Brussels is a strange place. It’s very international, owing to its role as the capital of Europe. Beyond that, though, it’s rather bland and, honestly, more than just a bit ugly, except for the Grand Place and the old stock exchange, which are rather nice.

Getting to the Airport

I arrive at the airport at around 15h00. My recommendation if you’re travelling from the city is to take the train if possible, because road traffic to the airport can be a bit unpredictable and is always a nightmare. It can take you anywhere between forty minutes and two hours to get there.

Check-In

There is one terminal with two piers at Brussels airport. Departures are on level 3 of the building. They have one of those old school departure boards with the symbols that flip over to change. I stand there like a twit and wait for something to happen – because I’m just such a geek. It’s a bit disappointing, though, because the board makes more of a rushing sound than the clack-clack I remember from when I was a kid.

I’ve already checked in online. So, after my trip down memory lane I head straight for security. There is no dedicated fast track, but the airport isn’t too crowded, so I’m airside fairly soon and without having to queue. I take a look outside and spot an ITA Airways A 220 that is being readied for its flight to Linate.

Brussels Airport Diamond Lounge

ITA Airways currently uses the Brussels Airport contractor lounge, which is located where the old SAS lounge used to be. It’s a fairly large and comfortable lounge with a nice selection of food and drinks. What I greatly appreciate is that there is plenty of staff patrolling the area – constantly tidying, removing dishes and cleaning. It’s just a bit inconvenient that there are hardly any electricity plugs.

You’ve just gotta love observing the lounge dwellers. On the sofa there’s an old lady sitting with her ugly dog in a carrier bag and looking like the Queen of Sheeba. The old lady I mean, not the dog. She waves down one of the lounge agents and instructs her that she’s on the flight to Madrid. She wants (her words not mine) the lounge agent to come let her know when the flight is ready for boarding… Next to me are two Bavarian businessmen. They’re a real trip. The first one grudgingly admits that “das belgische Bier is goa ned schlecht”, the Belgian beer ain’t half bad. The other one nods absently. So the first one launches into a debriefing of their meeting – obviously taking the nod as encouragement. He clearly needs to vent. At some point, he asks his colleague a question. No reply. “Hörst du überhaupt zue”, are you even listening? To which the second Bavarian answers, “na, telefonier grad mit der Frau”, no, I’m busy on the phone with the wife.

The lounge agent makes an announcement to inform us that the Belgian airspace is closed due to an air traffic control system failure. The failure doesn’t last too long, but long enough for my inbound from Rome to incur an estimated delay of 45 minutes on departure for the return to Rome.

Boarding

At some point I just get bored. The lounge dwellers can only hold my attention for so long. And I need to charge my phone. So I head out and amble along the A pier for the Schengen flights. And I even find a USB port to prevent my iPhone from dying on me before I get a chance to take a picture of the inflight catering. Boarding starts at 18h45. The flight looks very full, so I ask the gate agent if I should have my suitcase put in the hold, but she tells me that will not be necessary if I’m sitting in Business Class.

We’re running an hour behind schedule by now, so the whole boarding process is a bit rushed. The crew are keen to get everyone on board as soon as possible. So I don’t take too many photos so as not to hold up everyone.

The Cabin & Seat

This evening’s flight is operated by an A 320. This appears to be a former Alitalia bird, judging by the corporate design of the seats and cabin. I’m seated on 1A. On 1C is an eldery Italian gentleman looking dapper and incredibly well turned out in a sharp pinstripe suit, including matching handkerchief and tie.

The Service & Crew

The crew on this flight are pretty useless. I wouldn’t trust them to keep me safe, and I certainly wouldn’t rely on them to be able to evacuate the aircraft if need be. Mr 1C has his attaché case sitting on the floor. Mr 1D and 1F also have their two backpacks and one carry-on in front of them, even though it’s the bulkhead row. And it looks like the crew is prepared to have them keep their things there during take-off. For both take-off and landing I end up having to point out to the crew that they need to store things properly, which they grudgingly do. The other passengers on row 1 just stare at me, probably wondering what’s wrong with me.

I also find it interesting that both flight attendants sitting on the L1 jumpseats don’t bother to buckle up for take-off or landing. At take-off, the pilot flying pushes the thrust levers forward, and as we go thundering down the runway two trolleys roll forward and straight into the bulkhead with a loud thud because they weren’t secured before take-off. During the landing, the maître de is too busy watching videos to notice we’re about to land. It also doesn’t help that the crew obviously hardly speak any functional English at all, judging by the incomprehensible announcements they make. Although I will admit that their Italian language announcements are just as hopeless because they clearly don’t know how to enunciate.

The service on the ground consists of a welcome drink served in a cardboard cup. There is a choice between orange juice and still water. So the elderly gentleman on 1C orders pear juice instead, while Ms 2C says she’d prefer her water frizzante. No wonder the drinks service is slow progress…

The Meal – Dinner

The meal trays are brought out directly from the galley individually, rather than being served from a trolley. There’s a bowl with a nice salad, which is served Italian style, so with olive oil and balsamico for dressing. With that, there’s also a warm bread roll. The salad is lovely and fresh. The main dish is a small pizza with tomato sauce and mozzarella. And for dessert there’s some kind of almond sponge cake with crumble on top, which is okay. To drink I have sparkling water. No tea or coffee are offered after the meal, and I’m too tired to bother at this stage.

Arrival in Rome

Despite our departure delay of one hour, we land in Rome with a delay of only 45 minutes. Our flight pulls onto its stand, and very quickly the door opens and passengers disembark into the terminal. On my way to arrivals I make a stop at the loos. I rather like that they have displays on the ceiling telling you how many vacancies there are in that particular lavatory.

Getting into Town

It’s a short walk from the terminal to the railway station, which is connected by footbridge to all the terminals. A direct nonstop train to Roma Termini is just about to leave as I enter the station. You don’t need to buy a ticket in advance, and can just tap in with your credit card. The journey to Termini is 32 minutes and costs EUR14 for a oneway.

Conclusion

I rather like ITA Airways, which perhaps explains my concern with their impending merger into the Lufthansa group. One of the things the Lufthansa carriers have in common, is how remarkably unremarkable they are – and quite intentionally so. I just wonder how much of its unique character ITA Airways will be able to retain under the new leadership. Other than that, the crew on this flight were incredibly bad and very unprofessional. Watching them honestly felt like the old Alitalia rearing its ugly head. Hopefully, my return to Zürich will be better.