I need help with a flight to Asia pls

[BrennieGirl]

I've haven't booked a flight to Asia for over 20 years so I need some advice please.

I'm planning on travelling to Hong Kong to see a friend of mine in February. There are KLM and Air France flights with business class seats for about 2k available at the moment which seems very good value.

The only catch is that the layover for the outbound flight is only for 1 hour. I was planning on checking in a large suitcase but I'm worried that an hour won't be enough time with checked in luggage.

Can anyone who flies regularly advise me please?

Its still far too short a time particularly if the transfer is through Schipol or CDG. So many flights departures are delayed particularly out of LHR and Gatwick and the time of departure is actually the time the aircraft pulls back from the gate. If you miss the connection through no fault of your own the airline is not always that ready to assist.

They can never guarantee you a connection. It might be possible if everything runs on time, but having missed 2x Qatar and 1x Emirates connections in the not so distant past, they certainly aren't guaranteed.

Airlines recommend two hours between flights; that includes KLM and Air France. It will be a nightmare to organise any lost luggage or missed connection if you don't take the reccommended transfer time.

Security is also really tight at the moment and it depends on what you will have in hand baggage too - ie. Schipol recently took camera gear to get swabbed for explosives which took AGES.

If it’s sold as one ticket it’ll be fine. Even with a short transfer time. I’ve even been on flights to Asia where the 2nd plane has waited for passengers on a connection from elsewhere in Europe whose first flight was running late. Probably not that common but it happens. Your bags will be checked all the way through.

It may not be fine, gates close around half an hour before take off time for long haul international routes - that means the OP would have less than half an hour to get from one flight to another; they won't wait for her if her bags aren't loaded.

Holding a plane for late connecting passengers isn't guaranteed. At all. Yes, if the OP is on one ticket and misses her connection, the airline will put her on the next available flight. But the connecting flight is usually only held if there are a lot of connecting passengers about to miss it. I connected with Qatar a few months ago and had a very prudent 4 hour connection. We left the gate on time but there was an engine problem and we had to return to the gate, eventually leaving 3 hours late. I was very lucky as I just made my connection by sprinting through the airport to my next flight but there were LOTS of passengers who missed their connections and couldn't get on flights until the next day at the earliest. This seemed to be the case for at least one-third of my business class cabin going by the conversations I heard.

Delays are sometimes unavoidable and the OP needs to factor this in by booking a longer connection time, and ideally also making sure that there are multiple connecting flights from the airport she's flying to so she has more potential options if there's a delay. Never book the last connecting flight of the day if you can possibly avoid it.

True delays happen all the time. I've been lucky and never missed a connection. Turkish Airlines used to be really bad for delayed flights but I've heard they're better these days.

If I really need to make a connection on a short transfer time I book the meet and greet service.

I wouldn’t book such a tight connection - 2 hours minimum for both you and the luggage

I’m not a frequent flier but it’s many years since I took a flight that wasn’t delayed

One hour transit time is fine.

Not at all. Depends on the size of the airport. I'd do 2 or 3 hours just to minimise the stress, to have a pee, a coffee, something to eat, check out what gate etc. whatever. Airports are stressful and busy so I need some Zen time.... 😊

ps I’d take a tight connection coming home via schipol or cdg as it won’t be long until the next flight (unless it’s the last one) which the airline should automatically rebook you on

going to Asia no because If you miss the connection the next one won’t be before the following day. Though they should sort the hotel.

So long as it's one ticket it's fine. If the first leg is delayed and lots of pax are getting the international sector they will try and hold it. If no slots available then you will be on next available flight. They wouldn't sell the ticket if the connection couldn't be made. For HKG tho I would go direct with BA or Cathay

So long as it's one ticket it's fine. If the first leg is delayed and lots of pax are getting the international sector they will try and hold it.

Maybe, only for a handful of minutes, but you really really can't rely on that for a while host of reasons.

Delaying on the ramp is very expensive, gate availability may tight so the outbound flight needs to go to free up space for an inbound.

Slot times (which can apply at both the airport and sometimes also en-route for entry to certain airspace) sometimes can't be rejigged quickly if the first one gets missed.

Finally there can be curfew issues at the destination airport...and of course by delaying you can be generating knock on problems for passengers who have connections at the far end.

To be frank it's often easier/cheaper for the airline to sort out hotels and then new flights for a handful of missed connections that hold a Long Haul flight at the cost of x hundred pounds/euros a minute.

Which airports have you used that were unable to fulfil the one hour connection?

It’s worth noting that airlines usually overestimate the flight time - I’ve been on flights to Amsterdam/Paris that have allowed 1:45 for the scheduled timings but have actually only take 1 hour, allowing more time for the connection.

Ive recently connected a couple of times in Frankfurt with Lufthansa and they were brilliant, despite a tight 1 hour turnaround.

if an airline sells that connection on their website, they have estimated that in normal circumstances, you can make it. Of course it's never guaranteed, planes are delayed and cancelled all the time.

I missed a transfer from lax to las one time but it was because someone didn't declare a bottle of something and it looked like a hand grenade on the x-ray. Whole terminal went into lockdown.

There’s usually a requirement at many airports for airlines to try and ensure that over a season they stick to their planned timings as best as possible at both ends. If they consistently arrive very early they may incur penalties, so “padding” the schedules may be frowned on….it depends on the airport.

As a general point the flight times from A to B are statistically derived, based in part on previous seasons performances and some other factors, so on any given day the actual timings can significantly adrift due to the winds.

That’s generally not that obvious in short haul but sometimes very obvious on Long Haul. It’s particularly disappointing when you see a flight time (i.e. actual airborne flying time ) that’s longer than the scheduled block time (gate to gate).

Thanks for all the replies. I think I'm going to look for another flight with a longer layover. I'm a bit anxious about the flight anyway (thanks menopause) and I think I'd just find the short layover way too stressful.