[Anonymous]

[continentalclub]

Interesting move from BA in the last couple of days to ‘up the ante’ as far as Gatwick is concerned, and launch an advertising campaign that specifically targets the no-frills competition:

http://yfrog.com/2tjpdnj

It seeks to address what most of us frequent travellers know; namely that the actual cost of travelling with a no-frills carrier, once all the various add-ons are taken into account, can often be higher (or at least very little less) than travelling with British Airways on common routes.

If it can reach those flybe, easyJet, Ryanair etc., etc., passengers who’ve had their fingers burnt, and attract them into Euro Traveller cabins then it will be a real boost for the Gatwick shorthaul operation.

I do wonder about the industry’s own (mis)use of the words ‘low-cost’ though; after all, the term was coined to describe the operating costs of the airline, not the cost of the ticket to the passenger. I personally much prefer ‘no-frills’ – especially when comparing the likes of Air Berlin and easyJet, who both enjoy low cost-bases, but the former certainly provides a good deal more ‘frill’ to boot.

The BA webpage to support the ad is at:

http://bit.ly/9buQ1d

[Travellator]

I find this a bit strange. However it coincides with postings of mine on a couple of threads. BA are dropping the LHR to Malaga route and reinstating a 4 times dail schedule from LGW going head to head with Easy Jet, Monarch, Thomson, AwerLingus and god knows how many charters.
Sad thing for me and my family personally is no carrier will serve AGP from LHR for the first time in probably 30 years unless Iberia reinstate it.

[BABenji]

Could this be part of a move ahead of Air Berlin’s full membership of oneworld? The introduction of a low-cost/no-frills carrier to the alliance must require some reallignment of strategy, especially as BA is the sponsor.

I appreciate BA has been moving in this direction for a few months now with the introduction of the Value Calculator to show how good value they are compared to the likes of EZY and FR, but this is certainly a more aggressive manouver.

Personally, I hope it means BA move some operations to Stansted to be fed by traffic from Air Berlin….but I suppose that’s a tale for another thread.

[VintageKrug]

I flew BA from Stansted a number of years ago.

STN-MAN as I recall. On an Embraer!

[Travellator]

Given the shambles that BMi are making of BHD/LHR BA would be welcome with open arms !

[DisgustedofSwieqi]

BA has a good story to tell here, the Euro Traveller product is better than the offers from the locos and when the price differential is close and the BA airports convenient, it makes sense to fly BA.

[continentalclub]

Agreed, DisgustedofSwieqi. I do worry about the marketing of a ‘snack’ though; although I’m not a fan of Buy on Board at all – operationally or commercially – the current gratis offerings are so miniscule that they would barely sate the appetite of a supermodel.

Fair enough if they were emulating the new SWISS shorthaul economy catering but, as yet, they’re not.

Indeed, and oddly, the image of a ‘handbag’ used in this ad:

http://yfrog.com/mw30qg

– actually looks scarily similar to the BA ‘Breakfast Panini’.

The handbag is probably a good deal tastier, however.

[VintageKrug]

Would be much better if the catering was available “Plane Food” style at the boarding gate, allowing those who were hungry to a take some BA provided food if peckish. This would reduce weight of catering on board, eliminate the need for crew to dole the stuff out (they could focus on the bar run).

This would work well as a “Deli Bag”.

However, and back once again to the “what the competition offers” debate, with so very many people choosing short flights on price alone without regard to convenience of the airport or comfort/catering on board, there does seem to be a strong reason to stick with the tiny “snack” offering plus full free bar. The extra £1 or so saved per ticket will drive custom BA’s way.

As it is, I have to confess I don’t really miss shorthaul catering; I can have a sarnie in the lounge and eat at home/hotel which is far preferable to a sandwich I really don’t need to be eating.

After the initial reaction to the removal of catering (which was understandably negative) you really don’t see many people moaning about it.

