[KSHaggag]

Thanks ,Lugano Pirate !

Please do ;am eager to hear from you then.

[Sanran]

Hi KSHaggag,
I’m a big fan of Swiss and take it everytime I can. To me the biggest threat to LX is indeed mother LH and its management. I hope and think they won’t destroy it in the long run: they’ll realize that a majority of people choses LX for quality, not for price.

[KSHaggag]

Hi Sanran ,

Many thanks for your message !!

You are indeed right ;I am hopeful too that ( Mami ) LH will realize one day that whatever happens on the airline scene here and there in terms of low-cost-carriers competition putting pressure on yields and consequently on quality and standards ,Swiss will remain an icon of outstanding quality ,reliability and competitiveness at the same time ,and this is afterall why on Earth LH acquired it knowing that SWISS is a solid brand able to overcome the doldrums .
LX is not here to compete with Ryanair and Easyjet but it has always been and is still targeting the high end of the market ,very much like Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific in Asia .
We know pricing is dynamic and adapted to demand and Swiss is doing this brilliantly ,so if LH feels that there is a pressure on yields then better create a low cost subsidiary wherever they want and NOT within Swiss .
The days are showing that EUROWINGS is very shaky and now remodelling itself and axing the long haul .
Please leave the Low cost business to its experts and do your HIGH END bit of the job outstandingly .

[Ahmad]

Whilst I generally agree with you @KSHaggag please bear in mind that LX is the erstwhile short haul / low cost arm of SR. The Swiss Air of yore (which once had a First cabin on virtually every plane) is, perhaps, no longer economically viable in today’s market.

[Swissdiver]

[quote quote=946139]Whilst I generally agree with you @KSHaggag please bear in mind that LX is the erstwhile short haul / low cost arm of SR. The Swiss Air of yore (which once had a First cabin on virtually every plane) is, perhaps, no longer economically viable in today’s market.[/quote]

It is certainly not viable nowadays, but aren’t we all nostalgic of these glorious times? And if Crossair (LX) was indeed some sort of low cost of the time, we would all dream to get today the onboard service delivered then…

[Ahmad]

@Swissdiver I agree. But if I remember correctly and it was years ago so correct me if my memory is playing tricks, CrossAir was a big step down from Swiss Air. As the overall standard of airlines has deteriorated one can safely make the comparison. Particularly because Swiss Air really knew how to provide First Class service. If I remember correctly, the Allegra Lounge at Zurich was the first of its kind and other arrival lounges copied the idea.

[KSHaggag]

Swissair was always a pioneer but in 2002 when LX was incepted (built on the Crossair license ) it was not intended to be a low cost carrier but rather a continuation in a way or another of the legacy of Swissair .

True that nowadays standards have slipped everywhere and I am blaming the low cost carriers which have contributed greatly to the deterioration of those standards .

Thank you

[capetonianm]

KSHaggag
I am blaming the low cost carriers which have contributed greatly to the deterioration of those standards

You are correct up to a point, but I would respond that some of the LCCs, e.g. EZY, now operate to a higher standard than some of the legacy carriers, e.g. BA.
This morning’s posting https://www.businesstraveller.com/forums/topic/ba-moscow-dme-lhr-complaint-letter/ to which I attempted to respond is support of that contention. Unfortunately the original posting has been reported as ‘inappropriate’ and responses are not allowed.

[KSHaggag]

I do agree ,Capetonian !

Being a legacy full service and attempting to simulate and copy the low cost model within a traditional business never works ,that s why things get messy at the end of the day ,leading to such a situation like the one you are evoking .

[AMcWhirter]

[quote quote=946194]and other arrival lounges copied the idea.[/quote]

Ahmad – BA had an arrivals lounge at LHR before Swissair at ZRH.

Many years ago (in the days of Swissair) I was interviewing one of the Swissair people at ZRH and I asked if Swissair would follow BA’s example (of having an arrivals’ lounge) at LHR.

The reply was “Our understanding is that passengers want to leave ZRH as soon as possible once they arrive.”

[Ahmad]

Thanks for reminding me Alex. It was so many years ago! I do remember now BA had started an arrival facility at LHR and later had an arrangement with a LGW hotel for breakfast and showers. But if I remember correctly, the Allegra Lounge was the first for use by any First Class passenger and had showers and clothes pressing etc in addition to concierge service. Why I remember it is they it was small but far more personalised than the BA set up. Having said that, it was BA which introduced, around the same time, the First Suite with a fully flat bed, dine-on-demand and choice of dvds you could play at leisure. This was quite a novelty at the time.

[LuganoPirate]

Swiss has a very nice arrivals lounge at ZRH for First, Business and status members. I’ve used it quite often.

[KSHaggag]

Talking Arrivals Lounges ,the Swiss one outside the arrival area is quite elegant ,cozy,functional and nice .

I recall arriving there from Chicago in Aug 2013 at 11am with two hours left only till its closure at 1 pm and once it was 1pm I felt bad having to leave ..I wanted to stay …

[LuganoPirate]

[quote quote=946289]Talking Arrivals Lounges ,the Swiss one outside the arrival area is quite elegant ,cozy,functional and nice .

I recall arriving there from Chicago in Aug 2013 at 11am with two hours left only till its closure at 1 pm and once it was 1pm I felt bad having to leave ..I wanted to stay …[/quote]

That’s the one I was referring to KSHaggag. Since then it has been much enhanced. You now enter at the arrivals level after customs as before, but now take the lift one floor up. Plenty of space, very good en-suite bathrooms and some excellent food, drinks and snacks.

[KSHaggag]

Super !!!!

Will hop there then soon ;no doubt about that .

Thanks !

[Author]

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