Joshm300

As already mentioned you got off lightly with such a small delay. When our 767 had to be swapped due to technical issues about 4 weeks ago, the longest part was waiting for the catering to be unloaded and moved to the new plane. I think all passengers would rather have arrived and hour earlier rather than have a light meal or an over priced and probably not available bob sandwich.

flyingmartyr

I did - but it wasn't breakfast as I planned it by booking a CE seat

SWISSBOBBY

Interestingly a pre-emptive solution could have been proposed giving all CE PAX a voucher to get some food themselves say Ł10, while they were moving from Gate X to Gate Y.

Any half experienced gate agent would have realised the food carts would not fit... and how did the manage the seat swapping from a wide to narrow bodied plane?

LiviLion

Did everyone who was booked on the 767 manage to get on the little Airbus or were people rebooked onto a later flight, appreciate you might not know.

I imagine a full A3XX is a bit cheaper to fly to EDI and back than a half empty 767 but that's just pure speculation on my part.

Anyway, back to normal, I see someone has managed to blame the parent so well done - took a bit longer than normal though.

subject2load

Lots of interesting (and indeed, mostly relevant) discussion about the reason for lack of catering ; the pragmatic decision to minimise departure delay ; the value (whether actual or perceived) of the missing food ; and suggested compensation levels.

Meanwhile ..... the basic facts :

- customer buys premium cabin ticket

- a core element of the advertised service is not provided (whether for justifiable reason or not)

- aggrieved customer lodges complaint

- airline (fully aware that it has failed to deliver the advertised service) responds with no offer of compensation


Time & again I find myself asking how exactly we got to the point where BA could possibly deem this to be a remotely acceptable stance in the eyes of a premium cabin customer.

Can this totally uncaring attitude be tracked entirely to the appointment of CEO Alex Cruz ? Or is there something more deep-rooted about the thoroughly distasteful attitude of our national carrier

The tragedy is that the case exemplifies a recurring pattern of behaviour which undoubtedly upsets many BA staff as much as it does paying customers. More than anything, it's so very sad.

I am put in mind of the words (albeit arising in different circumstances) recounted here on the forum by a BA flyer, just a few weeks ago, when a CC member remarked despondently : "They've stolen my airline"

KARFA

Would you have suggested in the OP's situation that the flight incurred a further delay - probably an hour or more - just to get some food onboard for the short flight?

EuropeanPete

That's not really the point though, is it? It's like going to a Michelin starred restaurant where the Maitre D' bravely saves you from a truck which randomly ploughed through the wall. You'd be very grateful you're alive, but wouldn't expect to pay for all that food you never had.

mrow

Yes, that's an option.

I was on an AA domestic flight where no food was loaded for the F cabin. The gate agent came on board and let us know and asked if we were happy to have no catering or if we would prefer to be rebooked on another flight with catering.

To my surprise 2 people did opt for rebooking on a flight leaving an hour later.

Seemed like an entirely sensible approach and kept everyone happy.

Concerto

Hang on a little bit, you might get some compensation in the way of Avios automatically credited to your account. Sometimes these things take a bit of time to turn around.

KARFA

Several folks have already suggested levels of compensation which BA may actually pay.

Out of interest how long was your AA flight though? I am guessing much longer than LHR-EDI since there actually was some food to be loaded for F.

subject2load

No, I would not. And furthermore, I feel there was nothing in my post to imply as much. (I even used the word 'pragmatic' as an indication of my support for the decision to get the flight away with minimal delay)

By 'stance' I was - obviously - referring to the response offered by BA to the complaint lodged by the aggrieved customer - which, in fact, amounts to no offer at all.

Some people may perhaps see the matter of zero compensation following non-delivery of a paid-for, advertised service as acceptable. Clearly, BA management do.

mrow

It was an ORD-JFK (or may have been LGA, can't recall) so longer than an LHR-EDI but not a transcon or anything like that.

Regardless of flight length I just thought the approach was sensible - be up front and give people the option to wait for the service they've paid for or go on the current flight and accept a reduced service.

hsumh316

I think for BA they could either do food service and possibly have EU 261 go into effect, or just not do food service at all. I think cost wise for BA shorting on food service is in THEIR best interest.

I do agree with mrow that passengers should have the option to choose since some passengers have connections to make.

PUCCI GALORE

Demand? Demand? Seriously, he flew to EDI - I'm really not sure from where but it can have been a flight of less than 60 mins airborne. An aircraft was switched and he flew and he's supposed to make demands? What was he paying for to get to EDI or eat a stupid snack? I hope that in view of such demands, BA would tell whosoever that politeness precluded them from telling the instigator where they and their demands could go.

CIHY gave the reason why but even he thinks that he's talking to the wall. No wonder CS has had its compensation abilities cut if this was the sort of nonsense with which they were dealing. No one died, No one got hurt, and he arrived to go to the zoo. Lots of others probably didn't given the difference in aircraft size - they may well be compensated as they suffered real inconvenience. Honestly, to what has this all sunk.

Tobias-UK

How much compensation did AA give you?