Competitive Pricing but (China Airlines)

Member Name: ultras67

Product:	China Airlines
Date:	27/12/02 (4894 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Pricing, Unlimited return date changes

Disadvantages: Not a great reputation, Average Service

I recently traveled with China Airlines so thought I would share my thoughts on them.

Despite its name, this is the airline of Taiwan not China. In some countries it is called Mandarin Airlines.

I traveled with China Airlines from Glasgow to Bangkok via Amsterdam. Amsterdam is their main European hub, depending on where you are connecting from the first flight will probably be with KLM UK.

The first leg was on a Fokker regional jet, which is reasonably comfortable with legroom, seat size etc ( I am a six footer )

The main out leg was in an Boeing 747 with a standard passenger layout holding over 300 passengers. The plane was relatively old and showed it inside with average facilities - no personal LCD screen, only the older overhead TV screens, limited audio channels. The seats did have "head wings" that are supposedly there to support your head. Unfortunately, I find them next to useless for helping me sleep. The meals served were average western airline food with no real flavour but still edible all the same.

The level of service despite me hearing horror stories with effective without being notable, anything asked for was brought but no extra smile or effort. One thing of course that some people don’t like is that there are no native speakers of English. But I found that all the staff had an excellent level of spoken English. They were the cheapest for the length of ticket I needed and are usually very competitive for price. I had a 1 year ticket and they allow unlimited free changes on the return leg. Some airlines will restrict you to 1 or 2 changes or charge you a fee.

The airline does unfortunately have not the highest reputation for safety or service, they have had a couple of big crashes in the last 10 years. The fleet is a quite modern one though, which tends to support the claims that pilot error has been the cause.

The routes are more widespread within Asia as y
ou can imagine and to some major cities in Europe and America. The airline is not part of any alliance but does have agreements for connecting flights with various airlines. It does have its own mileage program - Dynasty Flyer. Their official web site is at www.china-airlines.com

Overall, I would have to say that if price is your main concern then I would recommend them, otherwise I would go with a main European flag carrier like KLM or British Airways.

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