London Air Travel

BA Club World London Heathrow – Miami

A review of British Airways Club World on the Boeing 747 from London Heathrow to Miami.

Miami South Beach (Image Credit: London Air Travel)

London Heathrow – Miami is a good illustration of the vagaries of flying BA.

BA operates three return flights a day, all now with a Boeing 747 so passengers should know with confidence to expect. Right? Well, not quite.

It’s perfectly feasible that three groups of passengers all taking different BA flights on the same day could each report different experiences.

The reason being that only some of the 52 Club World seat aircraft that serve this route have been fully refurbished with new in-flight entertainment systems. Some have had just a light interior refresh. Others have not been refurbished at all in ten years due to their imminent retirement. And you’ll only know what you’re getting once you’ve stepped on board the aircraft.

Let’s take a look at one early morning departure from London Heathrow Terminal 3:

Pre-departure

After a quick check-in at a reasonably busy Heathrow Terminal 3 for an early morning, it’s to the lounge.

It’s received wisdom that any passengers flying Oneworld from Terminal 3 with lounge access should head to either the Cathay Pacific or Qantas lounges.

However if you want to download reading material from PressReader at the airport you need to use the BA lounge WiFi. A couple of tips: you do need allow for a generous amount of space on your device and a good amount of time to download as it does take more than a few minutes.

To boarding, BA has for some time been using the grouping system for boarding aircraft. One weakness is that the relative numbers of passengers eligible for Group 1 boarding can vary widely by route. As Miami is an American Airlines stronghold, there are a lot of Oneworld Emerald cardholders eligible for Group 1 boarding on this route.

London Air Travel’s Atlantic Update – 12 June 2019

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New York Skyline (Image Credit: London Air Travel)

Hello and welcome to London Air Travel’s Atlantic Update providing a weekly bulletin on developments on transatlantic travel between Europe and North America. The Atlantic Update is published every Wednesday morning at 06:00 GMT.

The Death of the New York “Power Lunch”

New York’s Four Seasons restaurant closed for the final time yesterday, Tuesday 11 June.

The Four Seasons restaurant originally opened in 1959 in the Seagram building in New York. After a difficult start, it became the ultimate symbol of the New York “Power Lunch”, a term coined in 1979 by former Esquire editor Lee Eisenberg.

The point was not the food, but to do deals over elongated lunches in its Grill Room and to see and be seen amongst Wall Street deal makers, editors from Conde Nast, TV news anchors, fashion designers and politicians.

The Four Seasons left the Seagram building in 2016 – its contents were sold for over $4m at auction – and reopened last year on East 49th Street. Times have of course changed. Expense accounts are not what they were. Profligacy is frowned upon. Formal lunches are an anathema to Facebook and Google who now occupy vast swathes of New York real estate. Deals are not done over lunch but at informal meetings and over Skype.

Also in New York:

Uber has announced plans to launch “Ubercopter” which will offer helicopter rides between Manhattan and New York JFK from Tuesday 9 July 2019. Trips will cost in the region of $200-$225. Access will be restricted Platinum or Diamond Uber Rewards users. You also won’t be able to take checked luggage with you. This is the wrong solution to Manhattan’s poor links to JFK – what it needs is direct rail line.

The Museum of Modern Art closes temporarily on Sunday 16 June 2019 for a $450m remodelling. The museum will reopen on Monday 21 October 2019. It promises free access to ground floor galleries, improved traffic flows between floors, additional space for permanent collections and better representation of artist diversity. (MoMA)

It’s conventional wisdom that New York is best avoided in summer due to the stifling heat. However, the markedly more relaxed atmosphere as locals leave for the summer does have its attractions. There are also many free film screenings in Bryant Park, Hudson River Park and many other New York City parks.

Whereas London spreads outwards, Manhattan simply goes up higher. New York’s skyscraper boom. (New York Times)

Citylab on the nostalgic escape offered by the newly opened TWA Hotel at New York JFK. (CityLab)

Also of note this week:

One of the very few bright spots in rail travel in America are Amtrak’s Acela trains which operate between Boston, New York and Washington. CBS News takes a look inside Amtrack’s next generation train which will enter service in 2021. (CBS News)

London Air Travel’s Atlantic Update is published every Wednesday at 06:00 GMT. If you have any comments, suggestions or tips then please drop us a line at mail [@] londonairtravel.com

You can follow us on Twitter for breaking news throughout the day. Also, please join us on Monday for our weekly Monday Briefing.

