Pakablog!

It doesn’t matter if I fly to Hong Kong or Shenzhen, or on Air China or Dragonair: my flight is almost guaranteed to be late. I am a bad omen when it comes to flying. Put simply, avoid flying with me!

Flying in and out of Beijing frequently I am often plagued with fog, maintenance issues, or simply “aircraft delay”. I’ve even seen signs saying ‘aircraft delayed for reason’. Well yes, and I should hope so too! Regardless, being grounded in China can be a painful affair. Airlines here have terrible internal communication; nobody knows what’s going on, and travelers are given little service. Even the airports are clueless, with FID’s often showing the wrong gate or failing to list certain flights. Delays are rarely compensated for (most airlines on domestic flights will provide only a lunchbox upon long delays, not food coupons), and there is certainly little advanced warning.

Once on the aircraft travelers can be greeted with further delays, often lasting over an hour while the plane waits for clearance on the tarmac. But don’t expect much information here either: pilot announcements are vague and almost always inaccurate.

Fellow passengers are often also part of the problem: too many carry large luggage onboard as ‘carry on’, yet I wonder how these are allowed on in the first place. It helps to board earlier to grab a piece of the limited bulkhead space. Be prepared for impatient passengers to use their mobile phones right up till take-off too, and immediately after landing. Quite likely, expect people to get up while the aircraft is still taxiing after arrival.

I have of course had good experiences flying into China, and doing so on a more reputed airline such as Dragonair or Cathay Pacific does improve the experience. But until the rules and regulations finally develop to an international standard (and not to mention the mentality of fellow passengers & staff), don’t expect a ‘western flying experience’ just yet.

And remember to bring a good book.

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I have the same problem every time; board the plane late in China and
find yourself struggling to find luggage space.

There must be guidelines regarding luggage size but for some reason
they are rarely observed. This is very annoying… it limits baggage
space and increases time to disembark after landing. Everyone, it seems, prefers to take their bags into the cabin.

Gone are the days when airlines used to increase capacity by adding
stools to the walkway, but mentality of air travellers still evidently
still needs some progress.

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I’m in Taipei at the moment for the weekend – enjoying the food and perfect temperature. It’s my first time here: this ‘province’ of China is much more developed than the rest of the mainland, traffic more orderly, it’s cleaner, and people appear to be much milder mannered towards each other. Taiwan is, afterall, an entity that is able to function entirely on its own. And with a higher GDP per capita, fully independant financial, defence, political, and judicial structure, it’s easy to understand why the issue of reunification is not that easy to resolve. Who wants to become a subordinate of a one-party state that suppresses political and expressive freedoms and harbours an insanely complicated financial system?

Well, quite simply, if it makes money then many would ask “who cares?”. That appears the sentiment here – China is as much an opportunity for the Taiwanese as it is for Hong Kongers, or indeed everyone else, and people are starting to take notice. Co-operation is improving between the two governments and indeed many Taiwanese businessmen now thrive on the mainland. (Note new year special direct flights still childishly go through Hong Kong air space).

But whether you believe in the ‘one China policy’ or not is a matter of opinion – one thing is almost certain though: until China develops to even close to the level of Taiwan (both politically and economically), I don’t see the Taiwanese giving up their freedom and livelihoods just yet.

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