How does a company go about shaking off a reputation which is ten years out of date?
The Soviet Aeroflot of the seventies and eighties was infamous for poor service, reliability, people, which may or may not have been deserved. However, we are now in a new decade, a new century; the Soviet ... Read review
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Advantages: Value, good business class, some nice people Disadvantages: Sheremetyevo Terminal One, some unhelpful staff
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The Soviet Aeroflot of the seventies and eighties was infamous for poor service, reliability, people, which may or may not have been deserved. However, we are now in a new decade, a new century; the Soviet Union has not existed for twelve years and Aeroflot has had the same time to update itself, progress, move on.
Unfortunately people's preconceptions are slower to move on. I've seen "reviews" about Aeroflot ... ...half a mile of an Aeroflot plane, but having listened to a few urban myths and fifteen year old comments they feel qualified to write an "informed review". Shame really, they are probably the same people who believe that there is a World War Two bomber on the moon, and Elvis is alive and well and working at a Fish & Chip shop in Huddersfield.
I’ve flown Aeroflot almost 40 times since 1998, within the CIS, to Europe ... more
How does a company go about shaking off a reputation which is ten years out of date?
The Soviet Aeroflot of the seventies and eighties was infamous for poor service, reliability, people, which may or may not have been deserved. However, we are now in a new decade, a new century; the Soviet Union has not existed for twelve years and Aeroflot has had the same time to update itself, progress, move on.
Unfortunately people's preconceptions are slower to move on. I've seen "reviews" about Aeroflot which lecture about safety, bad food, rude personnel, then the writer mentions in passing that he/she has never actually flown on them. Probably never been within half a mile of an Aeroflot plane, but having listened to a few urban myths and fifteen year old comments they feel qualified to write an "informed review". Shame really, they are probably the same people who believe that there is a World War Two bomber on the moon, and Elvis is alive and well and working at a Fish & Chip shop in Huddersfield.
I’ve flown Aeroflot almost 40 times since 1998, within the CIS, to Europe and Asia, in Economy, Business and occasionally First class, on Soviet and western aircraft. My experiences have been mixed, but generally pretty positive and overall I enjoy flying Aeroflot and prefer them to several well-known European or American carriers!
Good as they are, they are not Western luxury. If you want five star service then stick to European airlines. However if you want value, a reasonable level of comfort rather than luxury, then you may well be happy with Aeroflot.
AIRCRAFT: Most flights within the CIS are operated by Tupolev Tu154 aircraft, a fine aircraft. Aeroflot now use only the more modern M model, built from '85 to 2001 so the planes are at most about 12-15 years old, younger than many 727s, 737s and 747s still flying in Europe and USA. Slowly Boeing 737s are replacing Tu154s on some of the busier internal routes.
On some routes they use the smaller Tu134, which is older and more basic but they are using fewer and fewer. On some busy routes you may find the Ilyushin IL86, a lovely plane, large, spacious and comfortable. When you board there is a large area to store extra hand luggage, leaving more room in the lockers. Sadly these are mostly used on charters now.
On some flights to Asia, they use an Ilyushin IL96, which is a shorter version of the IL96, built for longer-range flights (Eg to Delhi). These are roomy, spacious with very comfortable seatds in Business.
To Europe and the USA Aeroflot use Boeings and Airbuses, which are basically the same as western airlines use.
COMFORT The economy seats on the Tupolevs and Ilyushins seem quite old; they are reasonably comfortable but not solid so if someone sticks their knee into the back of the seat, you will feel it! On the plus side, the seat backs fold forward so if the seat in front of you is empty you can push the seat forwards and put your feet up! Legroom is okay but not generous.
Leg room on the Tu134 is very tight and the table is so big that if you are on the large side you might not be able to fold it down! The Tu154s are better, but the IL86 is the most comfortable.
In Business class, mostly the seats are large, comfortable and spacious. On internal flights they are now using the old First Class seats for business on many routes.
On the Airbus and Boeing aircraft the seats are standard western, so the same as on most European airlines.
