Tarom Romanian airlines vs. British Airways -it depends on your nationality!

Have you ever flown Tarom Romanian airlines? If I want to get my wife's feet off the ground I need to try and fly with her national airline.

It is a funny thing; it reveals our national ideas of flight. I like to fly on British Airways and the biggest treat I have is getting on board near the window - next to the window being reserved for Irina, my wife, and ordering a gin and tonic. I rarely ever order this drink, so it is one of life's little luxuries that I associate with flying.

I tried the same trick on a Tarom airline and the woman just looked at me incredulously and asked me again if I wanted a drink - not some fancy British cocktail - I could choose between a rough red wine, spirits and beer. However Irina has been brought up believing that Tarom Romanian airlines has the most experience pilots, best planes and greatest safety record.

I was quite surprised to hear a Tarom plane hit a stationary car a while back. A foolish Romanian worker at the airport had been driving about, doing his jobs, and had taken an airport car along the runway - always a dangerous maneuver. To have then actually parked the car on the runway and then forgotten about it, really does require a lack of brains - and so the poor pilot - charging downthe run way in a fully loaded plane, had little choice but to hit it! The plane was a write - off, as was the car -but I can till imagine the pilot in his cabin, desperately looking for his headlights and horn, as this is the only way Romanian know of moving things off the road.

When I had to return for my father's funeral, I did look at buying a last minute flight on a Tarom Romanian airline flight but they wanted almost 3,000 pounds for the trip - and as much as I loved dear old dad, it would have been cheaper to fly around the world popping in at 5 exotic locations on the way, than to go from Bucharest to London with them - fortunately the British airways flight was much cheaper - so we went with them instead.

Another problem however with the low cost carriers and sometimes with British airways, which is never a problem with Tarom Romanian airlines, is the complete lack of Romanian being spoken on the intercom. This means my mother-in-law was in a permanent state of uncertainty as to if the last announcement was about the fact they had a wide range of snack and perfumes available and a lady was coming around to help you, or the plane was about to crash and say your last good byes. Being a very pragmatic Romanian, she always took the massages as the second one, unless told otherwise and so was really relieved to get her feet back on the ground.

My last flight with Tarom Romanian airlines was in a huge plane - far bigger and so emptier than normal. One set of seats was sealed off to reduce the amount of cleaning the staff needed to do. My seat would not work properly and my headphones didn't work at all but at least my wife was in seven heaven as the Romanian pilot didn't plough into parked cars, Romanian traditional food - airline style was served and her mother knew it was perfume and not emergency facemasks being distributed.

What are you experiences of using Tarom Romanian airlines? Would you use them again? Who do you normally fly with? We would love to know!

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