Condor inaugural San Diego arrival – Photo: San Diego County Regional Airport Authority
Recently, I had the opportunity to take my first ever inaugural flight. Condor inaugurated twice-weekly service nonstop from Frankfurt to San Diego and they were kind enough to allow me to tag along. This was a special trip for me, as I rarely get the opportunity to fly internationally in anything but economy class, as more opulent flying is typically not in my budget.
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Condor inaugural San Diego arrival
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Inaugural celebration – Photos: San Diego County Regional Airport Authority
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Condor inaugural San Diego arrival
Not only was this a big deal for me, but this new connection to Europe is a big deal for the city of San Diego and the 3 million plus people in the metropolitan area. With the new flight, Condor becomes just the second nonstop connection to Europe, and first by a leisure airline.
You do not see this often in an airliner – Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren
What do cowboy boots, Frankfurt Germany, and Merle Haggard have in common?
C’mon, any guesses? Any?
Well if you read the title of this post, thereby inadvertently cheating, you’d probably wager something to do with Condor Airlines launching its brand-new service to Austin, Texasand you’d be right. The German leisure carrier began linking Frankfurt and the capital of the Lone Star State near the end of June, and you can bet AirlineReporter was on the scene.
My ride to Frankfurt, a Condor 767-300ER (reg: D-ABUB)
I recently decided to take a trip over to Frankfurt for a few days and, thankfully, I was able to take it in Premium Economy.
This was going to be my first flight with Condor, and also my first taste of a long-haul leisure carrier (think low-cost, but to vacation destinations). I was flying on their non-stop service from Seattle to Frankfurt. Adding to the number of firsts for me were also a new airport (Frankfurt) and my first time flying internationally out of Seattle.
The Premium Economy section in Condor’s 767
The flight was scheduled to depart mid-afternoon, which for me felt a little bit different than normal. Generally, I end up on flights departing first-thing in the morning or late in the evening. So having most of the day to relax, make final packing arrangements, and spend time with my wife was a good thing. The bad part is being prime time for international departures out of Seattle. This meant that while the line for check-in with Condor was short, even with priority access, security would be an absolute mess.
The Condor 767 crew trainer located in Frankfurt
No matter the size of an airline, they need to provide safety training for their flight attendants. There will be training provided to new hires, as well as reoccurring training for current employees.
It is an important part of making sure an airline operates safely and the more realistic of a training that an airline can provide, the better prepared their flight attendants are going to be to react to an emergency scenario.
Condor’s headquarters is located next to FRA
Recently, I had the chance to get an up-close look at how Condor Airlines manages their flight attendant training at their headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. I was a bit surprised with some of the things that I learned and how hands-on I was able to get.
Condor Boeing 767-300ER being worked on in their maintenance facility
With Condor Airlines being a smaller, low-cost carrier, it is not a huge surprise that their on-site maintenance facility at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is quite small (well, in comparison to others like Lufthansa Technik).
Just because the hangar might not have the volume of other locations, it is a place where the job gets done. Ensuring that aircraft are checked and safe is no easy task, but a very important one.
Condor’s facility at FRA is able to work on one Boeing 767 at a time — and they only work on their 767s and 757s there. Condor sublets out the work done on their Airbus aircraft at other facilities around Europe.
