Willie Walsh at 37000ft

Here is the note:
Dear Mr Business Traveller,

Today marks a new era in business travel.

I am very proud to be onboard the inaugural flight of
Club World London City, our new service between two of the world’s greatest financial centres, London and New York.

Our long tradition of delivering innovative new services continues with this first ever long-haul route to depart from London City Airport. And in keeping with our pioneering spirit, it is also the first transatlantic service with in-flight mobile communications provided by OnAir – which enables me to send this email from the comfort of my seat somewhere over the Atlantic.

Despite the challenging trading environment for airlines right
now, we believe in embracing the future and being revolutionary. Our investment in this new transatlantic service demonstrates our ongoing commitment to supporting and creating opportunities for premium travellers and the business community as a whole.

In recognition of the significance we at British Airways place
in this new service, the London City to New York flight bears British Airways’ most prestigious flight number, BA001, previously used by Concorde.

We hope you can make the most of this new and more productive link between London and New York and we look forward to welcoming you onboard soon.

Yours sincerely,

Willie Walsh
Chief Executive
British Airways

For more information visit ba.com/clubworldlondoncity

or see our news story at:

http://www.businesstraveller.com/news/ba-launches-lcy-jfk-flights

Good luck to Willie and BA on launching this pioneering new service. As always BA are the leaders in the aviation industry in the west.

Hi everyone !!

Well, mates–be nice–give BA a chance here!! Let us see, if they really make a premium difference to flights ex LHR. I think they are a bit courageous to compare this fligt to the concorde service—I hope for them they can comply with the service and distinction concorde had made in the past. I still can remember how I felt really distinguished flying with the concorde and lounging in the concorde room. BA F/A were absolutely top notch–have not experienced any bad or faults at all. So BA I hope you made your homework thoroughly here as comparison to the concorde is not easy to match.

I only flew Concorde three times, and never ventured onto Air France’s service.

Good BBC interview with WW prior to departure, filmed on board G-EUNA:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8281156.stm?ls

The Times published a press release from BA saying-
“We hope these flights will be profitable within a year!”
3.10.09

It will probably be as successful as their venture “Open skies” all business, which like BA’s inaugural flight, never really took of as it was supposed to!

BA is lambasted in The Times readers comments, as per usual these days. Then again, there is not on Airline i the world, which has had such negative publicity in the last 5 yrs, & had its reputation degraded so much by its “Management” team.

Clearly BT & BA seems to be in bed together as ever, lacking any unbiased voice in the Travel sector.
Who is really interested in some minute by minute account of the start of a 37 seat service where the aircraft isn’t even technically checked properly n able to fly?
Least it’s fodder for the comedians again with the typical incompetant BA…!

Check out The Times on line, anyone can place comments under the articles.
You can make a search for any articles related to BA on there.
they have very detrimental comments from “Real world” everyday peoples experiences, in all travelling classes, from all around the world.

Take yr point re the publisher, but The Times really is one of the most respected Newspapers around the world, especially when commenting on world affairs, business rather than a more biased home politics.
They often quote Tom Ottley from BT but their own journalists are not so “Pro BA”, & more independent.

Needless to say, their articles are much more global & reflect all airlines openly & critically, unlike the constant dribble about BA on here…one would think there is no other airline i the skies. Really sad & getting pathetic…