Wideroe, Economy Class – Dash 8-300: Haugesund to Bergen

Getting to the airport

Skudeneshavn is a picturesque fishing village on the southern tip of Karmoy island. Before I head to the airport, 35 minutes away by car, I find a small café/souvenir shop and have some lunch. What you can see here in the picture is a ‘Kanelknute’, a very yeasty dough that’s chewy and sweet, with a subtle hint of cardamom and cinnamon. In the interest of investigative blogging, I had three. And I can confirm that they were all of the same outstanding quality. The wrap I also had was tasty as well.

Check-in

It’s not very often I manage to get the entire terminal facility and adjoining office building in one shot. So here you have it, boys and girls, Haugesund international airport in all its glory.

Check-in for this flight is interesting. The routing HAU-BGO-AMS-BSL was purchased and issued on one ticket via the KLM app. However, check-in on the app is not possible. However, 24 hours before departure, I receive an email from Wideroe, informing me that check-in is now open and that I have been assigned 7D on the Haugesund to Bergen leg. I am able to download all three boarding passes into my iPhone wallet. I’m must say, I’m impressed. The interface with other airlines is not always so nicely implemented!

Because of Covid, access to the terminal building is currently only permitted for passengers. Although there’s nobody there to check, really.

The departure screen may perhaps explain the empty terminal…

Airside

There is no lounge for premium passengers at the airport. Initially, when I arrive at around 14h15, the place is pretty much deserted, save for a few diehards getting in some serious drinking before they board their flight. I just hope they’re not on my flight…

Boarding

Boarding for the flight starts on time. Don’t you just love an airport without airbridges? From what I can tell, there are about 40 passengers on the flight.

The cabin

Outside and inside the aircraft and cabin are in mint condition. In my experience with SAS, they tend to work their aircraft pretty hard, and it usually shows. So I was expecting the same thing from Wideroe. But much to my surprise, the aircraft looks new. The cabin is fresh and roomy and the seats are plush and comfortable. The pitch is also good and provides good leg space. Much better, incidentally, than KLM’s E175.

The only downside of my seat on 7D is that it’s right under the wing, limiting the views of the outside while we’re still on the ground. The flight has a block time of 30 minutes, although our actual flight time is only 20 minutes.

The cabin crew

There is one cabin crew aboard this aircraft, which means that the seating capacity is not more than 50. The young lady is friendly enough and goes about her duties in an efficient, friendly manner. Obviously, with a flight time of only 20 minutes, there is no service. But that’s okay, because our route takes us along Norway’s coast. And the weather today is just glorious!

Arrival

The first thing I notice when we land, is that the airport is a lot busier than it was when I arrived. We taxi to the new domestic terminal and disembark in front of the terminal.

Transfer to Amsterdam

In Bergen I’m transferring to a KLM flight to Amsterdam. It’s quite a long schlepp from the domestic terminal to the international terminal, but at least you won’t have to go through security a second time.

The international terminal is deserted, as ours is the only flight to depart from this part of the airport. Most shops are closed, and I’m surprised to see there’s a kiosk open, where you can by drinks and snacks, like those horrific artificially pink sausages they seem to love in Norway.

Before boarding, my Covid documents and passport are checked, seeing as this was not done on the domestic flight from Haugesund to Bergen.

Epilogue

The trip back to Basel is quite uneventful, so I will spare you the details. Entering Switzerland is always a mess in Basel, ever since France suspended the Schengen treaty over security concerns. The Covid situation in France has done little to make the process any smoother or any more pleasant. But this too will pass.

Overall, this was a pleasant trip. Everything worked well, and it was nice to spend some time again in Amsterdam and in Haugesund. But before I let you go, I just have three things I’d like to get off my chest:

First, I really, really do not like the E175. Not just in KLM’s configuration (which is one of the better ones out there), but in general. It feels cramped and tight and the seats are simply very hard and overall just uncomfortable, even on row 1.

Second, KLM and Air France’s strategy is clearly to bring as much of the network as possible back online as quickly as possible. With the exception of the last flight from Amsterdam to Basel though, none of the flights I took were really full. I’m obviously not complaining because it’s always nice to have a bit more space. My point is that, like many of the European carriers, KLM and Air France were able to secure substantial funds to tie them over until traffic starts to pick up in earnest. While one might argue about the merits of investing literally billions of EUROs into an industry that was already heavily lossmaking even before Covid, at least KLM and Air France have done something useful with those funds. And I wish them and their staff the best of luck with that.

And third, most importantly, get your vaccine as soon as you can. Your arm will hurt a bit just after you get the jab, but it will not become magnetic, no matter what people tell you. Get your vaccine as soon as you can, not just to protect yourself, but to protect others too. That is your civic duty. And seriously, it certainly beats having to queue for a stupid test every time you want to go partying, travel abroad, visit a concert or go to the museum.

Stay healthy, all of you!

–William