Congratulations to British Airways (BA) for ensuring that my return flight from Stockholm to London last night was only 30 minutes late.
Needless to say, no explanation was provided.
I guess that counts as an improvement in customer service?
Showing posts with label london. Show all posts
Showing posts with label london. Show all posts
Monday, 18 February 2008
Late Again! II
Congratulations to British Airways (BA) for ensuring that my return flight from Stockholm to London last night was only 30 minutes late.
Needless to say, no explanation was provided.
I guess that counts as an improvement in customer service?
Thursday, 7 February 2008
Money Well Spent
Congratulations to British Airways for spending £40M, in order to secure the rights to use the much derided "Lisa Simpson Gives Head" London Olympics logo.
Money well spent!
Money well spent!
Wednesday, 30 January 2008
Storm Clouds Ahead
Personnel Today reports that British Airways' (BA) new human resources director, Tony McCarthy, has been warned that he will face "long-term problems" if he cannot find a solution to the dispute over the airline's plans for a subsidiary, Open Skies, in mainland Europe.
The British Air Line Pilots Association (Balpa) are to ballot of its members this week, on whether to hold strikes over the plan.
The pilots do not like the BA proposal to have a separate pool of pilots for Open Skies.
A Balpa spokesman told Personnel Today:
"We very much hope we can get an agreement on this, but if we cannot then it is going to be a long-term problem for the company - in particular for its HR team."
The informal conversations that I held with various members of staff, on the long haul flights I took between London/Beijing this year (eg see letter sent to Willie Walsh), indicate that there is a very high degree of dissatisfaction amongst the staff with BA.
There are storm clouds ahead.
It will be in the interests of everyone (staff, customers and BA) that BA find a way to fly around them.
The British Air Line Pilots Association (Balpa) are to ballot of its members this week, on whether to hold strikes over the plan.
The pilots do not like the BA proposal to have a separate pool of pilots for Open Skies.
A Balpa spokesman told Personnel Today:
"We very much hope we can get an agreement on this, but if we cannot then it is going to be a long-term problem for the company - in particular for its HR team."
The informal conversations that I held with various members of staff, on the long haul flights I took between London/Beijing this year (eg see letter sent to Willie Walsh), indicate that there is a very high degree of dissatisfaction amongst the staff with BA.
There are storm clouds ahead.
It will be in the interests of everyone (staff, customers and BA) that BA find a way to fly around them.
Sunday, 30 December 2007
Equality
On BA all customers are treated as equal, except some are more equal than others if this report in the Daily Mail is anything to go by:
British Airways was accused last night of giving preferential treatment to celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay after allowing his son to fly with him on a New Year family holiday to Thailand on an invalid passport.
A businessman, whose passport also breached international aviation rules, was barred from the same flight.
As the multi-millionaire star of TV shows Kitchen Nightmares And The F Word checked in at Heathrow with his wife Tana and their four children on Thursday night, staff noticed his eight-year-old son Jack's passport was 18 days over the six-month expiry date rule for international travel.
They told Ramsay that the boy could be denied entry by Thai immigration officials when the family landed at Bangkok.
But Ramsay, who had booked six £6,000 first-class returns, said he would risk it and boarded the flight with Tana, Jack and the boy's sisters Megan, Holly and Matilda.
However, the furious business executive, whose passport was also due to expire in less than six months, was not allowed to board.
Asking not to be named, he said last night:
"There's one rule for Gordon Ramsay and another for everyone else."
The passenger, from West London, had been visiting his wife's relatives in America and the couple were planning to spend New Year in Thailand.
He eventually cleared his passport with Thai authorities and flew out on Friday night on another BA flight.
He said:
"Technically, they were right, but it seemed harsh, as I had been cleared to fly from Boston into London.
I heard BA staff saying Gordon Ramsay's son had just got on the plane and his passport had less than six months before it expired – which put him in the same position as me.
I took the matter up with the customer services manager.
He said he had been on the plane to check the passport of Gordon Ramsay's son and that, in fact, it was in order.
I can't believe he lied to me. I will be writing a letter of complaint to BA."
British Airways said:
"Because Jack was part of a family of six about to go on holiday, the decision was taken to allow him to travel.
The risk that he would be denied entry to Thailand was fully explained to his parents, who said they would accept the risk.
This was a very difficult decision and we accept that another customer, who was denied boarding on the same flight, might regard it as unfair.
However, we remind customers that it is their responsibility to ensure they have the correct passport and visas before travelling."
