VLM Antwerp - Munich - Antwerp Fokker F50

On March 19 2018 I flew VLM from Antwerp to Munich and back on the same day for a crazy fare of only 58 EUR as this was a promotional launching fare. Flight was supposed to leave at 10.10 but due to a slot restriction from Munich this was delayed with 30 minutes. As there were only 16 passengers booked on this flight the gate agent informed everyone personally. The plane itself arrived from London City at 09:30. It was a Fokker F50 OO-VLI (ex SweFly) and one of the rare if not the only one in their fleet with a larger rear galley. Cabin looked clean fresh and modern and only the luggage bins and light panel revealed the real age of this 26 year old Fokker. When I entered the aircraft I was greeted by a friendly female flight attendant who was the only cabin crew on the aircraft. Initially I got seat 13A which was the last row and thus behind the engine but due to balance issues she came to ask me and the pax in front of me if we wanted to move to the front of the plane.

As soon as we took our new seats the door was closed and we could taxi to the active runway. Captain also announced we probably had to wait another 10 minutes with the engines running but instead we left our parking position and took of straight away for a flight of 1h25.

After take off the Fokker made his climb to 23000 feet and soon the inflight service started. For a fare of 58 euro I wasn't expecting much, neither after the relaunch as they are still in their startup fase. Inflight service is basic and rather light on a 1h30 flight compared to other companies but as I mentioned earlier they're still in the startup fase. They offer hot/cold drinks, beer and wine accompanied by a sweet or salty snack. As the flight attendant was alone on board she took her time for each passenger to have a small chat as otherwise it would be a long flight for everyone.

Throughout the flight the snowy landscape of Germany could be seen as well as the large airport of Frankfurt am Main. After one hour of flight the descent started into Munich. Very smooth landing and the usual taxi time to arrive at T1 on remote stand which gave the perfect opportunity to take some shots of the white plane in winterwonderland Munich. As soon as the passengers for Munich disembarked the plane continued with only a few passengers to Maribor. After 4hours the plane returned to Munich and was parked on the very same remote parking.

With an on-time departure and skipping the de-icing cue (as it was done at the stand) I was up in the air again for another 1h20 flight to Antwerp. On the return flight were also 16 pax with a few coming from Maribor. As soon as the cruising altitude was reached the same service as the morning flight was offered. With the sunset aside Antwerp was coming closer and with an advance of 20 minutes the Fokker touched down and called it a day.

Overal the plane was still in a good condition but you could see as it was aging. On the outside the blue was becoming visible as they just applied the white paint over the blue during the Cityjet era. On the inside the general condition of the cabin was ok but the foil applied on the doors of the lockers became loose and the rear doors (used as cargo/catering showed some damage from luggage or equipment too. Productwise you can tell VLM is taking small steps, the cups were still Air France and the napkins plane white? Furthermore the seat pocket didn't contain a magazine yet but just the necessary safety card (which was in Slovenian and English) and an Air France air sickness bag. They still need a long way but slowly they are getting the

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