I wanted to give some feedback concerning my flight with
Norwegian Air UK to LAX from Gatwick as some of you may have never heard of this low cost airline. The ticket for a return flight cost £ 476.
At Gatwick the check in was swift, with flights to the US at a separate check in area. Some of the security staff were Norwegian and very pleasant.
No hiccups for the luggage unless one had the lowest economy fare and hand luggage was weighed.
We were delayed for about 20 minutes for take off due to heavy traffic at LGW.
On board the cabin staff were very friendly and courteous and the plane was a brand new Boeing 787 Dreamliner with all the mods cons. However, headsets, blankets and pillows were not FOC. I had opted for the medium economy fare so got my seat reservation, two meals ( with dietary options) and one hold luggage. Many of the passengers ordered snacks, drinks and cocktails which were quite expensive.
I had taken a few bottles of water ( the queue at South Terminal was very long) at the water fountain but water was served on board. This information wasn't very clear and I didn't want to pay for water. I ordered a vegetarian option which was actually vegan. The main dish was very good but honestly not very substantial and happily I bought my own food with me. The plane was very clean and we obtained all the necessary flight information from the cockpit.
Whilst we were flying over Canada there was an announcement requesting a doctor as there was a medical emergency. It was an elderly lady who could barely walk and she was having heart palpitations. After an assessment it was decided that she would be met by the emergency services upon arrival at LAX. She had just lost her husband and nobody could comprehend how she was let on board. I overheard the cabin manager say that she would put in a report as in case of an evacuation, she would have been left on board.
So after a + 10 hours flight, we had to yet wait another 20 minutes for the emergency services to board the plane and accompany the lady to a hospital.
On the return flight the check in at LAX was very swift ( we used self check in) and the staff were very friendly. However, the hand luggage was weighed and I got off with 1 kg over. I had stuff in my coat pockets and had put a cardigan into my coat and layered some clothes.
I was delighted as the plane took off on time and I was pleased that the arrival was at approx. 1 pm local time so that I would have the whole
afternoon in Brighton !! I was so wrong !!
After only 3 hours into the flight, there was yet another announcement for a doctor or nurse. I was wondering whether we were jinxed as so many
passengers seem to be ill these days. Anyway, I hoped that it was nothing serious but did check the screen (you have the plane and flight path with time to final destination) after an hour. When I saw
destination YUL landing in 30 minutes, I went to see the cabin manager to see why we were being diverted to Montreal. He seemed quite distressed and wasn't willing to give any details. Anyway, he immediately made the announcement as most of the pax were sound asleep.
Anyway,( I got him talking) apparently one passenger had an epileptic fit and another one was also ill. So, here we were on the tarmac at Montreal at 3 am in the middle of the night. One very ill looking gentleman was taken off the plane by the emergency services whilst the other one had recovered. There was a lot of commotion to find his hand luggage so the member of cabin staff was going around asking whether this particular bag belonged to someone if not it would be removed from the plane.
We had to obtain a new flight plan, refuel and instead of the usual hour or so, it took over 2 1/2 hours. One passenger sitting across the aisle from me thought that he had gotten onto a wrong plane when we landed !! He wasn't aware of all of the announcements. Each and every passenger sat quietly in their seat whilst the crew served some bottled water. Nobody complained, which was very positive.
So, we took off at nearly 5 am and took a different route which was straight over the Atlantic instead of Greenland and near Iceland.It was far longer and we arrived at LGW at nearly 4 pm. Breakfast was served at around 2.30 pm local time but no coffee despite my request. On the whole the crew were friendly and even nicer than on standard ones were they tend to be grumpy on overnight transatlantic (killer) flights.
Finally, upon our approach the captain announced that he apologised for the great delay after an extended flight from LAX to Gatwick, indeed !!!
So to put it into a nutshell, I would highly recommend this low cost airline as the experience was very good. When I compare their prices to the average airline company, the savings are quite significant for a very similar service. If you're not too worried about not eating lots of food and getting free booze and don't mind the baggage allowance, it's the way to go.
Well done
Norwegian.