Why an aborted take-off strengthened my confidence in AEGEAN Airways

There are moments in journey — uncommon and oddly reassuring — when issues might go off-script, but depart you feeling extra, not much less, inclined to return. This was a type of moments.

This 12 months, AEGEAN Airways quietly strengthened its position on the core of Greek aviation, stitching collectively the mainland and the islands with varied new routes and connections. From Heraklion and Rhodes, now you can skip throughout to smaller Cycladic islands with out retracing your steps. Direct flights to Istanbul from Santorini, Mykonos, Rhodes and Heraklion really feel like a delicate nod to Greece’s wealthy cross-cultural previous. And Thessaloniki now whispers its identify to Izmir—two historical port cities as soon as separated by empire, now united by Airbus.

It wasn’t our first time flying AEGEAN. Final 12 months, we took a deep dive into their Enterprise Class expertise to Athens, and got here away relatively impressed. As a Star Alliance member with partnerships that stretch throughout the globe, AEGEAN has lengthy punched above its weight—extra boutique attraction than megacarrier muscle, however usually all the higher for it.

This 12 months’s journey started in comparable vogue. However, within the literal braking of momentum simply seconds earlier than take-off, got here the clearest sign but of AEGEAN’s priorities. Learn on to study extra about what occurs when issues don’t go to plan, the veneer falls away — and what’s left is the true face of an airline.

Our route

Not like our earlier straight shot to Athens, for this journey we flew to the South Ionian, through Athens. AEGEAN’s community is surprisingly world, from the UK by way of Athens and – by way of codesshare agreements – onward to Singapore, South Africa, even Australia. But it surely’s the home routes the place the airline actually flexes: dependable, frequent connections that allow you to deal with Athens not simply as a vacation spot, however as a gateway.

Onward from Athens, we boarded an Olympic Air ATR72 sure for Kefalonia, a slower, softer leg of the journey that prioritises propellers over jet engines. (Olympic Air is a subsidiary of AEGEAN Airways.)

The advantages of travelling enterprise class

From the second you arrive on the airport, the expertise shifts up a gear when flying enterprise class with AEGEAN. Precedence check-in? Sure, and notably environment friendly. Lounge entry? Completely— travellers have entry to the Escape Lounge at Manchester, however the Athens lounge specifically – AEGEAN’s flagship lounge which we used on our return – is value constructing into an extended layover. Baggage allowance is beneficiant (two items at 32kg every, plus hand baggage), boarding is swift, and the disembarkation course of—usually an Olympic sport in itself—is painless.

Different advantages embody an in-flight meal service (in truth, AEGEAN is the one European airline to supply a free meal in financial system additionally), leather-based seating with the center seat all the time vacant, a cabin separator for added house and luxury, free ticket adjustments and WiFi on board. It’s enterprise class with a way of place—much less swagger, extra soul.

What occurred?

Our flight from Manchester to Athens? Seamless. Pleasant crew, slick service, and a reminder of final 12 months’s optimistic impressions.

After a relaxed few hours at Athens Terminal 2, we boarded our Olympic Air ATR72 for the ultimate hop to Kefalonia.

We taxied. We accelerated.

Then… nothing.

Simply because the plane gathered velocity on the runway, a delicate deceleration changed the anticipated upward surge. The nostril by no means lifted. No screeching tyres, no sharp angles, no pressing directions. Only a quiet, managed braking again to stillness.

I’ve skilled flight delays, misplaced baggage, and even one memorable event when an airline entered administration mid-flight. However by no means this: an aborted take-off. And for some purpose, it wasn’t unnerving – it was oddly reassuring.

Security first

Let’s be clear. Luxurious lounges are good. Brief queues are a perk. But when I may select just one factor from an airline—only one—it might all the time be this: security first.

We later realized {that a} cockpit warning mild had flashed on because the airplane accelerated. The pilot, skilled for each eventuality, aborted the take-off instantly and decisively. Floor groups have been rapidly dispatched and shortly surrounded the plane in order that it may very well be assessed. No shortcuts. No ambiguity. The airplane wouldn’t fly that night.

