[Binman62]

Just off a long haul from Asia.

Food ghastly the breakfast scrambled eggs were a shocker. Been a long time since I flew CW and I know why!

The crew were simply dredful and could not have cared less.

What is it with the lamp shade in the middle of the cabin? If you are going to have something that naff hanging from the ceiling, for pity sakes clean it. The dead flies were clearly visible!

The seat and layout were the only thing that saved the flight, but in comparison to the grace and style of CX crew, BA are a 3rd rate outfit.

The difference to two weeks ago a the First experience out of LHR was extraordinary.

[robsmith100]

Binman62 You have to be the most unlucky person I know that is really made to suffer when you fly BA or even book. I genuinely really do feel for you. But out of curiosity why do you still continue to fly with the airline?

[FlyingChinaman]

Binman62: I only fly on BA where the closest competitors are worst. Mainly across the Pond or short 1-hour “cattle” rides within Europe!

US carriers may not be very good with service but at least they don’t have bossy British women FA!!!

[FlyingChinaman]

Robsmith100: I think Binman62 has high hope of a “comback” from British Airways from it’s former glory!

[VintageKrug]

Certainly noticed a new starter on yesterday’s flight; salmon with new potatoes. Delicious and very well presented. Mains were the same as usual. I had the butter chicken which works well at altitude, although looks a bit “crammed into the bowl”.

So the changes are filtering through.

[Recordman]

Have to disagree VintageKrug. I made the same choice as you on my return from MIA yesterday. I thought the smoked salmon element looked like the cheap ‘trimmings’ that Tesco sells and the other part of cooked salmon on a bed of potato was rubbery and tasteless. The other starter choice of tomato salad had been ‘sold out’ by the time the cabin staff reached me in 64K.

The butter chicken tasted OK, but had the look and consistency of a load of slop.

Changes might be being made but they’re not necessarily for the good.

Cabin staff were excellent.

[Tom Otley]

I flew in CW to Beijing last night. Menu was pretty standard for CW.

Starters:

Smoked salmon and trout roulade with radish and fennel salad or

Potted Barber’s 1833 mature Cheddar with spiced apple chutney;

Fresh seasonal salad served with vinaigrette.

Mains:

Slow-braised beef with rosti potatoes;

Chicken and cashew panang curry with stir-fried snake beans, cauliflower and jasmine rice;

Spinach tagliatelle with a mushroom truffle sauce and pumpkin or;

Chilled main course salad of curry-scented prawns with mango and spring onion quinoa.

Dessert:
Banoffee torte with caramel sauce;

Ice cream;

Cropwell Bishop Stilton and St Paulin cheese with biscuits or

A selection of fruit and chocolates.

Apologies for typos.

[Binman62]

Robsmith…..I wonder myself.

The fact is I like BA and have been a loyal supporter for 25 years. They have handled many issues well but increasingly they are mean spirited, inflexible and ludicrously expensive ex LHR, but above all I am utterly frustrated by their inability to deliver a consistent experience.

They have rested for too long on the lack of competition across the north Atlantic and have been left trailing the competition on Middle East and Asian routes.

This was my last paid for booking for the time being and I am simply keen now to burn the miles accrued. I will retain a silver card for 2012-13 but only just, so Gold is now a thing of the past.

The crew have been given a superb hard product. The Club World seat and layout are really very good but the crew are careless, lack any grace or panache and frankly last night were sour faced. The comparison with the CX was stark, though the CX herringbone seat is awful. If they put the new seat on LHR route they are on to a sure fire winner.

CX food was outstanding; BA was dreadful in both choice and quality. The delivery worse still. I had the full English but the eggs were vile and not properly cooked. The kid’s meals were simply unacceptable in any cabin let alone Club World.

I had upgraded the outbound to First and it was really very good and this was my first time in Club for some years.

The crew outbound were great, the food edible and the wines excellent. It was the old product but even that I could live with. My last flights with BA were also good both in F to PHX with excellent crew, decent new First but the food was poor, especially out of PHX.

Last night the seat was fine, the cabin layout was good and some effort has been made with lighting and ambience, albeit not on the same league / scale as EK and others, indeed Garuda had some really fancy lighting on their A330!

The ground staffs were great, the CX check in experience at point of origin superb and the bags were off in LHR within a few minutes of getting to the belts.

