The story continues! NOK Air - colorful birds of paradise (part 2)

First things first. Read part 1 here!

Chiang Mai (CNX) - Bangkok (DMK)
Date of return flight: 23 November 2010
Flight number: DD8307
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-400
Aircraft reg.: HS-TDA
Aircraft name: Songkhla
Seat: 49K

After a few wonderful days in "The rose of Northern Thailand" we had some serious tanning business to undertake. So we set course for Hua Hin by air and by road.

First leg was on one of those colorful NOK Air planes again. I was really looking forward to it - as this great airline always provides a fun flight.

This flight was booked some five days before departure, and a seat in Nok Economy set me back 4980 baht (165USD / 120EUR) - which is actually more than my Nok Plus flight a few days before. But hey - that's the law on supply and demand! And the fare included a 15kg free baggage allowance, as well as the option of selecting my seat online right after booking.

Upon arrival at Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX), we were well prepared for the usual hassle of bag screening at the entrance. Luckily - despite quite a long line - we didn't have to wait more than ten minutes.

Inside the bright and airy check-in area, Nok Air was easy to spot! There were nobody ahead of us in that line, as opposed to the lengthy check-in lines of "Asia's Boutique carrier" a few metres away.

The newly upgraded check-in area hosts a small coffee shop (with free WiFi) and some souvenir shops. The departure area is located one level up. On the way to the escalator, this departure screen makes it quite obvious that CNX is an interesting airport, with a great selection of Asian destinations. In fact, Thailand's second city is becoming increasingly popular with tourists from all over the world.

Today's "receipt" and my cool new NOK Fan Club membership card.

A nightmarishly long line was awaiting us in front of the ID- and boarding pass check point. Fortunately, the NOK Air check point was conveniently located for us to sneak by the entire queue. Right after this, another security checkpoint and then we were allowed to enter the departure hall. I think it is safe to say it was crowded! This was due to very frequent departures for Bangkok by a One-Two-GO (OX) MD82, a Bangkok Airways (PG) Airbus A319, and a THAI Airways (TG) B747 and an A300.

Evidence of CNX attracting ever more traffic:

In fact, departures were scheduled so tight that TG's 747 from BKK hadn't even taxied out before next departure parked at gate. Seen here is A300 HS-TAM (appropriately enough named "Chiangmai") arriving from Bangkok.

Three goodies in one photo here! We see a private Dassault Falcon 900EX registered VT-AKU. Pictured here is also Royal Thai Air Force in the background. I don't know much about military aircraft. Could this be a Hercules? By all means - let's not forget HS-TGH "Chaiprakarn" sneaking out to RWY18 on its way to Bangkok.

Boarding commenced at 10.30, and this cheerful sign made sure we had no doubts where we were going.

We installed ourselves in seat 49J and K, and happily concluded that legroom was more than adequate onboard this ex-Thai Airways B737-400. Still, being a low cost airline, NOK Air has opted for some interesting twists - such as using the overhead bins to advertise their onboard food concept Nok Aroy (interestingly, I had tried to order hot food at an extra fee at time of booking, but this option did not work).

The four very pleasant cabin attendants closed the bins before departure, each time offering a respectful "wai".

Pushback started on time - at 10.45 - and lots of interesting aircraft got into view. A couple of examples here:

Silk Air A319, 9V-SBE, just arrived from Singapore.

Taxiing out to holding point for RWY 18 we passed this veteran aircraft - parked on the premises of the 411-squadron.

In-flight entertainment: A yellow safety card (I make a point of always - always - leave these onboard, no matter how pretty they are. Please don't steal them!) as well as the Nok Air inflight magazine named JIB jib - meaning "twitter" in Thai.

As mentioned in my trip report from my outbound flight from Bangkok, Nok Air has a nice touch of introducing each member of cabin crew by nickname. Meaning "bird", Nok is a very popular nickname in Thailand, and this airline actually gives all its crewmembers the name Nok as an add-on to their usual nicknames (Thais are generally referred to by their nicknames, rather than their given names which can be quite a tongue-twisting exersise.)

Today's canary bird crew were Nok Boom, Nok Mink, Nok Paeng and Nok Tip. Here we see Nok Tip and Nok Boom on their way with a trolley full of offerings:

Again, Nok Air distinguished itself by offering a free snack even in economy class. Today's snack was a kind of mini-pizza, or more accurately some kind of soft bun topped by ham and mayonnaise. This was definitely not a culinary highlight! But it was quite filling - and of course free of charge - so we managed to wash it down :-D But why do they constantly warn us not to leave evidence?

This snack offering was followed by the drinks trolley, from which the offerings were pay-only. A cup of drinking water was, however, offered together with the "pizza".

