NWA to Europe...

Well, when are you flying?

In the Summer (i.e., now) the jet stream is farther north and not quite as fast, and generally there are no convection storms out over the ocean so it is likely to be less turbulent then if you went in the late Fall or Winter.

You cannot expect a flight to be completely smooth (although I have been on them when they were) but the A330 is a great, large plane with modern amenities so it should be fairly comfortable.

Northwest also has a policy to fly around some turbulence for a smoother ride that other airlines would go right through. This of course could change with the rising cost of fuel...

I would recommend www.turbulenceforecast.com for more information on turbulence as well as links to the charts (easy to read ones) that are published by NOAA and other meteorological agencies that give you a generally idea where you might experience turbulence and how bad it might be. I find them reasonably accurate, but there are a lot of factors to consider.

You can't guarantee anything in terms of a completely smooth ride but today's aircraft are built to take a lot of punishing. I know that you might have been worried but as Rick says, pilots will tell you that they would have multiple bruises from a seatbelt before turbulence worries them. NWA is as good as anyone else in this regard.

Thanks for the tips....

I know typically with larger planes, heavy, severe, turbulence is rare, I can imagine that if I was in a 200+ carrier as opposed to a 24 seater small jet things would be different. My last flight to Italy via Delta was very pleasant.

As far as when I said 'smooth' I also meant a friendly staff, nothing can ruin a trip then a rude, unprofessional staff.

man I cannot wait to be living in Europe this fall!

I have a complete fear of flying and will be flying a (Lufthansa) A330 to Germany in December. My coworker has been in aerospace engineering for a long time, and his wife is an FA for NWA and frequently flies on A330- he has been on them many times as well.

He assures me that the A330 is a great plane to fly on and very comfortable. We live in Boeing country, so there is no way he would say that if it wasn't true! He also said the entertainment options on NWA A330s will keep you busy for the whole flight (unfortunately, Lufthansa is lacking in that area.)

As a PS, I check safety records of every model plane I fly on, and the A330 has a good record. : )

Yah, the A330 has had very few hull loss accidents (2 in 17 years according to the wikipedia). It is an incredibly safe plane.

I have never flow NWA internationally (other than from Canada), but I have found that domestic flights were comfortable, and the staff was good. Not as good as some of the 'customer service' carriers, but not bad compared to others.

However, the aircraft I have been on were quite old. They still fly DC-9s (which depending who you ask is a good or a bad thing) and I have been on a 737 that was probably last updated internally in 1995.

JB -

This is my favorite plane for overseas travel. I much prefer it to the 767. I love NWA for their transatlantic service. Food is decent (Belgian chocolate ice cream for a snack!), choice of entertainment is awesome. The seats are roomy (for me at least) and staff is pleasant.

Don't worry and have a wonderful trip.

JB: are you leaving in the day or evening? Usually my flights are late evening, so I'm usually dozing off and never really have to deal with the turbulance.

JB - I would have to sit down with my passports to determine how many times I've flown NWA transatlantic! I've NEVER had a problem with them. I prefer the planes with my own personal TV in the seatback in front of me, but my recent flight from AMS to EWR didn't offer that. That's the only time in recent memory that that has happened.

If you like the hot towels at the end of your flight, NWA doesn't offer that in coach. Bring your own washcloth in 2 ziplock baggies. During the breakfast portion of your food service, ask for hot tea - hold the tea. Put the hot water into your baggie and voila! Instant hot towel. Please remember to let it cool a bit before handling it though!

I took the Fear of Flying Clinic a number of years ago in Seattle- what a great thing! But, there were 2 pilots there- one was a retired Continental pilot who had spent his career flying from Seattle to Asia. He said there are classifications of turbulence- mild, moderate, severe- he said he had NEVER experienced severe turbulence! And all planes are made to withstand it-so I think that what we think of as horrible turbulence is probably just moderate or even mild. Also, many of the people at the clinic (the teachers) said they loved turbulence because then they could feel they were flying- wow.

I also prefer larger planes- but consider the 300 series to be larger! Good luck and remember the most dangerous part of the flight is driving to the airport.

JB, the Airbus 330 is my favorite plane for flights to Europe. Its 2-4-2 seating is far preferable to the 3-4-3 seating of 747s. We always make our reservations and seat assignments several months ahead so we can get the seats on the side with aisle and window seats. The plane is as comfortable as economy-class planes can be. They also have personal TVs in the seat backs, so you can watch shows, movies, play games, etc.

As Ron said, the seating is 2-4-2 on the Airbus 330-300 and we also book the window/aisle combination. Check seatguru.com. Also, depending on the flight plan, I like to get on the side where we'll see land when flying along the coast. Movie screen in the seat back is great, go to NWA website to see what movies, etc. will be offered. Headphones are supplied, but I really would recommend getting a set of noise-cancelling headphones to use - they cancel out much of the low frequency engine noise. Flight crews have always been pleasant and attentive, just treat them like the hardworking professionals that they are and they will treat you well, too.

Bob

We actually just got back from Europe flying NWA into Paris and out of Rome. The flights were fine. The Trans-Atlantic flights were nice because NW has a little TV monitor built into the back of the chair in front of you with your own little control so you can choose the movies you want or play games or some other features. I mean, an 8-9 hr flight is an 8-9 hr. flight but it was fine.

I just flew NW from Portland - Amsterdam on an A330. While the plane is smaller than many international flights, I found it quite comfortable, especially the in-seat entertainment system you can pick & choose your own movies, music, or whatever. I second the motion to check seatguru.com to make sure you select a comfortable spot for you (I recommend not too close to the bathrooms). While the flight was quite long (9.5 hours) it was less stressful to me just taking off and landing once instead of switching planes.