRA ground transportation buses. They're roomy and quiet, and you gotta love a bus ride at a major airport like FRA! On the way to the bus station at the ground level of Concourse B, we passed by a Hapag Lloyd A310, on its way to the western active. We then went into the arrivals area of the bus station in Con B. (Those of you who've been to FRA will surely know what I'm talking abt) Since our last connecting flight to BOM was gonna be leaving at 1:10p.m, we had lots of time to get freshened up and do some duty-free shopping. Bought some German chocolate. mmmm... Sat down in the central departure area of Concourse B (the space in-between where the concourse 'fans' out into 2 rotundas). Saw plenty of traffic arriving and departing. LH 744's, 340's, a Swissair 320, Hapag Lloyd 320's, Condor 763ER's and 752's, AA 76's, several UAL heavies... I could go on and on. We then decided to head to our departure gate, which was in the same concourse. I couldn't wait to see the plane. It was a long time since I had flown a 747, the last time being sometime in the late 80's when I flew AI's 742.
Connecting flight #2: Lufthansa 756
Scheduled dep time: 1:10p.m.
Actual dep time: 1:10p.m.
Scheduled arr time: 12:30a.m.
Actual arr time: 12:15a.m.
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400
Dep weather: Warm. Temp in the 80's, w/ a light W wind. Visibility: 10 miles
Arr weather: The Bombay usual. Warm and humid, w/ temp in the high 70's. Good visibility and partly cloudy skies.
The shiny white, blue and grey 744 was already parked w/ the jetways docked. It was still about an hour and a half till boarding started, but that time soon melted away while watching planes. Boarding was called approximately 35 min before departure. We boarded in zones again, and soon it was time for us to head into the jetway. Entered the plane and went straight to row 27, where we had seats 27 HJK. I took the window seat, of course, and was pleased w/ the view. My seat was right where I could see both engines and part of the leading edge. I noticed though that 28K was w/o a window! That was the seat that had been booked for the return flight! Later on, we changed our row, and ended up in row 40, couple of rows behind the wing. W/ a window seat. Anyway, that's for the return review, which I will post later. W/ the passengers all settled, the door was closed and the jetway pulled back. We got pushed back on time and the safety video was shown. Soon, the engines were throttled up and we were headed for RWY 18. As soon as we got to the active, the pilot immediately spooled the engines up to t/o power, and after a a little wing flexing, we were hurtling down the runway. After a smooth t/o, a little while later, the FA's started preparing the trolleys for the lunch service. About 98% of the pax on this flight were Indians, the rest foreigners on business. Lunch was again the Asian veg meal for me, and it was very good. Rice w/ two veggies, Indian bread, pickle, roll, butter and jam, crackers and cheese, and piece of German chocolate, shaped like a piece of Kit-Kat. It was really good, and I finished all of it. Then for the rest of the flight, it was pretty much the usual stuff. Listened to some soft rock on one of the music channels. We encountered some turbulence at our cruising altitude of 39,000 feet, while going over the Alps. It started to get dark, and I could see the wing navigation light flashing along w/ the light from the fuselage strobe flashing on the winglet. We flew over Turkey, near Istanbul, then took a more Sthrly course and then turned left again and flew over the southern parts of UAE and the mid-east region. Headed out over the Arabian Sea. The FA's came around w/ disembarkation cards. The cabin lights were switched on to full brightness again for the meal service. It was followed by a light snack. We started initial approach to BOM about 40 minutes before landing. Went over the west coast of India and started heading S. There was a cloud deck in the mid-levels and after clearing that, I could still see the moon, w/ the clouds passing by. The city lights soon started appearing, and the landing/t/o light was switched on. We flew the usual ILS approach for a RWY 27 landing. The city lights were now very bright, and the pilot made the right turn to line up for RWY 27. Flaps were deployed and soon the gear was down. Full flaps. The crew made a perfect landing and after applying full reverse thrust, we took the rapid-exit at the domestic terminals. The 'craft was cleaned and after crossing RWY 14-32, we headed for gate 8. Saw the Alitalia 763ER already at gate 2 from MXP. There were several AI 'craft waiting at the airline's gates for departure as well. Also at the gate was the NW DC 10-30 from AMS. (It's been since replaced by a 744, but AAM80@STL informed me that it's gonna be a DC 10-30 again.) We then headed quickly to the arrivals area, and after a long customs and immigration process, collected our bags, which, surprisingly, came on the belt pretty quickly. Passed through the green channel fine and headed out to meet our taxi driver, and went home.
