Welcome onboard an early morning flight in the early winter! On 20 November 2022, I flew on airBaltic in the really early morning from Vilnius, Lithuania to Riga, Latvia, to connect there to go to Hamburg, Germany, my next and last major stop on my European vacation last year. Although this flight between two of the Baltic capitals is one of the airline's busier routes, there were only two flights on that Sunday, only this one worked for my connection to Hamburg. Getting to Vilnius Airport in the early morning was surprisingly easy from the city center, the 88N bus runs every 30 minutes between 12-6 am and the journey takes 15-20 minutes.
Riga is the headquarters of airBaltic, one of the largest airlines in northern Europe, serving almost every country on the continent as well as a handful of destinations in Africa and the Middle East. With a fleet of 40 Airbus A220 as of filming, airBaltic is one of the largest operators of this type, and the only one in the world that is an all-A220 airline.
Highlights include boarding and disembarkation through airstairs in the snow and -10 degree temperatures, as well as deicing.
#airbaltic #bt350 @airbalticBT
Camera: GoPro Hero 8 Black
Filmed on 20 November 2022
Aircraft: Airbus A220-300 (Bombardier CS300, BD-500-1A11)
Registration: YL-CSG
MSN: 55009
Delivered: July 2017
Engines: PW1521G-3
Configuration: Y145
Seat: 5A
Callsign: BTI35G (Air Baltic Three Five Golf)
Departure: Vilnius International Airport (EYVI / VNO)
* Scheduled: 05.30 EET; actual: 05.46 EET
Arrival: Riga International Airport (EVRA / RIX)
* Scheduled: 06.20 EET; actual: 06.20 EET
Flight time: 34m
My Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kalung1/Airbus A220:
https://flic.kr/s/aHska9RAjhEurope 2022:
https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAsags* Please respect video copyrights, and unauthorised reproductions of any videos on my channel are prohibited. Such content will be reported.
* Comments that are non-constructive, overly judgmental, or of a politically-charged nature, will not be tolerated.
HIGHLIGHTS:
00:00:00 - intro
00:00:05 - bus ride from terminal to stand
00:02:22 - boarding the A220 through airstairs the first time
00:05:54 - removal of ground power unit (GPU) before startup
00:06:25 - captain's welcome announcement
00:08:43 - packs off before deicing
00:11:38 - safety video
00:13:06 - deicing
00:17:39 - packs on
00:18:08 - packs off for engine start
00:18:40 - engine start
00:21:46 - deploying flaps & slats
00:23:02 - taxi to runway 19
00:26:08 - takeoff on runway 19
00:27:52 - climbout views
00:37:42 - reached cruise altitude of 24,000 ft (FL240, 7,315 m)
00:41:59 - top of descent
00:45:07 - crossing into Latvia (Bauska Municipality)
00:54:34 - city lights of Riga
01:00:05 - landing on runway 18
01:01:42 - taxi to gate 308
01:05:01 - parking at gate 308
01:05:42 - engine shutdown
01:06:20 - disembarkation through airstairs
01:06:26 - bus ride from gate 308 to the Schengen terminal
01:08:06 - Flightradar24 profiles of our flight
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_pbH-VyKJU