A spokesman for Ramsay refused to comment.
British Airways was accused last night of giving preferential treatment to celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay after allowing his son to fly with him on a New Year family holiday to Thailand on an invalid passport.
A businessman, whose passport also breached international aviation rules, was barred from the same flight.
As the multi-millionaire star of TV shows Kitchen Nightmares And The F Word checked in at Heathrow with his wife Tana and their four children on Thursday night, staff noticed his eight-year-old son Jack's passport was 18 days over the six-month expiry date rule for international travel.
They told Ramsay that the boy could be denied entry by Thai immigration officials when the family landed at Bangkok.
But Ramsay, who had booked six £6,000 first-class returns, said he would risk it and boarded the flight with Tana, Jack and the boy's sisters Megan, Holly and Matilda.
However, the furious business executive, whose passport was also due to expire in less than six months, was not allowed to board.
Asking not to be named, he said last night:
"There's one rule for Gordon Ramsay and another for everyone else."
The passenger, from West London, had been visiting his wife's relatives in America and the couple were planning to spend New Year in Thailand.
He eventually cleared his passport with Thai authorities and flew out on Friday night on another BA flight.
He said:
"Technically, they were right, but it seemed harsh, as I had been cleared to fly from Boston into London.
I heard BA staff saying Gordon Ramsay's son had just got on the plane and his passport had less than six months before it expired – which put him in the same position as me.
I took the matter up with the customer services manager.
He said he had been on the plane to check the passport of Gordon Ramsay's son and that, in fact, it was in order.
I can't believe he lied to me. I will be writing a letter of complaint to BA."
British Airways said:
"Because Jack was part of a family of six about to go on holiday, the decision was taken to allow him to travel.
The risk that he would be denied entry to Thailand was fully explained to his parents, who said they would accept the risk.
This was a very difficult decision and we accept that another customer, who was denied boarding on the same flight, might regard it as unfair.
However, we remind customers that it is their responsibility to ensure they have the correct passport and visas before travelling."
A spokesman for Ramsay refused to comment.
Tuesday, 13 November 2007
BA's Ghost Planes
Having upped fuel surcharges, BA is also flying empty planes across the Atlantic.
The airline industry is truly a law unto itself!
Source Telegraph:
British Airways is shuttling dozens of empty planes across the Atlantic because it has a shortage of cabin crew, it has emerged.
The "phantom" services have been flying between Britain and Canada and the US over the past two weeks in order to retain valuable slots at London's airports.
Several BA passenger flights took off without a single passenger, using up thousands of tonnes of jet fuel.
advertisementThe news emerged as the airline passed on the soaring cost of oil to customers by increasing its fuel surcharge on all flights.
Environmentalists accused the airline of "hypocrisy", saying the strategy underlined the aviation sector's indifference to the fight against global warming.
On Nov 4, BA flight 179 crossed the Atlantic to New York completely empty.
Another passengerless jet, BA flight 176, later flew back from the US to Heathrow airport.
According to ITV News, two further empty planes left Heathrow at the weekend - flights 093 to Toronto and 279 to Los Angeles.
At least two other empty flights - including one from Gatwick to Houston, Texas - have departed in recent days, it was reported.
A spokesman for British Airways admitted the airline had been having problems rostering cabin crew.
"We are trying to minimise disruption to customers," he added.
BA operates the empty services to avoid losing its take-off and landing slots under "use it or lose it" rules at the London airports.
Some of the aircraft are thought to be Boeing 747s, which when full carry between 500 and 600 passengers. Every return flight from London to New York generates about 1.3 tonnes of CO2.
A spokesman from Greenpeace said: "It's pretty outrageous that BA are flying these empty flights half way across the world whilst saying they’re trying to cut down on CO2 emissions.
"They should be setting a leading example. Thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide are being leaked out needlessly just so they can keep their slots."
Meanwhile, BA announced fuel surcharges would go up from £8 to £10 on short-haul flights, while passengers on flights of up to nine hours face a £48 fuel charge – a £10 increase.
BA raised the fuel surcharge on longer flights by £15, adding £58 to the price of a ticket.
Last night the airline said it had no alternative but to increase the cost of air travel, with some speculators prepared to bet on crude oil prices doubling by December next year.
Earlier this year it emerged that BMI, which operates as a British Airways franchise - was also running "ghost planes", between Cardiff and Heathrow.
BMI announced in March that it would scrap the six-times-a-week shuttle when it switched to a new timetable.
