Greetings, inhabitants of the flight-reporting-sphere!
It's time for me to pay my regular visit to auntie Olivia, who's been in bed for five years.
I have the impression that my closest airport - ZAL - might be a bit over-represented on flight-report.com. Other airports in the area also deserve a bit of attention, so I'll take this opportunity to depart from ZOS, the little airport serving the neighboring city of Osorno.
What can be said of Osorno? If you have a look at these two previous reports of mine (this one and this one), you'll see that this town - just 110km from my city, Valdivia - is the epicenter of the Chilean dairy industry. It was also center-stage in the German immigration process to colonize the south of the country in the 1800s. That's why many local dairy industry entrepreneurs are descendants of German immigrants.
So here I am, shooting to the sky with the jet set of the milk scene! XD
Sky Airline will provide the setting for this momentous event.
Purchasing my ticket
Oh! A ticket for 22900 CLP (28 USD)! Talking of milk, this is la crème de la crème!
Tarifa zero. I may rub shoulders with CEOs but I still have to make ends meet, you see?
I will indulge myself and pick a seat. 24F it will be. From previous experiences, it's perfectly aligned with the window.
Extra baggage? No. My backpack will do. I'll spend just two days away.
I made sure to update my Sky Airline account before purchasing my ticket. Even so, I have to enter all my personal information now.
Done. Buen viaje!
Weeks later…
Checking in used to be a straightforward one-click process with Sky Airline. I have no idea why I have to enter all this information again this time. Even the expiry date of my national ID card! No airline had asked for that before.
First dirty, then kitsch - the ride to the airport
It's raining cats and dogs today. Luckily, I only need to cross the street to take micro number 9 to…
…the bus station. And yes, city buses in Valdivia can be a pigsty. (A micro /MEE - kro/ is a small bus, usually used for transport within a city or between neighboring towns)
The yellow bus (JAC) will take me to Osorno this time. Never use them! They're as dirty as micro 9. On the bright side, I ended up with a stronger immune system after all the health threats I had to deal with on the micro and on the bus!
It's a dark day along the Panamerican highway. 90 minutes later…
…I'm walking from the Osorno bus station to the market, where buses to Entre Lagos depart from. This is because the airport in on that road, though just 5km from the town.
Should I eat this papa rellena (stuffed potato)? (Yummy!! Here's the recipe) After all, I'll have the chance to try Sky Airline's BOB menu moments later.
Yikes! Run, Mr Potato! They're boarding the micro!
God. Am I talking to a stuffed potato??
But some people are even crazier. Look at this! Isn't this what they call kitsch? There's a plastic chicken and a green skeleton hanging there!! I still can't figure out what that gun is for. And colored feathers… there are colored feathers tickling my head!
This kind of (excessive) decoration was very common until the 90s when different cities reorganized their transportation systems and bus companies were hired to provide transportation, not individual bus owners who could decorate their buses to their liking.
A disco ball!! Why do those mirrors have red "hair"??
So our driver prides on his distorted macho concept of masculinity, huh? Next time I'll bring my own cutout of Taylor Lautner's beefy contours and place it here!
I might not share the driver's tastes (on many levels) but this trip sure took me back in time to when I was a child in the 70's and early 80's and all micros looked like this inside! After a little search on YouTube I came across this TV report showing two examples of this. I'm sure you'll find it most interesting! They interview the owners (and restorers) of two micros. The first one is an example of a micro amarilla. Those yellow buses were a first attempt to uniform and bring some order to the chaotic transport system of Santiago in the 1990's. The second one is an example of what micros looked like before the 90's.
Back on the road, in less than five minutes…
…we make it to the access to ZOS.
At ZOS
The stretch from the road up to the terminal looks longer than it really is. And it's such a nice stroll (if you're not late for your flight, of course)
Besides, you have the cows there!! Hey girls! I met your mothers some years ago. How are they doing?? Er… I'd rather not ask.
See? Here we are. It's incredible how…
…nothing has changed since my last visit!!
Well, to be fair, if you look at this picture from my previous 2017 report you can notice that a metal canopy has been added to the front. Most probably for passengers to queue up during the pandemic.
The other noticeable addition…
…would be this stray dog. Poor thing. I have two rescued dogs (and three cats) Stray animals are a chronic problem in Chile.
ZOS doesn't seem to be one of the most striking feats of architecture, does it? Let's add some flowers to the photo to improve it a bit.
Double doors to keep the cold outside.
No one was controlling anything at the entrance, so this Passengers entrance only warning must be a leftover of the pandemic measures of weeks before.
The inside also looks much the same as five years ago. Is that a pellet stove up there in the corner? Interesting alternative to an AC system.
This hall is all there's is landside. All the space is used as a waiting room.
