Actually, I love flying just as much as taking the train. What attracts me here is something else: firstly, it is a much higher class of service, where they bring you food, take away trash, smile, and apologize when something goes wrong. Secondly, it is an opportunity for me to look at the architecture and city planning I love so much from a completely unusual angle. They look especially breathtaking at night. Thirdly, it is both a plus and a minus: unlike trains, planes are used by more affluent, and therefore more educated, cultured, and business-oriented people, with whom it can be very difficult to strike up a conversation, and you are forced to sit for the entire 10-hour flight in silence, staring at the cold porthole.
However, the choice of airline is a moment that determines how comfortably your 10-20 hour flight will go. How many times and what you will be fed! What quality of headphones will be offered on board)) Actually, to be honest, in both the first and second year I did not choose an airline myself and bought tickets directly from the center, but if I suddenly have to fly next year, I will definitely buy tickets myself.
Why? Because it will most likely be at least a little cheaper. I found Moscow-New York-Moscow tickets for my friend for only 14,000 rubles!!! It was Aerosvit with a layover in Kiev, but for that kind of money! There are many sites specifically for finding the cheapest tickets, but the most convenient and easy to use, in my opinion, is www.anywayanyday.com
My second piece of advice is not to take a direct flight, but to make a layover in Europe. You will have a chance to see +1 country. But most importantly for me, you will have 2 flights lasting about 4-7 hours each, which means you will be fed as many as 4 times. If you fly a direct flight, you will only have 2 meals. The same fate awaits those who fly the now very popular Moscow-Washington-New York route. Since the Washington-New York flight is domestic and lasts only 1.3 hours, you are unlikely to be offered anything more substantial than a glass of juice.
And the last piece of advice. Almost every airline, if not every one, has long had a loyalty program in its arsenal. This means that once you choose an airline, the miles you have traveled are credited to your account, and when you buy a ticket next time, you can often take advantage of a number of privileges by spending those very miles. The most worthy privileges, in my opinion, are: class upgrade, i.e., you fly business class but pay for economy, or a free ticket, where they simply hand you a free ticket, deducting the required number of miles from your account. So, to participate in such a loyalty program, you need to register on the official website of the airline and get your number, which you will present at check-in. Often, after registering on the site, you can choose the class of food you would like to enjoy on board (say, vegetarian or kosher) and the seat you would like to sit in. The names of such loyalty programs are Mileage Plus for United and Flying Blue for Air France.
