BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  8 July 2008 : by Bill Atkins  (USA)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

First

MAN-LHR-PHL First Class. These days it seems BA get so many things wrong, but when it works right they are a joy to travel with. Crews on all flights friendly, relaxed and competent. Food good, not outstanding, excellent wines as usual. T5/T4 transfer apart, a most enjoyable experience and wish it were consistently so.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  8 July 2008 : by Stephen Hogan  (Belgium)

Customer Rating : 1/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

World Traveller BRU-ORD-BRU (via LHR). The original 4-hour wait between our arrival at LHR and scheduled departure of our flight to Chicago ended up being 11 hours due to a 7-hour delay. BA's response? A Stg£10 voucher for food! During this delay we were called back to our boarding gate - the furthest distance possible in T4 only to learn that despite the call they were not in fact ready to depart. This was compounded further on our return. When we purchased our ticket we were originally meant to arrive / depart from T5 - but after the T5 opening, Chicago flights remain at T4 until Sep 08. BA in its wisdom have introduced a minimum 2-hour transfer window if you have to change terminals, on which they provide no flexibility - even if it is a matter of 5 minutes. When we booked we were meant to arrive from ORD at 07.05 and depart for Brussels at 08.55. However, thanks to the terminal change BA now insisted we could not leave on the 08.55, but instead had to leave on the next available flight to BRU at 12.40 - a wait of nearly 6 hours! This flight was delayed and did not in fact leave until 13.30 - BA response a Stg£5 voucher for food.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  7 July 2008 : by E Hochstatter  (UK)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-TXL-LHR. Terminal-wise: Terminal 5 is a major disappointment. My wife and I flew Club Europe (business class). The sterile environment of T5 was almost nauseating. To make matters worse, there is not even a separate queue for premium class passengers, or silver card holders, let alone a business class check-in. How BA managed to cock this up is beyond imagination, especially as Berlin (and other airports) has a separate check-in desk for premium class passengers. It beggars belief how BA's flagship terminal could be absent of this. The man that checked us in even recommended that we write to 'customer relations' to complain about the absence of premium check-in counters, which we did. Oh, how I miss Zone R in Terminal 1. Security check-in was an absolute joke. The staff were rude and expected you to pick up the lovely grey container in which you were to place your items. The inconsistent policy of whether to take shoes off is compounded by the fact that there was not even a mat on which to walk! On our return, there was not nearly enough immigration officers. Flight-wise: no major complaints for either direction. However, I have noticed a steady decline in the cleanliness of BA planes. Moreover, the new champagne they serve is hardly worth the grapes on the vine. I shall continue to fly BA but I will give heavy consideration in the future to other airlines unless BA cleans up their act.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  7 July 2008 : by G Davis  (Australia)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Premium Economy

DEN-LHR-ORD in premium economy. Outbound was on a 777, inbound on a 747. The premium economy on the 747 was definitely nicer than on the 777 because you are surrounded by business class sections. The premium economy section also has its own lavatory on the 747, whereas on the 777 you have to wade back into economy and queue. Seats do recline more than in economy class (seat bottom actually shifts forward slightly when reclined), and there is tons of leg room (I am 6' 2"). This is a better premium economy product than Air New Zealand's. If you want any chance of sleeping on your flight this upgrade is definitely worth it.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  5 July 2008 : by Stuart Reay  (Australia)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Premium Economy

Flew 3 return trips from Heathrow to Newcastle NCL and everything went very smoothly. Excellent free drinks and snacks offered and great crew. BA still continue to shine on their domestic services especially for the cost of tickets. Lounge at Newcastle excellent as is the new lounge at T5.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  5 July 2008 : by C Slater-Walker  (UK)

Customer Rating : 2/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Premium Economy