BA Club World Upper Deck Seating Changes

BA has introduced further changes to its pricing structure for the selection of seats in Club World.

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British Airways Airbus A380 Club World cabin (Image Credit: British Airways)

A couple of weeks ago we reported that BA had introduced a new pricing structure for seat selection charges on the main deck of Club World.

BA has introduced a new set of six price points for selecting a seat, and these are detailed here.

It was expected that further changes would be forthcoming for the Upper Deck. BA has today, Tuesday 11 June 2019, implemented a new pricing structure for the Upper Deck of the Airbus A380. This has a relatively marginal different configuration of 2-3-2 rather than 2-4-2 on the main deck. Window seats also have storage bins.

Using a flight to Vancouver as an example, there are now separate charges for seat pairs by the window and lower charges for the centre seats. All of these Upper Deck seats were previously priced at £105. Now the centre seats attract a lower, albeit very modestly so in the grand scheme of things, price of £95 to select a seat.

On the main deck of this flight, seat selection charges range from £79 to £105.

British Airways Airbus A380 Upper Deck Vancouver Seat Map

Note that these changes only apply to passengers making new bookings. Passengers with existing bookings will not see any changes. Seat selection charges will also vary by route. At present, pricing of the much smaller Upper Deck of the Boeing 747 appears to be unchanged.

London Air Travel’s Monday Briefing – 10 June 2019

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British Airways Airbus A350-1000, Toulouse

Welcome to our Monday Briefing for the week beginning 10 June 2019.

Airbus Prepares A321XLR Aircraft

The Paris Air show gets underway next Monday.

Airbus is widely expected to unveil its Airbus A321XLR aircraft, the latest variant of its largest single range aircraft. Bloomberg reports that American Airlines is considering this as a replacement for the Boeing 757. It is claimed Airbus A321XLR would be capable of flying from American’s principal hub in Dallas Fort Worth to Central Europe – where its presence is weak due to the lack of Oneworld alliance partners.

In the UK, American currently uses the 757 aircraft to fly seasonally from Edinburgh to Philadelphia. American has cut its presence at UK regional airports, notably Manchester, and this may help it reinstate previously suspended routes.

IAG has also been cited as a potential purchaser, but is likely to want to see how the Airbus A321LR performs for Aer Lingus first.

On an Airbus related note, every month it publishes an updated list of aircraft orders and deliveries.

Based on the update for May published last week, BA has reduced its orders for Airbus A320neo aircraft from 25 to 22 aircraft and increased Airbus A321neo aircraft from 10 to 13 aircraft. Based at London Heathrow, the Airbus A321neo has a capacity for 220 passengers, compared to 180 for the Airbus A320neo.

Staying with BA and Airbus, BA’s first Airbus A350-1000 aircraft emerged in its full Chatham Dockyward livery in Toulouse last week. The airline has not yet confirmed the exact delivery date to London Heathrow and will do so when Airbus gives one months’ notice. You will be seeing more of BA’s Airbus A350-1000 in production as Title Role Productions (who produced “British Airways: 100 Years In The Sky” for Channel 5 last year) have been filming in Toulouse for a forthcoming TV series recently.

The Boeing 747 Centenary Flights That Weren’t

There was a blip last week in what has so far been a well choreographed year of BA centenary celebrations.

BA has removed from its schedules three Boeing 747 flights to Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle on the day of its centenary, Sunday 25 August 2019.

BA described as coverage of these flights as “speculation”, a common form of non-denial denial. What exactly has happened behind the scenes isn’t known. However, the airline may have been deterred by negative coverage – written by some who really should know better – of the environmental impact.

UK Bank Holidays

The Government has announced that the next early May Bank holiday will be moved from Monday 4 May to Friday 8 May 2020 to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day.

Alas, Prime Minister Theresa May did not feel inclined to give the UK an extra public holiday as parting gift.

BA Boeing 747 Centenary Flights Update

British Airways is offering passengers who have booked flights to Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle that were scheduled with a Boeing 747 on Sunday 25 August a refund.

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British Airways Boeing 747 Centenary Tailfins (Image Credit: British Airways)

Last week we reported that BA had scheduled Boeing 747 aircraft on selected UK domestic flights from London Heathrow to Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle on the day of its centenary, Sunday 25 August 2019.

This did come with the caveat that BA had made no official announcement about these flights. These flights have attracted a lot of interest and a week later BA has today, Friday 7 June 2019, issued the following statement to the travel trade:

We’ve been exploring a number of options to put our customers at the heart of our birthday weekend celebrations, but we still haven’t confirmed any plans.

