Flight: OS 688
Departure: Minsk 16 Dec 2018 / 14:30
Arrival: Vienna 16 Dec 2018 / 14:30
Duration: 2 hours

Austrian Airlines AG, sometimes shortened to Austrian, is the flag carrier of Austria and a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. The airline is headquartered on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat where it also maintains its hub. It focusses on Central and East European services as well as long haul flights to North America and the Far East.

We took the shuttle bus from downtown Minsk to the airport, and arrived within half an hour. Check-in was a breeze and it seemed like there were many passengers also headed to Vienna. Around one hour before the departure of the flight, there were still people waiting to be checked in.

Belavia Belarusian Airlines is the flag carrier and national airline of Belarus, headquartered in Minsk. It is a small airline. I had wanted to try flying Belavia, but the one-way ticket was too expensive. Austrian Airlines is a member of Star Alliance, so I managed to redeem my mils for the one-way journey from Minsk to Vienna.

Since it was December, there were several Christmas decorations at the airport. It added a festive cheer to the otherwise quiet airport. There were not many flights departing each hour.

For those looking for last minute shopping, there is a decent duty-free store that sells various kinds of products, from cigarettes to alcohol to perfumes. There is even one section dedicated to made in Belarus products.

The boarding time for our flight was at 2pm, but by 2.10pm, the plane was still not ready for boarding, so many people were standing in line and visibly impatient.

Before the departure time, we went to the business lounge to rest. It was a simple business lounge, with basic food and drinks. There were sofa seats spaced out within the area, and can accommodate up to 60 people. As it is not a huge airport, the lounge was not crowded when we visited in the afternoon. If you wanted an alcoholic drink, you would have to ask the staff to serve you. Other drinks such as juices and water are self-service.

Finally, we were on the tarmac and waiting to take off. We have not seen the sun at all during our whole week in Belarus. It was gloomy and foggy, just like the weather today. Finally, it was time to say goodbye to Belarus, we enjoyed our time here while checking out various cities and taking the local forms of transport.

Austrian Airlines operates a single-alley plane for inter-Europe flights. I had also flown with them back in 2016, from Nice to Vienna, then Vienna to Beijing. The flight to Beijing used a larger plane.

Service on board was decent. I managed to get some red wine and apple juice, as well as a snack for the short-haul flight. The stewardess was busy distributing the food shortly after take-off. No hot meals are served as it would take up too much time for the meal service. On the inflight magazine, it featured Montreal, Canada on the cover page and this destination is high up on my list as I would like to check out this North American city with a French flair.

After a one hour nap, I woke up to see that we are landing in Vienna. The skies were bright and the views of the Danube river greeted us.

From Vienna airport, you can take the City Airport Train to the city centre, the journey taking only 16 minutes. It cost € 12.00 for a single trip and € 21.00 for a return journey. However, we rented a car from the airport and arranged for someone to meet us at the terminal. We look forward to having a wonderful stay in Austria!