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By
Jimmy Dunn
My favorite airline for travel to Egypt has taken a lot
of abuse lately. That's unfortunate, because EgyptAir
has really had few such problems in the past, and is rated
by the FAA's International Aviation Safety Assessment
Program (IASA) as Category 1, meeting ICAO standards.
 In fact,
EgyptAir is often the first in the Middle East (or northern
Africa) to commit to new aircraft such as the A318 Airbus to
be used in regional and in country flights by EgyptAir, and
much of their fleet of aircraft, particularly for
international flights, is more advanced and most often in
better repair than even American airlines that fly to Egypt.
But none of this has to do with why I like EgyptAir as
well as I do. Meet Nagia Farrag. Sure, she's a
long way from the good old days of Braniff and mini-skirted
stewardesses, but she typifies Egypt in general; hospitable,
a gracious host and unabashedly friendly.
To me, as someone who loves Egypt, stepping onto an
EgyptAir flight is like stepping onto Egyptian soil, and it
is precisely people such as Nagia that make me feel this
way. Her recognition is long overdue.
Precisely, she and the other stewards, stewardesses and
even pilots of EgyptAir make one feel special. Having grown
up in a small town, I was never very comfortable with being
one more person in a crowd, and on EgyptAir, even though I
may be surrounded by hundreds of others, I don't feel that
way. The personnel literally go out of their way to
accommodate, much as people in Egypt do.
"So you'll be staying at the Hilton in Luxor",
she asks. A few minutes later I get an envelope with
an introduction to the hotel's manager, who she knows
personally. But it is the invitation to join her family for
dinner that really makes one feel like being once again on
Egyptian soil. It is the typical Egyptian show of
hospitality, and throughout the flight, your always made to
feel special. But that's not the only reason. Egypt
is a long flight from the US and even from most European
countries. Traveling on EgyptAir means one is
traveling with other tourists, excited about their first
trip to Egypt, or reliving their experiences of prior trips
to the novice travelers. Its a great place to pick up
information, make new or sometimes life long friends with a
similar interest and generally glow in the excitement.
People get worked up about a trip of a life time to Egypt,
and on EgyptAir, it all seems to pour out. |
