DrBernardo

If you're determined to go ahead with this (and why not, I used to do it quite a lot back in prehistoric days in T4 and T1 - it's nice!) and you don't find an easy online source of arrival stand information, I recommend the following (on the assumption that staff might not want to encourage you to do what you're doing, and that therefore a bit of dissembly might be required).

Go airside to departures and, in the lounge, about half an hour from landing (flightradar etc) ask the people at the desk if they can tell you what gate your OH's inbound aircraft is arriving at. If they ask, tell them you'd like to go there (on the departures level) so that you can take a photo of his inbound aircraft arriving for him, and tell them you know about the tunnels so you're happy walking back from B or C.

Then, armed with this information, get down to the relevant arrivals level and wait for him, and hope that the stand doesn't change at the last minute (which is less likely if he's on time and the general operation is quite smooth that day). One additional challenge you have is that the B and C satellites don't have much in the way of windows on the arrivals level, so it might be a little tricky to check if/when the plane pulls up to the stand. Pray for an arrival somewhere near the middle so you can use the windows where the escalators and lifts are. For that matter, if it's the B satellite the connections staff there might have an appropriate set that will let them check if he's still meant to be arriving at the same stand, and/or if you see some Border Force personnel hanging around to check passports of arriving passengers you could ask them too.

Of course if it's a remote stand, then don't bother and just wait for him in the lounge (unless you were wanting to pop into town for the rst of the day, in which case wait for him in A arrivals just before/after the passport control!

corporate-wage-slave

And how would one do this?

[Yes it can be done, but if it's a C gate it will involve 3 transit trips].

DrBernardo

No-one said true love was easy!

But is it really three? Wouldn't you just take the train to C, stay on it until the doors opened on the arrivals side, and then step off and go up in the lift/stairs?

babats

If your boyfirend thinks he's arriving BEFORE you then perhaps he's planning a surprise to meet you somewhere - please let us know what heppens on the day.

evanderm

He knows we are meeting at LHR to go in to central London and he knows to go through immigration and not through flight connections. It's his first time outside of North America (let alone LHR T5) so as he is new to everything I can give him some very specific instructions on where to go. Right now the plan is that he will go to Costa Coffee at arrivals, load up on caffeine, and meet me off my original incoming flight (arr. 10:40). I would rather we have the extra time to explore London a bit, so I will drive to the airport at 4am, as opposed to 6am to catch my flight (oh the sacrifices we make).

I'll probably 'ruin' the surprise a little bit by sending him messages with picture clues as to my whereabouts so as to build some anticipation. He should get these when he turns on his phone after landing.

This all does beg a different question regarding immigration. I'm a UK/EU citizen and he is not. Can I join him in the fast track queue for non UK/EU if we are together, or do I have to go through the EU queue?

Globalist

This is most definitely something that gets flagged. When I arrived from CDG connecting to AMS somehow the flight connection system popped up I already passed them before. A few calls and 5 minutes later I was let in.

OT: This trip had the issue twice, first when I checked in at LHR to CDG a few days before the check in agent also had to do some typing to sort out my conformance. The CDG-LHR-AMS sector had the same issue at LHR.

Globalist

evanderm

I will tell the lounge staff that I intend on going outside again. Hopefully they can remove the RtF/Conformance indicator. Failing that, I might have to call BA to cancel my check-in and then have them reissue a boarding pass either through the desks upstairs, or myself on the app.

CD747

To do what you need to do, you need to use the (semi-illicit, at least unofficial) route of taking the transit to C and exiting. This is definitely not sanctioned by airport staff. So I would not recommend saying you are exiting, and instead dealing with the problem when you re-enter T5.

Possibly the bigger problem is that walking the wrong way down the Arrivals flow (or loitering for extended periods of time in that area) may eventually get you some attention of a security (or security-esque) nature - at the very least it's extremely odd.

I don't want to discourage you though. As someone who recently visited all four LHR terminals for one departure, you won't be the first to do odd things! ^

evanderm

For anyone who was curious, Meeting the incoming flight was not difficult. I was able to get the arriving gate information from one of the lounge staff. She was also able to remove the conformance indicator from my boarding pass before I left the terminal. I decided I would stay on the transit train to backtrack back to A. My boyfriend's incoming flight arrived at a remote stand so I waited for him at the beginning of the immigration queue and quickly spotted him there.

Tim1975

If I had just met my partner off a flight, I could think of more pleasant and romantic things to do with them then spend 11 hours in an airport.

Might I suggest that you will enjoy yourself more if you jump on a train to London or in a Cab to Windsor Castle or Saville Gardens. Get yourselves some fresh air and a decent meal.

Or if you need to rest there is always a hotel dayroom option.

evanderm

We certainly did not spend 11 hours at the airport. Took the HEX to Paddington and toured the sites from there.

Foltan

Did you actually read any of this thread?!

mrow

I was thinking the same thing, especially as there were pages asking how to meet from a flight, exit the terminal etc...

Anyway, glad it all worked out for the OP ^...hope you enjoyed London

chasingtheblue

Yay re surprising him - glad it worked out.

Globaliser

+1 - it is nice when these things do work out.