Surprisingly Uneventful: Review of FLL-CHS Silver Airways ATR 72-600

Move over Delta, it’s time for Silver (Airways, not Medallion)! 😉 Photo by: Evan Berman

After a wonderful time in South America, we needed to take one more flight back to Charleston from South Florida. Flying back after Thanksgiving weekend meant that the choices were few and far between. We ended up flying low-cost airline Silver Airways so as to not break the bank!

This recap is part of the larger South American Adventure. For more information on this trip, follow these links:

Intro

24 Hours in New York, NY

Flight: CHS-JFK in Delta Comfort+

New York Hotel

Flight: JFK-SCL in LATAM Economy+

W Santiago Hotel

Hyatt Place Santiago/Vitacura

3 Days in Santiago, Chile

Osaka Santiago, Chile Restaurant Review

Flight: SCL-AEP in AerolĂ­neas Argentinas Economy

Flight: AEP-FTE in AerolĂ­neas Argentinas Economy

Trekking on Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentine Patagonia

El Calafate Hotel

36 Hours in El Calafate, Argentina

Restaurants in El Calafate

Flight: FTE-USH in AerolĂ­neas Argentinas Economy

Flight: USH-AEP in AerolĂ­neas Argentinas Economy

2 Hours in Ushuaia, Argentina

Buenos Aires Homestay

2 Days in Buenos Aires, Argentina

Flight: AEP-SCL in AerolĂ­neas Argentinas Economy

Flight: SCL-MIA in LATAM Business Class

Hyatt Place Ft. Lauderdale/Plantation

Flight: FLL-CHS in Silver Airways Economy Class (This Article)

Conclusion

Flight Info:

Route: FLL-CHS (Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Charleston, South Carolina)

Date: Monday, 11/28/2022

Flight: 3M87 (Silver Airways Flight # 87)

Plane: ATR 72-600

Seat: 3C (Main Cabin Aisle)

Est. Departure: 8:45am EST

Taxiing: 8:59am EST

Takeoff: 9:08am EST

Gate: A4 (Terminal 1)

Est. Arrival: 11:10am EST

Touchdown: 10:59am EST

Arrived at Gate: 11:10am EST

Gate: C3 (Main Terminal)

Pricing:

Maybe next time I’ll get to fly for free! Of course, assuming the gate agent doesn’t detain me first. 😉 Photo by: Evan Berman

Flight: I booked this flight with Silver Airways on their website. You may book Silver flights through their partners, including United but be aware that the Travel Bank cannot be used to purchase codeshare flights (only flights operated by United).

Earnings: 235 United SkyMiles

Flight Info: Class T (Discounted Economy), 472 miles

PQF: 1

PQP: $80

Booking:

Not sure about about “premium seat,” seems like they are all free to select! Photo by: Evan Berman

As mentioned above, I booked this flight through Silver Airways. While I’ve heard terrible reports of random cancellations without notice or support, every other flight was at least $300 for a one-way flight to Charleston. We decided it was worth the risk to fly with Silver. Though I rarely fly United, I made sure to put my United frequent flyer info down to at least earn some redeemable miles.

I have no elite status, but if you have elite status with United or another Star Alliance partner, you may choose to include this frequent flier number instead.

The other consideration is where to credit your flights. I use this helpful website, Where to Credit to determine the best course of action. All you need is the airline and booking class. Look for that on the confirmation email after purchasing or when choosing the specific fare, note the class. In this case, I valued United redeemable miles the most, but you may have a different calculus.

Lounges:

There are many lounges in FLL, including several in Terminal 1, our departing terminal. However, the only ones in Terminal 1 are airline lounges that we do not have access to– United Club and Admiral’s Club. As such, we waited for boarding in the terminal by the gate.

Recap:

This is their famous flamingo livery. Photo by: Evan Berman

We boarded via the back doors, walking outside, rather than using the connected boarding process. A rarity in the US, but common elsewhere for sure.

This plane was a twin-propeller ATR 72-600. For those of you who haven’t flown a twin-prop ever (or at least in a while), let’s talk about the limitations compared to a normal jet plane. Max speed in this plane is only 317 mph, well less than most commercial planes (over 500-600 mph). Additionally, the plane flies lower– we were actually able to spot MCO, Orlando International Airport when flying over, to give an idea of how much lower than the normal 30,000 ft we were.

As you might expect given these limitations, the maximum distance flown is less as well. The flight attendant told us that is theoretically possible to get across the Atlantic but they never do because if any weather occurs, you’re really pushing the limits of the distance that is able to be flown.

Nevertheless, once we were used to the loud noise of the propellers (putt-putt-putt…), the flight was fairly smooth. It helped that we flew in the morning during late November and the conditions were perfect. The flight takes longer than you may imagine given the lack of speed, but we touched down nearly 20 minutes before the estimated arrival.

Unfortunately, we sat on the runway, giving up all that extra time back and exited the plane 20 minutes later. Whomp, whomp.

I selected an aisle seat as I was concerned about not having satisfactory legroom on the window. It turned out not to be a problem at all! I’m 6’2″ with long legs and I was not uncomfortable with my legs under the seat in front of me.

The ATR 72-600 we flew has a 2-2 setup all in economy. There is no differentiating between economy, premium economy, and business class on these small planes.

The legroom was surprisingly quite spacious! Photo by: Evan Berman

Meals:

Our flight took roughly 2 hours, and as is typical with a low cost carrier, we were able to purchase a snack– we did not get anything for free.

Sleep:

On a short early morning flight, I did not sleep at all.

Experience:

Our left propeller. Really makes you appreciate the advances in air travel and technology! Photo by: Evan Berman

My seatmate was a mother with her baby. She apologized that her daughter kept touching me, my water, the seat, etc. but I did not mind. I didn’t know what to do or say though; when her baby started crying, she hit the girl in the face! Not once, but several times. It was effective in getting her to stop, but there has to be another way, right?

Customs:

As this was a domestic flight, there were no customs.

Recap:

After a delightful vacation in South America, it was time to return home. For the last leg, we flew low-cost carrier Silver Airways on their twin-prop airplane. The flight went shockingly smooth. I wouldn’t go out of my way to fly Silver in the future, but I would have more confidence going forward. Next up: a recap of this trip followed by the next trip report. Stay tuned for my time in Norway!