LHR-SYD-LHR Premium Economy. Flights full both ways. BA's premium economy isn't really worth the money, based on my experience with these flights. The food is identical to economy. The IFE is identical to economy. The seats _may_ be slightly wider (2x4x2 whereas economy is 3x4x3) but they don't seem to recline any more than economy. At least you don't have to fight over luggage locker space. On my outbound trip, if you wanted a drink of any sort outside mealtimes, you had to go to the galley and get it yourself. Fortunately on the return flight, both crews came round regularly with water and juice. I can't understand why some crews manage this but others can't.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  3 July 2008 : by A Edwards  (UK)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LHR-MIA-LHR Sat on plane for over 2 hours while President Bush's plane took off and all other aircraft grounded but this was not BA's fault. Crew supplied drinks during the wait. Easy check-in procedure at T5, we checked in on-line and chose first row in World Traveller for increased legroom and it certainly made a difference to the standard WT seats, no need for WTplus if you get these in my opinion. Flight was comfortable and the AVOD system was great, certainly helped the time pass. Crew were pleasant and chatty on both flights. Considering price I paid for this trip I was more than happy with the experience, will definitely fly BA again where possible.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  3 July 2008 : by Richard James  (UK)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-LAX and SFO-LHR Club World. It's currently a great time to use BA's new terminal 5 : No queues, spotless new lounges and they didn't even lose my bag. It'll be a shame to go back to T5 when it's full, but enjoy it while it lasts I say. The flights were fine - the new Club World apparatus is wearing fast but there were no AVOD problems, some good food and the usual half-pint glass of port with the cheese - even the squalid Tom Bradley terminal at LAX couldn't spoil the journey. SFO a different planet by comparison, although the lounge there is too small for when two flights are waiting. No complaints really.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  30 June 2008 : by M Heather  (UK)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LHR-YUL-LHR in Economy (World Traveller). Excellent flights on good condition Boeing 777s, both ways on time. Good crew, comfortable seats, good inflight meals and generous drinks service, working IFE (not AVOD) with a wide choice of films. As usual though, having delivered an excellent product, BA was let down by its ground arrangements at LHR T4. We waited 30 mins to leave the aircraft (as BA ground services had only sent one bus to a full Boeing 777 - air bridges being in short supply at that time of the morning), and then a further hour for our bags to appear (as they had sent the equipment to the wrong aircraft). Complained in the terminal to the BA customer services manager, who was excellent and totally professional and commented 'well, now we've got T5 working we really mustn't let our standards slip elsewhere - I'll be taking this problem to the top. Please complain via the website as well.' I complained per her advice, got a full response within 24 hours and 5000 miles for my trouble. A good outcome, but it is tiresome that they cannot - no matter what - successfully operate from LHR. They do a much better job at LGW!

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  30 June 2008 : by G McNab  (UK)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

Two short flights to and from Manchester on full aircraft. Despite the short flight time of about thirty five minutes the crew managed to cheerfully serve all who wanted it a sandwich, drink and tea or coffee. The return flight arrived early but just short of the gate had to stop for a short while as the automatic guidance system had not been switched on which, I think, guides the aircraft to be aligned with the airbridge. With hand luggage only I was off and found it a very quick and easy route from the domestic arrivals to the London Underground and was soon on my way.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  29 June 2008 : by K Khiran  (Australia)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

SYD-BKK Return. 62A/K. BA's business class seats are still one of the best in the skies and my key reason for choosing the airline. Had a very enjoyable return trip. Competitive fares, swift friendly check-in at both ends, departures and arrivals on time, bags one of the first to arrive on both sectors and good AVOD, meals and beverage selection. The one factor that usually lets BA down in the past has been staff service on board, but noticed a significant improvement and encountered only one grumpy staff on each flight. Another gripe is size of BA/QF business lounge in BKK which is too small esp when both airlines tend to arrive and depart at the same time.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  29 June 2008 : by Clive Varejes  (South Africa)

