AV440
SAL-DFW
Takeoff: 0750
Landing: 1225 (+1 hour)
Economy Class
May 27, 2024
After flying Avianca Airlines A320 Premier Class on the two segments to Costa Rica, I chose to fly in economy on the return. The flight from San Jose, Costa Rica was an hour. The airplane was the same seat as the one in this review.
I had a little more than an hour layover in San Salvador. I killed some time by visiting the VIP Lounge near gate 13. Before too long, it was time to head to the gate. I am glad I left the lounge with some time to spare as there was a security checkpoint to get to gate 19.
Boarding began on time, one hour prior to departure, with those needing special assistance then Group A. I was in Group E so it took about 30 minutes before our group was called. Once it was our turn, I was in the seat 10 minutes later.
I selected seat 19C which was in the back half of economy. The seat was hard and did not have a headrest. The seat was as no frills as it could get. The only “amenities” were a small tray table in the seat back and a USB charging port between the seats.
With it being very humid in San Salvador, I was thankful for the individual air nozzles above the seats.
Boarding was completed 15 minutes prior to departure. I found all segments on the trip were very efficient, which is something I really appreciated.
The captain came on with the welcome aboard announcement 12 minutes prior to departure. He informed us of the 3hr20min flight time to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The flight time was spot on but I checked FlightRadar24 anyway. Not only did it show us not making it to Dallas in three hours, it showed us taking off late.
The door was closed six minutes prior to departure then the safety demonstration was performed. The pushback from the gate happened at the same time. I am glad FlightRadar24 was wrong and we were on our way.
The safety demo continued all the way to takeoff. There was a guy sitting in an exit row seat who gave the flight attendants a hard time because he did not want to store his bag. It took three flight attendants to explain the need for him to store his bag in the overhead bin.
We a long, bumpy takeoff roll after all that. I was happy that we got in the air after the supposed delay and the guy whining about his bag. The climb out was smooth.
The flight was uneventful so I took a nap. About an hour into the journey the service started with the flight attendant slamming the cart into my arm. One of the downfalls of an aisle seat, I suppose. Everything was for a fee but that did not stop me from grabbing two whiskies, coke and water. The total price: $25.
I went to my snack bag and brought out the dill seeds. After traveling so much with Nicholas, I have to bring snacks on every plane ride.
Service finished an hour later which put us about 90 minutes out of Dallas. I asked the sweet lady in 19A to take some photos of the wing, which she did without hesitation.
She also took the video below:
If you listen closely, the guy in 18D was providing background noise the entire flight. I am not hating because I snore as well.
We touched in Dallas a few minutes after noon. It was a smooth roll out and pedestrian 15 minute taxi to the gate. All said and done, we were six minutes early. 🫱🏻🫲🏿
Final Word
This Avianca Airlines flight was an efficient way to get from Central America to Dallas. While there was a fee for snacks and drinks and the seat was just a bit too hard, I would not hesitate flying with the airline again. It a decent end to a few days in Costa Rica.
