Small charter air carriers, offering their customers tickets at a price 20-30% lower than on international regular flights, make foreign trips much more affordable for our compatriots. In the field of budget travel, Azur Air has already established itself well.
Reviews about the quality of services provided by this air carrier are quite easy to find on all travel sites and even social networks. And this is not surprising. According to official figures, more than 2.3 million passengers traveled on Azur Air flights last year alone. What impressions about this carrier are most often shared by Russian tourists? What do people say about the service and, most importantly, about flight safety, who leave their feedback on the Azur Air airline on forums and in groups of social networks?
About company
Passenger air carrier Azur Air is one of the youngest airlines in Russia. Established in 2014 through a legal separation from Katekavia LLC, the transport company was for some time part ofsubsidiary structure of the largest domestic aviation corporation UTair. In 2015, the newly formed airline received the corporate name "Azur Air" (not to be confused with the name of the popular hotel complex Bel Air Azur Resort 4in the resort city of Hurghada) and began to carry out independent activities.
Since 2016, owns the right to operate international passenger flights on a regular basis. Currently, Azur Air is the main carrier of AnexTour, a popular tour operator in Russia. Aircraft of this airline make flights from 30 cities of our country to the most popular and sought-after resort areas: Thailand, Spain, Dominican Republic, Tunisia, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Vietnam.
In February 2017, Azur Air was awarded the industry award SSA (Skyway Service Award) for winning the nomination "Best Russian Airline" among international charter carriers.
Transport Fund
As of the beginning of 2017, Azur Air owns 16 aircraft. Currently Azur Air's fleet consists of Boeing 767-300, 757-200 and 737-800 class aircraft, which replaced the TU-134 and other domestic liners. The average age of transport is 18-19 years, like most domestic charter carriers. The condition and serviceability of the aircraft is carefully monitored: the only drawback, according to passengers, is the noisy operation of the engines during the flight.
Interior condition and comfort level
As with any low-cost airline, the cost of traveling on Azur Air aircraftreduced due to the increased number of seats. Therefore, passengers are immediately warned: having significantly saved on air tickets, they will have to fly in crowded conditions. The narrow aisles between the rows and the small distance between the seats are the main inconvenience, according to the majority of passengers. It is especially difficult for very tall or overweight people. What else can Azur Air customer reviews tell about the level of comfort during a charter flight?
- Reference is often made to the cleanliness and good condition of the aircraft cabin, the perfect hygienic condition of the toilets.
- Besides the cramped seat, some passengers may get an unpleasant surprise in the form of a broken folding table.
- Each passenger is given a set before the flight, which includes sweets, earplugs and a sleep bandage, hygiene bags, a pillow. Upon request, a blanket is provided during the flight, but, judging by the reviews, quite often they are not enough for all passengers.
- The cabin air temperature is not always correctly regulated during the flight. Quite a few tourists express dissatisfaction with the too cool interior, which is exacerbated by the aforementioned situation with the lack of warm blankets. Separate negative reviews, on the contrary, speak of the heat in the cabin and the poorly working air conditioner.
- No TV in the cabin.
- Due to the cramped interior, passenger seats either do not recline fully or do not recline at all. For flights up to four hours, this disadvantage is practically not noticeable, but airline customers who are forced to fly in such conditions for six or more hours oftenexpress their outrage.
- One of the common problems of all airlines operating "resort" flights, without exception, is that there is a big risk of being on the plane with a tipsy company. Such fellow travelers sometimes come across on Azur Air flights. Of course, the presence of such fellow travelers does not depend on the desire of the aircraft crew, but the behavior of stewards in such situations significantly affects the reputation of the air carrier. Passenger reviews often characterize the behavior of the crew towards "drunk fellow travelers" on the positive side: flight attendants, as a rule, behave with restraint, politeness, making every effort to prevent conflict situations on board.
