81romeo

Hi all,

just wanted to share with you some very positive impressions about my recent flight to DXB with QF in Premium Economy.

Pros:
- At F check-in a staff member puts your luggage on the belt on your behalf, very nice touch.
- Very pleasant start of the trip in the CX F Lounge at T3, my favorite one, mainly because of the croissants and the Clicquot
- Personal greeting by last name at my seat by the CSM at the beginning and at the end of the trip
- W seats are much more comfortable than the BA ones
- W screens and entertainment system have more content than the BA ones and didn't get stuck. They seem to be bigger in size as well.
- Service in W starts with a cloth on your table which BA doesn't even do in J. I really miss this and bother about this.
- Food wise, quality seems to be much better than BA.
- You get two hot meals in W with QF, one actual meal and a hot snack.
- Bubbles in W are very very good, much better than the BA W sparkling wine
- CC is very attentive, always smiling and being proactive.
- I was lucky enough to select the first row of W, with limitless legroom and the nice side cabinet at the window
- Return flight to DXB in W was Ł800 cheaper than BA, same timing.

Cons:
- You don't get as much Avios as if you were to fly on BA paper.
- No chances of operational upgrades (when flying BA I do get a lot of them).

Please let me know if I have missed some reasons to stop flying BA

V10

Wouldn't some of the things you list there as Pros only be available to you by virtue of being BA Gold? (F check-in, F lounge access, on-board greeting, possibly seat selection). A bit ironic to use those to reinforce the advantages of another airline over BA. Of course, if you're the equivalent in QF's programme as well, then that wouldn't apply.

Whilst it doesn't make much sense to slavishly stick to one airline even if alternatives exist that offer better amenities at a lower cost, this can work both ways. BA may still be a better option in future.

IdiotAbroad

Don't rule out the OpUp. My better half and I were upgraded from W to J (didn't get to try W, but never mind!). This was as BA Gold/ Silver respectively. Great service and beat BA J by a big margin.

headingwest

I'm considering a redemption on QF sometime next year. You mentioned some interesting points, and I think you've just made my mind up...I should give them a try.

81romeo

Please do, you will be positively surprised!! ...and you have nothing to loose :-)

000

Alan Joyce will be delighted to read this. He needs more customers!

81romeo

Of course you're right, but I find it very curious and ironic that most of those things are never available to me when I fly BA but then suddenly become available when I fly other OW carriers....quite strange isn't it?

I mean, at BA F check no one takes your luggage and puts it on the belt for you, I only was greeted once in about 50 BA sectors in the last 6 months, food in BA's W is simply awful and seat selection is never consistent because of the "operational reasons"...

HIDDY

No idea why you put that last on your list of positives....it should have been the first.

itsmeitisss

I really couldn't care less about a member of staff placing my often heavy luggage on the scales for me.

I did QF1 earlier this year and it was pretty good. The seat has some plus points and some negative points in J. You're guaranteed to either step over someone sleeping or be stepped over on a busy flight, whereas as a Gold, if you jump on a seat soon enough on BA, you can pick a seat with no crossing points.

chris1979

Good to read about your experiences. You are right that the BA Y and W product is often a long way behind the competition. A friend of mine, a travel agent who travels a lot with work to Asia in Y, was shocked the other week when he flew BA for the first time having usually flown Asian or ME carriers. I had previously told about my positive experiences experiences with BA and he knows I am mostly loyal to BA and the BAEC.

Having said that, as others have said, if you never fly BA L/H again, you might a) struggle to retain OW emerald status (though that depends on your flying patterns but b) limit / inconvenience your travel quite a bit by "never flying BA l/h again" if you would like your status to be nonetheless recognised (or end up flying with others airlines where the perks you described won't exist for you).

Good feedback, possibly slightly overedged headline?

shorthauldad

I flew BA WT+, QF Y+ and CX Y+ in close succession last year; I found QF Y+ the best (although the cabin was only 1/3rd full, which always helps), BA WT+ (on 77W, LHR-SIN) was a close runner-up even though it was rammed.

CX Y+ was a bit grim by comparison (although maybe I was unlucky as Stez tells me it's usually OK)

WeAreFlyingHigh

"seat selection is never consistent"
"food in BA's W is simply awful"

While these are both true making such a sweeping statement after your first QF flight is silly. What is not to say with further QF flights their seat selection will be inconsistent. The same could apply for their food.

I had a similar experience as you when I flew AA once a few years ago after a terrible BA flight. I decided to book quite a few AA flights but soon realised after taking into account average experiences across a hundred flights on various routes which I prefer.

My gripe when travelling to SYD is the lack of options available. I am a fussy eater and although when I've flown EK I have had nice meals in all classes I have also looked at the menu and not fancied anything, choosing to stick with the cheese (if it's nice cheese and biscuits, or the bread. I would rather have an overcooked fillet of beef than a chicken breast in some sauce, fish (which I dislike all kinds of), or an exotic meal.

NB: The nicest meal I had was actually on a BA flight decades ago from MCO - LGW. I had chicken nuggets and chips as child. It was a bit dry but not bad.

I also like flying direct to get there as quickly as possible. I pick the quickest then which is BA or MAS. Sometimes it's CX but I go for maximum points. With longhaul flights over 18hr in my contract are in F my only decider aside from points is the food.

HIDDY

Yes I regularly get my arse kicked from frequent flyers when I say my BA experiences are never as bad as some portray on here. Yet those same people seem to think it's perfectly okay to compare one flight with another airline and come to the conclusion that BA are a truly awful airline.

On a side note I've heard the EK/QF partnership isn't quite working out as well as the Aussies had hoped. Seems they don't like being the minions in the relationship. Trouble ahead maybe?

headingwest

A similar question from me, when did QF and BA fall out, and what was that all about?

jp-mco

I'm on QF in First to DXB just after Christmas for a business trip and really looking forward to it. The transfers each end are so useful in shuttling me up to Abu Dhabi after my flight and then picking me up to bring me back. The hard product itself looks so much better on the A380.