Originally Posted by
corporate-wage-slave
But that's the heart of it: you're looking for a service on interlining that comes at a cost. If you don't want to pay that cost then you don't get the interlining. The other option is to work out a way of travelling with hand baggage only.
It has nothing to do with interlining, it's just poor decisions made by not very well educated people (they are called "operations researchers"). The published base fare (one-way) from BUE to DME is over $800 compared to $346 for BUE to LHR and $320 for BUE to MAN via LHR (yes, the "interlining cost" here is $-20). I don't care about the luggage because I can re-check it in London and I'm not gonna try to figure out a way to travel with 25+ kilograms or climbing gear in my carry-on. What I care about is the handling of visa related issues by the airport staff.
P.S.: Sent a message to BA via their web-site. Asked 5 questions, got an answer to 1, which was in fact not an answer to my question but a copy paste from a supposedly similar request (in the opinion of a BA employee). Very poor customer support. AAdvantage exec platinum phone line agent was able to answer 4 out of 5 questions right away -- all except the visa-free airside transit.