FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Transatlantic BA Style

Feb 2, 2026 | 2:22 pm

#8

hkskyline

Join Date: Jun 2005

Location: HKG, LHR

Posts: 1,617

Let's try the other LHR-YYZ BA flight this time!

BA flies twice a day between London Heathrow and Toronto, and I favoured this earlier flight since I land mid-afternoon so can get out of the airport before dark and enjoy dinner outside. An added bonus is today's aircraft is an A350.

I had actually flown on the same flight before back in early 2023, which was a cheap 13,000 avios redemption and also on an A350. I don't think it's that cheap anymore.

Arriving 1.5 hours before departure, I was surprised my boarding pass section number was higher than the airplane's seat capacity. Would I get dragged off the plane and denied boarding at the gate? Or it just so happens someone checked in but cancelled, and that section number cannot be recycled?

Either way, it looks like a pretty full flight today.

While the main terminal area was busy as usual, I noticed on the boards my flight would depart from the B gates, one stop away on the train. This is a wonderful quiet oasis with plenty of windows to spot BA aircraft of various sizes.

No staff were at the gate an hour before departure, so I took my time exploring and found a quiet place a small distance away to rest and wait for boarding.

Boarding was timely and there were several staff on hand to check your ID before you enter the line for the automated gate. Staff at the counter made a few announcements to use the gates and there is no need to look for them. All this was quite civilized and orderly despite so many boarding groups and there are no set lines for the latter ones.

I got an extra legroom seat at the front of the plane and sat comfortably. However, we were hit with a delay because a service truck broke down next to the plane and the last bags could not be loaded. It took a while for them to sort things out and we finally pushed back at 12:21pm, 40 minutes behind schedule. We got updates from the flight deck several times, while the crew were diligent to help take out my TV from the side for the safety briefing, and to stow it away afterwards. I was not in a "normal" seat after all.

The downside of being in this extra legroom seat is I'm right in front of the main corridor coming in from Premium Economy. Because the cabin shifts from 2 seats to 3, crew members come straight toward me and have to turn as they enter Economy. It's a tight space inside the plane so oftentimes they would light bump into my seat as they pass between cabins.

Soon after takeoff, lunch was served with 2 choices - meat or vegetarian. I chose the meat option, which was a curry. I particularly like BA's cheese and crackers on the side. Overall, it was a decent meal. I got a bonus 2 butters as well.

BA Executive Club members get free messaging on board, and the wifi connection screen also shows some flight data. Upgrading to full internet access would cost almost 15 pounds, which is not bad for a 7 hour flight, and the same price as back in 2023.

After lunch, I dozed on and off and at 2 hours and 17 minutes before arrival, we reached the edge of Labardor.

Heading back for the lavatory, I only noticed 2 empty seats on the right section of Economy. I was a bit surprised how full the flight was given it's a Tuesday in late October and not the busy tourist season. Who goes to Toronto at this time of year? I didn't sense any Blue Jays fans heading back for the World Series, and the fall colours are pretty much done already.

Snacks were provided before landing, which consisted of 2 choices. I chose the vegetarian one this time but it ended up to be another curry filling. So I had 2 curry meals in a row on this BA flight.

The rest of the flight was uneventful and we landed at 3:40pm, ahead of schedule despite the delay out of Heathrow. Since the UK adjusted its clocks backwards the week before while Canada hasn't yet, the time difference is only 4 hours at this time of year.

It was the usual long walk towards immigration and the air-side corridors were dirty, similar to my past arrival experiences. However, there wasn't a line for the big group of kiosks in the main hall. It helped that I had pre-filled my forms on ArriveCan ahead of time, and I didn't need to go through a manual counter with my receipt so I exited into the baggage area quite quickly. That meant a long wait for my luggage to come out.

The Terminal 3 arrival experience was surprisingly smooth today. From landing to the train back to Terminal 1 took less than an hour.

BA's crew are in general more cheerful than Air Canada's. At least their people do give out a genuine smile. I like BA's IFE selection overall and the A350 is a far more delightful place to be than a high-density 777.

More photos on my website : https://www.globalphotos.org/ba93-2025.htm

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