Meals on board
The quality of food for Azur Air passengers is the subject of the most heated debate on social networks and forums. The airline's customers, depending on the duration of the flight, are provided with 1-2 meals, one of which is a standard hot lunch. The Azur Air menu includes a full range of products: a meat dish (optional), garnish, sauce, vegetables, cheese, sausages, dessert, pastries. In addition, you can get drinks in unlimited quantities: coffee or tea, sweet soda and drinking water.
Reviews from airline customers who are satisfied with the standard menu are about the same as negative statements on this topic. In general, many passengers admit that lunch and dinner are quite in line with the budget prices for a charter flight, and all the food on board is hearty and quitedelicious. From the negative reviews, one can single out stories about poorly prepared or insufficiently heated dishes, which left travelers hungry. Sometimes there are complaints of gastrointestinal ailments or indigestion, which passengers associate with one of the dishes on the airline menu.
It is worth noting that the airline is constantly working to improve the service on board aircraft. To date, several news have been posted on social networks regarding changes in the field of food for passengers. The official group of the airline has information about the availability of a service for choosing and pre-ordering a special menu. Unfortunately, this service is not yet available in all directions. Dishes from the children's or vegetarian menu can be ordered on flights departing from Domodedovo, Pulkovo, as well as the airports of Yekaterinburg and Krasnoyarsk. The list of flights where passengers can taste hot buns baked on board the aircraft during the flight has also been increased.
Crew and staff: what passengers say
Customer reviews about Azur Air almost unanimously state that the pilots working in this airline are true professionals who perform well even in difficult weather conditions. Often in the reviews there are gratitude to the crew members for a calm and safe flight, fascinating stories about the area over which the flight route runs.
The stewards and stewardesses make a no less good impression. Most travelers reviewing Azur Air arecharacterize flight attendants as polite, attentive, beautiful and extremely positive people. According to the stories of passengers, the company's employees readily answer questions and are always ready to provide assistance.
Departure delay, passenger compensation
The punctuality of an air carrier is an important indicator when buying a ticket for a particular flight. Of course, for those who go on vacation, a small delay in departure will not be able to significantly affect the journey. But for business trips or flights with transfers, a late flight can be a serious problem.
Unfortunately, we have to admit that a flight delay is the most common complaint from Azur Air passengers. Reviews of tourists are simply full of stories about delayed departures and flight delays for a period of 15 minutes to 10-12 hours. This fact is confirmed by statistical studies. According to the rating of the Federal Air Transport Agency, in 2016 the airline was among the "top three" in terms of delays in charter flights.
The representatives of the airline themselves associate the lion's share of delays not with technical malfunctions of air transport. The main reasons are called adverse weather conditions and the huge workload of runways at airports. At the same time, the airline uses all available opportunities to provide passengers with the services required by law: drinks, meals, short-term hotel accommodation.
Features of check-in for the flight
For the convenience of customers, in addition to personal registration onflight at airports, now available check-in of passengers via the Internet. This service is provided in a special section on the Azur Air website. Check-in for a flight online (hereinafter - OR) is available for most passengers, however, this method has its own characteristics and limitations:
- OP starts 24 hours and ends 1 hour before departure.
- The OR service is only available for flights originating from one of the cities in the territory of the Russian Federation.
- In addition to Domodedovo, Aazur Air's base airport, online check-in is available in 25 more cities. You can also check the list of airports with OR on the website of the air carrier.
- The OR service will not be available to customers who are required to fly with accompanying persons: minors, people with disabilities and others. Also, pet owners traveling with pets will have to go through personal check-in at the airport.
- OP not allowed for passengers traveling in groups of more than 9 people.
- Boarding is carried out according to the boarding pass printed on the website after the OP, no additional application is required for check-in at the airport.
Security level
The reputation of an airline in the field of flight safety is assessed, among other things, by the statistics of emergency situations in which corporate aircraft became participants. During the existence of Azur Air, not a single aircraft crash has been recorded. From emergency situations that arise induring the flight, the most famous was an emergency, far from “soft” landing in Tashkent (February 2016).
In addition, three more cases were recorded when the aircraft of this company made emergency landings, including one incident that occurred due to a bird accidentally getting into the engine. To the credit of the flight crew, all of the above cases ended successfully.