The JIB jib magazine also doubled as a Nok Air timetable, menu and Nok Smile Shop price list. There were plenty of useful, and not-so-useful logo items for purchase, some for as little as THB60.

At 33.000 feet, somewhere over Sukhothai, our captain speaking offered a short briefing including location, cruise level and weather forecast for Bangkok- which promised a pleasant 32 degrees celcius.

We touched down at DMK runway 19R at 11.40, following a smooth and uneventful approach. It didn't take much more than one minute from rolling off the runway untill we were parked at our gate.

The airport was disturbingly empty - but isn't it a Boeing 747SP hiding in the background?

Leaving the neat and nicely colored cabin. As you can see, HS-TDA doesn't carry the rainbow-colored seat pattern that many TG and ex-TG aircraft do.

A smiling bird prepares for new passengers.

The arrivals hall was actually quite lively, and arrival screens revealed quite busy traffic - even though we didn't notice a single plane apart from ours. Our suitcases arrived within reasonable time, and our pre-booked car and driver taking us to HuaHin waited right outside the baggage claim area.

Thank you for reading!

NOK Air - Colorful birds of paradise (part 1)

For my blog debut I decided to share some impressions from last November's vacation in Thailand.

Low fares - low service airlines are musrooming even in South-East Asia, but Thailand's NOK Air has decided to place itself a notch above the rest. With its colorful planes, outstanding cabin crew and even offering a free snack, they provide excellent value for money and a fun way to fly, for sure!

This round-trip flight originated at Bangkok's old Don Mueang (DMK) airport and took me to lovely Chiang Mai (CNX) in the north. Thailand's "Northern capital" is definitely worth a few days' visit.

Date of outbound flight: 20 November 2010

Flight number: DD8326

Aircraft type: Boeing 737-400

Aircraft reg.: HS-TDF

Aircraft name: Si Sa Ket
Seat: 14K

My plans have a tendency to change often. This trip was no exception. Thus, I booked my flight a mere two days before departure, and the only available offer was "Nok Plus" at THB3890 one way (approx. 130USD / 95EUR). Booking was a breeze on nokair.com, and a baggage allowance of 15kg as well as the option of selecting my own seat was offered free of charge. Thus NOK Air sets itself off from your average low cost carrier already at time of booking.

NOK Air operates from Bangkok's old Don Mueang-airport (DMK). Conveniently located a 25min taxi ride from downtown, the airport is a shadow of its former self. Where widebodies from all over the world once lined the apron, DMK today is home to a couple of low-cost carriers, some VIP and military flights as well as the occasional charter.

The taxi ride set me back 300 baht (USD10 / EUR7,5), including tollway charges, and upon entering the terminal building I could see that nothing had changed much since the closure and subsequent re-opening of the airport. NOK Air was easily recognizable by its bright yellow staff uniforms and check-in counters.

After a brief screening of my check-in luggage I proceeded straight to the counter marked "Privilege Check-in". Another perk not usually associated with low-cost airlines, but then my ticket also indicated Nok Plus -Nok Air's business class "light" concept.

The check-in counter was dedicated to Nok Plus customers, as well as senators and other high-ranking Thai officials. Luckily there were no politicians around, and the young lady behind the counter greeted me with a corteous "wai" (traditional Thai greeting).

The check-in procedure was done in ten seconds, and I was presented with a grocery store-receipt style boarding pass. I decided to join the Nok Air frequent flyer programme named Nok Air Fan Club - mostly because it's cool that an airline has a fan club! They also sport a quite funny membership card.

Security check was a breeze, and I entered the huge departures hall which was lively but not crowded. A good tip would be to eat something before you pass through security, as the departure lounge offers nothing but a Burger King without any tables or chairs. Eating hamburgers and mayonnaise in the lounge chairs surrounding the gate areas is less than practical.

I could have elected to pass the waiting time with some foot massage - the only activity offered apart from munching hamburgers. However, i opted for some window spotting. The once-lively apron looks more like an aircraft cemetery today.

Nok Air's main competitor - AirAsia - operates a mix of domestic and international flights, and has its Thailand base at new Suvarnabhumi (BKK) airport. Another airline which does operate scheduled flights from DMK is One-Two-Go (by Orient Thai). In this photo, HS-OMD is being prepared for a flight to Chiang Rai (CEI)

Not excactly the latest equipment here at gate 68 :-D

The word Nok means "bird" in Thai, and all aircraft in the NOK fleet are appropriately adorned with colorful feathers and a beak. Moreover, Nok is a popular nickname among Thai people. What could then be more fitting than naming all flight attendants Nok in addition to their given names :-)

The corporate livery of this colorful airline is bright yellow. One might still ask oneself if there is such thing as a standard Nok Air-livery. There is such a variation in plumage that hardly two aircraft bear the same colors. A great fact to the spotter, of course!

