Transaero: What's all the fuss about?

The international media has been full of horror about the state of Russian aviation: the break-up of Aeroflot into over 400 new airlines, several high-profile crashes, lack of oversight, funding, training, spare parts, etc. However, one new Russian airline has been consistently cited as standing above the pack in terms of service and safety ‐ Transaero. Russian Life decided to find out for itself whether this conventional wisdom held up to a very unscientific inquiry, and booked a staffer and companion on a round‐trip flight to London...

The adventure began with a little price comparison. "All other things being equal..." goes the thinking. Phone calls to the ticket agencies of various carriers revealed the following peak-season rates. For a roundtrip Moscow-London ticket, all of the major western carriers, including British Airways and Lufthansa, weighed in at around $600. Aeroflot was charging $475. And Transaero ‐ $290. It should be noted that Transaero is a bit of a pariah in the airline world for refusing to participate in international ticket-pricing schemes.

A patient, helpful, and bilingual ticket agent was at the receiving end of our reservations call. After reserving tickets by phone, it was necessary to visit Transaero’s main office downtown in the Hotel Moskva to pay for and pick them up. The office was clean and well-marked, with flight schedule brochures in both English and Russian. The ticket agent was a bit aloof, but efficient. A ‘special’ request to purchase each of two tickets with separate credit cards was, unexpectedly, handled in stride. So far, so good.

All Transaero flights depart from Sheremetevo-l (Moscow’s domestic airport). The amenities here lag well behind those at the woefully inadequate Sheremetevo-2 International Airport. On the other hand, customs seems to be more relaxed here.

Check-in was a breeze by local standards, and after standing in several slow lines, we boarded almost immediately and departed on time. Transaero operates a joint venture with Riga Air, and their Moscow to London flight includes a 30-minute stop-over in Riga, Latvia.

On board our Boeing 737 were a mixed group of tourists, students and business people ‐ mostly Russians, but there was also a good number of foreigners. This was not just the bargain-hunting crowd, either. In front of us at check-in was an American investment banker and Transaero veteran.

Major Russian and English news‑ papers were distributed, a light lunch was served, and we were landing in Riga before we knew it.

In Riga, the Russian flight crew was exchanged for a Latvian one, which palpably lightened the atmosphere in the cabin. N o t to say that the service was inadequate previously, only that the change in flight crew nationalities was noticeable in more ways than by accent.

The first thing one notices about Riga’s small airport from the tarmac is that it was obviously Soviet-built. However, stepping inside the building, one can’t help be impressed by how much the Latvians have done with so little. In a short span of time, they have turned this little space into a comfortable and pleasant place. A few more hours in the air, and we touched down right on time at London Gatwick. The return trip was also on time, and just as trouble-free. A boring story? You bet. But routine plane trips usually are.

And that's the crux of this tale. Though Transaero didn’t dazzle with world-class service and amenities, they did deliver an on-time, hassle free, and more than adequate flying experience ‐ for $300 less than the competition.