The flights were run by British Mediterranean Airways (BMed), a struggling carrier that operates as a British Airways franchise and runs services under the BA brand to destinations including Beirut and Teheran. It was taken over this year by BMI.
The airline industry is truly a law unto itself!
Source Telegraph:
British Airways is shuttling dozens of empty planes across the Atlantic because it has a shortage of cabin crew, it has emerged.
The "phantom" services have been flying between Britain and Canada and the US over the past two weeks in order to retain valuable slots at London's airports.
Several BA passenger flights took off without a single passenger, using up thousands of tonnes of jet fuel.
advertisementThe news emerged as the airline passed on the soaring cost of oil to customers by increasing its fuel surcharge on all flights.
Environmentalists accused the airline of "hypocrisy", saying the strategy underlined the aviation sector's indifference to the fight against global warming.
On Nov 4, BA flight 179 crossed the Atlantic to New York completely empty.
Another passengerless jet, BA flight 176, later flew back from the US to Heathrow airport.
According to ITV News, two further empty planes left Heathrow at the weekend - flights 093 to Toronto and 279 to Los Angeles.
At least two other empty flights - including one from Gatwick to Houston, Texas - have departed in recent days, it was reported.
A spokesman for British Airways admitted the airline had been having problems rostering cabin crew.
"We are trying to minimise disruption to customers," he added.
BA operates the empty services to avoid losing its take-off and landing slots under "use it or lose it" rules at the London airports.
Some of the aircraft are thought to be Boeing 747s, which when full carry between 500 and 600 passengers. Every return flight from London to New York generates about 1.3 tonnes of CO2.
A spokesman from Greenpeace said: "It's pretty outrageous that BA are flying these empty flights half way across the world whilst saying they’re trying to cut down on CO2 emissions.
"They should be setting a leading example. Thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide are being leaked out needlessly just so they can keep their slots."
Meanwhile, BA announced fuel surcharges would go up from £8 to £10 on short-haul flights, while passengers on flights of up to nine hours face a £48 fuel charge – a £10 increase.
BA raised the fuel surcharge on longer flights by £15, adding £58 to the price of a ticket.
Last night the airline said it had no alternative but to increase the cost of air travel, with some speculators prepared to bet on crude oil prices doubling by December next year.
Earlier this year it emerged that BMI, which operates as a British Airways franchise - was also running "ghost planes", between Cardiff and Heathrow.
BMI announced in March that it would scrap the six-times-a-week shuttle when it switched to a new timetable.
The flights were run by British Mediterranean Airways (BMed), a struggling carrier that operates as a British Airways franchise and runs services under the BA brand to destinations including Beirut and Teheran. It was taken over this year by BMI.
Wednesday, 31 October 2007
Surf's Up
It seems that BA have managed to piss off the surfing community:
"Since British Airways (BA) announced a ban on surfboards on all flights (effective from 6th Nov), the surf community across the world has been reacting to the shock new position and taking decisive action to push for a reversal on the decision.
In hoards, surfers from across the globe, including the World Number One, Mick Fanning, have been signing up to a global petition created by the British Surfing Association (BSA) and international governing bodies, key surf brands and thousands of individuals have been issuing statements and joining a group on the social networking site, Facebook.
Until now BA has had a reputation for being one of the most surfer friendly airlines but last weekend their new ruling stated that surfboards, alongside other items such as hang gliders, windsurfing boards and sails, kayaks or canoes, pole vaults or javelins, will no longer be accepted as baggage on any flights on the extensive BA network.
At the same time, BA proudly announced that it would be loosening any restrictions on their carriage of skis, snowboards, cycles, diving equipment and even guns, amongst other items. At the recent Ski and Snowboard Show in London, BA was advertising its allegiance to snow sports and pushing its free carriage of snow related equipment on all flights. "
Source Golbal Surf News
"Since British Airways (BA) announced a ban on surfboards on all flights (effective from 6th Nov), the surf community across the world has been reacting to the shock new position and taking decisive action to push for a reversal on the decision.
In hoards, surfers from across the globe, including the World Number One, Mick Fanning, have been signing up to a global petition created by the British Surfing Association (BSA) and international governing bodies, key surf brands and thousands of individuals have been issuing statements and joining a group on the social networking site, Facebook.
Until now BA has had a reputation for being one of the most surfer friendly airlines but last weekend their new ruling stated that surfboards, alongside other items such as hang gliders, windsurfing boards and sails, kayaks or canoes, pole vaults or javelins, will no longer be accepted as baggage on any flights on the extensive BA network.