Quite a good number of shops for such a small airport with just two or three flights a day. The best thing: the cheese is barely one dollar more expensive than in the supermarket!
I sit here for just four or five minutes before they announce that boarding will start, and that 20 - yes TWENTY - passengers are invited to proceed to the boarding room. I jump to my feet and quickly join the forming line for security check. A last photo of the main hall from the line.
After the inspection, you go up some steps…
…and you're in the boarding room.
Minutes later I count the number of passengers. Exactly 20, matching the number of available unblocked seats.
View of the parking lot from the boarding room.
Time flies when you're surfing the internet and chatting with your family, so I'm surprised when I see that my plane is already on its way near Valdivia! [GASP] Look at the registration! This is not ANY aircraft. It's a DBE. A Dame of the British Empire!! XD A suitable transportation for the local royals of the dairy industry!
I'll get closer to the windows to get a better view of this high-profile landing. Either there was or there will be a shop here. It wasn't here back in 2017 anyway.
a cabin worthy of a dame
And there comes the Dame. She gracefully rolls along the runway…
…elegantly marches towards the terminal building…
…and in a most dignified manner pulls up to the gate.
Meanwhile, we all have lined up and the rest of the passengers are invited to enter the boarding room. Nice trick to avoid crowds.
However, this means that we'll have to witness the whole disembarking process from the jetbridge…
…which is not necessarily bad. The view on the apron is great.
ZOS has only one jetbridge, and passengers boarding and disembarking meet at the exit at the middle - which is on the ground floor - so it's a bit like a roller coaster. First you go down, down, down. Then up, up, up.
Then there's a U-turn to the right from where you have a good view of the plane…
…and of the jetbridge behind you.
Then left…
…and left again. I'm getting dizzy!
I had been told that Sky had plans to renew their seats, and here they are!
I deposit my plebeian pompis (buttocks) on the Dame's new seats and…
…oooohhh… What a soft Dame! Not your usual ironing board!
Legroom is acceptable.
A very nicely designed back…
…with lettering printed directly on the surface instead of labels that will wear down, get dirty, and eventually come off…
…and a glorious USB port right in front of your eyes! No more breaking your back to find it under the seat!
I'm speechless, Sky! This was a major improvement to your cabins!
emergency aboard!! - The flight
Some additional information about this flight.
14:16. Pushback under the rain.
The Dame takes flight…
…and climbs majestically…
…leaving ZOS…
…and my friends the cows below.
I can enjoy the view…
…of the beautiful fields around Osorno…
…but only for a short while…
…because the clouds spoil the view.
But I'm eager to get my hands (and teeth) on one of those great sandwiches of Sky's onboard menu. However, not long after taking off, disaster strikes. The FA comes through the PA system asking if there's a doctor or nurse among the passengers!! We all stretch our necks, eager to take a peek at what's happening at the front of the cabin. Someone's dying over there!
But a young doctor spoils the fun saves the elderly gentleman before the flying Dame turns into a flying hearse!
However, there's an unexpected victim of this incident. Today's BOB service!! Soon after the man recovers, the FAs start acting very weird. They come over the PA again and announce that the BOB service has ended (it never started!) and that the waste would be collected. What waste? What BOB service??? Moreover, they also announce that we are already descending into Santiago and the cabin will soon be prepared for descent. I look out of the window. I could swear we're still flying over the Concepción area! Why are they doing this to me!! They want to drive me crazy!!
Minutes later, as we're flying over Linares…
…and the Colbún dam, the FAs repeat the same, nonsensical announcement. Are they pulling my leg?
Thank goodness I had the idea of eating Mr Potato this morning!
Lower left, the little town of Peumo. San Vicente de Tagua Tagua more or less in the middle, and Pelequén - the town I'm going to - is at the bottom, at the foot of the mountains, but it can't be seen here.
The southern suburbs of Santiago and the high rises along Gran Avenida. On the left, the square shape of the Centro de Justicia. Doesn't it look like the processor socket on an old motherboard? XD Sorry, I'm a bit of a computer geek.
It's nice how the sun rays leak between the clouds over the city.
Movistar Arena in the middle of O'Higgins Park, and the racecourse.
Turning left.
San Cristóbal hill, which has been turned into a park with a cable car and a zoo, and its smaller brother Santa Lucía hill, which is also a park. Both completely dry after the summer, and after 13 years of drought.
Beyond San Cristóbal hill is Sanhattan (the business district) and the posh side of the city.
Enjoy this partial view of Peldehue aerodrome. I couldn't figure out why it appeared blurred on my cellphone screen. It turns out I was photographing a line of shrubs instead! Duh!
Final approach above Colina.
The Dame lifts its flaps, showing her still pristine innards.