Altogether, a gr8 experience w/ AA and LH, despite the glitch at DFW. I would definitely recommend flying LH to anyone. Gr8 airline w/ gr8 planes.
Hope you enjoyed that! Look for my review for the return one, BOM-OKC, w/ LH and Eagle.
Happy Flying!
Date: May 23rd, 1999
Flight: American Airlines 1028
Scheduled dep time: 10:25a.m.
Actual dep time: 10:35a.m.
Scheduled arr time: 11:25a.m.
Actual arr time: 11:27a.m.
Aircraft: Fokker 100
Seat: 18F
Dep weather: Mostly cloudy and pleasant. S winds shifting to N at around 10 mph. Temp: 6?F Visibility: 10 miles
Arr weather: Warm and dry. Fair skies. S winds shifting to N at around 10 mph. Temp: 7?F. Visiblity: 10 miles
Boy, was I ever excited to be flying again!
And not just because I was gonna fly, but also b/c it would be the first time I would fly a Fokker 100, an Airbus 340-300 and a Boeing 747-400!! And all in the SAME trip!! Well, eventually, May 23rd, 1999 rolled around, and off I was to India from Oklahoma City w/ my mom and my sister. Packed our four bags in the car and my dad drove us to Will Rogers Airport. Man, that terminal sure is looking a whole lot different now than it was back then! Even though the expansion's only 50% complete! Anyway, going back to the trip, once we reached the airport, we got off on the departures level curb, and my dad said he would park the car and come back. There was a cloud deck rolling in associated w/ a cool front (it was really just a wind-shift line, no cold air behind it) and thus made for another cloudy t/o from OKC. Anyway, we went in the terminal and stood in the American/Eagle ticket counter line. As I recall, the terminal was quite busy that day. Long lines getting longer by the minute w/ holiday travellers. Our turn to check in came up and we put our bags on the weighing scale and off they went on the conveyor belt. I couldn't wait any longer and my excitement was building. My dad came back after parking the car and we all went to the security checkpoint in Concourse B. Got through that fine and then went into the gate area. Our departure gate was B2. There wasn't much traffic at the time, but as time passed, planes started arriving. A TWA M82 from STL, a couple of American Eagle ATR 72-200s from DFW, a Continental 735 from IAH, some DL 'craft, an ASA Brasilia, 5-6 WN 737's, a United 733, a NW DC 9-30 from MEM, and finally, our F-100 to DFW! It was about 10 minutes late coming in, but ground crew did a gr8 job of turning the plane around, and we started boarding on time. First class, followed by economy from the rear. It was gr8 to be flying something other than the usual 732 or 722! We took our seats (18 DEF) and I stared out the window. The ground crew was loading some last-minute packages and bags. At this time, I wasn't into aviation photography, so unfortunately, no photos. Anyway, the observation tower was right above the aircraft (the obs tower is now gone, it used to be right above the gate B2 area.) The head F/A for the flight to DFW came on and welcomed us aboard. The app flight time would be 40 minutes. The pilot then came on and also welcomed us aboard and briefed us on the flight. We had to wait a few minutes longer for some late baggage. Looking up at the observation tower, I could make out my dad standing there behind the tinted glass windows watching the ramp activity. Then, I began to hear some muffled sounds, signalling the cargo doors being shut. The ground crew then took out the chocks from the wheels, and then came the signal guy w/ the plastic wands, and we were getting pushed back. The engines were then started. The sound of the engine start-up inside an F100 is another one that I love. We waited for the engines to come to idle power, and then the pilot spooled 'em up and we started the taxi to RWY 35L. On the way to the t/o end, I saw a DL 732 and another AA F100 land on the runway. (I think 35R had been closed to replace a section of asphalt w/ concrete) We continued to taxi to the end, and I noticed that the flaps had not yet been deployed. Hmm, I began to wonder. Has the pilot forgotten to set the flaps?? (I wasn't aware of the fact that the F 100 can t/o w/o flaps being deployed) But I had heard a sound coming from the wing during taxi. So my thoughts turned to that. Hmm, maybe there's something different about this