I arrived at the airport at 09:47. Usually your bags get x-rayed upon entering the terminal but not this time for some reason. I was at the checkin desk at 09:55 and my bag was checked all the way through to London.
I waited about 5 minutes at passport control while the person ahead of me had visa issues, but was then quickly through.
Security x-rayed everything this time, unlike last time (except I didn't have to take off my jacket). I walked through the metal detector and set it off. One of the security men asked if I had anything metal, I just felt my pockets quickly to make sure I didn't miss something, but after about 5 seconds of checking, he just waved me on. There was no ID check except upon checkin, only boarding pass checks, but they didn't compare names to BPs, so you probably could have checked in under your name and simply just passed your BP on to someone else.
Boarding was called at 10:50. There was another visa and boarding pass check, but only to make sure you had your visa stamps, they didn't check names. It was then on to a bus for the 200m to the plane.
Bofore you boarded you ID'd your bag as I explained in my previous TR and it was then loaded. I was quickly at my seat, 21A. The plane was maybe half-2/3 full, so plenty of space. However, it was really, really old. The worst one of the three! The middle armrest was partly broken, the tray tables didn't fit properly in the back of the seats or remain level when down, and the seats may/maynot remain upright when you lean against them. (Incredibly safe, I know!!!)
The plane turned around at 11:12 (no push back as we were far enough to just turn. The flight safety video was played in Arabic with no manual demonstration, and it was still playing when we took off at 11:18! (yep, more safe procedures!) About a minute or two the English version was still playing (so yes the screens were down for takeoff too).
After takeoff the man in the aisle seat moved across the way, so we each had three seats to ourselves. I took a nap for 15min or so. Lunch was served at 11:43 with the choice of chicken or beef. I had the beef which came with rice and veggies, bread, cheese, salad, and chocolate cake. It was ok, but had much more beef than I expected. I took another 15 or 20 minute nap and played a few iPhone games.
We began our inital decent at 12:18, with landing at 12:42, 30 minutes early, and one of the smoothest landings I've had. Arrived at the gate at 12:48 and was off the pane at 12:41.
I got to the transfer desk and was told it wasn't open yet. Stuck and an area of the airport with no food, drink, or shops, I paid the $15 for a visa and went through passport control to arrivals, where there are a few cafes and lots of seats. I bought a coke and a bottle of water and sat down for a bit to relax.
