This is continuation of my journey from DPS to SIN to CDG to SCL in single ticket. The DPS - SIN and SIN - CDG segments have been covered elsewhere.
I landed at the Roissy airport (I really love saying that name, it sounds much better than saying "Charles de Gaulle Airport") on time, at around 6 PM local time. The first thing I noticed was the burgundy red carpet tiles…
The next thing I had to seek was the information board…turned out AF406 would also depart from Gate K. Actually I had hoped AF406 would depart from a different Gate from my arrival Gate so I could try LISA, but it was what it was…
I cleared the security check and soon I am back at the boarding gates once more.
I must say that I really like the Roissy Airport Terminal 2E. The duty-free shops are less numerous and "invasive" than what I found in DPS, SIN or SYD. The terminal design, the arcade game machines and the burgundy carpet tiles gave this Terminal its "soul" and authenticity. In the world of boring/standardized concrete and glass airport terminal with tons of duty-free shops, Roissy Terminal 2E is a fresh wind of change…
There were also plenty of power plugs, and they were of the same type with the Indonesian ones…
The terminal was almost empty at the first 2-3 hours of my layover…next I found a relaxation/rest area, where I watched sunset, wrote my travel diary and spotted a few jets…
The flight to SCL would be flown on Airbus A350-900 (F-HTYG), nickname Reims. This would be my first time in any Airbus widebody jet!
At about 22:30 or so, boarding began, but they made us stood in line for 10-15 minutes just after the final ID and boarding pass check. What's the point of calling for boarding too early, then? But at last the line got moving…
I was glad that the jet bridge had windows. I noticed the Hippocampe Ailé logo on the Trent XWB-84 engine…
I arrived on seat 38A, and turned out this flight would be full, well at least seats 38B and 38C were occupied. The cabin lights copied that of the French tricolor…
I think the tail and belly camera resolutions were not that great, but it was a very welcome addition to my window view
It was really nice to watch the pushback, takeoff and rotation from the belly camera…
Goodbye, Paris and Roissy Airport!
Our flight path took us above the Bay of Biscay, where dinner was served. I requested a glass of mineral water, but the cabin crew reminded me that they also serve wine in Economy. Such a lovely gesture…but still I chose mineral water.
Perhaps I was too tired to think about taking photos, but not too tired to note the initial cruising altitude (FL 350) and the ambient air pressure (843.5 hPa), which was as high as the pressure inside the Boeing 787.
The last thing I saw before I fell asleep was the lights from the northwestern Spain…and then I slept for 4-5 hours while we were cruising above the Atlantic Ocean…
When I woke up, we were already at FL 380, and the cabin were dark except for the lights from IFE screens. I measured the cabin pressure again, by that point it has dropped to 821.5 hPa.
I tried to get another sleep but I failed…mild turbulence kept me awake, moving the plane up and down and sometimes left and right. So I tried to compare the sound between GEnX and Trent XWB-84. I prefer the constant low-frequency rumble of GEnX more than a mix of low-frequency rumble with medium-frequency hum on Trent XWB-84, but the Trent XWB-84 was even quieter than the GEnX.
We continued above what should have been the Amazon rainforest, and I spotted some city lights amidst the vast darkness (it was new moon)…
Yes, nighttime flight was boring for me, but at least I managed to pass it without even watching a movie!
About 2.5 hrs before reaching SCL, we made our final step climb to FL 410. The cabin pressure dropped to 811 hPa, which was still comparable to that on the 787…
About 2 hours and 20 minutes before arrival, the sky finally began to brighten up. This is the moment that I had been waiting for!
Originally I had selected seat on the right-hand side, but after watching AF406 flight review on Youtube, I changed to a seat on the left-hand side to enable the viewing of sunrise. That was another great decision on my part.
*notice the ice crystals on the outer window pane
Meanwhile, the cabin lights were turned on and breakfast was served. The cabin crew even announced that the breakfast service was moved forward to enable the passengers to see the sunrise on the Andes. I couldn't believe my ears when I heard that! What an awesome crew I had on board!
We descended below the clouds, and here are the first aerial views of Chile
Once again, I switched to the belly camera for landing at runway 17R, in a cool and rainy SCL
Therefore, my very long flight segment from DPS to SIN to CDG to SCL finally came to an end. As an avgeek I actually felt a little bit of sadness in addition to happiness for arriving at a new airport in a new continent.
This time I got permission to enter the cockpit and also had a small conversation with the First Officer about my first time on any Airbus widebody jet, my first time in Santiago, and my plan to fly on QF28 for a chance to see some Antarctic sea ice…
The immigration process was quick and painless. Seeing an Indonesian passport, a PDI (Policia de Investigaciones) Officer manning the immigration booth asked me for a visa. But I was more than ready to respond by handing him a print-out of the Chilean visa policy, stating that Indonesian passport holder is eligible for 60 or 90-day of visa-free travel. He asked for my place of residence, stamped my passport and I was officially in Chile!
NB: I am sorry for the technical issues causing the photos in the Tourism Bonus section to fail to load