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-   -   WT Improvements (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1886840-wt-improvements.html)

MFCC Jan 7, 2018 10:00 am

WT Improvements
 
Ice creams and WT tuck boxes as well as snacks with the bar round to return to WT from the 17th Jan 18.

corporate-wage-slave Jan 7, 2018 10:03 am

Good to hear, hopefully it will be well received, ice cream is usually an easy crowd pleaser. On all routes in both directions?

Globaliser Jan 7, 2018 10:03 am

That's good news, thank you!

Stez Jan 7, 2018 10:04 am

That is welcome news. Hopefully more genuine improvements will happen in the Y cabin.

rockflyertalk Jan 7, 2018 10:05 am

Good news indeed.

rossmacd Jan 7, 2018 10:09 am

Good to see previous very poorly received enhancements to be reversed, irrespective of the cabin. Here's hoping there are more.

simons1 Jan 7, 2018 10:09 am

We apologise in advance if your preferred flavour of ice cream is unavailable.

TPRun Jan 7, 2018 10:10 am

**deleted - corrected**

Can I help you Jan 7, 2018 10:20 am

The mid flight snack you received on your LAS flight is different from the tuck box, these boxes are in the galley between meals are self help where as the mid flight snack boxes are given out between meals on out longest day flights.

V10 Jan 7, 2018 10:25 am

Possibly some limited good news for long-suffering BA economy class passengers, who have borne the brunt of some pretty indifferent treatment from BA for some time now.

It doesn't however start to address the problem that they are having to endure increasingly unpleasant hard product though.

BERbound Jan 7, 2018 10:40 am

Is this for Gatwick flights as well?

13901 Jan 7, 2018 10:52 am


Originally Posted by MFCC (Post 29261565)
Ice creams and WT tuck boxes as well as snacks with the bar round to return to WT from the 17th Jan 18.

In other news, exactly how it was a few years ago. Then, "based on customers' and crews' feedback" and, taking wastage into account, something will be taken out again.

It's the same story time and again with onboard product. Whoever works on it just doesn't understand the concept of OPEX, doesn't understand that an investment will have an ongoing cost, doesn't understand you've got to design something in such a way that it works and can be sustained. It's the same story with Club service and bedding.

All this is, obviously, my opinion and not my employer's.

Ldnn1 Jan 7, 2018 10:53 am

Aside from the fact that I personally love ice cream, I also think it works really well as an onboard snack/dessert. Doesn't require any prep, simple to serve (though often too hard) and a general crowd pleaser as c-w-s says. I think the American sundaes in J/F work well too.

I guess the only thing is does it cost a lot to keep frozen, but I'm guessing not given many airlines do it.

World Traveller Fuss Jan 7, 2018 11:16 am

I can't recall ice creams previously on BA WT - seems a genuine improvement. Assume they'll be in WTP too?

Nice, memorable touch for (I'd imagine) not an extraordinary amount extra.

salut0 Jan 7, 2018 11:36 am

I wouldn't mind if they served no food in WT except for drinks and had no IFE as long as the seat pitch was decent and they had no more than 9 seats abreast on a 777.

I can bring my own food and entertainment but I can't change an uncomfortable or cramped seat.

Can I help you Jan 7, 2018 11:36 am

We have had ice cream before then lost it then got it back then lost it and now it’s back, I see a pattern forming. :)

Flame3601 Jan 7, 2018 11:38 am

Wonder what brand ice creams it will be ? I am happy none the less , hope WT paxs don't mind us CW folk coming in a taking a few back front ...

SussexFly Jan 7, 2018 11:44 am


Originally Posted by Flame3601 (Post 29261919)
Wonder what brand ice creams it will be ? I am happy none the less , hope WT paxs don't mind us CW folk coming in a taking a few back front ...

I’m flying back from ANU the day after this comes in place - I may well have to pinch an ice-cream from WT if I can!

Flame3601 Jan 7, 2018 11:47 am


Originally Posted by SussexFly (Post 29261938)


I’m flying back from ANU the day after this comes in place - I may well have to pinch an ice-cream from WT if I can!

Would be rude not too after all , but probably only 8 would of been loaded in total after in-depth analysis from BA HQ revealed this was the perfect number to eliminate waste and expense - so act fast !

JMurray Jan 7, 2018 11:49 am


Originally Posted by Can I help you (Post 29261647)
The mid flight snack you received on your LAS flight is different from the tuck box, these boxes are in the galley between meals are self help where as the mid flight snack boxes are given out between meals on out longest day flights.

Had one of these on LHR-LAX other day: contains a Twix, packet of Corkers crisps and some popcorn. Must say there's now lots of food in WT/WT+ on the long day flights!

