Flying to India to visit Sai Baba
Vegetarian Meals and other things to know

This page offers several considerations about flying to India.

A New Airport

For International Travellers, a new airport opened on 11 May 2008. This airport is located at Muddenahalli, which is approximately 35 kilometres from Bangalore. The Main access to Bangalore will be National Highway 7, otherwise known as NH7.

Bangalore Airport Logo

A High Speed Rail service will be constructed to link the new airport at Muddenahalli to Bangalore.

The exit from the new airport is currently the extension of Airport Road, that is to say, the same road that the Whitefield Ashram is located upon. If one were to turn RIGHT upon leaving the new airport, Whitefield would be reached in about 25 minutes, maybe less.

The new airport is approximately 7 kilometres from National Highway 7, (the highway from Bangalore to Puttaparthi), and will cut travelling time to Puttaparthi.

You may view some photographs of the new airport.

You may visit the new Airport Website.

Domestic

There has been no direct air travel to Puttaparthi Airport for over 12 months. The Puttaparthi Airport has recently changed ownership; there may or may not be flights during festivals. Air Deccan and Indian Airlines no longer fly to Puttaparthi.

What you need to take with you

Surprisingly, some people overlook the obvious.

You will need, among other things:

  1. A bottle of water to drink after you get off the aircraft and before you reach your accommodation


  2. Some Indian money, and small notes at that. Get this at the Foreign Exchange desk at your home airport before you leave. What if you have to pay for a bus or taxi journey? Or worse, buy a bottle of water for 14 rupees?


  3. A valid visa. Don't try entering without one.

Keeping Fit on the Aircraft

Again, some overlook the obvious. You do not have to practise
herd mentality on an aircraft. Your body belongs to you,
you should take care of it.

  • If Cabin Calistentics or Airborne Aerobics are shown on the video, especially after a meal, do them. Rotate your ankles, wiggle your shoulders, make circles with your wrists. Keep that blood moving around.


  • Go for hourly walks up and down the aisle.


  • Feet swell on flights. Take your footwear off and ensure you wiggle those feet around. Do not take tight fitting footwear as you may not be able to put them on when the flight ends.


  • Some airlines now leave soft drink, fruit juice and ice and water jugs in the galley for passengers to help themselves to. Get up and look for it.


  • Do not over-eat and take it easy on the alcohol and bread. These make you feel sluggish and induce drowsiness. Drink lots of water and empty your bladder when the body calls for it.


  • If you are asleep and a meal is offered to you at night, don't take it. Go back to sleep, your stomach and body are in cleansing cycle, purifying the body of the day's toxins. Take the next meal offered, instead.
  • Deep Vein Thrombosis is not a joke. We know some people who have travelled to Sai Baba and have contracted this condition. Take every step to keep yourself agile and reasonably limber. Recently, attempts to sue airlines for this medical condition have been hotly contested. It is the general opinion that the airlines must take reasonable steps to inform you of this condition (watch the videos) but you are responsible for your health.

Airline Vegetarian Meals

You can order meals of your preference when you book your ticket. Most airlines cater for specific religous and vegetarian diets, particularly those that fly in and out of the Near East, and Asia. Most flights that originate from India or terminate in India, will have Indian meals, either Veg, or Non-Veg, as it is called in India.

The information below is offered for your interest. Generally, you should ring and book your meals 48 hours before departure. Alternatively, you can specify this at ticketing, and follow up by checking the meal allocation at the Airline Check-in counter; they can tell you if a special meal has been ordered for you. If it is missing, at least you can have a try to get them to make an arrangement for you.

Airline Vegetarian Meals - General Notes

Note that due recent economic tightening of belts by airlines, these notes below no longer apply to domestic flights by carriers. Few carriers are now offering free hot meals for short domestic flights. Trolleys with snacks which are purchased is quickly becoming the norm for internal domestic flights.

The notes below apply to International travel only.

  • Vegetarian meals in Business Class are reputed to be of better quality than the meals offered in Economy or Thrift Class


  • Most of the larger airlines also offer fruit platters. If you are doing several hops on one airline and order vegetarian on all of them, it is possible to get the same meal several times in one day.
  • If you are in this situation, a suggestion would be to order
  • one vegetarian meal, (VGML)
  • one fruit platter meal (FPML) and
  • either RAW or ASIAN Vegetarian Meals available (RVML)(AVML)

Here are the codes, the various names by which these meals are described and explanations of what is eaten/not eaten by customers who order them:

VGML - Strict/Pure Vegetarian - Non-Dairy - Vegan. "Vegan or pure vegetarians eat no meat or meat products of any type - no fish, fowl or products with lard or gelatin. Dairy products, eggs and honey are not permitted."