At the same time, BA proudly announced that it would be loosening any restrictions on their carriage of skis, snowboards, cycles, diving equipment and even guns, amongst other items. At the recent Ski and Snowboard Show in London, BA was advertising its allegiance to snow sports and pushing its free carriage of snow related equipment on all flights. "
Source Golbal Surf News
Tuesday, 23 October 2007
Spectacular Scottish Collapse
The Scotsman puts the boot into BA's reputation wrt its worsening punctuality in Scotland, calling it a "rapid and spectacular collapse".
It goes on to say that passengers would be better off flying with BMI or Easyjet, or even using the train. Then, for good measure, it castigates BA for being bottom of the league for lost baggage:
"Already among Britain's least punctual carriers, BA is being trounced by its rivals on every single route between Scotland and London. It is significantly worse than its competitors at every airport, on every route and in each direction.
A business traveller in Scotland wanting to be in a meeting in London is much more likely to arrive on time with BMI at Heathrow, EasyJet at Gatwick or ScotAirways at London City. The most reliable option of all is travelling by train, where 87.5 per cent of GNER trains between Edinburgh and London Kings Cross were on time in the first six months of this year, with a similar number for Virgin West Coast services between Glasgow and London Euston.
And even when BA passengers eventually reach their destination, they are less likely to arrive with their baggage - BA is bottom of the European league tables for lost luggage, according to data from the Air Transport Users Council.
Remember that mountain of 20,000 bags that built up at Heathrow in July?
Some of them still haven't been delivered to their owners."
Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland, has even tabled a motion in the House of Commons calling on management to restore levels of service in Scotland.
When will BA realise that they neglect their customers at their peril.
It goes on to say that passengers would be better off flying with BMI or Easyjet, or even using the train. Then, for good measure, it castigates BA for being bottom of the league for lost baggage:
"Already among Britain's least punctual carriers, BA is being trounced by its rivals on every single route between Scotland and London. It is significantly worse than its competitors at every airport, on every route and in each direction.
A business traveller in Scotland wanting to be in a meeting in London is much more likely to arrive on time with BMI at Heathrow, EasyJet at Gatwick or ScotAirways at London City. The most reliable option of all is travelling by train, where 87.5 per cent of GNER trains between Edinburgh and London Kings Cross were on time in the first six months of this year, with a similar number for Virgin West Coast services between Glasgow and London Euston.
And even when BA passengers eventually reach their destination, they are less likely to arrive with their baggage - BA is bottom of the European league tables for lost luggage, according to data from the Air Transport Users Council.
Remember that mountain of 20,000 bags that built up at Heathrow in July?
Some of them still haven't been delivered to their owners."
Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland, has even tabled a motion in the House of Commons calling on management to restore levels of service in Scotland.
When will BA realise that they neglect their customers at their peril.
Tuesday, 11 September 2007
The Return From Beijing
As with my flight to Beijing on British Airways, my return flight to London had a number of shortcomings that the executive team at BA need to address:
The value of BA lies in:
-Its routes
-The quality of its on board infrastructure
-The quality of its staff
The latter two qualities are being seriously neglected by the executive team at British Airways, resulting in severe damage to the brand value of the company and an increase in customer dissatisfaction.
It is time that the executive team at BA addressed these issues, in order to reverse the damage that it has inflicted on its brand value and customer loyalty.
- The opening news video shown on channel 1, on the ancient inflight "entertainment" system, had no sound. I was advised that this was a fault with the tape, and that nothing could be done about it.
- The picture quality on all channels was not that good/clear.
- Again, no chutney with the curry. Come on guys, at least you can get this right!
- The sandwich selection was hardly inspiring; cheese and tomato, or ham. Both of these were offered on somewhat dry white bread, that had been buttered only on one side.
The value of BA lies in:
-Its routes
-The quality of its on board infrastructure
-The quality of its staff
The latter two qualities are being seriously neglected by the executive team at British Airways, resulting in severe damage to the brand value of the company and an increase in customer dissatisfaction.
It is time that the executive team at BA addressed these issues, in order to reverse the damage that it has inflicted on its brand value and customer loyalty.
Monday, 10 September 2007
Missing Airmiles IX
Sent to BA, still chasing the missing airmiles!
"I would appreciate an update as to the status of this please.
I am on the Beijing to London flight tomorrow 11th, and will follow this up by other means if necessary when back in UK.
Thanks
Regards
Ken Frost"
"I would appreciate an update as to the status of this please.
