After spending nearly two months in India for work, it's finally time for me to head back home—a week before the end-of-year holidays.
Introduction
It’s September, and a long business trip is on the horizon. The plan: just under two months in India to train local teams, from late October to mid-December.
As for the flights, the company is covering the costs, and given the length of the trip, they’re footing the bill for business class. Taking into account flexibility and scheduling constraints, KLM turned out to be the most suitable option with a relatively straightforward routing.
Other options included Lufthansa, with the FRA-BLR leg operated by a Boeing 747-8i, but with an inconvenient middle-of-the-night arrival. British Airways was offering a 777-200ER with an early morning arrival in BLR. Air France also had a CDG-BLR flight on an Airbus A330, but the business class fare was outrageous for my travel dates. Qatar Airways could have been an option since they now fly out of Toulouse, but they didn’t have any compelling schedules on my dates.
Worth noting: my partner will be joining me for two weeks before heading back to France. She’ll be flying in economy on the Air France flight, which departs just 30 minutes apart from mine and arrives only 15 minutes later. The KLM flight in economy was €250 more expensive on those same dates.
Which gives us the following routing:
Unsurprisingly, KLM is the only airline operating non-stop flights between Amsterdam and Bangalore. The Dutch carrier offers five flights per week on the AMS–BLR route. However, there’s no shortage of options to reach Bangalore from Europe:
Air France operates a daily flight from CDG on an Airbus A330, with a schedule that’s more or less aligned.
British Airways also runs a daily flight, usually on a Boeing 777-200ER, with arrival in Bangalore around 4 a.m.
Lufthansa offers a daily service operated by a Boeing 747 from Frankfurt, arriving in the middle of the night. Starting in November, four of those weekly flights will be switched to the Airbus A350.
Not to mention the numerous options available via Gulf carriers, although those are less convenient for departures from Toulouse. Qatar Airways could have been an option, given their direct service from Toulouse, but their schedules were far from ideal, with layovers of over 20 hours both outbound and inbound.
As for business class, this is an added bonus as it gives me the opportunity to try KLM’s 787-9 on the Monday flight, which is operated by the Dreamliner. And as we’ll see, the difference in product is quite significant.
Departure from BLR T2 in the middle of the night
There’s a slight touch of nostalgia, but also a certain eagerness to return home as I arrive in front of Terminal 2 of Bangalore Airport, which I'm beginning to know quite well. This time, I went all out and hired a car with a driver provided by my hotel. It’s Sunday night, and traffic is very light at this late hour. I reached the airport in just under an hour. The modern and bright architecture that characterizes Bangalore Airport’s new terminal is immediately noticeable. It’s worth noting that the ambulance is still parked out front, just in case.
The only ATM on the departures level isn't working, unlike its counterpart on the arrivals level what a shame not to have such a basic service available at BLR airport…
The FIDS displays the departures from Terminal 2, showing all international flights as well as domestic flights operated by Air India, Air India Express, and Vistara. So far, no issues my flight is scheduled to depart on time.
After a check of my ID and booking, I’m allowed to enter the vast hall that houses the check-in counters.
I head toward the counters shared by AF and KLM luckily, there’s no crowd! What’s more, AF has set aside no fewer than five counters for SkyPriority passengers. Since I’m flying in business class, I can take advantage of this service… I pass through with no wait, assisted by a young agent who is both friendly and efficient. My two bags are quickly on their way to the airport’s baggage system.
He also gives me a paper boarding pass in KLM colors; the passport stamps will be added later at immigration.
One last look at this ground-side hall undeniably practical and aesthetically very well designed. Nothing to criticize about this part of BLR’s new Terminal 2 it’s flawless.
