[Anonymous]

[MarcusUK]

Using LCY once a week at various times, noticed recently the cleanliness and miantenance has dropped to a very poor standard.
Anyone else observed or have a similar feel?

Toilets are filthy, grey, calcified, concrete around them broken, fixings hanging off the wall, grease and embedded fuids, systems broken, and often simply filthy from customer use. They clearly have not be cleaned properly in many months, in departures and arrivals.
(Why travellers do people leave a toilet in such way after using it not flushing, toilet roll everywhere…are there no hygiene standards anymore???!!!)

Schiphol has never looked in this way or been so badly managed…

I would not allow a work facility to get into this state, and not eat anywhere where this was clearly decaying and not being monitored, So what is LCY management up to?
Go and have a look sometime guys…
It generally needs a good clean, in the public areas, and the departure gates and arrivals corridor a good spruce up. It could look so swish and smart.
A very poor standards, getting worse, and defective Management only could allow things to reach such a state.
Perhaps BT readers can share what they feel and BT ask LCY to venture into these areas for their comments?
It needs someone to take action!

[SimonS1]

Usual story I’m afraid. You keep cutting costs until all the fat is gone and you start damaging the muscle and bone.

I thought things were looking up when extra security was opened up, however there are plenty of other things to be tackled. I’m not sure whether there is a morale issue at LCY but the security people always look miserable as sin and there seem to be many times when the border posts are not manned to sufficient levels for the number of pax.

[Bucksnet]

I’ve never used LCY myself but I’ve always been under the impression that most of the passengers are business travellers, and therefore the airport was business focused and efficient with high standards etc.

[openfly]

LCY is mainly shell suits, trackies and bare feet. …Eastenders International….So few business people are attracted to it. BA hasn’t even bothered to open an Exec Lounge there for the few card holders and Club pax that use it….other than the JFK mini-lounge at the gate.

[esselle]

Sad to read this; last time I was there, about 2 years ago, the place was spotless. Vague recollections, though, about the longstanding CEO retiring and being replaced by an incomer about 1 year ago, so maybe that has a bearing on the decline.

No BA lounge, and no other lounges whatsoever, is purely a function of lack of space.

[openfly]

Masses of empty space on the first floor, for a lounge. Just total lack of interest by BA…..

[esselle]

openfly

If you ask the airport authority for space for a lounge, they will tell you there is none.

It is nothing to do with BA.

If there was room, the airport would have created a common lounge, and made a fortune in charging the individual airlines per pax entry.

[LuganoPirate]

I’ve been through LCY twice this week from ZRH. To be honest on arrival I was through and out in 5 mins so didn’t notice anything wrong, and on Wednesday morning with a 6.30 flight and boarding pass in hand went straight to the gate and onto a half full plane.

Yesterday evening however was very different. Driving up from the South Coast having visited my elderly mother, I’d left plenty of time for my 1820 flight to allow for traffic and the fog which had hit S.E. London and Kent. I arrived in good time at 1700, dropped off the car and went to the terminal where I was hit by pandemonium! You could barely move for the mass of people and baggage, and staff barely able to cope as people were demanding information following the cancellation of their flights.

Despite there only being 5 people in front of me at counter 14, the Swiss business check in, it took almost 30 minutes to get my boarding pass, all the time staff being “bullied” by Germans who had had their flight to FRA cancelled and were being bussed to LHR for the 0620 flight Saturday. More on this in another thread.

Up to security and could not believe that only 2 lines were opened on a Friday evening. Of course people have to wait till they get to the conveyor before emptying their pockets, taking out laptops etc. the result was the queue quickly stretched out to the hall.

Out and to the small and cramped bathroom. Ugh is mild. Urinals occupied I went to a cubicle. In and out that is, both had been used and for some reason people just don’t flush. Sorry to be crude but I was greeted by the biggest turd I’d ever seen standing proudly to attention giving off the most awful waft. I decided to wait till I boarded. Apart from the fact the bathroom had not been cleaned for I don’t know how long, what amazes me is people’s filthy habits.

From there to gate 2c, at least a short walk only, usual queue for final control and into the small “dungeon” where we were held for about 15 minutes. The flight was absolutely full, so there must have been 80+ pax in there. The heat was unbearable, no ventilation at all and a condition which if we’d been prisoners would have led to a referral to the European Court for Human Rights!

I have to agree Marcus, after that miserable experience, LCY is definitely in need of a very serious makeover.

[ImissConcorde]

Wouldn’t it be nice if the next post here was from Declan Collier ( CEO LCY)?

[Bucksnet]

LP, have you considered flying from Gatwick? Much closer and more convenient from the south coast. You will have to fly easyJet, but that’s not so bad is it? I’ve not been there for years, but Gatwick has had a £1 billion makeover and it looks great on the TV program Inside Gatwick.

[LuganoPirate]

I must admit I haven’t Bucksnet, but on reflection it wouldn’t work for me. My only option ex LUG is Swiss via ZRH into LHR or LCY. The other thing is LCY is much more convenient for where I travel to with the DLR or by car. Thanks for the suggestion anyway.

[MarcusUK]

Interesting replies thanks.

LCY remains very business orientated, just look at who passes through before 9am and after 17hrs, to the major capital cities in Europe. But there are now a fair number of leisure flights and travellers, BA running services to Ibiza, Barcelona for eg. Clearly it is one of the best in the South East for departing and arriving with around 30 minutes in, and 15 minutes out.

I was also there on Friday evening, meeting someone in from AMS. It was pure chaos with the usual Luxair flights cancelled first, then BA not flying out planes which clearly would not return later, even on the AMS route, where Cityjet (Air France) kept their’slate but they got in and out. LH, Swiss, also cancelled.
A fri eve in winter with dense fog or problems bodes very badly for LCY, as the Airport closes Sat pm, and opens again Sunday PM. So there maybe one flight eg Cityjet to AMS on Saturday morning, but no extra capacity, and feew to major business centres.
So if your flight is cancelled, you are in a hotel or bussed to LHR, not a great reliability for the months ahead.
I felt great sympathy for the passengers stuck friday eve…

Perhaps BT could take this matter up with the cleanliness of LCY with its CEO?

He only needs to take a walk round and look to see the obvious. Filthy in the bathrooms, any Manager alone a Director, would be disgusted and insist on immediate action.
Otherwise, you may well find a passenger asking for Health and Safety as well as Health Inspectorate Officers to view the state of things for their enforcement…?

[LuganoPirate]

We’re like two ships passing in the (foggy) night Marcus 😉 Luckily my flight wasn’t cancelled or even delayed, especially as I had a 2 hour drive to Lugano after landing.

Good suggestion about BT taking this up with LCY. It’s supposed to be a “business” airport into which fares are higher (at least as far as Swiss is concerned) and should therefore adhere to higher standards. Not that non -business travellers should be treated shabbily but if you’re trying to be above the rest standards have to be maintained.

Having said that I still think LCY is infinitely better than LHR …

[Shearer]

London City Airport has never impressed me much.
I should say, my experience has not met their marketing, but I do like the numerous plug sockets everywhere for charging.

[Author]

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