A great professional airline - a great first time experience with BMI (bmi British Midland in general)

Member Name: karlsm93

Product:	bmi British Midland in general
Date:	13/08/09 (142 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very efficient professional service

Disadvantages: None

I realise that there are already a vast array of reviews of BMI, but I thought I would add my own experience and opinion to the rest.

As part of our holiday this year to the Middle East, we took two BMI flights, a short domestic flight, followed by a longer 5 hour flight. In terms of getting to the destination and dates and timings, we had little choice about the carrier to use, BMI was our only real option, and one that we had no previous experience of.

Assuming BMI to be a reputable company and one that was hopefully likely to stay in business during this economic downturn we booked our flights in advance. Although for the most part I found the BMI site straightforward to use, you do need to spend time weighing up the cost of going a day earlier/later, as like some other airlines, the price can vary hugely. Just before we booked we changed our flight to depart a day later, and saved around £60.

A few days before jetting off, we got an email from BMI reminding us of our customer reference number and flight details, which we had previously printed off when we had booked the flights, but we though this was good on the part of BMI to send such an e mail as a reminder.

On the day of departure, we were there very early, and so were required to use the self check in. We found this to be extremely easy, and a member of staff was always present nearby should you have any difficulty. I do say this was easy, however my husband did comment that he felt that his own parents would struggle when presented with such a machine and would prefer to check in face to face with a member of staff. As I said, we really liked using the machine, as we could choose the seats from a diagram of the place from those available, but it also printed out all our boarding passes etc. We then proceeded to a bag drop, where we got to talk face to face with a member of staff, and check our bags would be transferred through to our final destination, and in turn present our passports to her and check in luggage.

Our first flight was a domestic one that left on time, and ran very smoothly. Food was available to purchase on the plane, although we didn't avail of this service, but staff were attentive and very pleasant. Leg room was limited compared to our later longer flight, however for the short duration that we would be initially flying we weren't too bothered. On the back of the chair in front, there is a small individual TV monitor that are used on domestic flights to explain safety. We were also provided with both local and national newspapers which we felt was a nice touch, and were pleased with the service we had received on board.

A similar standard of service was offered on the longer haul flight that followed. This was an overnight flight which served an evening meal. On our flight to the Middle East, there were several awkard and rude passengers on board close to us, however staff were extremely efficient in dealing with problems as they arose, and were polite but assertive when they needed to be with particular passengers who were causing difficulties.

Like our domestic flight, the back of the chair in front held a small tv monitor, which we were later able to use for the inflight entertainment. This entertainment consisted of a variety of films and general television shows, and having your own individual remote for channel and volume control was great. The films available to watch were quite up to the minute.

Within the first 30 minutes of flying, we were offered a complimentary drink along with some mini pretzel pieces in a bag, which were tasty.

After approx an hour on board, before passengers were starting to feel sleepy, our on board meal was served. There was two choices in the meal - beef stew or a vegetable dish, however those who wanted kosher food were given so if they had pre ordered such. Along with the hot food, came a small dessert, water, cheese and crackers, followed by the choice of tea of coffee - all fairly standard.

The air stewards had hot meals given out very quickly and then had them collected just before it started to get quite late, and passengers, like ourselves, were eager to get some sleep.

Blankets, pillows and ear phones were provided for the overnight flight, and as mentioned earlier, we were very pleased with the leg room that we had in our economy area seat. We felt that, compared to our carriers, we had much more leg room.

All in all, we were extremely impressed with BMI. The service we got both going and coming back was excellent. Staff at both the airport and on the airplane were professional and helpful and very efficient. They handled some awkard passengers with courtesy yet at the same time assertively dealing with problems that arose. The food was of a good quality, as good as economy food is, and we were pleased with the amount of leg room that we were given on the longer haul flight. The individual TV monitors were great and we were happy that we had more choice of what we wanted to watch on board.

I would highly recommend BMI as an airline, and I would be extremely happy to fly with them again on another trip.

Summary: Would travel with BMI again without a doubt