Fly The Dream — An Experience Like No Other

You have to dream before your dreams can come true - A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

And my my, what a way for a dream to come true!

In today’s time starved and cost conscious consumer’s mind is always to ensure low cost at less time. This being the mantra to do most things including planning a travel. I too seemed to have fallen into the same pattern. While planning for a flight travel it was always the low cost carriers with a preference for the one promising and mostly providing ‘on time’ performance. The pleasure of travelling in a full service aircraft was no more in the horizon. That was until I discovered the advantages of early planning.

Air India was offering a very competitive fare on purchases of more than 90 days in advance. There was only a marginal higher difference in the lowest fare with that of the so called most popular LCC. Even in discussions with colleagues and friends, I was discouraged by most from opting for Air India, considering the unpredictable behavior of its management and staff. However inspite of the odds I decided in favour of a full service experience, after many many years. The timing of the flight suited me the most and was an added factor in favour of my choice.

On the day of the travel last month, we reached the swanky new terminal of the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport at Kolkata fairly early. There was a tinge of sadness since we were going back to our ‘worktown’ after more than a week of holiday in our hometown. Both our families had come to see us off and we lingered on as long as we could…it is never enough to say goodbye. With a heavy heart we bid adieu and unwillingly went through the security check to boarding gate no. 16. This gate, though usually used for international departures, was opened for domestic flights having connecting international destinations. We walked down the aerobridge and entered the aircraft.

From the moment that I stepped in, I could sense the newness in the aircraft. It was a 3-3-3 seating arrangement. We put our hand baggage in the large curved overhead cabin and took our seats in row 12. The individual in-flight display screens were a welcome change from the LCCs. Even the seats seemed more spacious and had a cushion for added comfort. There was also generous legroom, another helpful feature for a tall person. I took a look around. The interiors had an orange hue. The carpets were spotless. A sweet smell wafted in the air.

We were settling in while the usual automated announcements were being made. We generally tend to ignore these considering them to be customary. They were being made in Hindi followed by English. In the midst of arranging a few necessities for my son, I heard snatches of the low volume announcements. Just then, I literally froze for a second trying to grasp what I had heard. Being in complete disbelief, I quickly sat down and pricked up my ears for the English version…but this time it was unmistakable… “welcome on board the Dreamliner 787….”. It took a few more seconds for the feeling to sink in…yes I was on the world's latest and most advanced aircraft in the sky.  

The grin on my countenance refused to subside for a long long time thereafter. Soon we were airborne. I switched on the screen before me with a removable panel below it and began enjoying the in-flight entertainment. The choices were varied and numerous. After going through the catalogue I selected “P.S. I Love You’, having a penchant for Hollywood! The crew commenced the usual in-flight services in due course. The meal had a good mix of Indian & continental items and tasted quite delicious.

After some time when we wanted to pull down the window shades, we were unable to find the cover lid. With the need to call the cabin crew, I habitually looked up to press the call button but there wasn’t any. I looked carefully and tried to press the panel around the reading light button, but nothing came off it. I then tried to switch off the light but that too had no button to press. Like my curious son, I made repeated attempts without success. I tried to look around quite naively to see if anyone else was doing something similar, but no one seemed to be hassled as I was. Since most of the services were complete, no crew member was within sight. After holding on for quite a long time (when I say this, it was indeed a long time), very unusual compared to any other airline, I managed to get the attention of a passing steward. He solved the mystery in a jiffy…the removable panel to navigate the screen doubled up as the remote control…in other words everything was remote controlled at the touch of your fingers without you requiring to move an inch from your seat!! And there are no window shades, only shade controls below it which regulates lighter or darker shades!!!

A similar ordeal awaited me when I used the washroom…I could not find the flush! The washroom had more room and was very sophisticated with many facilities like a panel to lay a baby for change of diapers. However, my feeble attempt with the various panels and button like devices did not elicit any favourable response. Looking very foolish I came out and stood at the door, trying to find the crew, but alas! no one was around. Other passengers wanting to use the washroom looked annoyingly at me and after waiting for quite a bit, tried their luck elsewhere. At last an airhostess did turn up to explain that there is no need to touch anything when flushing the toilet - Dreamliner’s revolutionary hands-free toilet seat. Just wave your hand in front of the infrared sensor and the toilet seat and lid closes automatically before the toilet flushes!

The remaining journey was thankfully eventless and I continued with the movie. By the time we landed at T3 in New Delhi, I had flown in one of the best innovations of our time and it made an ordinary experience extraordinary.

The 2 hour 20 minute journey albeit some minor delay, ended too soon…just like a dream. We were the last passengers to deplane. I could feel the power of dreams and realized that their fulfillment makes life so meaningful!