aircraft, which can allow it to t/o w/o flaps being set. Well, I would soon confirm that. The pilot taxied the 'craft onto the runway, and I noticed the runway end-zone centerline lights had been turned on. Taxied into position and almost immediately, the pilot spooled the engines up a little, and then to t/o power. The rear portion of the cabin vibrated briefly, and we were rolling. After a quick roll, the pilot made a smooth t/o. I saw the terminal pass by, and we passed through the cloud deck pretty soon. It wasn't that thick either, and w/in seconds, we were above it, in the sun. Made the usual hard right to head in a SSE direction. The flight was very smooth, and even though the pilot had cautioned us about turbulence, there was little, if any, turbulence at all. I saw the Red River pass by after 20 minutes. The F/A's served us snacks and sodas, and after 30 minutes, we started descent to DFW. We took a course over the NE suburbs of the Dallas area, then turned W, and finally banked left for RWY 17C. Full flaps and gear were then deployed and DFW soon became visible. This airport never fails to amaze me. On the NE holding pad: AA M11, some company M80's and some Eagle RJ's. The pilot did a fine job and after a smooth landing, we took one of the rapid-exits off 17C. Saw some DL 76's at Terminal E, along w/ some company 75's. Pulled up behind a company M80, which was holding short for departing traffic. After an Eagle 340 and an AA M80 took off, we crossed 17L and made our way to Gate C36, which was being occupied by a company 'craft, so we ended up at C33. Saw a TWA M83 land on 17C on our way. There was plenty of ramp congestion (we passed by about a hundred feet of an AA 762 holding for its gate to open). After going up the jetway into Terminal C, we headed right for B. But we decided to walk it all the way (and I love walking through airport terminals) and I'm glad we did. Besides, we had three hours (later on, we would find out that we had four hours) till our next flight departed. So we went up to the Terminal A-C skylink, and much to my surprise, there stood an AA DC-10 at the widebody gate at the southern end of Terminal A, being boarded for a flight to San Juan. It looked awesome in the bright middday sun! Then, we headed right for the A-B skylink, and this provided a grand view of the International Parkway, the landside areas of the terminals and both sides of the airport. We entered Terminal B, and as I recall, there were a bunch of CO/COX, UAL, and some charter flights at the gates. Also an HP 733. We headed to gate B34, (the LH gate) and decided to wait out there. My mom and sister were hungry at this point, so they decided to get some pizza from the nearby Pizza Hut. I decided to camp out in the gate area. Saw a whole bunch of stuff: AA 727's, M80's and every other company aircraft in the fleet at the time, all DL 'craft. There were jets also coming from the other side of the field over the bridge. Time flied by and it was soon 2:00p.m.Connecting flight #1: Lufthansa 438
Scheduled dep time: 3:05p.m.
Actual dep time: 4:15p.m.
Scheduled arr time: 7:30a.m.
Actual arr time: 7:35a.m.
Aircraft: Airbus 340-300
Dep weather: Hot and a bit hazy. Temp in the 90's. Light Nrthrly wind. Visibility: 8 miles
Arr weather: Pleasant. Temp in the upper 60's. Visibility: 10 miles.
Looking out the windows, I noticed that the same cool front that changed the wind direction in Oklahoma City had now indeed passed through the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, as planes coming off the bridge were holding, and then departing traffic was using 36R. Even though it was past 2 p.m, the LH gate agents had not arrived. The BA 772ER arrived a little late from LGW. At 2:30p.m, no gate agents, and no plane, and I began to wonder what was going on. A line began forming from the gate podium and finally, at 2:40, 2 LH gate agents arrived. My mom went up to the podium and asked the agents about the flight and everything. Turns out that if she hadn't gone sooner, we would have all been left w/o seats! You have to go outside at the LH check-in desk, even if you're a connecting passenger. How stupid, I thought. Must be the only airline doing that. However, turns out that LH was short-staffed at DFW, and that's why no one showed up at the gate area for so long.
