T5 is open!

[jmittle]

Im American and living in London and feel for the UK, this is a complete disgrace to the country. Instead of a delayed sorry, CEO Willie Walsh should resign! This is the biggest single event in BA's recent history and not only did they fail but they have ruined their image once again. This is the second time in 1 year where BA has had 'baggage problems'. Last summer it was because BA was growing out of T4 and preparing for T5.

British Airways Cancels 50 Flights as T5 Luggage Backlog Builds
2008-03-31 19:09 (New York)


By Steve Rothwell
April 1 (Bloomberg) -- British Airways Plc canceled 50 flights at London Heathrow airport's new Terminal 5, only four fewer than yesterday, and said the backlog of stranded luggage is still building up.
The airline scrapped 13 percent of scheduled flights from the terminal on the sixth day of disruption at Europe's busiest airport. About 342 services are likely to operate, according to British Airways spokeswoman Amanda Allan.
Cancellations caused by the failure of the 4.3 billion-pound
($8.5 billion) building's computerized baggage system total more than 300 since it opened on March 27. The number of bags waiting to be reunited with their owners has risen by about one-third to 20,000 in the past two days.
``From a publicity point of view clearly this is very bad,''
Stephen Furlong, an analyst at Davy Stockbrokers in Dublin, said yesterday evening. ``It does put a bit of pressure on management.''
British Airways, whose Chief Executive Officer Willie Walsh says he accepts responsibility for the chaos, fell 5.75 pence, or
2.4 percent, to 234.25 pence yesterday. The company's stock has dropped 24 percent this year, reducing its value to 2.7 billion pounds.
Following the failure of an automated baggage screening system, bags that have been unloaded at Heathrow are being re- screened manually. In some instances, this requires the luggage to be driven to London Gatwick airport for the security checks.

More Tomorrow

About 50 flights will also be canceled tomorrow, Allan said.
She said no figures were yet available for the rest of the week and that the reduced service is intended to act as a ``firebreak'' to allow the carrier to contain the disruption and get Terminal 5 running as originally planned.
``We are working round the clock to try to deliver the delayed bags as soon as we can,'' British Airways said yesterday.
``This is a highly complicated process.''
The disruption may cost the carrier as much as 50 million pounds, Andrew Fitchie, an analyst at Collins Stewart in London, said in a note to clients, and will clip annual earnings by three-to-five pence a share.
Cancellations are being restricted to short-haul locations to which British Airways has multiple flights, the airline said, so that passengers may be able to rebook on later services. It plans to operate about 87 percent of trips again tomorrow, with a progressively larger flying program throughout the week.
Europe's third-biggest airline is already the continent's worst for lost luggage and the second-worst for delayed bags, according to the Air Transport Users Council.
U.K. Transport Minister Jim Fitzpatrick said yesterday British Airways and airport owner BAA Ltd. must ensure passengers inconvenienced by lost baggage and canceled flights receive the compensation they are entitled to under U.K. law.

`Extremely Regrettable'

``BA and BAA's focus must not be deflected from ensuring the passenger experience improves,'' Fitzpatrick said, speaking in Parliament. ``It's extremely regrettable to say the least that passengers using T5 have had to suffer a poor experience.''
British Airways had been counting on Terminal 5, which took 20 years to plan and build, to help ease journeys and retain passengers put off by Heathrow's overcrowding. The airline took possession of the complex in September from BAA, which is owned by Madrid-based Grupo Ferrovial SA, starting what it described as ``exhaustive'' customer trials that month.
Terminal 5 boasts 17 kilometers (10.6 miles) of baggage conveyors designed to handle as many as 12,000 bags an hour. More than 400,000 man-hours went into developing the mechanism's computer software, which has the ability to automatically sort and prioritize incoming bags.
The disruption comes amid intensifying competition at Heathrow. Delta Air Lines Inc., Continental Airlines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp. began flights to the airport yesterday under a new ``Open Skies'' trans-Atlantic air travel treaty.

[mcren]

I believe BA/BAA are just just stretch too thin. I was in Terminal 1 as part of the T5 avoidance strategy, and was surprised to see so many BA staff around. Must admit I was surprised, but after informing myself, I understood that BA still have T1 flights!!! and T4, and T5!!
As eventually, T4 will move to T5, they have not hired any new staff, and it means not enough people at least up to the T4/T5 move which may be delayed .......

[aristoph]

Originally Posted by Shuttle-Bored

Apols if this has been posted already (couldn't see it on a quick scan) but below is what BA apparently plan to operate over the next few days:

92% on Thursday and 91% on Friday! Great progress BA.

[graraps]

Originally Posted by jmittle

this is a complete disgrace to the country.

I agree that BA aren't having a particularly great time at the moment, but you're overreacting.
Last time I checked, flights from/to Manchester and Birmingham were not disrupted.
Who cares about what happens in that funny Southern town?
I don't.

[NotGoingBackToSteerage]

Originally Posted by zedhead

Methinks T5 baggage system has no physical (warehousing) room for IROP situations.

