Babu

I flew from LHR to MIA on Thursday. Being only an infrequent visitor to BA F, I don't have a lot of experience with this product, but I must say I was underwhelmed.

-Drinks never refilled until asked. Since the crew were visibly absent, this required a trip back to the galley every time.

-CSD never materialized with promise of a power adapter (this was old F). I had to track her down.

-Call bell unanswered for 35 minutes in spite the F cabin being only half full.

-Shooed away from Raid The Larder trolley. When I told her I was in F, I witnessed a .

-Cold, crisp service from all 3 staff working the cabin. Stiff upper lips and fake smiles.


Lot Polish J 2 weeks before from JFK to WAW was supremely superior in every single aspect.

Jenzo

Depends on the crew, as you have said. I have had one Fantastic service so far, and one meh service which looks to be about the same as yours (the F cc member exited the plane before i did to get his connecting flight back to BRU or somewhere). I enjoyed the seat and food very much however it is not worth it to me if the service is inconsistent, but it depends on the crew and i have to say the one where the service was excellent she got a well done via BA.com so they are not all the same and probably better than worse most of the time. We need someone that travels F more regularly!

Final 3 Greens

I can't say whether it is typical, but I had a similar experience and have not/will not be giving it another go.

Tobias-UK

No, it's certainly not typical. It appears you managed to get one of those disinterested crews that just don't want to be bothered. Complain to BA, set out your case carefully and politely with as little emotion as possible. Crews like this need to be weeded out.

I've flown many F flights, indeed all my long haul flights are usually in F, and I have experienced nothing close to what you have experienced.

Complain. Name names if you remember them.

ringingup

You probably have done it already, but if not, I would suggest you submit your feedback to BA. They may offer you some Avios, but most importantly if they receive a lot of similar feedback, there is a chance things will improve.

Skipcool3

Were you pro-actively offered the 50k Avios or a voucher which is standard service recovery when flying on an aircraft fitted with OF?

Msclelovr

On 4 recent flights in First this year, I've had similar experiences to Babu 3x, and an adequate experience once.

I have given feedback to BA 2x, been offered 10,000 avios on one occasion and nothing on the other when I complained about poor service and inedible food. I find BA's lengthy but bland customer service replies irritate me more than the indifferent experiences in First!

windowontheAside

I don't fly F all that often, but I've certainly experienced this level of service.

Of my F flights in the last couple of years, 2 have been great, three so-so and three pretty poor. I don't expect someone hovering at my elbow just in case I might need something, but I really don't expect to have to go and ask for a glass of water several times on a daytime flight, because I haven't seen any CC for a while.

I have a pretty sweet tooth, and enjoy a couple of chocolates at the end of a meal. I have only been offered chocolates on one flight, and then they were offered and whipped away after I had cheekily(?) taken two, never to be seen again. I have made a point of asking for them now, but if it weren't for FT I don't think I'd know they were carried, and therefore to ask for them. It's a shame. When it's right, it's really good - but my experience is that it's hugely dependent on the crew and that's a bit of a lottery.

I've read many reports on here about people saying their glass was never empty etc and I've yet to experience that level of service.

Swanhunter

It isn't the norm but it does happen and more often than it should.

layz

I've been lucky. My F trips have been nothing like that. Although it's worth remembering some crew may not be as good at reading passengers so don't hesitate to be proactive with what you want. The crews I've dealt with have been excellent. My glass was never empty on my first LHR-JFK and I suspect the only reason it was on LHR-LAX is because I thought it'd be a good idea to ask them to stop

DYKWIA

IMO, a member of the cabin crew should walk round F every 15 minutes to see if anyone needs anything.

BAflyer2007

Just as above.

Whether or not it makes a difference, Miami is operated by Mixed Fleet

A call bell unanswered for 35 minutes is unacceptable in any cabin. Even if you don't remember the names then please just complain with the flight number and day.

It cannot be that difficult to find out which 3 staff worked in F on that day, they simply should not be working in any cabin let alone the First Cabin.

I wonder what would have happened if the cabin was full?

HIDDY

I didn't know they now had a raid the larder trolley it's usually set out on a proper self service area. Did you ask the crew first if you could have something or were you just going to help yourself? Being an F passenger doesn't give you the right to wander through to the lower cabins and avail yourself of its products.

CatchThePigeon

Agree absolutely with this.

We all have off days but if BA management repeatedly see the same names cropping up in complaints they are sure to take action. There's no excuse for lazy crews.

Flexible preferences

This isn't offered as any form of excuse whatsoever, but I wonder if the OF cabin is demotivating for the crew? They work with a shabby product, and (perhaps unconsciously) give shabby service to boot.