On flights from Russia people do tend to bring on a lot of hand luggage and sometimes they just stick it on empty seats. I’ve had people try to put stuff under the seat in front of me, so I couldn't stretch out my legs. If you ask them politely to move it, generally they will. If not, just keep kicking it!
FOOD & DRINK The food is generally quite good – a salad, cold meat or cheese starter, a hot main course, a cake or pastry for desert, and of course plenty of bread. It’s not gourmet but perfectly edible. The beef can be tough but the chicken and fish can be pretty good, if a little bland. Tea or coffee of course – if you want tea with milk you have to ask for it (“s’malakom”) as most people in Russia drink tea black or with lemon.
In First or Business the meal is similar but there is an extra starter of seafood - smoked salmon, red caviar, shrimps etc, and some fruit. I’ve never had any stomach problems after an Aeroflot meal, even seafood.
The bar service before the meal offers soft drinks, beer, wine or vodka. In business there is also whiskey, gin, and brandies after the meal.
SERVICE The service can be basic but is generally reasonable and sometimes good. Ironically in my experience the crews on internal flights tend to be better than on flights to Europe. The Airbus and Boeing crews to Europe tend to be the gorgeous girls, who are beautiful and know it and just go through the motions. On the Tupolevs, particularly in business, you get the 45 year old matrons who look like former wrestlers but are sweet, charming and treat you as if they were your favourite auntie!
In economy there is a round of drinks after take off, then the meal service, then the duty free. In Business there is a pre-takeoff drink (juice or Russian champagne); after take off usually there is a hot towel before the bar service, then the meal.
There is not much service after the meal, so if you want another drink you’ll have to ask for it.
The duty free is not bad, and prices are quite reasonable, but on several flights I’ve been on they didn’t have the credit card machine so be prepared to pay cash – dollars of course.
Language – most crew have limited english and some of the pronunciation can be so heavy that it is hard to understand some of the announcements! But then why would we expect them to speak good English on a Russian airline! However they do try, and can get through the essentials – just be patient and understanding! (If you are offered “chicken or meat” then the meat is probably beef.)
SAFETY On the aircraft which have video, there is a standard safety briefing video. If there is no video then they do an announcement.
Cabin baggage can be excessive, and get stacked in empty seats or behind the last row, so it is reasonably secure (better than overloading the lockers). They do generally ensure that aisles and exits are clear.
They also enforce the no smoking rule - all Aeroflot flights are now non smoking.
The pilots generally seem to be good, they are mostly ex-air force so well trained and they land the Tupolevs more gently and smoothly than most western pilots can land a Boeing, at least on the flights I take!
Ihave never felt unsafe on board, and I trust that the pilots would not fly an unsafe aircraft as I assume they want to live as much as I do!
PUNCTUALITY/BAGGAGE Out of nearly 40 flights, I can remember only two delays of over an hour. No, they gave nothing special, no free food etc. So if they are late, you need to look after yourself.
Once my bags didn’t arrive at London. The next morning I phoned to check if there was any news; the handling agent (Air France) denied that there was a flight that morning, even though the Heathrow website showed it had just landed! However five minutes later they admitted yes there was a flight and that afternoon my bag was delivered safely to my door.
OVERALL I have had some great trips om Aeroflot, lots of average trips, no really bad ones. I think they are fine as long as you are not looking for 5*****
They are cheaper than the western competition - you can get First class on Aeroflot for the price of business on another airline, or Business on Aeroflot for the price of economy on someone else. It is worth it!
Advantages: Very good value fares. The aircraft on the Lon-Moscow route are fine Disadvantages: I might worry a little about some of their older aircraft. Punctuality was very poor.
Aeroflot is the airline that everyone really loves to hate. I like them. I ought to have a badge! It's a huge shame, really. Yes - they have their downsides, but our experience turned out OK! Take an open mind and you'll be fine. Think: "It's just a mode of transport". Fly in the face of criticism! We flew from London Heathrow to Moscow Sheremetyevo and back last year. The outward flight was on an Airbus A310 and the return flight was on a very modern ... ...before wandering over to the Aeroflot desk to see what the state of play was. Pandemonium!
