Despite being the last to board, we were safely on the flight with about 10 minutes to spare before the “boarding closes 20 minutes before departure” time was met. I was comfortably seated in 5C, which appeared to be the ‘premium economy’ section, as denoted by the headrests:
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The cabin crew started preparing for departure, and one thing I noticed was they went
very hard on turning mobile phones off (not just flight mode) before departure. It’s always really interesting comparing the rules of different countries/carriers, where we are now used to leaving phones on (but on flight mode) in AU.
Despite the light load and everyone boarding “early”, we didn’t end up moving until the actual departure time, and taking off 7 minutes later. Take off was smooth and the flight was underway (unfortunately from my aisle seat I didn’t get any window shots). Shortly after takeoff, a welcome followed in Thai and English, noting a short flight time and introducing the team.
Now, for the in-flight experience. I had read some reviews online suggesting that Nok air might feel similar to being on public transport. One similarity was that there were lots of ads, just about wherever they might fit. Just about every possible place on this plane was dedicated to celebrating the 19th birthday of someone called Patrick:
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I get the vibe that Patrick is a celebrity of sorts; I wonder if he has ever flown Nok air to see these kind wishes. In any case, happy belated birthday Patrick. I won’t forget to smile a lot.
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