On this trip, I had a mission to work in India during the Songkran festival. I chose to fly with Thai Airways, which provided services to various destinations in India. However, on this particular trip, I had to disembark in Mumbai because it was convenient for me to connect to other cities from there. The flight was operated on a Boeing 777-200 aircraft, and it offered full-service amenities.
ROUTE : Bangkok (BKK) – Mumbai (BOM)
FLIGHT : TG 317 – Thai Airways
AIRCRAFT : Boeing 777 – 200
ETD : 06.55PM (GMT+7)
ETA : 09.55PM (GMT+5.5)
DURATION : 4 HOURS 30 MINUTES
CABIN : ECONOMY
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I started by checking in at Suvarnabhumi Airport at around 4:30PM in the Row H & J, which is the designated area for international flights of Thai Airways. Since I had already done the Internet check-in, I could go straight to the Baggage drop counter. The queue wasn’t long, but the regular check-in queue was extremely long, with each person carrying full-sized luggage. If you don’t want to waste time, I highly recommend doing the Internet check-in to save a lot of time. And for those who have obtained the Indian E-Tourist Visa (eTV), don’t forget to bring a printed copy of the approved visa for the check-in staff to verify.
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After obtaining the Boarding Pass, I proceeded through security and passport control smoothly. Today, I would be boarding the aircraft at gate C-2.
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I strolled around to find some food before eventually arriving at the boarding gate around 17:30. The gate was already open, and the aircraft was already waiting there. 🙂
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Around six o’clock, boarding was announced, which was considered very early. It might be because there were many passengers (the flight was approximately 85-90% full, mostly Indian travelers). They also allowed some time for “boarding passengers with large carry-on luggage.” Those who have flown on Indian flights would understand well that it takes some time for the passengers to store their belongings in the overhead lockers and settle into their seats.
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The seating in Economy class was arranged in a 3-3-3 configuration, and the seat pitch was adequately spacious for someone like me, who is 183 cm tall. As for the amenities and entertainment, there were personal televisions (PTV), power sockets for USB charging, and magazines. However, I would like to make a small comment that the aircraft seemed quite old. Some seats had slightly worn-out cushions, and the seat pockets in certain seats were torn, making it impossible to place books and documents inside.
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After all the passengers were settled in their seats, the aircraft pushed back on schedule. Once we reached cruising altitude, I decided to explore the lavatories. They were clean, and all the amenities were complete, in line with the premium airline’s style.
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Then, they began serving a full-course hot meal because it was a medium-haul flight lasting four and a half hours. However, I had pre-ordered a fruit platter since the flight was heading to an Indian city, and I was concerned about the spiciness and strong flavors of the regular meals. Therefore, I opted for a special meal (which turned out to be true to my expectations because they served chicken curry with rice for this flight, while the alternative option was sweet and sour fish, for economy class passengers).
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After finishing my meal, I dozed off intermittently, and during that time, beverage service was available throughout the flight. I grabbed an apple juice to quench my thirst. Shortly after, the aircraft began descending towards Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai and landed ahead of schedule. For this trip to India, I used an Electronic travel visa, which had a separate immigration lane. So, I followed the signs indicating “e-Tourist Visa” at the passport control.
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After passing the immigration, the baggage could be cliamed at the belt No.5.
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Afterwards, I hailed a taxi at the front counter to go to my hotel. I had booked a hotel near the airport because next day morning, I had to take a domestic flight to another city. Today, I wanted to return to the hotel to rest and recharge for the upcoming tasks. That concludes my review of this flight. If there were any mistakes or inaccuracies, I apologize. See you in the next review. 😀
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Written By : SHIPY SIWARIT TIASUWATTISETH
Shipy-Ship 