Airlines

Just my impressions of each of the following...

British Airways

We took 4 flights on British Airways. The first from JFK to Heathrow we were upgraded to Club World. This cabin is amazingly comfortable without being frilly like I imagine First class would be. I could have easily flown all the way around the world in this cabin if I had to. I strongly recommend it if you have the chance.

Our second flight from Heathrow to Entebbe was a huge step down. We were in Premium economy which is supposed to be better than regular economy but we were REALLY uncomfortable. It was a red-eye flight and we just couldn't sleep. My biggest problem was that even though there was no one in the seat next to me, I couldn't raise the armrest and spread out like I could if I were in coach.

Third flight was a 12-hour red-eye from Cape Town to Heathrow in coach! We were dreading this flight, but it turned out to be a whole lot better than we expected. The seats was equipped with special headrests that held your head up while we slept, and we did sleep, for about 7 hours, which really surprised us. Here we were in a cheaper cabin than our flight to Entebbe and yet we were much more comfortable.

Our last flight from Heathrow to JFK was in Premium Economy, but this PE was a lot better than the one to Entebbe. It wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either.

British Airways, operated by Comair

All three flights with Comair were on 737s. The first two between South Africa and Vic Falls were quite comfortable. There was almost no difference between coach and first, so we are glad we didn't upgrade. And we didn't need to. There were some problems at Jo'burg airport before our third flight which caused us to be delayed and then end up on a really old 737. It was not as comfortable but the flight crew did their best to keep us happy.

Kenya Airways

By far the biggest problem we had with Kenya airways was getting onto the planes.

Before our first trip we had what I thought were e-tickers, They weren't and I had to get regular tickets. However this took almost two hours because first the ticket-writing guy took 45 minutes just to show up, and then took another hour hand-writing our tickets. Hasn't Kenya Airways ever heard of a computer? The plane itself was average.

Our second and third flights (between Nairobi and Kilimanjaro) were operated by Precision Air. These planes were old and hot. I guess they didn't think air conditioning was important in equatorial Africa. Fortunately these flights were only 1 hour long.

Our last flight from Nairobi to Jo'burg was delayed "due to the unrest in our country". Waiting to board was a nerve-wracking experience. Once we took off we were just so happy to be out of Kenya that we barely noticed the heat and small seats.

Coastal Air

This was the short flight from Arusha to the Serengeti. Some passengers had problems with their luggage being too heavy. The place was small and both Ann and I got airsick. We took off and landed about 30 minutes late.

ZanAir

This was the short flight from the Serengeti to Kilimanjaro Airport. The plane arrived over an hour late in the Serengeti and the pilot made no effort to hurry up and get us on our way. (We had a fast connection in Kilimanjaro as it was and I was sure we would miss it due to this delay.) The pilot told us we would try to make up some time in the air. He didn't. This place was really small, so much so that I couldn't sit up straight.