Check in was a breeze, it was never going to be a problem as the BN Trislander that awaited had a capacity of 15 pax. Boarding commenced approx 10 minutes before departure. Boarding card holders 3 and 4 being called first, it resembled entering a 2 door car, the backrest of the bench seat being tilted forward to allow access to the rear, once safely seated the bench seat returned to its original position to allow boarding pass holders 1 and 2 access. This process continued the length of the aircraft (each bank of 4 seats having their own door) until all 11 of us were aboard.
No need to worry about a window seat here! - everyone has one, after a short taxi and a lot of noise from the 3 props we were airborne, quickly heading south towards Southampton docks and the Isle of Wight, the views being quite spectacular. The only IFBT you'll get on a Trislander is a blow dry by way of the breeze from the ill fitting windows, the IFE is limited to boarding card holders 1 and 2 who sit directly behind the pilot and with no seperate cockpit can while away the 45 minutes keeping an eye on the myriad of dials and switches that are constantly tweaked, you really can see that the pilot is actually flying the aircraft as opposed to a silicon chip!
I was thoroughly enjoying this short but noisy hop across the English Channel and all too soon appearing on the horizon came the sight of Alderney, it's a great view to see the entire island from 2000 feet and we were soon bumping across the grass from the southerly approach rather than the tarmac due to crosswinds.
Disembarking, baggage reclaim and customs totalled 7 minutes - if only it could always be that way!
Imagine England 40 years ago and you have a pretty good idea of Alderney, quaint little customs like people leaving cars parked with keys in them and windows open, shops that close for lunch and leave their goods outside, shops that open at about 9ish and close when the want! Best of all for me though - the best lobster and crab I've ever experienced.