Much like YYZ T1.

Someone mentioned pear-shaped?

This struck me as well during the last few days of the reports about bags needing to be re-screened to be sent on planes without passengers and the length of time this was taking. IROP situations are whilst not unique to BA for sure seem to have been assumed to be a thing of the past as there is no contingency to handle them on-site. Given the volume of connections that there will be through T5, one has to think that there will be a large quantity of luggage (currently 400 flights a day so if only 3 bags fail to connect per flight) that will not make the connection on a daily basis - what is the procedure for handling this going forward?

I've just booked 2 AD and 1 INF from MAN to BNE via HEL and HKG with Finnair and CX for May. BA in Club was beyond our budget at £10K but WTP did not seem to bad at £4K as being silver we could use the lounges. However, I realised we would have T5 to T4 connection in LHR so that put me off before anything else - now I feel justified - we have a wedding to attend the day after we arrive so no luggage would not be ideal. Ended up paying £5.5K for Biz on AY and CX - no flat beds but missing out T5 seems a good idea right now.

IAMORGAN mentioned lack of stand guidance and access to jetways - all so familiar and again shows how much we were oversold and BA are underdelivering on this - BA cutting too far is coming home to roost...

NGBTS

[BAg Lady]

I am here to report back on my experience having taken Prospero up on his challenge posted in another thread. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showp...95&postcount=9 . I have removed it from that thread to post it here considering this thread more appropriate.

To start both my Monday flights were canceled and rebooked at different times in the previous 24 hours.
My first flight was due to arrive at 17:15. We landed and were at the gate by 17:22. The guidance system was on so straight in.
Waited for 10 minutes whilst the jetty operator ran back to her previous gate to retrieve her forgotten key card.
Off the plane and through the boarding pass, passport and biometric checkpoints by 17:37. So far so good.

Then it all went pear-shaped. After the biometric check (photo taken) I walked into a snaking crowd of about 150 people held at the base of the 2 escalators leading up to the FCC security checkpoints. One escalator was closed off and the "Can I help" people were allowing groups of about 15 people at a time up the second escalator. I waited 20 minutes here.

Got to the top and just 5 of the 14 security scanners were in operation.
I went to the Fast Track area at the far end, only to find that the "gate-keeper" was allowing anyone through to alleviate congestion at the other scanners. I believe the line at the Fast Track was longer than at any of the other scanners. This was certainly no premium experience.
The design of the automated tray system for the scanners is beyond absurd and its shortfalls have already been well covered by other posters. Hardly anyone knew how to use it and there was no area to prepare for the scanner.
It took another 25 minutes to get through the soul-destroying security shuffle, reaching the departures area at 18:25.
In all it took a full 1 hour to pass through the FCC.

I had a short time in the Galleries First - which are fabulous, especially the Terrace but found the ladies toilets to be horrendous (smelly, cheaply done and poorly designed) .

My connecting flight to Manchester departed the gate 25 minutes late and was held on the taxiway for another 20 minutes, arriving 40 minutes late into MAN

As the final straw, after waiting at baggage reclaim for 15 minutes a tannoy announcement went out asking for ALL passengers of the flight (a packed A321) to report to the baggage information desk as no luggage had been loaded in London.

Horses with lampshades on their heads are lovely BA, but what I really want is fast and efficient security, on time departures, and for my luggage to accompany me on my travels.
In 2008 so far I have had 4 flights canceled at less than 24 hours notice and my luggage "misplaced" twice. I have been loyal to BA for more than 15 years, and for the first time I am considering switching my allegiance. I am beyond disappointed and T5 has done nothing to reassure me .

[PUCCI GALORE]

Dear One, as an American living in London you probably can see wood from trees - however quoting papers quoting the Transport Minister cuts little ice with me. The Government should have sorted out the BAA side of matters a long time ago and with the transport policy of the UK bascially being one of tax and harrass the cash cow motorists he of all people has all the gravitas of a candy floss. Bloomberg and other enterprises which form opinion amongst people who generate money for this country. However as Walsh was the City's blue eyed boy with all the cost-cutting at BA, and as it is due to come of the staff cost cutting that we are in the mess that we are in today, I take their volte-face with more than a pinch of salt.

Hoever, I do wonder what Barbra Cassani is doing these days nad whether she could come and sort Walsh's midden out.

[BAg Lady]

Originally Posted by graraps

...
Last time I checked, flights from/to Manchester and Birmingham were not disrupted.
Who cares about what happens in that funny Southern town?
I don't.

I think you will find that MAN flights have been disrupted. The 1404 and 1398 have both suffered cancellations in the past couple of days. And the flights that do operate are coming in without luggage.

[PUCCI GALORE]

Originally Posted by BAg Lady

I am here to report back on my experience having taken Prospero up on his challenge posted in another thread. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showp...95&postcount=9 . I have removed it from that thread to post it here considering this thread more appropriate.