We haven’t revealed any of the details of our birthday weekend so far. Some aviation websites made a guess at what we were planning, but we were very clear that this was speculation.

We are still considering our options for that weekend and will release details in due course.

Clearly, some passengers may have booked these flights (in some cases for the cost of a transatlantic flight) hoping for special celebrations on board.

BA is now offering passengers who booked a Boeing 747 flight from London Heathrow to Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle on Sunday 25 August between 30 May and 7 June 2019 and no longer wish to travel a refund.

Affected passengers should contact BA or their travel agent.

Passengers can check the status of their booking using the Manage My Booking tool on ba.com

Update: Many passengers are now receiving e-mails from BA advising that these flights will no longer be operated with a Boeing 747 aircraft. So the plan for special flights appears to have been cancelled entirely.

British Airways London Gatwick – New York JFK Cancellations

British Airways has cancelled its daily service from London Gatwick to New York JFK from Tuesday 14 January to Monday 10 February 2020.

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Manhattan at Sunrise (Image Credit: London Air Travel)

You have reached an article that contains now out of date information on disruption at British Airways. It has been maintained in case readers require historical flight information. Please find below our latest articles on disruption at British Airways:

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British Airways has cancelled its daily service from London Gatwick to New York JFK from Tuesday 14 January to Monday 10 February 2020.

The affected flight numbers are BA2273 from London Gatwick to New York JFK and BA2272 from New York JFK to London Gatwick.

No specific reason has been given for the cancellations other than “commercial reasons” which suggests low seasonal demand.

Passengers whose flights have been cancelled are entitled to a full refund. Passengers can also be re-accommodated on alternative American Airlines and BA services from London Heathrow. However, any additional costs such as ground transportation and hotels will be at passengers’ expense.

Passengers can check the status of their booking using the Manage My Booking tool on ba.com

Affected passengers should contact BA or their travel agent.

London Air Travel’s Atlantic Update – 5 June 2019

A weekly bulletin on transatlantic travel, published every Wednesday at 06:00 BST.

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Hudson River Park New York (Image Credit: London Air Travel)

TAP Air Portugal Begins Airbus A321 Long Range Transatlantic Flights

TAP Air Portugal has begun operating the Airbus A321 Long Range aircraft on transatlantic flights from Porto to Newark.

The inaugural flight was last Saturday, 1 June 2019. TAP is the first airline to operate the aircraft on transatlantic routes. It has 14 of the aircraft on order and has cited the potential to launch more routes to the East Coast of the USA. TAP’s A321 Long Range aircraft is configured with 16 seats in business class in an alternating 2-2 / 1-1 configuration and 152 seats in economy.

Aer Lingus has 8 Airbus A321 Long Range aircraft on order. However, the routes on which they will operate is in a state of flux as deliveries have been delayed. Norwegian also has 22 of the aircraft on order, initially for delivery from 2020. However, this is likely to be delayed.

Also of note this week:

Air Canada expects to complete its due diligence on the purchase of Air Transat by the end of June. (Air Canada)

British Airways pilot Mark Vanhoenacker marks the 100th anniversary of the first transatlantic flight. (Financial Times)

Michelin has published its first dedicated guide to California. 90 restaurants in California have received stars, with 7 receiving three Michelin stars. (Michelin)

The Metropolitan Transport Authority New York Transit is to provide clearer service status guidance to passengers. Three vague labels “Delays”, “Service Change” and “Planned Work” have been replaced. There are now seven indicators including Part Suspended, Trains Rerouted and Local to Express. (Metropolitan Transit Authority)

“Why New York Can’t Have Nice Things?” Why is infrastructure is so expensive to build in New York? (New York Magazine)

Construction by Virgin Trains USA of a new high speed rail line between Las Vegas and Southern California is likely to be delayed by two years. (Las Vegas Review Journal)

Not actually transatlantic, but the US Department of Transportation has given tentative approval to the proposed transpacific joint-venture between American Airlines and Qantas. This is subject to consultation and a final decision. American and Qantas must also report annually on the progress of their joint-venture. Qantas has indicated it will launch new routes from Brisbane to Chicago and San Francisco following regulatory approval. (Department of Transportation)

London Air Travel’s Atlantic Update is published every Wednesday at 06:00 GMT. If you have any comments, suggestions or tips then please drop us a line at mail [@] londonairtravel.com

You can follow us on Twitter for breaking news throughout the day. Also, please join us on Monday for our weekly Monday Briefing.