This time I'm heading towards the international departures. A quick scan of the boarding pass and I'm allowed to proceed to the PAF officers’ booths. There’s an impressive number of counters open, so the wait is virtually nonexistent. The officer asks for my boarding pass and passport, and after a few minutes and a couple of stamps, he hands everything back to me with a “have a nice trip”… the whole process took barely 3 minutes… some people could really learn a thing or two from this…
Going through security checks was a bit more chaotic, but the wait was still minimal. I only had to go through an additional check on one of my carry-on bags by a somewhat grumpy agent. After packing my things back up, I found myself in front of these massive plant decorations. No waterfall in the international area, but it's still a pleasant environment.
Once the checks are done, you find yourself in corridors resembling a shopping mall. However, most of the stores haven’t opened yet and are still being set up, so passengers walk past huge construction barriers bearing the colors and branding of the future shops.
The duty-free, on the other hand, had already opened, offering the usual perfumes and alcohol. As for cigarettes, I had an order to fulfill, but they only had local or British brands. And if Paris Orly has its 2CV and Toulouse its Citroën Type-H, Bangalore has its very own pink tuk-tuk!
As for me, I follow the signs to reach the only lounge in the international Terminal 2 — Lounge 080. Along the way, there are still plenty of shops waiting to open.
Then you arrive in a hall that brings together the main food outlets of the international section of Terminal 2. I picked up some Indian pastries there to bring back for my colleagues and to use up my last rupees in the process…
Lounge 080 international T2
Before heading to Lounge 080, the only lounge in the international section of Terminal 2. It actually serves all the airlines operating flights to/from BLR that offer a business class. I’m even surprised to see the logos of Air Arabia and IndiGo, which must apparently offer fares that include lounge access… For business class passengers, the entrance is directly upstairs, not at the main entrance where long lines can often be seen. Indians clearly seem to be real lounge addicts and don’t hesitate to pay for access.
The lounge is located on a large open mezzanine above the shops, overlooking the central area of the terminal. The decor is quite nice, but if you're hoping for a view of the planes, you'll be disappointed.
An American-style bar area called 'The Talkies' is reserved for business class passengers. It is one of the two bars serving alcoholic beverages. Status passengers traveling in economy or those who have purchased paid access receive a single voucher for one alcoholic drink, which can be redeemed at the second bar.
Continuing on from the bar, there is a long buffet offering a good variety of dishes, snacks, salads, and hot meals both vegetarian and non-vegetarian with Indian or Western influences. There's plenty of choice.
There’s even a live cooking station where I asked the chef to make me a dosa, that large, crispy Indian crêpe I absolutely love, even though it’s usually eaten for breakfast in India. I kept it fairly light and grabbed a small sandwich as well. I also tried a mojito at the bar… which turned out to be really bad.
After this light meal, I decided to stretch my legs one last time to stay awake. You can still see that some of the bird’s nest-shaped pods in the center of the terminal haven’t found tenants yet. Let’s be honest the international zone feels a bit empty, even though this is probably the busiest time of day, with intercontinental flights to Paris, Amsterdam, and Munich. Around this hour, there’s also the Thai Airways A350 flight and several low-cost carriers.
France is well represented!
In the international zone, the path to the gates leads across a walkway overlooking a garden. Unfortunately, it’s nighttime not the best moment to enjoy this feature, which must be quite pleasant during the day.
The airport is pretty quiet at this late hour.
In the distance, you can see some of GoAir’s aircraft parked away from the main terminal. The low-cost airline went bankrupt three months ago, and the planes are now awaiting better days and a new operator."
In the distance, I spot one of the aircraft I missed during my stay in Bangalore the ERJ-175 operated by the small airline Star Air.
The Lufthansa flight operated by an Airbus A350-900 from Munich has just arrived.
All the boarding gate areas have waiting zones with seats, as well as a more decorative area featuring circular benches topped by artworks, whether traditional or modern, as is the case here.
You can take your Instagram photo from this spot in Terminal 2 of the airport.
Our aircraft for the day is already at the gate, and as expected for Monday flights, it’s indeed a Boeing 787-9 operating the route. Registered PH-BHI, it’s known as 'Lavendel / Lavender' and has just completed seven years of service. Unfortunatelly only One jet bridge is being used, even though our parking position has two gates.
