J(ust) M(ay) C(ope) ! (JMC Air)

Member Name: TigerTiger

Product:	JMC Air
Date:	08/08/01 (371 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap flights to many destinations, Good inflight entertainment

Disadvantages: Very little leg room, Chaos in the aisles, Non-stop selling you things

It was that time of year again when we had all packed our cases, bought all those summer essentials and were heading off into the sun. My friends and I had booked two weeks in Gran Canaria with JMC and there we were sitting at Birmingham airport waiting to board our plane. JMC seem to be charging ahead in the package holiday war and now offer holidays and flights to most of the popular summer destinations, as well as more tropical shores like Barbados, Antigua and Mexico.

~~~The Check-in~~~~

From the moment we arrived at the aiport we were very impressed with the way in which JMC were dealing with their passengers. Obviously with any chartered flight, and especially at peak times in July when we were flying there were going to be a lot of people to deal with. However, there were lots of JMC staff available to deal with any problems or queries you may have had. They opened 6 aisles in the end to check in luggage to cope with demand and constantly kept an eye on the length of the queues. It was all quite painless at that stage.

~~~Arriving on the Plane~~~

We were lucky and there were no delays on our plane and from looking at the information board the only delayed JMC flights were the ones to mainland Spain which were hit by the strikes. The airline was boarded in 3 sections and with 15 minutes to go we were all strapped in and ready to go.

We were travelling on a 757 which had 3 seats either side of the aisle. Tha airplane was very adequately furnished with clean new looking green seats. However, from the start we were under no illusion as to the amount of leg room we were going to have. Now I am a size 10/12 and only 5ft5 and I struggled at times, even just getting in to my seat the first time was not easy. I attempted to squeeze my latest edition of Cosmo into the magazine holder in front of me and well it has to say that was the last straw, I was officially in pain and uncomfortable!

~~~Inflight goings on~~~
~

*The Crew*

The flight crew on both my flights were actually suprisingly young it has to be said. Obviously they are paid to be friendly and helpful, but let's face it how many of us have been greeted by an airsteward who really doesn't want to be there, well I have on numerous occasions. All JMC staff actually did a good job of seeming happy and nothing was too much trouble. For instance on our return journey my friend Jen and I were both struck down with food poisoning and as you can imagine an airplane is the worst place to be, the staff were really great though and did all they could to make us feel better, including moving people around so we had room to lie down. This I was most impressed with.

*The inflight entertainment*

The type of entertainment that you get on board will depend on how far you are flying. Generally on the shorter flights to mainland Spain, Greece, Turkey and the Balaerics you will be offered a selection of TV programmes which are mostly from BBC1 as far as I could see. On the longer flights such as to the Canaries, Carribean and USA a film is shown. On our outward bound flight we were shown "The Wedding Planner" with Jennifer Lopez and then on returning "The Family Man" with Nicholas Cage (I was just sad to be ill and unable to watch it!!). All films are pretty new and they are always a good way to pass the time. In addition there is a choice of about 10 radio stations, which are all themed according to taste and you can choose from the latest club tunes to something a but relaxing.

In order to take advantage of the inflight entertainment though the downside is that you have to buy some headphones. This is one of the first things that will happen when you are on the plane and pretty much everyone on board ends up paying out. The headsets cost £2.50 and are very compact. Alternatively though if you have any headphones with you, say for a discman or walkman than you c
an just pay £1 and get an adaptor to use. The good thing is that once you have a set you can use them on both journeys and on all future flights.

On my outward flight the plane was fitted with those static tv screens in the central aisle, these I found very easy to see. However, on my return journey they came down in front of your seats every 4th row and these were more difficult, especially when like me it is just the seat infront and so close it is blurred. Obviously there is little you can do about this when allocated seats, however, it is worth a mention.

*The food*

This is always an interesting issue when talking about airlines. Something that I really liked with JMC was the way that at the start of the flight they came and issued you with a menu card. Ok, you may not have any choice, but it was nice to see it all there in front of you.

Before the food was served thew cabin crew went through the cabin with the drinks trolley. You will only get complementary drinks on the long haul flights, on ours we had to pay. Prices were not too bad, at £2.00 for a little bottle of wine, £2.50 fr a spirit and mixer and £1 for bottled water. You can also buy other things like pringles and chocolate which is all listed in the inflight magazine. On purchasing a drink on our flight they were giving free mini chedders as an accompaniment.

I am vegetarian and so plane food is even more of an issue for me, having sampled some quite unedible attempts in the past!! On the way out when the meat eaters were tucking into their sausages and mustard mash I was "enjoying" vegetable tortellini. On the tray we also all got a nice bread roll, apple crumble, mini cheese and biscuits and some chocolate. Both the veggies and meat eaters amongst us agreed that the food was ok, not great, but not as bad as we had experienced either. I would give it 6 out of 10.

What did annoy me was how long it took them to collect in the food tr
ays afterwards. With the distinct lack of space on these planes, the addition of a tray and table was not welcomed!

Another problem which a lot were unhappy about was the toilets. Not that there was anothing wrong with them, just that no-one could ever get to them due to the way that the plane was designed. The trolleys were in the aisles for one reason or another the whole journey and you just couldn't get buy them. Or the cabin crew had to leave where they were every few minutes go back up the aisle and let people through.

JMC cabin crew obviously have a job to do, however, the whole time they were trying to sell things to us. If it wasn't headsets, dutyfree or drinks, it was scratchcards and donations to charity. This wore a little thin as it was all the time and all we wanted to do was relax with a drink and watch the film. It was very irritating as they just didn't leave you alone.

Both our flights were at night and we were provided with a fluffy blanket each time which was good. I have to admit these were the only flights in which I can say I was boiling hot. Last year I flew with Brittania and I was really cold the whole time, this time I was shedding clothes and I hadn't even got to my destination.

~~Flight Performance~~~~

The pilot kept us updated the whole was as to the progress we were making and weather conditions. He always explained why he was turning on the seatbelts signs, that we were going through some turbulance because of a certain passage of air. Generally I have no problems with the flight itself. Apart from mentioning that on both journeys I had the bumpiest landing ever.

~~Would I do it again~~~~

When you buy a package holiday I think you know that you are not going to be experiencing massive luxury and you know that they try and cram as many people as they can on to the planes. I think with JMC got pretty much what I expected, I wasn't really disappointed
, in fact I was pleasantly suprised with a few things. So, yes I would recommend them to a friend because they offer what they claim to offer, package holidays made easy. Indeed for package holiday operators I was actually very impressed with the overall package and would have no hesitations in using them again.

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