[HongKongLady]

I am hoping for New First on my imminent flight. I will be really cross if it is the old again although if the lights work and there isn’t old bacon and cooking trays in my over head bin that will be an improvement. Fingers crossed.

[HongKongLady]

Oh and I agree with Ian totally unacceptable to have to pay extra to book a seat. Obviously free for EC holders but I would expect to be able to book a seat with any airline if I was buying a business seat. Are there any other airlines that do this ?

[LuganoPirate]

I agree with you Ian and HKLady, totally unacceptable to have to pay extra to reserve a business class seat.

On her recent BA flight mrs. LP refused to pay (free on QR and LX) and ended up with a nice window seat upstairs.

[openfly]

BA announces that ” after extensive customer feedback, duct tape is preferred by 83% of passengers in preference to broken equipment”.

[Papillion53]

Morning Gaffy!

I think the seat selection charges on BA are quite ridiculous especially when flying in a premium cabin! £80! Good grief that is just too much! Would you get that refunded if you subsequently cancelled your flight, or if they had an “equipment” change and you were not in your pre-selected seat? I would certainly hope so. Yours aye Pappy 😉 :-)))) LOL!!!

BTW, we cannot choose our Upper Class seats on Virgin until 90 days out, no charge (I hope!), but no selection at booking stage either. And I really do want to be able to pre-select as I do not want a seat near the UC bar 😉 :-)!!! But I don’t know if that is because it is a redemption booking and we have no status on VS.

I’ve read somewhere that duct tape is one if the most useful things you can pack when travelling – fixes all sorts of things apparently!

Ha ha ha Esselle – you old devil you! :-)))) Eton Mess anyone???

[TimFitzgeraldTC]

There is a trick to avoid the seating charges that can be used when making a booking through an agent – and possibly if you book direct by calling BA to avoid the seating charges. Can only be done when creating a booking.

Agree it is scandalous that they charge for seating in premium classes, though it generally catches the lesiure travellers. Those who fly enough will get it free with Silver/Gold anyway – or if booked last minute inside 7 days with bronze status.

Can’t think of another airline who charge for seating allocation in Business / First Class.

Papillion – 90 days in standard now for VS for all bookings. I had client booked to travel at the start of November and only now just been able to allocate seats in premium out and Upper back. At least it is free.

If you cancel your BA flight it is a nonrefundable charge. If they equipment change you you have to apply for a refund, or if they move you for operational reasons I think you have to apply – I don’t think it is automatic.

[NameRemoved-18/12/14]

After all this time, I can’t believe there are still OF aircraft out there. As for asking passengers in Club to pay to choose their seat frankly takes the biscuit.

HongKongLady – I hope you have better luck this time.

[AllOverTheGaff]

@Ian_from_HKG – 16/08/2013 02:50 GMT

You betcha, I will indeed be writing a report, have one to come from Emirates 1st class next month too, my 1st time on their A380 – I will go into great detail about showering on-board, those of a nervous disposition have been warned! I look forward to hearing your comments about the new AA seat, Nice_Adventures posted in some great footage and a terrific report, so far all I have heard is good things. rferguson whilst not on the new planes did rate the AA food and service highly too.

@HarryMonk – I will have loads of time on my hands to write these reviews, what with them being real long-haul flights, so you might not want to bother reading them.

@ Papillion53 – 16/08/2013 11:16 GMT
Ah, dearest Pappy

The lack of fortune I’ve had with these flights thus far (other than the outrageously low prices I’ve been quoted) means I was most apprehensive about not paying for the seat and ending up in the middle of 4 with screaming bairns either side of me…..and it is a long old journey with 10 hours from Sao Paulo, 2 hours connect, 7 hours to London and another 3 (all told) to the second city of the Empire. A full day of travelling with a better chance of tranquillity to me is worth less than 3% of the overall fare, which is how I justified it. And whilst it hasn’t escaped the attention of many on this forum, even though I am not a massive fan of British Airways, the upstairs cabin of a 747 is one of the nicer places to be in the sky, the cabin itself if normally quite peaceful.