We head towards what is now called Terminal 1…
…but we'll have to wait in a remote position until someone comes to our rescue.
I have a view on JetSmart's creative tail designs.
Luckily, we don't have to wait long…
…until it's our turn to pull up to the gate. Boo - hoo. I was expecting a pax bus.
tourism bonus (sort of) - the New international terminal
I bid farewell to the noble Sky Airline Dame and head directly to access 5 of the domestic terminal. I want to see the new international terminal that was opened only last month!!
I had some trouble understanding that there are parking levels between floors 1 and 2, but I eventually make it…
…to the boulevard connecting both terminals. It looks nice!
Here's a view of the domestic terminal that I just left, and the hotel.
It's a nice walk next to gardens and shops that have not yet been opened. I wonder how they are going to open when it's raining.
There's also this selfie spot…
…where I spend some minutes watching this jet fighter's impressive stunts with occasion of the 2022 FIDAE - Feria Internacional del Aire. What a noise!
Qué nervios!!* This will be my very first visit to the new terminal!
Ta - daaaa!!! Behold! The very first photograph of the brand new SCL international terminal on flight-report.com!!
Now that I have had this privilege, I'll leave the rest to future reporters that might travel to/from abroad before I'm able to do it.
Back at the domestic terminal, it looks incredibly empty after all international flights moved out.
Buses to downtown Santiago used to leave from access 6 of the domestic terminal, but now this area is reserved for…
…shuttle buses to Terminal 2.
I have to ask for help to find the new parking space for TurBus and Centropuerto. There it is. Just a bit beyond access 6, to the left.
Thanks for reading!
* I'm so anxious!; What an exciting perspective!
Example:
The exam results will be published this morning. Qué nervios!
I'm going on my first date with my boyfriend. Qué nervios!! (Or should I say "Dream on"?) XD
I really like how there are so many airports within a relatively short distance in most regions of Chile. I imagine this has to do with the geography of the country--Chileans must fly more often than the average person.
So "micro" is just short for microbios then? ?
Nice, they do look surprisingly well-padded for slimline seats! The new Airbus Airspace interior looks very nice and its great that there are well-placed eye-level USB ports at every seat.
Surprisingly, in all of the thousands of flights I've taken in my life I've only seen that happen once! Glad to read that the passenger was OK.
I guess with all that commotion they didn't have enough time to roll out the BOB...seems like they should have just asked if someone really wanted to buy something to ring the call button that way they didn't have to take out the whole cart and do a faster service. I've seen that happen a few times on very short flights.
If there not a way to pre-order food? I guess if there were, I'd be mad not to get what I paid for in a situation like that.
Santiago is immense...reminds me of how expansive the Los Angeles basis is from the air...but much prettier
Nice! It will be nice to fly in to a new terminal in October.
Thanks for sharing!
It’s probably true that Chileans fly more than the average South American, but I think that we have to thank the arrival of the low cost model for that rather than geography. Without low cost airlines I could hardly afford to fly as frequently as I do now. For different reasons (such as the Argentinean laws protecting AR) flying is much more expensive in other South American countries, even in low cost airlines, so I guess people fly less in those countries. So it might be more a matter of affordability than geography, I think. Of course, people living in the far north and far south of Chile really prefer a two-hour flight rather than a 28-hour bus ride, but in fact, geography has been key to the survival of Chilean bus lines. Most people in central Chile still prefer to travel by bus because, even though a large portion of the territory looks covered by mountains when seen on a map, most of us live in the valleys between the Andes and the Cordillera de la Costa, - which run in parallel for more than 1000km from Santiago to Puerto Montt - and most of this area is completely flat except for some geographic accidents like San Cristóbal and Santa Lucía hills in Santiago - which are called “island hills” because they are surrounded by flat terrain - and the rolling hills covering the area between Temuco and Puerto Montt, which do not hinder road travel, either. That must be precisely the reason why airlines are flying directly to Valdivia, Osorno and Puerto Montt even though they are so close together. They are doing all they can to encourage people to ditch bus travel and start flying.
When I was in Peru I noticed that flying is much more of a real need there, because many towns are tucked between the mountains and road travel is slow and dangerous. Same thing in Bolivia. They have lots of flights connecting La Paz, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz everyday even though those cities are not far from each other. Road travel between them takes too long and is terribly dangerous. In fact, my bus from Cochabamba to La Paz crashed with a truck when I was traveling to take the flight back home in 1994! I didn’t mention that in my report!
Thank you so much for all that background! Very interesting!
Holy crap! wow...I'm high strung driving on mountain roads in a regular car, so I definitely wouldn't take a bus!
Thanks for sharing Nelson, it was a pleasure to read, and as always the pictures were great!
Nice pictures of T2!