I am on the Beijing to London flight tomorrow 11th, and will follow this up by other means if necessary when back in UK.
Thanks
Regards
Ken Frost"
Saturday, 8 September 2007
Saturday, 1 September 2007
The Flight to Beijing
I took my flight from London to Beijing today, regrettably many of the issues that I had raised before with Britsh Airways had not been addressed:
- The "passenger infrastructure" on the plane was worn and dated. Seat 2F near to my seat needed two crew members to physically perform a mid air repair, in order for the head rest section to work.
- The menu offered soup, yet none was actually available. Why? Seemingly the soup was never delivered to the plane, as it could not get through security in time! This is more than a little odd, as the plane was 30 minutes late for boarding.
- Again, despite telling BA before about this, there was no chutney onboard for the curry. I made do with marmalade.
- The cabin temperature was too cold.
- The crew were helpful and courteous. However, those that I spoke to confessed that they were fed up with having to apologise to customers for the failures of the company to meet the expectations of the customers.
- I understand that the much lauded "roll out" of the new cabins and in flight entertainment systems has hit a snag. Seemingly there is one British Airways plane crossing the Atlantic that has an in flight entertainment system that does not work. That must make an "amusing" six hours for the hapless customers onboard that particular flight!
- The inflight entertainment system was good 15 years ago, but now looks dated and well past its prime. The roll out of the new system needs to be completed with haste.
Tuesday, 28 August 2007
BA's Pricing
Now here's a funny thing, concerning the price quoted on the BA website for a first class return flight London/Beijing.
I was quoted a price of over £6500, were I to book a BA flight using the BA website.
However, the travel agency that I use quoted me a price of £4900 for the same flights. That is a saving of approximately 25%.
I wonder why there is such a discrepancy in quotes, given that the travel agency would still have to make a commission?
Needless to say, I made the reservation using the travel agency rather than the BA site.
I was quoted a price of over £6500, were I to book a BA flight using the BA website.
However, the travel agency that I use quoted me a price of £4900 for the same flights. That is a saving of approximately 25%.
I wonder why there is such a discrepancy in quotes, given that the travel agency would still have to make a commission?
Needless to say, I made the reservation using the travel agency rather than the BA site.
Monday, 30 April 2007
London Beijing Response
I finally received a response to my letter sent to Willie Walsh, the response was dated 30th April 2007 (some 6 weeks after my original letter).
The response was from BA's customer relations, here are a few excerpts:
"I realise that we did not meet the high level of customer service you would expect from British Airways."
"I recognise that we got the balance wrong on the day that you were travelling and this is unacceptable..."
"It will take a little while to roll out the new in-flight entertainment system on all our aircraft..."
"We greatly value our first class customers and we would like to offer you our apologies."
FYI, I have just used the London/Beijing BA service (September 2007); absolutely nothing has changed wrt on board entertainment, the quality of the seats or indeed the availability of chutney.
More about that in another post.
The response was from BA's customer relations, here are a few excerpts:
"I realise that we did not meet the high level of customer service you would expect from British Airways."
"I recognise that we got the balance wrong on the day that you were travelling and this is unacceptable..."
"It will take a little while to roll out the new in-flight entertainment system on all our aircraft..."
"We greatly value our first class customers and we would like to offer you our apologies."
FYI, I have just used the London/Beijing BA service (September 2007); absolutely nothing has changed wrt on board entertainment, the quality of the seats or indeed the availability of chutney.
More about that in another post.
Saturday, 17 March 2007
London Beijing March 2007
Text of a letter sent to Willie Walsh CEO of BA on 17 March 2007
"Dear Mr Walsh,
I would like to provide you with a few observations about my recent “first class” return trip (London-Beijing) on BA (8th March-12th March):
· The standard of the Heathrow lounge was not what I would expect for first class; it does not compare favourably wrt the facilities, or indeed size, of lounges offered by other airlines eg Virgin.
· There were only two Internet workstations in the London and Beijing lounge. In the Beijing lounge, one of the Internet workstations was out of order.
· The theory of the London lounge, as best as I can make out, is that customers sit down and are served by BA staff. Unfortunately, those customers who did not sit in the immediate vicinity of the bar were not able to attract the attention of staff for service, as there weren’t any staff in the non-bar area. I had to go to the bar to find anyone willing to serve me.
· The entertainment system on both flights did not work that well. The outgoing flight could not show the safety video, as the system had a malfunction. The quality of the picture on both flights was poor, and on some of the channels (outgoing and inbound) the video didn’t work at all.