However, we will use gates D2 and D3 for our boarding, with priority boarding fully respected.
I’ll board once the SkyPriority line is empty, following the flow of passengers of all ages heading to the aircraft. Thankfully, the kids will be on the other side of the curtain. 😄
On board KLM Boeing 787-9.
The cabin crew welcomes us on board with warm smiles and friendly attitudes. However, it feels a bit like a trip back in time the flight attendants’ uniforms and hairstyles are very vintage, straight out of the 1980s.
I’ll be one of the last business class passengers to board. Once again, the cabin is full in business, and it looked like economy was pretty packed as well. A very profitable flight for the Dutch airline.
For the seat, it’s the well-known Safran Cirrus NG, in the airline’s signature blue tones. The seat meets current business class standards, offering both full-flat and direct aisle access — features that are gradually becoming the global norm in air travel. That said, the in-flight entertainment screen isn’t exactly huge. On the plus side, all the comfort items are already in place, including a duvet-style blanket and an oversized pillow
The cabin layout of this Boeing 787-9: 8 rows of business class seats by the windows and 7 along the aisle, for a total of 30 seats. This is followed by the premium economy section with 21 seats, while the rest of the cabin is taken up by 224 economy class seats.
This time, I’m treated with a welcome drink. I’ll go with the Bernard Lonclas champagne. After all, it’s not every day you fly long-haul in business class. The menus are already at the seat
As is the amenity kit, which is already provided as well.
The view from the aisle side of my seat the cabin is ready for takeoff.
The overhead panel features only the seatbelt sign and nothing more.
Instructions followed: seatbelt fastened. No logo on the buckle, but there's a nice airbag built in… I can't help but wonder what would happen if it deployed that close to certain sensitive areas near the belt. 😅
The safety instructions are broadcast in English and Dutch, with Hindi subtitles. The traditional Delft tiles make an appearance in the safety video. Speaking of safety, the crew forgot to collect my welcome drink, which I hastily stashed in my seat’s compartment just as we were at the holding point, ready for takeoff.
We begin taxiing toward runway 09L, but there’s little to see due to heavy humidity condensing on the cold window after the aircraft’s arrival. However, we can make out the colors of a SpiceJet tail.
It wasn’t until our aircraft took off that the window cleared, giving me one last view of the BLR terminals, accompanied by the powerful thrust of our two GEnx engines effortlessly pulling the more than 200 tons of our Dreamliner into the sky.
Shortly after takeoff, a warm oshibori (wet towel) is handed out.
Dinner service quickly gets underway. Tonight, only a handful of passengers will be dining it has to be said, the departure after 2 a.m. really takes its toll. The tablecloth is laid.
The evening menu features a starter highlighting lobster. The vegetarian dish is inspired by Indian cuisine, while the lamb main course leans toward Western flavors. As for the wine list, it’s honestly quite underwhelming.
The tray arrived all at once on the table, which is perfectly suited to the flight’s timing and really speeds up the service. For the main course, I chose the carrot and pumpkin soup, which was very good. The three-part starter was also quite refined in flavor, with the fresh citrus, beetroot, and pomegranate salad standing out. My only small regret was the lobster portion, excellent but quite tiny. I appreciated having a bit of cheese after nearly two months without any. As for dessert, the mango cheesecake was rather mediocre.
The seat’s screen measures 18 inches and has good resolution in my opinion, more than enough.
The geovision system is provided by Flightpath 3D and offers high-quality flight tracking that’s easy to navigate, with a notably accurate model of the aircraft. You can even display the moving map on the touchscreen remote control.
As for the entertainment program, the movie selection is decent with some recent releases, but most films are several years old. I was really disappointed by the music selection, which I found quite poor compared to, say, Turkish Airlines.
The crew set out small baskets filled with chocolates and other sweet snacks, all softly illuminated by little electric candles.
Well, it’s nearly 4 a.m. Indian time and midnight in France definitely time to get some sleep. I’ll manage almost six hours of very good rest, which will help me arrive in Toulouse feeling fairly refreshed.
