Northwest Airlines: I Hope Delta Does You Good!
Written: Nov 10 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: On-time, baggage go to New York safely
Cons: Old aircraft that are not well maintained, subpar service and food
The Bottom Line: I would not recommend Northwest because there are better options for transatlantic travel.
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| jetbluefan1's Full Review: Northwest Airlines |
I was fortunate to go abroad this past summer. However, I was unfortunate enough to experience some flight problems. I was supposed to fly aboard KLM Royal Dutch Airlines from Amsterdam back home to New York. We had flown on KLM several times before, including our outbound trip to Dubai. The airline has great service and well-maintained planes, but for some reason, our flight from Amsterdam to New York was cancelled. So off to the KLM customer service desk...
After waiting about 30 minutes in line, a KLM customer service agent helped us find a way home. Unfortunately, there was no way to get to New York that evening. Instead, we were put up in a hotel and given reservations for a Northwest flight to Boston, then an American Eagle flight from Boston to New York, for the next morning. Northwest and KLM are code-share partners and share revenues on most transatlantic flights, and Northwest operates a hub at Amsterdam. Needless to say, we were lucky given the circumstances.
Our flight from Amsterdam to Boston was scheduled to leave at 7:20AM. We boarded about 30 minutes prior to the departure time, and the flight departed on-time. Our arrival into Boston Logan International Airport was a few minutes ahead of time.
So let's talk a little bit about Northwest's planes. Northwest operates the Boeing 757 on the Amsterdam-Boston flight, as well as some other Amsterdam-originating flights. The Boeing 757 is a single-aisle aircraft with three seats on each side of the aisle. It is much smaller than any other airplane I have flown over the Atlantic Ocean, but I didn't have any problem flying on this smaller plane since boarding and deplaning were done faster. Further, it makes sense for airlines to operate smaller planes on long haul routes that do not have enough demand to fill a larger plane, such as an Airbus A330.
On that note, I was not too impressed with the particular airplane we were flying on. As luck would have it, we were sitting in the last row - which offers about 1.454324 millimeters of recline. So much for getting some shut-eye on this flight. Further, the seat was rather small, and the seat back in front of me was ripped and seemed like it hadn't been replaced since 1980. The airplane was certainly not in the best condition; you could tell it was old, especially with the stains on the metal parts of the seats. Legroom was cramped as well, but I did survive the seven-hour flight to Boston, so it couldn't have been too terrible. I should note that we were given a blanket, pillow, and headsets upon boarding. The seats do not have adjustable headrests, unlike KLM.
Let's talk service, aka something that is very rare in today's airline industry. Northwest met my expectations here (see: none). While the purser - who was serving first class - was very friendly, the flight attendant assigned to my row was grumpy and didn't seem to be too happy to be there. I guess if I was working a seven-hour flight I wouldn't necessarily be happy either, but I would at least try to be friendly to the customers who pay my salary.
The entertainment selection was nothing special. Northwest doesn't offer personal television sets on transatlantic 757 flights, nor any domestic flights. Instead, there were TV's up and down the aisle which ran several movies and sitcoms, such as Tina Fey's 30 Rock. The movies being shown didn't really interest me - or the majority of the plane, for that matter.
Food service was below par - certainly lower quality than what KLM offered us on our outbound flight. Since it was breakfast time, we were offered either blueberry pancakes or scrambled eggs. Since neither sounded too appetizing, I blindly chose the scrambled eggs. I ended up drowning the eggs in salt and pepper just to give them some taste, and it resembled something close to what I would get at a rundown diner. There was also a small fruit bowl, a walnut brownie, and a bread roll. The food was certainly not what I was expecting for a transatlantic flight. About two hours before arrival in Boston, we were offered a chicken wrap, which was actually decent. For dessert, we were given strawberry sherbet.
The flight was pretty uneventful for the most part, though toward the middle of the flight, there was severe turbulence. The flight attendants were actually in the middle of tea/coffee service when the turbulence hit. It lasted for about ten minutes, and I became very nervous during this incident; my coffee was spilling all over me, as well as the woman at the window seat. I immediately took all of the drinks in our row and put them in the aisle so that not one would get wet (or burned). After the turbulence ended, everyone seemed pretty shaken up. The pilot never came on to apologize for not giving us a warning about the air pockets. The flight attendants didn't come around with napkins or towels to help clean up the fluids flowing around everyone's seatback tables.
We landed safely at Boston Logan's Terminal E a few minutes ahead of schedule. We had to clear customs and then take a shuttle to the American Eagle terminal, where we had to re-check in for our flight to New York. When we did finally arrive in New York, I was very surprised to find our luggage waiting for us in perfect condition at the baggage claim. Kudos to the joint effort between KLM, Northwest, and American Eagle for getting our luggage there - especially after the changes that had occurred in our itinerary.
Overall, I would be hesitant to recommend Northwest Airlines for international travel. The plane that we flew on was not in the best condition, nor was it a very comfortable flight. Further, the service by the flight attendants and the food quality were not anything to write home about. On the bright side, our flight was on-time and my luggage arrived in good condition.
Do note that Northwest Airlines will soon merge with Delta Air Lines. I have flown Delta several times before, and in general I have found their service to be much better than what I received on Northwest. Hopefully this merger will be done correctly and will help the Northwest operation improve.
Recommended:
No
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