Customer Rating : 2/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

Has anyone ever tried to actually use their BA miles to book a flight? I have found it totally impossible and their customer care department treats you with total contempt. Perhaps this is a way to improve profitability, by making it impossible to book with air miles and driving their customers away in total and complete frustration, thereby reneging on their obligations.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  29 June 2008 : by Jon Earnshaw  (UK)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LGW-MCO-LGW. Terraces Lounge at Gatwick was quiet for a busy Summer Saturday afternoon at the North Terminal - good selection of refreshments. Boarding delayed by 30mins because of a small technical issue, welcomed warmly and seated in 2J which is the forward section of Club World out of Gatwick, Champagne offered before take-off. Menu, amenity kits provided with hot towels, only 19 passengers in Club out of a possible 40. Drinks and nuts 30mins after take-off and a second round of drinks before a lovely lunch of Smoked Salmon & Crayfish salad, Fillet of Beef and followed by Strawberries and whipped cream. Staff friendly and attentive throughout, shame the Gatwick planes still have the old Club World flat beds which are looking shabby now. Club Kitchen is great - snacks, drinks and even hot options available. A sandwich or salad, with warm scones and clotted cream provided 1hr ahead of arrival into Orlando. Returning, BA use the Delta Crown Room at Orlando which is disappointing. Once on board usual pre-take off champagne, dinner served quickly after take-off which consisted of Prawn salad, beef or chicken main and followed by caramel apple tart or cheese - crew friendly. A breakfast of cereal, juice, smoothie and bacon rolls was provided about an hour from Gatwick. A good attentive service, once the cabins have been upgraded this will be an even better service, to have 12 channels of entertainment that is not on-demand is not really acceptable in the cut throat business of scheduled business class travel these days.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  29 June 2008 : by Paul Rex  (UK)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-IAD in Club World. Flight on time, nice inflight service, excellent food, AVOD worked without any glitches, luggage on belt after clearing Immigration, so out of airport within 1/2 hour of leaving plane. One of those flights where everything goes right (the fact that it was a Saturday morning departure may have helped).

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  29 June 2008 : by Philip Cokkinosnbsp; (Greece)

Customer Rating : 3/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

ATH-LHR return in Club Europe. Flawless outbound, a nightmare on return. On the ATH-LHR leg the flight departed exactly on time and landed a few minutes early. Sat in 2K with plenty of legroom and empty neighbouring seat. Good inflight service with ample drink offerings, plus canapes and nuts. Only 2 choices of main dish for dinner compared to 3 previously, but excellent bread and wine variety, plus Pommery champagne. Limited Audio channels, the usual silly kids' film on overhead screens. Landed in T5, great impression at first encounter. Breezed through Passport control, bags were rolling out on the carousel as we entered the Arrivals Hall, was on the Heathrow Express platform 10 minutes after leaving the plane. The return trip was a disaster. I was looking forward to the T5 departure experience and had checked-in early in order to look around. Yes, T5 is great but boy when BA get things wrong it all goes pear-shaped: The T5 security was chaotic and rude, almost as bad and bullying as in USA airports. Note that some scanning machines are shoes-on, others shoes-off. They also use a strange "conveyor belt" tray system so your coat and keys etc can tumble underneath the carousel if you don't grab them in time. The 767 for the Athens flight was having "technical problems" and ultimately declared unsafe to fly. No explanation was given as to the exact nature of this failure. One hour later they found a replacement plane but this was a smaller 757, which meant that not all passengers and their bags would get to travel. With very poor communication, contradictory flight status updates, and bad crowd control, we were shuffled cattle- like by BA ground staff from one gate to another, then made to go down to Arrivals, re-enter the UK, collect our bags from the carousel, and go up to Departures again so as to check-in a second time. Even there they couldn't properly handle the passengers for one single flight and we were being sent from one check-in place to another. As I was flying Club I managed to get a seat, but about 60 people were bumped off to the night flight. I had also bought a champagne twin-pack at Duty Free and, although it had been sealed, obviously after checking in a second time I now couldn't take it through Security. They insisted that I pack the bottles in my luggage, and I padded them out with clothing as best I could, praying they would not break (thank goodness they hadn't broken on arrival in Athens). Received no help whatsoever from BA check-in staff re extra bubble wrap of any sort, no "fragile" sticker, nothing. The flight took off a full 3 hours late. Only when we were on board did the captain offer a satisfactory explanation and apology. Inflight service similar to outbound, but completely full, cramped 757 with no IFE on offer.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  25 June 2008 : by J Booty  (UK)

Customer Rating : 3/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

Faro to LGW June. No extra legroom seats available on this one but it's not a long journey, so it wasn't too bad. Only two complaints really, one was that the plane was like a sauna - it was so hot! The other is that you get a grotty sandwich which is half cheese and pickle and half coronation chicken, there is no choice.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  25 June 2008 : by D O'Brien  (Ireland)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