Today’s route crosses the Persian Gulf, then flies over Iraq and Turkey before reaching Europe. Cruising altitude: 38,000 ft.
As soon as I woke up, the attentive crew brought me a coffee really excellent service from the lovely KLM ladies, who were genuinely friendly and cheerful. The only small hiccup was when one of them got a bit clumsy, dropping several glasses twice and turning the aisle into a fakir’s carpet…
The cabin gradually wakes up as the mood lighting is switched on just before the breakfast service by the crew. As for me, I’d already been awake for a good half hour, watching an episode of the Hercule Poirot series.
The breakfast tray as served. I find the presentation really nice and the portions quite generous
A beautiful, colorful fruit salad that was excellent.
For the hot dish, I chose the pancakes with pineapple compote, which was also a great success.
I was less of a fan of the porridge, but it was edible. A croissant was also served, and it was more than decent quality.
For drinks, I’ll have a tea and a glass of orange juice.
The same typical KLM tableware is still used, with metal cutlery that has a distinctive look.
In the seat pocket, you’ll find the standard safety card as well as, increasingly rare these days, an in-flight magazine.
One of the few criticisms I have of this cabin is the signs of wear on the seat, despite it not being that old. That said, all the components were fully functional, so it was more of a cosmetic issue.
Once the breakfast service was finished, our descent was already well underway, and during the final phase, the cabin lighting was dimmed.
This morning’s approach into Schiphol was through murky skies not exactly a storm, but the weather was pretty poor, with a very low ceiling on this mid-December Monday. On final approach, we flew alongside the A5 motorway that skirts around Amsterdam from the north.
Landing on cloudy AMS morning.
A smooth landing on runway 18C one of the runways with the shortest taxi times.
We will begin our taxi toward the pier at gates E, passing by many long-haul aircraft along the way, such as this KL Airbus A330-200 parked remotely. We'll also see EK 777s and CX A350s.
Singapore Airlines operates its morning flight to AMS with an Airbus A350-900.
We will park next to this Boeing 777-300ER in KLM Asia livery, which has just arrived from Toronto.
The flight arrived a bit early, and with over 2.5 hours of layover, I took my time to organize my things and chat a bit with the crew which ended up making me the last passenger left in the business class cabin. In the meantime, door 1L had been opened, and I ended up being the first, and maybe the last, to disembark through it. ^^
A few final details about our steed for the evening, aptly named 'Lavender' quite fitting given all the blue you see with KLM. A perfect way to wrap up my very first long-haul flight on a Boeing 787.
Our neighbor to the right will also be a KLM Boeing 777-300ER, arriving from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. At the time, I didn’t know it yet, but I would end up flying on that very aircraft at the end of April.
On the way back, I'll pass in front of my plane and try one last time to get a shot of it, despite the unsightly dotted masking courtesy of AMS airport…
On the way out Qatar Airways is advertising for is safety … worth noting that QR is once again using the Airbus A350 in it’s ads. It wasn‘t the case during the commercial dispute with Airbus.
At the end of the pier, you come across this huge FIDS. Well, believe me, my connecting flight to Toulouse was scheduled to be on time…
By the window i also spot this Delta Airbus A330-300, lost in the middle of that forest of KLM tail fins even though, at certain times of day, AMS sort of turns into a mini Atlanta with all those Delta flights to the US.
The security check wasn’t particularly pleasant the priority lanes weren’t in service, and the agents were talking to passengers as if they were garbage. Fortunately, this rude bunch was at least backed up by a next-generation scanner that allowed liquids and electronics to stay in the bags, helping speed up the process a bit. Even if we can't change people, at least we can improve the tech to spend less time dealing with unpleasant staff.
So I quickly found myself in the corridors of Schiphol, heading through the middle of the shops (worth noting the presence of a pharmacy an essential stop for scatterbrains like me ^^) toward passport control, which can sometimes be a bit jammed from time to time.