Since a lot of the passengers in the gate area were unaware of the deal, confusion ensued and everyone was scrambling for their seats. Luckily, I still got a window seat, 38K, and my mom and sister had seats further up front in the economy cabin. Finally, at 3:00p.m, I saw the nose of a grey and white jetliner appearing. It was, thankfully, the LH 343. It pulled up to the gate and it was my first time seeing this four-holer up close and personal. Since everyone's reserved seating assignments had been screwed up, the agents took a while to clear up the mess. Boarding was started at 3:30p.m. It was done in zones, as LH usually does it. Soon, we boarded the 'craft and I went right to my seat in row 38. Took 38K and looked out the window. Other passengers were still coming into the cabin. It was definitely a packed flight. Then I began to hope that no one was accidentally booked in my seat! What d' ya know. A middle-aged German man came up at said "Ahh, Thuhty-eight kay!" I took out my boarding pass, and showed that to him, and said I was booked in 38K as well. Hmm, problem, huh? Just then, one of the FA's came up and asked if there was a problem, and after hearing what it was, she said she could put him in business class. The man readily agreed. I didn't mind either, all I knew was I was glad the problem was solved by an awesome FA and I still had my window seat.Anyway, at exactly 4:10, the doors were closed and we were finally on pushback. The engine startup was quick, and a after a few minutes, we were on our way to 36R. I was surprised how less noisy the 340's engines were. Just a hiss of the air coming from the engines and we were moving!
And what surprised me even more was the flap deployment. Not a sound!! They just silently dropped down. Man, it was neat to watch. Well, not much traffic coming in, but a lot going out. We held short of the active on the SW holding pad. After a DL 762 in cs #1 went down the rwy, we were given clearance to taxi into position and hold. The pilot took the 340 on the rwy and did a full hard right to get as much runway length as possible. I saw a long line of AA M80's queing up for the runway from the hold short line to almost over the bridge. We were immediately given t/o clearance, and the engines were spooled up to t/o power. Again, I was pleasantly surprised at how less noisy the engines were. For a four-engined aircraft, I must admit, Airbus has done a wonderful job of keeping the noise level to a minimum. Rotated approximately 2/3rds of the way down, and we took off right before Terminal B. Saw the BA 772ER getting ready for its flight back to LGW, w/ the fuselage navigation light flashing. We continued heading N, and after the pilots had cleaned up the aircraft, we headed NE. I don't remember much about the food, but I had an Asian vegetarian meal, w/ rice and two veggies, and the rest of the usual stuff-bread w/ butter and jam, crackers, cheese and a nice assortment of fruit. It also came w/ sparkling water. Don't remember what movies were shown, anyway, I was too busy looking out the window. As we passed over the U.S. east coast, it was pretty dark, and after a few hours, I saw the naviagtion lights of about 6 other aircraft at different altitudes and distances from ours.
One of them passed right over ours, and I think it was a Finnair M11. The pilots did a gr8 job of making up for the hour-long delay. We were catching up w/ time. Abt 4 more hours, and it was nice and sunny outside, w/ a temp of -60F something. The FA's came by w/ breakfast, since I had the Asian veg meals, I got some kind of Indian parathas or something (Indian breads). Along w/ a croissant, a roll, fruit preserves and butter, and I had some tea also. Soon, the FA's came by w/ disembarkation cards for those staying in Germany. Descent started soon after all the trays had been picked up by the FA's, and after they had come by w/ some duty-free stuff. We started our approach to FRA from N and continued S to the Frankfurt area. I could soon see all the small homes w/ the red rooftops, parts of suburban Frankfurt. The weather at FRA was nice. Clear skies w/ good visibility, and light westerly winds. The spoilers were deployed twice, and we began final approach. Flaps were deployed about 5 miles out from the airport area. I had an awesome view of the downtown skyline, and right after we passed it, the gear was down w/ full flaps. We landed w/ a rather soft bump on RWY 25R. The 340 gently bounced back and settled on the main gear. Spoilers up w/ full reverse thrust. Another surprise for me was the fact that I could actually see one of the thrust reverser doors being activated on the furthest engine! First time for me. After exiting the rwy, we headed to one of the remote stands. Early morning rush hour traffic at FRA: lots of LH 'craft, a Singapore 744, Malaysia 744 and several UA 'craft. The pilot hit the brakes a bit too hard while coming in to park though, and the entire rear section of the 'craft welled up. Still, kudos to the crew for bringing the plane in on time at FRA. We deplaned and went into one of the waiting buses. I love the FRA ground transportation buses.