To start both my Monday flights were canceled and rebooked at different times in the previous 24 hours.
My first flight was due to arrive at 17:15. We landed and were at the gate by 17:22. The guidance system was on so straight in.
Waited for 10 minutes whilst the jetty operator ran back to her previous gate to retrieve her forgotten key card.
Off the plane and through the boarding pass, passport and biometric checkpoints by 17:37. So far so good.

Then it all went pear-shaped. After the biometric check (photo taken) I walked into a snaking crowd of about 150 people held at the base of the 2 escalators leading up to the FCC security checkpoints. One escalator was closed off and the "Can I help" people were allowing groups of about 15 people at a time up the second escalator. I waited 20 minutes here.

Got to the top and just 5 of the 14 security scanners were in operation.
I went to the Fast Track area at the far end, only to find that the "gate-keeper" was allowing anyone through to alleviate congestion at the other scanners. I believe the line at the Fast Track was longer than at any of the other scanners. This was certainly no premium experience.
The design of the automated tray system for the scanners is beyond absurd and its shortfalls have already been well covered by other posters. Hardly anyone knew how to use it and there was no area to prepare for the scanner.
It took another 25 minutes to get through the soul-destroying security shuffle, reaching the departures area at 18:25.
In all it took a full 1 hour to pass through the FCC.

I had a short time in the Galleries First - which are fabulous, especially the Terrace but found the ladies toilets to be horrendous (smelly, cheaply done and poorly designed) .

My connecting flight to Manchester departed the gate 25 minutes late and was held on the taxiway for another 20 minutes, arriving 40 minutes late into MAN

As the final straw, after waiting at baggage reclaim for 15 minutes a tannoy announcement went out asking for ALL passengers of the flight (a packed A321) to report to the baggage information desk as no luggage had been loaded in London.

Horses with lampshades on their heads are lovely BA, but what I really want is fast and efficient security, on time departures, and for my luggage to accompany me on my travels.
In 2008 so far I have had 4 flights canceled at less than 24 hours notice and my luggage "misplaced" twice. I have been loyal to BA for more than 15 years, and for the first time I am considering switching my allegiance. I am beyond disappointed and T5 has done nothing to reassure me .

I certainly hope that this is being sent to members of the BA Board.Their details are on BA.Com.

[Smirnoff]

Why oh why can BA not instruct the BAA clipboard monitor to let only J and F passengers through Fast Track.

They do this quite successfully at T4. Why is no-one from BA management going to the security queue (this has been going on since day one) and telling them to stop letting anyone they feel like through fast-track?

What is the point of fast-track that seems to be routinely taking 30 minutes to clear?

They told us on the tour that if any queues built up for premium customers, they could quickly act and open more desk or change things around. Yet they do nothing, while it takes up to an hour to get from entering the building to clearing security. We were lied to.

[BAg Lady]

Originally Posted by PUCCI GALORE

I certainly hope that this is being sent to members of the BA Board.Their details are on BA.Com.

It certainly is. Oh how I wish you ran BA.

[mcren]

Originally Posted by BAg Lady

It certainly is. Oh how I wish you ran BA.

BAg Lady, I hope you did it!!
Would it be not nice to know that somebody from BA management is reading this thread and forwarding it to the appropriate people?

[graraps]

Originally Posted by BAg Lady

I think you will find that MAN flights have been disrupted.The 1404 and 1398 have both suffered cancellations in the past couple of days....

I was obviously referring to flights connecting MAN to the developed world.

[Cheetah_SA]

Originally Posted by bernardd

If they're handling ~400 fights a day each with 100 passengers who checked 1 bag per person, ...

I notice that ba.com instructs certain pax that they will have to go to "fight connections" at T5. From what I'm reading here that is not a misprint either.

[demiurg]

Originally Posted by BAg Lady

Then it all went pear-shaped. After the biometric check (photo taken) I walked into a snaking crowd of about 150 people held at the base of the 2 escalators leading up to the FCC security checkpoints. One escalator was closed off and the "Can I help" people were allowing groups of about 15 people at a time up the second escalator. I waited 20 minutes here.

Got to the top and just 5 of the 14 security scanners were in operation.
I went to the Fast Track area at the far end, only to find that the "gate-keeper" was allowing anyone through to alleviate congestion at the other scanners. I believe the line at the Fast Track was longer than at any of the other scanners. This was certainly no premium experience.
The design of the automated tray system for the scanners is beyond absurd and its shortfalls have already been well covered by other posters. Hardly anyone knew how to use it and there was no area to prepare for the scanner.
It took another 25 minutes to get through the soul-destroying security shuffle, reaching the departures area at 18:25.
In all it took a full 1 hour to pass through the FCC.

That sounds awfully familiar. The only difference to my experience was that all escalators were stopped and everyone had to take the lifts (whenever there was some room upstairs before the security hall). While standing in the queue after leaving the lifts and before the security hall I asked the "Can I help you" guy, if there was no fast track to which he replied "no". Guess what, several minutes later a fellow traveller spotted the fast track sign at the other end of the hall so we moved there, but in the end I do not think it was any faster than the other queues. So in some sense the clueless "Can I help you" guy was actually right, there is no fast track to speak of.