Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Indian Ocean 2012
Flight Log 6: UL101
Colombo (CMB) - Malé (MLE)
Business Class boarding was by a separate bus and the front entrance of the aircraft had been kept clear for our arrival. I quickly settled into 1A and took stock of my surroundings on this unfamiliar carrier. The cabin consisted of five rows of proper Business Class seats in 2+2 layout. A blanket and pillow were present on each seat and the standard of cabin presentation was good. I saw that Row 1 passengers had IFE screens mounted on the front bulkhead and was intrigued to see credit card logos included in the display. A choice of water and fruit juice was offered; I had an apple juice. Nicely scented hot towels were distributed on the ground, followed by newspapers and beautifully presented menus. This all seemed to be going rather well so far.
The captain announced the expected flight time as 1hr 20mins and main course orders were taken while we were still at the stand. Pushback came precisely on schedule at 0700 and headsets were distributed prior to leaving the gate area. We taxied out to Runway 22 and had a lengthy hold for both departing and arriving aircraft before finally making our escape at 0714. We were quickly above the clouds and the cabin crew wasted no time in getting the service underway, starting with the distribution of rather nice tablecloths that came complete with the Sri Lankan Airlines logo.
| BREAKFAST |
| Fruit juices |
| Fresh fruit |
| Yoghurt |
| Main dishes |
| Scrambled eggs and vol-au-vent garnished with smoked salmon cross, sautéed mushroom with tomato, buttered spinach, hash brown potato |
| Cheese omelette, onion and tomato relish, mushroom fricassee, roasted potatoes |
| Kurakkan string hoppers, potato white curry, tempered dhal, pol sambol |
| An assortment of bread and preserves |
| Freshly brewed Ceylon tea and coffee |
The trays followed quickly and were nicely presented. Unfortunately I didn't find my scrambled eggs-based main course to be particularly appetising, which was a shame as everything else looked nice enough and tasted fine. A choice of bread was offered, as well as water, coffee or tea. I had the coffee and sadly it also wasn't very good - what was it about the hot items?!
Rather large Maldives landing cards were handed out to those requiring them, including me, and this was a signal to carry out the unusual step of putting my watch back by thirty minutes. Touchdown came at 0753 and allowed a precisely on-schedule arrival.
 |
| Date: Sat 26 May 2012 |
| Aircraft: Airbus A320 |
| Scheduled dep: 0700 |
| Actual departure: 0700 |
| Scheduled arrival: 0755 |
| Actual arrival: 0755 |
| Cabin: Business Class |
| Seat: 1A |