VLML - Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian - Vegetarian Lacto-Ovo - Western Vegetarian. "Lacto-Ovo Vegetarians eat no meat or meat products of any type - no fish, fowl or products with lard or gelatin. Diary products and eggs permitted. Cheese should be of the vegetarian type without rennet whenever possible."

AVML - Asian Vegetarian - Asiatic/Indian Vegetarian - Moslem and Hindu Vegetarian. "Asiatic/Indian vegetarian meals are spicy vegetarian combinations which may include limited use of dairy products."

RVML - Raw Vegetarian. "Raw vegetables - combinations of raw fruits and/or vegetables."

An additional note on the characteristics of vegetarians (from Canadian Airlines): "Some vegetarians also incorporate restrictions on other foods and beverages such as alcohol/caffinated beverages, highly processed foods and foods that are grown or processed nonorganically or with certain additives or preservatives."

InFlight Meals:

Meals are divided into

  1. Main Meal
  2. Cold Meal
  3. Hot Breakfast
  4. Snack Meal
  5. Afternoon Tea

AIRLINE VEGETARIAN MEAL CODES

  • VGML (Vegetarian Meal, Non Diary)
  • VLML (Vegetarian Lacto-Ovo Meal) Dairy and Eggs
  • AVML (Asian Vegetarian Meal)
  • IVML (Indian Vegetarian Meal) (Not all airlines have this)
  • SPML (Jain Meal)(Emirates)
  • RVML (Raw Vegetarian Meal)
  • KVML (Kosher Vegetarian Meal)

Other Codes (Singapore Airlines)

  • CVML (Chinese Vegetarian Meal)
  • LVML (Low Fat Vegetarian Meal)
  • VMML (Macrobiotic Vegetarian Meal)

Other Codes (United Airlines)

  • HVML Hindu Vegetarian Meal
  • VGML Vegan Meal

OTHER MEAL CODES - Check if your airline has these.

  • BBML (Baby Meal)
  • BLML (Bland Meal)
  • CHML (Child Meal)
  • DBML (Diabetic Meal)
  • FPML (Fruit Platter Meal)
  • GFML (Gluten Free Meal)
  • HFML (High Fibre Meal)
  • HNML (Hindu meal) * May Have Meat
  • KSML (Kosher Meal)
  • LCML (Low Calorie Meal)
  • LFML (Low Fat/ Low Cholesterol Meal)
  • LPML (Low Protein Meal)
  • LSML (Low Salt Meal)
  • MOML (Moslem Meal)
  • ORML (Oriental Meal)
  • NLML (No Lactose Meal)
  • PRML (Low Purin Meal)
  • SFML (Seafood Meal)
  • SPML (Special Meal, contents vary with specific airlines)

Airline Meal Codes are subject to modifications without prior notice. Here is one web site with extensive notes on meals offered by airlines, updated as recently as April 2, 2006

Airline Vegetarian Meals Website



Sleeping on board

  • Many people find it difficult to sleep during a flight. That’s why many also take sleeping tablets or tranquilizers. But that is not recommended because they interfere with the body’s biological rhythm in an unnatural way and also make it difficult to adjust to a different time zone at the destination.
  • Instead, passengers should try to create conditions that help them fall asleep. Here are a few tips for a relaxed and healthy sleep:
  • Take a cushion with you to prevent cramp in your shoulders and neck. These can be purchased at most airports before departure.
  • A sleeping mask protects your eyes from bright light. Some airlines give this out in First and Business class.
  • Put a cushion behind your back – that relieves the intervertebral discs and prevents back pain.
  • Ask a flight attendant to give you a blanket before you go to sleep so that the air-conditioning won’t make you feel cold and disturb your pleasant dreams.
  • Because feet swell on flights, we recommend that you remove your shoes and put on a pair of thick, warm socks. Again, some airlines supply you with socks to wear.
  • To help you sleep, listen to the in-flight radio program on low volume. Soft music has a relaxing effect and helps you drop off gently.

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