Introduction

“Not another Basel to Amsterdam trip review…!”. Yes, yes. I’m afraid so, boys and girls and everyone. In my defence, though, this one has a bit of a twist. You see, ever since KLM Cityhopper started experiencing issues with the engines on its new Embraer E2s, they have leased in several aircraft from German Airways as a temporary replacement while they resolve the matter. The replacement aircraft are deployed on the Basel route quite frequently. Which makes it all the more surprising that I’ve yet to chance a flight with one of these aircraft. But today’s the today.

Getting to the Airport

It’s not even the holiday season yet, and already there are more travellers about than usual. I manage to snag one of the last seats on the bus, before it quickly fills up and we depart.

Check-In

I have a case to check in. There’s a very long queue for the Air France KLM counters, but at least the queue for SkyPriority is moving very quickly. Apparently, there’s been a delay checking in passengers because the conveyor belt temporarily stopped working.

A middle aged woman comes up behind me. First, she asks me if this is the queue for Amsterdam, which I tell her it is. Next, she asks me what SkyPriority is, and I tell her that if she doesn’t know, she’s obviously in the wrong queue. For some strange reason she then asks me if I think that it’s okay for her to stay in the queue. I tell her I think it’s rather ill-mannered and inconsiderate. I can’t help commenting that she doesn’t seem the type of person to be bothered by that, so why ask? She rambles on about having a short connection in Amsterdam, which has nothing to do with anything. So I just ignore her and walk away when the check-in agent asks me to come forward.

Swissport Aspire Lounge

Given how busy check-in is, security is unexpectedly quiet. I take the fast track and walk right up to the security checkpoint without having to wait at all.

In contrast, the lounge is rather full. I’m guessing I must have arrived at the tail end of an imminent bank of departures.

I get myself a coffee, and then go find a seat by the window.

Despite the heat, I can’t resist going outside, for two reasons. First, because I want to take a picture of my aircraft arriving from Amsterdam, and second, because the AirTransat is getting ready to depart back to Montreal. That’s not one we see often in Basel.

One of the other spectators on the terrace is this woman with melon earrings. She’s on her fourth glass of wine… and it’s not even ten in the morning. And she’s drinking it with ice… She’s on the phone – hence we all know she’s on her fourth glass of wine. I don’t know who she’s talking to, but she’s clearly at that stage where she’s started slurring her words as she tells them she’s at “se… se… s’lounsh in Bas… Base… Bâle”. Good grief…

Boarding

At 10h I exit the lounge and make my way to gate 1, where boarding has already started.

Although strictly speaking, it’s the queuing that started, not the boarding,. I wonder what they do when its raining?

As I pass the gate and scan my boarding pass, the reader beeps and spits out a new boarding pass. I’ve been upgraded again and I’m now on 1F in Business Class, instead of 4A in Economy.

At least the long wait in the sun gives me an opportunity to admire and photograph my aircraft.

The Cabin & Seat

I’m one of the last passengers to board. There are three rows of Business Class, with a total of twelve seats. Occupancy in the forward cabin is 12 out of 12.

The cabin looks attractive and not like anything I was expecting. It’s very neat and well maintained. The seats are comfortable and the seat pitch is very good on row 1.

The Service & Crew

There are two cabin crew on this flight, and they’re both friendly and very attentive. Once boarding is completed, they hand out small bottles of smoothies. This one is avocado, mango and coconut – and it’s rather good!

The Meal – Late Breakfast

The flight time is one hour. The crew are released and begin the breakfast service. There’s a joghurt and granola, a large fruit salad, and a boiled egg with tomato and a cheese salad. With that, the crew serve buns that are still piping hot from the oven.

I have a coffee, which is served with a buttery almond cookie.

Arrival in Amsterdam

The approach into Amsterdam is lovely. It’s a gorgeous day for flying. We come in over the sea and make a right turn for a runway 18R approach.

We park on a remote stand and are then bussed to the terminal. When I reach luggage belt 12, my heart sinks because it says the waiting time for the luggage will be 38 minutes. But in actual fact it only takes ten minutes for the cases to start arriving.

Getting into Town

There are still no trains to Central Station. So I catch a train heading for Amsterdam South and change there to the M52 metro line to Rokin, which is even closer to where I’m heading anyway.

Conclusion

The upgrade to Business was a nice and unexpected surprise. But I still think they should keep the adjacent seat empty in the forward cabin. That would be a real benefit, because the Embraer is rather tight. Other than that, the German Airways operation seemed professional and very well adapted to KLM’s procedures.