You may’t pretend this type of protocol. It’s constructed into tradition, not comfort. And it confirmed.

Communication

Right here’s the place AEGEAN actually stood out.

From the second we rolled to a halt, there was communication — not simply from the pilot (which was as measured and calm as you may think), but in addition by way of a number of different channels. Emails pinged in earlier than we even re-entered the terminal. The app up to date in real-time. Departure boards mirrored the change. Floor employees, poised and knowledgeable, gave the impression to be nicely briefed as to what to do.

Should you’ve ever been stranded in a terminal with silence as your solely replace, you’ll understand how uncommon that is. AEGEAN didn’t simply reply—they pre-empted the state of affairs.

Calmness

Panic, like fragrance, tends to permeate. However none of it hung within the air that night.

The flight attendant nearest to us barely blinked. A slight elevate of an eyebrow, maybe, the silent realisation of a shift in plans. However nothing in her expression advised misery. If something, she seemed mildly inconvenienced. Possibly she’d be house later than anticipated. However definitely no drama.

Likewise, the pilot’s voice over the intercom was an anchor. Calm. Managed. Reassuring. As soon as again within the terminal, every part continued with that very same understated effectivity.

This wasn’t a disaster. It was a delay, professionally managed.

Velocity of answer

Our unique flight—scheduled to depart Athens at 20:30—would have landed us in Kefalonia by 21:45.

As an alternative, we boarded a substitute AEGEAN A320 at 22:22 and touched down at 23:01.

Let’s take a second with these numbers. That’s a delay of simply 1 hour and 16 minutes, following an aborted take-off, an evaluation of the issue, a full passenger disembarkation, an entire plane swap, motion of baggage and every part else that such an incident includes.

In airline phrases, I’d say that’s virtually a miracle.

An apology and provide

Earlier than we’d even re-boarded, our telephones buzzed with an e mail from AEGEAN:

“Immediately, we acknowledge that the companies offered have been relatively removed from our requirements. We want although, to welcome you on certainly one of our future flights and have the chance to offer you our genuine companies. On this foundation, we wish to give you a ticket to any vacation spot of our community…”

It wasn’t only a generic type letter. It was well timed, tailor-made, and beneficiant. A gesture of goodwill that didn’t really feel compulsory—however real.

Rebalancing act

After we scanned our unique boarding passes for the brand new flight, they have been rejected — not because of error, however necessity. On the brand new plane, a bigger A320, weight distribution mattered. We got new seat assignments to make sure stability.

This may appear to be a small footnote. However in fact, it’s one other web page in AEGEAN’s security guide being learn aloud. No corners minimize. No “it’ll be positive”. Simply protocols adopted to the letter, even at 10pm, even for a 40-minute home hop.

A seamless return

Our return journey — first with Olympic Air from Kefalonia to Athens, then with AEGEAN again to Manchester — went totally to plan. Easy check-ins, punctual departures, and the identical degree of pleasant professionalism we’d come to anticipate. After the drama of the outbound flight, the calm effectivity of the return was a quiet consolation.

Ultimate takeaway

In journey, as in life, issues go improper. It’s not the mishaps that outline your expertise — it’s the restoration.

If something, this incident deepened our belief in AEGEAN. From pilot to pushback, app replace to in-person apology, each ingredient was dealt with with professionalism and care. Security was by no means compromised. Communication was proactive, not reactive. The crew exuded calm. And when compensation got here, it did so with out prompting.

We might have arrived barely later than anticipated, greeted by a blanket of stars and the faint hush of the Ionian Sea, however we slept nicely that evening—not regardless of what had occurred, however due to the way it was dealt with.

AEGEAN didn’t simply get us there. They received it proper, even within the face of adversity.

Disclosure: Our journey was sponsored by AEGEAN Airways.

Paul Johnson

Paul Johnson is Editor of A Luxurious Journey Weblog and has labored within the journey business for greater than 30 years. He’s Winner of the Improvements in Journey ‘Finest Journey Influencer’ Award from WIRED journal. Along with different awards, the weblog has additionally been voted “one of many world’s finest journey blogs” and “finest for luxurious” by The Telegraph.