Premium Economy?

Yesterday, I booked a return ticket for my mother for the coming Eid holiday. Due to the availability of the flights, (and of course the price) She'll fly out of this town on an Italian/French-made turboprop, which is single class (the so called business class is more like premium economy... but for a short leg, it's quite a luxury)

The returning flight is on a Boeing 737. Previously, I didn't pre-book the seats, but since it is not possible to ask for better seats from the check-in counter, we tried, checking in online the previous trip. And when it comes to seat selection, one can't choose the seat.

Why on earth would you have seats selection if you can't select the preferred seats?

So, yesterday I asked my mother if she wants to pre-book her preferred seats. There, on a Boeing flight, the first few rows are priced at $22, and all seats behind the over-wing exit rows are $11. I'm not sure about the price of the over-wing rows and the row before them. These are the least preferred seats. And only able bodied passengers are allowed to seat there. Well, able bodied passengers are usually adult, but in the past, when flying was less 'rigid' I sat on one once when I was 17.

Airlines is getting poorer, so they milk money from passenger? Well, I'm not against the idea of premium economy. But on this flight, it's hardly a premium economy. The seats, pitch and width are the same. Just that they are first to embark and disembark.. And it's a full service airlines.

It's akin to the concept of preferred seats in a rival low cost airlines. Full service airlines are on the verge of extinction. To generate more income, they start to copy the low cost carriers strategies. Ryanair and Aer Lingus?

Oh, did I tell you that our flag-carrier shared the some connection with Aer Lingus?  Hint: a German.

The flag carrier was doing well, revived by a fellow (well, again insert the demonym of people from my state). But the idea of having a person from the 'state where people wears loincloth only*' helming the ailing airlines is beyond comprehension why the westerner (which is 'better' 'intelligent' 'developed'). Well, the westerners always underestimate our capability. Aside from asking us stupid questions such as

"Do you live on trees?"
or
"Do you wear loincloth at home?"

A biochemistry lecturer who's from the west, once asked me

"Why is (let's call him Mr Nett) charged me more for my flight?" For an academician/professor who holds law and medical degrees, that's a STUPID question. Maybe his PhD is for his PERMANENT HEAD DAMAGE.

That's how ignorant most of them are. So they replaced him with a westerner, and the airlines stars to lose money AGAIN! Even our top chef complaint on the food quality on board.

I told Josh about this. He told me that his pilot friend said that the area in front of the wings are the safest. Well, to my understanding, it depends on how the airplane crash.

In CFIT, of course the front part is the least favourable. Over-wing rows are sitting on the fuel tank, so any crashes with fire, that's the first part to explode. The tail section is the safest? Well, again it depends. But a lot of survivors were seated in the aft. So nowhere on an airplane is the safest. It depends on the situation and how the plane crash. (Again, I'm not a pilot, Josh's friend is... maybe he's right)

My favourite seats? A few rows away from the aft. As near to the aft as possible, but with seats which recline. I can hear the cabin crews gossiping, but away from the lav.

*westerner... does not refers to people from western countries, but anybody from the Western part of the country.