They're roomy and quiet, and you gotta love a bus ride at a major airport like FRA! On the way to the bus station at the ground level of Concourse B, we passed by a Hapag Lloyd A310, on its way to the western active. We then went into the arrivals area of the bus station in Con B. (Those of you who've been to FRA will surely know what I'm talking abt) Since our last connecting flight to BOM was gonna be leaving at 1:10p.m, we had lots of time to get freshened up and do some duty-free shopping. Bought some German chocolate. mmmm... Sat down in the central departure area of Concourse B (the space in-between where the concourse 'fans' out into 2 rotundas). Saw plenty of traffic arriving and departing. LH 744's, 340's, a Swissair 320, Hapag Lloyd 320's, Condor 763ER's and 752's, AA 76's, several UAL heavies... I could go on and on. We then decided to head to our departure gate, which was in the same concourse. I couldn't wait to see the plane. It was a long time since I had flown a 747, the last time being sometime in the late 80's when I flew AI's 742.Connecting flight #2: Lufthansa 756
Scheduled dep time: 1:10p.m.
Actual dep time: 1:10p.m.
Scheduled arr time: 12:30a.m.
Actual arr time: 12:15a.m.
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400
Dep weather: Warm. Temp in the 80's, w/ a light W wind. Visibility: 10 miles
Arr weather: The Bombay usual.
Warm and humid, w/ temp in the high 70's. Good visibility and partly cloudy skies.The shiny white, blue and grey 744 was already parked w/ the jetways docked. It was still about an hour and a half till boarding started, but that time soon melted away while watching planes.
Boarding was called approximately 35 min before departure. We boarded in zones again, and soon it was time for us to head into the jetway. Entered the plane and went straight to row 27, where we had seats 27 HJK. I took the window seat, of course, and was pleased w/ the view. My seat was right where I could see both engines and part of the leading edge. I noticed though that 28K was w/o a window! That was the seat that had been booked for the return flight! Later on, we changed our row, and ended up in row 40, couple of rows behind the wing. W/ a window seat. Anyway, that's for the return review, which I will post later. W/ the passengers all settled, the door was closed and the jetway pulled back. We got pushed back on time and the safety video was shown. Soon, the engines were throttled up and we were headed for RWY 18. As soon as we got to the active, the pilot immediately spooled the engines up to t/o power, and after a a little wing flexing, we were hurtling down the runway. After a smooth t/o, a little while later, the FA's started preparing the trolleys for the lunch service. About 98% of the pax on this flight were Indians, the rest foreigners on business. Lunch was again the Asian veg meal for me, and it was very good. Rice w/ two veggies, Indian bread, pickle, roll, butter and jam, crackers and cheese, and piece of German chocolate, shaped like a piece of Kit-Kat. It was really good, and I finished all of it. Then for the rest of the flight, it was pretty much the usual stuff. Listened to some soft rock on one of the music channels. We encountered some turbulence at our cruising altitude of 39,000 feet, while going over the Alps. It started to get dark, and I could see the wing navigation light flashing along w/ the light from the fuselage strobe flashing on the winglet. We flew over Turkey, near Istanbul, then took a more Sthrly course and then turned left again and flew over the southern parts of UAE and the mid-east region. Headed out over the Arabian Sea. The FA's came around w/ disembarkation cards. The cabin lights were switched on to full brightness again for the meal service. It was followed by a light snack. We started initial approach to BOM about 40 minutes before landing. Went over the west coast of India and started heading S. There was a cloud deck in the mid-levels and after clearing that, I could still see the moon, w/ the clouds passing by. The city lights soon started appearing, and the landing/t/o light was switched on. We flew the usual ILS approach for a RWY 27 landing. The city lights were now very bright, and the pilot made the right turn to line up for RWY 27. Flaps were deployed and soon the gear was down. Full flaps. The crew made a perfect landing and after applying full reverse thrust, we took the rapid-exit at the domestic terminals. The 'craft was cleaned and after crossing RWY 14-32, we headed for gate 8. Saw the Alitalia 763ER already at gate 2 from MXP. There were several AI 'craft waiting at the airline's gates for departure as well. Also at the gate was the NW DC 10-30 from AMS. (It's been since replaced by a 744, but AAM80@STL informed me that it's gonna be a DC 10-30 again.) We then headed quickly to the arrivals area, and after a long customs and immigration process, collected our bags, which, surprisingly, came on the belt pretty quickly. Passed through the green channel fine and headed out to meet our taxi driver, and went home.Altogether, a gr8 experience w/ AA and LH,
despite the glitch at DFW. I would definitely recommend flying LH to anyone. Gr8 airline w/ gr8 planes. Hope you enjoyed that! Look for my review for the return one, BOM-OKC, w/ LH and Eagle.
Happy Flying!