London Air Travel’s Monday Briefing – 3 June 2019

Welcome to our weekly briefing on air travel in London and around the world, published every Monday at 06:00 BST.

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Airbus A330neo aircraft (Image credit: Airbus)

Welcome to our weekly Monday Briefing for the week beginning 3 June 2019.

Reuters: Virgin Atlantic in talks to order Airbus A330neo

Reuters reports that Virgin Atlantic is in talks with Airbus to order up to ten Airbus A330neo aircraft.

This report has emerged ahead of the Paris Air Show which is due to begin in two weeks’ time on Monday 17 June 2019.

There are two Airbus A330neo models, the A330-800 and A330-900. The Airbus A330-900 has a range of 7,200 nautical miles and is designed to accommodate 260-300 passengers.

Virgin Atlantic’s 49% shareholder Delta Air Lines has also ordered 35 of the aircraft, having increased its order from 25 aircraft in late 2018.

The aircraft is currently operated by TAP Air Portugal, which will have 19 of the aircraft in its fleet by the end of this year, and Air Mauritius. Other airlines to have placed significant orders for the aircraft include Air Asia X which will take delivery of its first aircraft later this month.

In terms of where this fits into Virgin’s fleet plan, the airline has 12 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft on order and is currently leasing three Airbus A330-200 aircraft to compensate for Boeing 787 issues. Virgin has taken delivery of all ten Airbus A330-300 aircraft and 17 Boeing 787-9 aircraft it has ordered. Its last remaining 5 Airbus A340-600 and 8 Boeing 747-400 aircraft are due to be retired in the coming years.

South African Airways CEO Resigns

The South African Broadcasting Corporation reports that its CEO Vuyani Jarana has resigned from the airline.

Vuyani Jarana will leave the airline at the end of August and the South African Airways board has started a search for a successor. A lack of progress in its turnaround strategy has been cited as the reason for his departure.

South African Airways has not reported a profit in eight years. It has significantly reduced its presence in London, having cut Cape Town and reduced Johannesburg to once daily.

Vuyani Jarana recently gave an interview to the Centre for Aviation for the IATA AGM on the challenges facing the aviation industry in Africa.

BA Glasgow Lounge Closes For Refurbishment

The BA lounge at Glasgow airport has closed for a light refurbishment and will reopen later in June 2019.

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British Airways lounge at Washington Dulles International Airport (Image Credit: British Airways) — (Image Credit: British Airways)

The British Airways lounge at Glasgow airport has closed for refurbishment from today, Sunday 2 June 2019.

It’s a relatively light refurbishment as the 450 square metres lounge will reopen later this month – a full refurbishment can take up to six months.

BA say the updated lounge will have “a contemporary luxurious new look and feel” and take “inspiration” from recent lounge refurbishments in Aberdeen, New York JFK and Rome.

The existing lounge opened in 2013 and was an evolution of BA’s Galleries format. Designed by Glasgow based design agency Graven there was a strong emphasis on materials sourced from local suppliers.

There are no alternative lounge facilities during the closure. Eligible passengers will be offered a voucher which can be collected at the check-in desks or from the customer services desk near Gate 22.

Update Friday 14 June 2019: The refurbished lounge is due to reopen Sunday 16 June 2019.

British Airways Extends Loganair Codeshares

British Airways has extended its codeshare relationship with Loganair to include Edinburgh – Bergen & Stavanger.

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Loganair Embraer 135 Aircraft (Image Credit: Loganair)

British Airways has a long-running codeshare with Loganair, which for the past two years has operated as an independent airline after previously being a Flybe and BA franchisee.

This has been largely limited to UK domestic flights from Scottish airports to the Highlands and Islands.

However, this has now been extended to two international routes from Edinburgh to Bergen and Stavanger in Norway. These two routes were suspended by BA from London Heathrow in October 2017.

Loganair flies to Bergen three times weekly on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. It flies to Stavanger four times weekly on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

Both routes are operated with Embraer E135 aircraft with 37 seats in a single cabin configuration.

Pre-departure

The Death of the New York “Power Lunch”

Also in New York:

Also of note this week:

Airbus Prepares A321XLR Aircraft

The Boeing 747 Centenary Flights That Weren’t

UK Bank Holidays

More to read on British Airways Disruption

TAP Air Portugal Begins Airbus A321 Long Range Transatlantic Flights

Also of note this week:

Reuters: Virgin Atlantic in talks to order Airbus A330neo

South African Airways CEO Resigns