You have to remember that in flight catering was essential in the days when Airports were State Run and the UK did not have a thriving private sector; today there are myriad food outlets serving high quality sandwiches at (mostly) reasonable prices pre-flight; thirty years ago this was not the case and airlines absolutely needed to provide sustenance.

[ANDREWYOUNG1]

I saw the ‘snack’ advert on the tube yesterday and do think it’s a little misleading to picture a roll when that is only offered on a small percentage of flights, otherwise it’s just some Doorman crackers. It does of course have the * next to the word snack with the footnote explaining this, but at initial glance it does insinuate that you get a sandwich and a drink on flights.

But I do agree that I would rather the limited snack offering rather than remove the service altogether, when flying domestically which I do regularly, I weigh up the use of the BMI lounge (which I get with my Amex card) and no inflight service, or no lounge at T5 and an inflight drink with BA, the latter is always my preference. Though my first choice is always LCY on the lovely new Embraers, not always logistically practical though.

And on an unrelated note, I am very much welcoming the full miles credit for us lowly blue EC members now, actually makes it another factor to consider, the 100 miles or so I got before was hardly worth entering your card number for.

[continentalclub]

The “Deli Bag” really does seem like the ideal solution.

Although it’s not specifically relevant to the target audience this ad campaign, the bigger problem with tiny inflight offerings is that British Airways is a network airline. Anyone having arrived overnight into (in this case Gatwick) off a longhaul World Traveller flight will have had one meal after take-off in, say, BGI, and then a pastry/muffin and a piece of fruit pre-arrival in London.

To suggest that they will be fed on their onward shorthaul connection, the conclusion of which could be 4 or 6 hours after arrival in London, when the reality is a fun-size bag of pretzels (and whilst all the time chivvying passengers to reach the gate for that flight in good time) does seem to be setting the airline up for a fall, and the passenger for a disappointment.

[StephenLondon]

I thoroughly agree with ContinentalClub… and BA are much more likely to have connecting traffic than most other LCCs due to the network nature of their business.

The photo I find somewhat misleading – it makes me wonder whether the product people at BA actually know what is currently on offer (how most flights offer Doorman’s crackers, not a fresh looking sandwich). I’m sure it won’t be long before someone starts a thread “I saw this advert on BA, but this is what I received” on a board somewhere.

I quite like the Swiss model of a wonderful, fresh sandwich for all – it makes life easy, and certainly fills the gap should you be missing a meal. Not all of us have the time to stop by a Pret en route to the plane or when transferring flights to grab our next meal. Besides, eating on board is excellent occupational therapy.

I do take a bit of exception with BA using the phrase “low-cost” as opposed to no-frills. Low-cost refers to the airline’s operating costs, not the value of the ticket. Even Ryanair sells lots of tickets at high cost…yet remain profitable due to being a low-cost carrier.

[DisgustedofSwieqi]

“Would be much better if the catering was available “Plane Food” style at the boarding gate,”

Or even Gate Gourmet strike style? 😉

Seriously, this was how the shuttle operated circa 1980.

[VintageKrug]

But the shuttle did not have serious competition from rail in terms of speed, and even the motorways weren’t as linked up as they are now.

With increased competition, significantly higher costs, as well as a commercial imperative absent in the days of State ownership, the days of a credible LHR-MAN link for anything other than transfer traffic is diminishing, and this is reflected in the frequency of service (reducing), the prices (increasing, but with lower margins) and the service offered on board.

[jonathanmiller]

Dropping the AGP-LHR route? Arghhhhhh! The huge attraction of BA from AGP is precisely that it links with BA LHR T3/T5 and even T4 long-haul routes, and also that bags can be checked through. The drag from LGW to LHR (and back again) complete with one’s luggage is appalling, not to mention the additional requirement to check-in again. I have flown AGP-LHR and back pretty much monthly with a variety of airlines (inevitaby including Iberia, Gawd ‘elp us) and charter operators since 1984, and BA has given the best result by far. Extraordinary that, despite being BAEC Gold, I didn’t know about the change. Thanks for the tip-off!

[Author]

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