Here spotted: HS-TDA named "Songkhla" on its way to Phitsanulok (PHS). This is the one I flew back from Chiang Mai.

And here HS-DDN, also on its way to Chiang Mai - a mere 30 minutes ahead of us in the tracks (this was one of those public holidays when seemingly all Thais are on the move).

My carriage for the ride, photographed through two layers of windows (there is a boarding corridor in between).

Boarding commenced at 15:50, and we had no problems pushing back on time, at 16:20. Once aboard I was greeted by a beautiful, yellow "bird" named Nok Jimjong (or something to that effect). Her broad smile never left her face, not even while doing her PA announcement.

The cabin was visibly a heritage from previous owner THAI Aiways (which by the way owns 39% of the shares in Nok Air). My Nok Plus compartment at the forward section sported twelve surprisingly wide seats of the old business-class style. Behind the curtain was the all too well-known rainbow-theme of THAI, and it was a full house. I was happy that for a change I was going to take my seat in front of the curtain.

Not much company at the gate anymore...

The numbering of seat rows was a bit peculiar. Nok Plus ranged from 12AB to 14JK, and Nok Economy from 31ABC to 53HJK. I believe this is also an inheritance from the aircrafts' days in THAI Airways service, when they sometimes needed to substitute an A300 on short notice, thus avoiding the dreads of having to re-seat all passengers. Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong here.

Since there was no other traffic worth mentioning, we started our taxi without delay, and proceeded to runway 01L. In fact it's the first time ever I've taken off in a northerly direction at DMK. In its heyday departures and arrivals were mostly towards the south.

A while into our climb the seat belt signs where switched off, and it was time for a nice little touch I've never seen on any other airline: Each cabin crew member was introduced by name, accompanied by a gracious "wai". Cute!

Not long after, today's complementary service was rolled out - or actually - carried out to be more specific.
The offering consisted of a tray with an Auntie Anne pretzel, a cup of orange juice wrapped in panzer plastic (i suppose this is to make sure all passengers are properly marinated in yellow liquid once the cup bursts open). There was also a considerable amount of wrapping...

One of the pretzels was a wrapped crab stick (yes, this is Thailand), carrying the warning "Eat it all - leave no evidence."

Fortunately, Nok Jimjong did not get mad with me for leaving this particular piece of "evidence". Her smile was as broad as ever while taking orders for coffee or tea from the twelve of us in front of the curtain. And she evidently remembered everybody's preference, because the only cup left on her tray as she reached my corner was the tea I had ordered.

She then rounded off the feast with a glass of water for everyone, followed by her colleague Nok Ae pushing a cart stuffed to the brim with Nok Air-souvenirs. The selection ranged from key chains to umbrellas and shorts, all adorned with the cheerful company insignia.

Beautiful birds-eye view of the rainforest-clad mountains of Northern Thailand.

There was not much time (or need) for anything else on this 1h10min flight. The conclusion of a close-to-perfect flight was a smooth landing on Chiang Mai International Airport's runway 36.

Some snacks parked at CNX:

As previously mentioned, this was a public holiday and the apron at CNX was full. This meant a short bus ride for us. I must be one of the very few airline passengers who doesn't at all mind waiting at the apron. It's a great photo opportunity!

Our "old" friend from Don Mueang: HS-DDN, with the landmark Doi Suthep-mountain in the background.

Lined up here is a great example of THAI Airways' variegated fleet, regarding types as well as color schemes. Behind HS-DDN we see HS-TEL "Tepamart" - an A330-300 sporting the Star Alliance-livery. Following this is HS-TKA "Sriwanna" - a 777-300 still painted in the old color scheme. Behind that one an A320 of Thai Air Asia is hiding, and finally we spot the tail of an old friend of mine: HS-TGJ "Hariphunchai", a Boeing 747-400 Jumbo Jet.

HS-TGJ ”Hariphunchai” looks stunning from this angle, but it could use a wash...

My bag was already on the belt when I arrived at the baggage claim area. I noticed that the nice lady in Bangkok had attached a priority-tag. I don't know if it worked, though. After all, I spent all my priority time taking photos for you, dear reader :-) 

Thank you for reading! If you liked this trip report, please continue to part 2 by clicking here.

Welcome aboard this blog!

I hope you'll be inspired by reading about my flights. I am an avid airplane nut, and just love to be in the air - no matter if it's in a Jetstream or an Airbus.

Perhaps I'll start by describing some "ancient" flights I did a few years ago, before blogging was even a word. Then, as I keep flying 'round the world (or mostly in Europe at the moment), I'll add new flights as they come...