The flight had actually been cancelled and there was an irate mob having a go at the hapless staff. I actually managed to grab a microphone and made a witty announcement (at Aeroflot's expense) over the airport tannoy! This calmed people down considerably and eased tempers a bit. The flight was going to be delayed 12 hours, it transpired. More food vouchers. ...
andymcf 01.11.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Aeroflot
Advantages: Cheap, but not really cheap enough. Disadvantages: No attempt to help you enjoy the flight.
...in white sauce. Aeroflot allows smoking in some rows, which means that the smoke circulates around the aircraft pretty quickly. Not good for an asthmatic like me for ten hours.
We did experience delays in Moscow. Not the nicest of airports under any conditions. My advice would be to steal an Aeroflot cushion if you’re given one for your stopover and put it back when you get on the next flight.
We flew through a storm on the way back and experienced ... ...help. I will never forgive Aeroflot for not putting out some sort of message over the tanoy system to let us know everything was going to be ok. There were some very distressed people on the flight and even being told when we were out of the worst of it would have helped. Their attitude towards their customers left a lot to be desired.
All in all I would only fly Aeroflot again if I really had to and would consider a slightly more expensive alternative ...
Rowan 18.09.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Aeroflot
I flew Aeroflot last week from London to Shanghai, via Moscow.
Although this was a 5-day business trip, my colleague and I were booked on Aeroflot Economy for the sake of saving £300 per ticket.
We weren't particularly pleased to learn that our trip to Shanghai would be 19 hours long (when we could have flown direct and arrived in 13 hours) but we tried really hard to stay positive and open-minded. 90% of people cringed when we mentioned Aeroflot, ... ...2 really bad points about Aeroflot are:
* Service & Staff attitude: although things were done efficiently, the service was unpleasant and unfriendly. We arrived at Heathrow T2, there was no queue at check-in, and the girls behind the counters literally looked away when we arrived, as if they had not seen us!! We stood there for a minute waiting for one of them to let us know we could come forward, and finally one of them looked at us and checked ...
LAF1976 01.05.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Aeroflot
...The flight with Aeroflot was an adventure and which isn't suitable for people with a heart complaint. At the airport Scheremetjewor Dwa in Moscow we had to walk to our plane, because they had not enough busses for all passengers. We fairly often had crossways traffic of busses, suitcase freight cars and other vehicles, too. A Russian said, that last year only 8 people were run over by busses and there would be much more dangerous things in Russia. ... ...of the aeroplane only consisted of patches. Inside it looked like a bad example as you shouldn't form an airplane from inside. The purchases of the seats had various colors. You couldn't move yourself any more so that if you has caught a seat in lying position, you had to eat in this lying position. I usually pack my light baggage above the seats in a small baggage storage which can be locked. But this baggage storage was full of garbage of the predecessor ...
Kayah 02.07.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Aeroflot
Advantages: cheap, uses new planes, many destinations can be reached worldwide Disadvantages: still some old planes in use
...expensive, so I fly with Aeroflot all the time. No, I´m not tired of living...actually I´m very satisfied with the company.
I flew the first time to Russia in 1994. It was one of my first flights. To be honest, I felt a bit nervous when I entered the plane. It looked just like that what makes us remember the Soviet times. Not too bad, but everything else than modern. Nevertheless the flight to St. Petersburg was peaceful and quiet....without any ... ...booked the next flight with Aeroflot as well. On today I still fly with Aeroflot, but there had been quite a lot of changes in between, which makes flying more comfortant. For flights from Munich to Moscow Boeings are in use; at the weekend they fly with airbusses.
Another things I want to mention is that I´m flying with my daughter always. I´ve never met another company which such kind stuff as Aeroflot. They did everything to make my flight comfortant. ...
ekaterina 23.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Aeroflot
