Having never lived in London, I was not aware that BD has such a strong presence at Heathrow.. I will take a look at their network/services. However, if I remain enrolled in ANA's Superflyers program I will be able to maintain * gold status (even w/ little or no flights on * alliance), so I will be able to enjoy the benefits of * gold without moving to BD or LH.

That being said, I guess my choices come down to:
1) moving my UK-Japan business to VS (sorry, not VA!). Although I will most likely only make silver status, my long-hauls will be in paid J, and the on-ground (car service/lounges) look very attractive.
2) making OW sapphire w/ JL and flying BA. - the new terminal and large domestic network look attractive but I feel VS is a better business product overall.

Is flying BA w/ status on another OW airline a better option than moving business to VS (albeit lower status tier)? I presume it is easier to accumulate non-flight mileages via credit cards, etc domestically with VS/BA...

any additional comments/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.