· The remote control in the armrest on my outgoing flight was stuck, and had to be extracted by the cabin crew with a butter knife. Very high tech!
· In trying to manually extend the footrest on my seat, I managed to impale and cut my finger on a sharp piece of metal that was protruding from underneath the edge of the footrest.
· One member of staff, who was so ashamed by the quality, told me with head bowed in shame that the system was “out of the ark”. I would concur, as other airlines, such as Singapore and Virgin, used to have the same systems back in the early/mid nineties; they have long since upgraded them. I was advised that that the systems will be upgraded, but was also told that this same message has been repeated for quite some time. Having paid £6K for my ticket, hearing of future plans is of little interest to me.
· On both flights a curry was served, yet no chutneys were available. I improvised with marmalade. BA makes great efforts to tell me in the menu that the recipes are designed by world-class chefs. That being the case, why did I have to resort to using marmalade?
· The quality of the staff on both flights, and their customer care/attention, was good. They were all embarrassed by the poor state of the technology and equipment on board.
BA’s last remaining asset that has not been tarnished by strikes, security delays, delays in general and out of date entertainment systems, would appear to be its staff. However, if they are embarrased and ashamed of their company I wonder how long you will retain their loyalty?
Reputations are hard to earn, but easy to lose.
In brief, I do not think that the “first class” description equates to the price I paid, or the competition that BA faces. I will be travelling on a more regular basis to Beijing over the coming months/years, but will be (subject to schedules) looking to other airlines to get me there and back.
In my view, there are a number of issues that you need to address if BA is to retain the much tested “loyalty” of their customers, whether they travel economy, business or first.
I would be interested to hear you views on the above, and what steps BA will be taking in the short term to address these issues.
Thank you for your time.
Yours sincerely,
Ken Frost"
"Dear Mr Walsh,
I would like to provide you with a few observations about my recent “first class” return trip (London-Beijing) on BA (8th March-12th March):
· The standard of the Heathrow lounge was not what I would expect for first class; it does not compare favourably wrt the facilities, or indeed size, of lounges offered by other airlines eg Virgin.
· There were only two Internet workstations in the London and Beijing lounge. In the Beijing lounge, one of the Internet workstations was out of order.
· The theory of the London lounge, as best as I can make out, is that customers sit down and are served by BA staff. Unfortunately, those customers who did not sit in the immediate vicinity of the bar were not able to attract the attention of staff for service, as there weren’t any staff in the non-bar area. I had to go to the bar to find anyone willing to serve me.
· The entertainment system on both flights did not work that well. The outgoing flight could not show the safety video, as the system had a malfunction. The quality of the picture on both flights was poor, and on some of the channels (outgoing and inbound) the video didn’t work at all.
· The remote control in the armrest on my outgoing flight was stuck, and had to be extracted by the cabin crew with a butter knife. Very high tech!
· In trying to manually extend the footrest on my seat, I managed to impale and cut my finger on a sharp piece of metal that was protruding from underneath the edge of the footrest.
· One member of staff, who was so ashamed by the quality, told me with head bowed in shame that the system was “out of the ark”. I would concur, as other airlines, such as Singapore and Virgin, used to have the same systems back in the early/mid nineties; they have long since upgraded them. I was advised that that the systems will be upgraded, but was also told that this same message has been repeated for quite some time. Having paid £6K for my ticket, hearing of future plans is of little interest to me.
· On both flights a curry was served, yet no chutneys were available. I improvised with marmalade. BA makes great efforts to tell me in the menu that the recipes are designed by world-class chefs. That being the case, why did I have to resort to using marmalade?
· The quality of the staff on both flights, and their customer care/attention, was good. They were all embarrassed by the poor state of the technology and equipment on board.
BA’s last remaining asset that has not been tarnished by strikes, security delays, delays in general and out of date entertainment systems, would appear to be its staff. However, if they are embarrased and ashamed of their company I wonder how long you will retain their loyalty?
Reputations are hard to earn, but easy to lose.
In brief, I do not think that the “first class” description equates to the price I paid, or the competition that BA faces. I will be travelling on a more regular basis to Beijing over the coming months/years, but will be (subject to schedules) looking to other airlines to get me there and back.
In my view, there are a number of issues that you need to address if BA is to retain the much tested “loyalty” of their customers, whether they travel economy, business or first.
I would be interested to hear you views on the above, and what steps BA will be taking in the short term to address these issues.
Thank you for your time.
Yours sincerely,
Ken Frost"
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