To everyone else who comments about the cost of the seat, yes indeed I agree fully it is a complete con, but the reality is that with no status on a busy route (JFK – LHR) I run the risk of a horrible seat and I know I would sit in it all the way home moaning to myself in my head about how little it ‘would’ have cost me to be more comfy, so, faced with this, on such a long jaunt I’ve taken the hit.

From AA’s new 777 to BA’s old 747 is going to be an interesting experience to say the least, fingers crossed!

[AllOverTheGaff]

Papillion53 – 16/08/2013 11:16 GMT
I think the seat selection charges on BA are quite ridiculous especially when flying in a premium cabin! £80! Good grief that is just too much! Would you get that refunded if you subsequently cancelled your flight, or if they had an “equipment” change and you were not in your pre-selected seat? I would certainly hope so.

Hi again Pappy

It is £65.00 for downstairs Club and £80.00 for upstairs – they even took a fiver off me for my EDI – LHR flight on the way down to connect. It is preposterous eh? I’m sniggering as I write this about a fool and his money….;)

And yes, the worlds favourite airline who fly to serve will kindly give me my money back should someone of huge importance be on board and want my seat, you know, those with high CID status or whatever. All I have to do is to call their 0845 number, stay on hold for circa 40 minutes, be told BA are far too busy to be dealing with plebs like me, repeat the process 4 times, speak to a surly operator who’d rather be partying the night away down Newcastle High St on her mates hen-do, I then only have to pass an exam based on my knowledge of the Data Protection Act and I might then have the opportunity to ask to speak to a supervisor and in the midst of the transfer will be cut off. Repeat process a further 3 – 9 times (BA can’t be specific in their T&C’s and only offer an estimate) and BA will of course, issue me a full refund.

Then I’ll get my phone bill in and duly be rushed to hospital with heart failure thus costing you, the taxpayer, thousands and thousands of Pounds.

No wonder the country is in the state it is, I’m off to number 10 to let David know about BA’s burden on society.

[JonathanM8]

Personally, if I am flying CW, then the upper deck of a 747 beats the 777 hands-down, even the new 300 series, any time…..with or without duct tape

[MartynSinclair]

BA are not the only ones with problems with their 747-400

Picture that greeted me with front row 6a (upper class) seat with Virgin.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/y8v1vf39l0q4h1w/130812%20Faulty%20Seats..%20.pdf

seat was also defective and no IFE for longhaul…

Crew though were very good..

[HonestCrew]

“BA recently announced that they are getting one new long haul aircraft every 2 weeks, on average, for the next 12 months.”

Whilst BA are receiving new aircraft, VERY VERY FEW are long haul. Mostly small jets for Euro routes and almost zero big birds.

Our 747 fleet is a shambles. Literally EVERY flight I have problems, either tech with the thing itself or IFE/cabin problems that we can’t fix.

It didn’t used to be like this. It is a direct result of the “this is your budget, MEET IT” management style of Walsh and his bunch of ‘yes-men’.

Following those cut backs, BA no longer have the engineers needed to be able to fix the cabin defects properly and the cosmetic side of the cabin is rock bottom of the pile when it comes to fixing. Strict turnaround times and a lack of manpower.

It used to be the 767 was the piglet of the fleet. Now it’s the 747’s and honestly, I speak for all the crew here I am sure, we are becoming more and more ashamed to welcome customers on to these heaps and they be referred to as ‘British’.

[Bucksnet]

Well said Honest Crew, but Keith Williams said “Over the next 12 months we will take delivery of new long-haul aircraft at an average rate of one every two weeks.”

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/03/ba-planes-idUSL5N0F93Z320130703

I found that figure surprising myself and can’t work out how, but he is the boss and should know best.

[FrDougal]

Well said Honest Crew! Couldn’t agree more! Just had a lovely experience returning from the Far East where one of the club toilets leaked a very smelly substance into the carpet surrounding the first few rows!!! And that is a regular occurrence!!!!

[Papillion53]

TimFTC@11:18

Thanks for the info re VS, I didn’t know, now I do! So date for the diary 90 days out.

Gaffy – I think I would be the same, what’s another £85! You are funny, I think you should also write to “The Auld Pretender” – now that’s a question, would it still be BRITISH Airways, in the highly unlikely event that there was a separation? And you thought seat selection was a nightmare!

[Author]

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