DUB-LHR-MRU. DUB-LHR by Aer Lingus, standards were good. Slight delay on landing but plenty of time to get from T1 to T4. Sped through my connection only to stand in line for about 15 minutes at T4 security. Its a pity that so many of BA's long haul flights are still departing T4 which has got very grubby since I last passed through it in 2005. The sooner all flights operate from T5 the better. Prompt boarding at the rather distant Gate 25 which requires a 10 minute walk from the main concourse so beware. 747-400 is old but well looked after and had the new AVOD systen which was excellent. IFE up and running quickly after takeoff and choice is excellent. Great food and plenty of drinks on offer. Staff enthusiastic and cheerful. Overall the flight was excellent and a significant improvement over my previous journey with them.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  24 June 2008 : by Trish Elkins  (China)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

Beijing - London return. Cabin clean and lie flat seats very comfortable. On the outward flight I had requested a vegetarian meal which wasn't available, but the food was very good anyway. The staff were friendly and obliging. Checking in at terminal 4 was a bit slow - only 3 desks open to deal with a full 747? Otherwise all fine on the return journey even though the cabin was full.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  24 June 2008 : by A Leger  (Switzerland)

Customer Rating : 5/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-DEN-LHR. Flew BA because of affordable Premium Economy fares and direct service to Denver. Day flight from LHR, very comfortable seats, good food and regular beverage service throughout. Slight problem with IFE fixed by crew. Bags arrived promptly. Minor complaint that the IFE was at times unreliable.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  24 June 2008 : by David Lambourne  (UK)

Customer Rating : 3/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Premium Economy

DAR-LHR on B763 in Club World. I found the seat (2A) to be extremely comfortable, and the IFE wonderful. Cabin crew were great for the first 3 hours, but then seemed to take most of the rest of the flight off. After a full, tasty breakfast, there was precious little in the way of real food - a snack bowl of pastries/sweets/fruit was offered for the next 5 hours, and then a very small, bland sandwich and a piece of cake around 1.5 hours prior to landing at LHR. The food on offer did not correspond with the menu offerings, and I must say I was disappointed with the attentiveness of the cabin crew (had to get up and ask for beverages at certain stages) in the latter half of the flight, as well as the quantity and quality/taste of the food. On a 10 hour flight, I typically have two "full" meals - even in Economy. Just flew JNB-SIN-SFO on SQ in Economy, and I'd say the inflight service was better than BA's Club World. - on this particular flight at least. Hope my next BA Club World experience is better.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  21 June 2008 : by A Leger  (Switzerland)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-JFK in Club World (seat 15F), B777-200. Departure from Terminal 4, which was not crowded (it was 7 or 8pm). Efficient boarding. Champagne and juice served before (delayed) takeoff. The dinner was good and the lie-flat seat very comfortable. The entertainment system was excellent. The crew was attentive, but after dinner they did not clear my table. After waiting more than forty minutes for my tray to be removed, I placed it on the floor, closed my table, extended my seat to the horizontal position and fell asleep (thanks in part to the thick blanket and large pillow). The tray was gone when I woke up, so all was well again. The pre-arrival snack was a sandwich (cheddar). The flight landed in New York just before midnight.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  20 June 2008 : by G Smith  (USA)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LGW-GVA plane was half-empty. Aircraft a little dirty, otherwise, everything exceeded my expectations. Food was excellent and offered free of charge, even for our short 1.5-hour flight.

BRITISH AIRWAYS review :  19 June 2008 : by Suhail Vadgaokar  (India)

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

BOM-LHR-FRA-LHR-BOM. Flew Economy most of the route. BOM-LHR operated on a 777. Managed to reserve an exit row seat so it was fairly comfortable. The food however was lousy. IFE was ok. BA staff amongst the best - jovial and they don't make you feel like a burden. LHR-FRA-LHR flights on A320s. Ok. Nothing special, but on time. Got upgraded to Club World on the LHR-BOM leg and delighted with the experience. The Club World lounge at T4 is ok. The Club World flat bed is excellent and the food was also nice. However IFE needs a little bit more.