Originally Posted by
DanAir89
fly on Tui every couple of years and have a random question re the route map displays on the 737’s. This year we were delayed for an hour on the ground. Crew really friendly and used the time to let the kids visit the cockpit (I probably enjoyed it more though!) and gave out things to keep them entertained. Thought this was a great touch and differentiated the airline from others.
Once under way pilot gave lots of details about the journey but I was really disappointed that the route maps were not used to support this. for the next few hours my kids asked where we were and when we’d get there so I asked the crew if they still used the displays that I’d seen before to answer their questions. They said they did and would put it on - admittedly it was a busy flight and they never got around to it but my question is when do they use it - is it by request ir just if they can be bothered. Used to fly BA domestic and the route maps came on shortly after takeoff every time but TUI seem to have bought this useful tool but don’t want to use it!
Not all aircraft are still fitted with the system. The ones that are (sky interior 737s), will have their screens deployed, usually once in the cruise. It's not a case of "not wanting to use it". Sometimes it may not connect or the screens may simply not be working. Of course if the safety demo had been shown via the screens, its unlikely that that would have been the case. As you mentioned, the crew were probably just very busy and again forgot to set it up.
As an aside, the system on BA shorthaul Airbus aircraft is being removed as each one goes through their densification program. This is to standardise with the NEO fleet and to reduce fuel burn and maintenance costs