My abiding memory however is of a group of frosty faced crew, (other than the very charming crew member at door 1 on boarding who sadly I never saw again……) and dead flies in the lamp shade!!!

[Danwolf]

Last 2x BA CW flights food was good, but nothing I would call spectacular. I can’t really compare to previous years, as I have only just started re-flying BA recently (and even then only on WT, WT+), having been previously spoilt by some of the middle-eastern airlines. My friends rave about the food on CX (more about some of their lobster noodle dish, but not sure if that’s in the air or in the CX lounge in HKG).

I’m on one of the new B777 planes in Nov, so will be able to see whether the food gets any better as a result of the new equipment (steam heaters, I think?).

[MartynSinclair]

Being super critical, I could complain about:

1. not being able to print off an AA/BA combined boarding card

2. The state of some of the BA lounges

3. having to be line up and wait in the pier, pre boarding

4. cabin crew on occasions, not having a perfect smile and a perfect set of white teeth

5. being asked to pull my trousers up

6. cabin shades being down on take off and landing

7. the special K not being plain, but strawberry flavoured

8. no diet/low fat yoghurt for breakfast

9. IFE not working

10. fellow passengers and “wind problems”

HOWEVER – I pay my money to get from A – B in comfort. NCW (IMHO) is great value for money and whilst perfection personified it may not be, it is, for the price I pay, a perfect service and value for money.

I dont eat creamy foods, but the aubergine pasta that nobody seems to have so far tried, was very very tasty. I just scraped the cream off. As there was no fresh fruit for desert, I just raided the larder, plenty there.

Yes the smoked salmon was not as I liked, so I left most of it – did I go hungry, nope – cost the nice man serving my meal, made sure I wasnt.

I know Binman seems to get his fare share of bad luck on BA, but its all down to expectations.

If you want sheer unadulterated luxury (and its not always as expnsive as you think) hire a private jet. London to NYC would cost around £100,000 and for that you get 14 seats and whatever menu you want.

One question I would like to ask:

What is the regualtion for the window shades on landing and take off. I thought that they always had to be up. One small upstairs niggle is that I do not feel comfotable not being able to see outside when landing or taking off – I had to ask for the middle screen to be lowered as they were raised for landing and t/o. Could someone give me chapter and verse on that please.

Overall, another excellent BA NCW experience for me, which includes the food offering.

[Stowage222]

Martyn

The only window shades that HAVE to be open for t/o and landing are the door/self help exit shades so crew (and pax) can see any hazards outside should an evacuation be required. Perhaps you might be asked to keep blinds open forward and aft of the B767 doors as visibility there is almost non existant but no issue with B777 nor B747.

Again, with seat dividers they only have to be DOWN in CW for the safety briefing so all pax can see the crew. After the demonstration they can be up or down at your (and your neighbour’s) discretion.

Hope that clarifies.

[MartynSinclair]

Thank you Stowage222. I will make a point of asking my neighbour in future, when I sit down. I find it extremely uncomfortable not being able to see outside, especially when landing.

I had always thought that all window blinds had to up for t/o and landing, this now explains why the crew no longer come through the cabin asking them to be raised.

[First-Pax]

Why do BA (and some of their ‘supporters’ who write on this forum) hide behind ‘budget constraints’ when there’s talk about the much needed upgrading of the First catering?

I doubt any of us would be at all happy if we visited The Fat Duck or other similar establishment only to find food and service cut-backs due to the recession.

Come on BA – it’s time to stop promising and start delivering. The ‘World’s Favorite’ should have the world’s best in it’s premium class – like it used to.

[VintageKrug]

BA is already delivering on the champagne front with its new fizz:

http://www.businesstraveller.com/news/ba-unveils-new-champagnes-for-premium-passengers

…and is innovating with Height Cuisine, which will revolutionise on board catering:

http://www.youtube.com/user/FlyBritishAirways#p/c/6C318DB57C26934B/5/oKhNUUeaxkE

[Henkel.Trocken]

IIRC didn’t BA during one of its better times define itself as the world’s favourite airline based on the number of international passengers carried when it was carrying more than any other airline?

IMO they were good days at BA and I used them a lot back then and standards and service were something as a British citizen you could be proud of and sure that when you flew with a colleague from overseas they would be impressed. That’s something I wouldn’t risk now.

Using the definition of international passengers carried today, doesn’t the accolade go to Ryanair?

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