Can I help you Jan 7, 2018 11:50 am

I don’t think you will find icecream on overnight flights so you will be unlucky flying from ANU.

SussexFly Jan 7, 2018 11:50 am


Originally Posted by JMurray (Post 29261962)
Had one of these on LHR-LAX other day: contains a Twix, packet of Corkers crisps and some popcorn. Must say there's now lots of food in WT/WT+ on the long day flights!

more/better than the Club Kitchen?

SussexFly Jan 7, 2018 11:58 am


Originally Posted by Can I help you (Post 29261967)
I don’t think you will find icecream on overnight flights so you will be unlucky flying from ANU.

makes sense I gusss - I can’t see a large number of takers for ice-cream at that time of day.
Although perfect for those who can’t sleep!

Can’t believe I’m saying this, but I may actually be a tincy wincy bit jealous of WT 😬

flatlander Jan 7, 2018 12:19 pm

Sounds like a nice little improvement. This member of the crowd would be pleased with an ice cream half way to the US, especially the West Coast.

(now, bring (or offer) them round half way across in CW too :) )

JMurray Jan 7, 2018 12:22 pm


Originally Posted by SussexFly (Post 29261968)


more/better than the Club Kitchen?

Well there's actually enough catered unlike Club Kitchen...

bisonrav Jan 7, 2018 12:48 pm

Bloody hell, thin end of the wedge this. What next? Extra squeeze of turnip in the gruel? DUMPING my IAG shares tomorrow.

IAMORGAN Jan 7, 2018 12:53 pm

All is well with the world.

dddc Jan 7, 2018 1:04 pm


Originally Posted by Ldnn1 (Post 29261773)
Aside from the fact that I personally love ice cream, I also think it works really well as an onboard snack/dessert. Doesn't require any prep, simple to serve (though often too hard) and a general crowd pleaser as c-w-s says. I think the American sundaes in J/F work well too.

I guess the only thing is does it cost a lot to keep frozen, but I'm guessing not given many airlines do it.

Cathay serve them in Y and Y+. I've had them out to Oz and back. Out of Heathrow or Honkers it's been a Haagen Daz tub. Out of Oz it's been Weis ice cream bars a fruit ice and ice cream bar. Both normally come super frozen and I wish they would dish them out with the meal so they'd have time to warm up a bit. Quite often I've had the meal tray taken away to be left with the tub, chipping away with the tiny spoon. On a couple of occasions there's been left over tubs and they've left them with galley snacks (yes, CX has galley snax for Y pax on the longer routes - fruits, crisps, crackers, nuts, dried fruit, chocolate and you a can order a hot noodle snack if you are really hungry).

Stez Jan 7, 2018 1:13 pm

EK does it too. In the past, MH and SQ did it but that's going a while back.

TimmyD Jan 7, 2018 1:27 pm

KA has always served Haagen Dazs in Economy on its short haul flights, and CX always has it on LH. Doesn’t VS do ice cream too?

Of course a lot of us were saddened when ice cream went from the Club Kitchen - will it be coming back?

This is a much needed improvement on LH economy but if I was a BA shareholder I’d be asking serious questions of the clowns in Waterside. As someone else mentioned, Improving the economy catering - along with all the other cuts being reversed - is just going back to the level of service a few years ago, and in the interim the BA brand has been allowed to be royally trashed and tens of thousands of passengers disappointed.

madmax_uk Jan 7, 2018 2:32 pm

At the risk of sounding ungrateful, I think this change still misses the point of how poor the LH WT food offering is. In many respects not really an improvement. I flew to Cape Town recently with my wife in WT and couldn't help but laugh when my wife asked for the tray only for breakfast (I.e. Hot breakfast excluded) to find the tray came with a bread roll and orange juice. She had expected (rightly or wrongly) there to be the "normal" yogurt, fruit etc. My pet complaint is the over night flight WT to Dubai... I typically go straight into the office and have breakfast on the plane. From about 18 months ago this "breakfast" turned into a breakfast bar (I once discovered what a soren (sp) bar was to my delight :( )

truncated Jan 7, 2018 4:15 pm


Originally Posted by Stez (Post 29262266)
EK does it too. In the past, MH and SQ did it but that's going a while back.

SQ still does ice cream; NH and JL do as well. Even UA does so (and their ice cream is pretty good compared to the rest of the food they serve in Y).

Raffles Jan 8, 2018 1:56 am


Originally Posted by madmax_uk (Post 29262572)
My pet complaint is the over night flight WT to Dubai... I typically go straight into the office and have breakfast on the plane. From about 18 months ago this "breakfast" turned into a breakfast bar (I once discovered what a soren (sp) bar was to my delight :( )

Don't understand ..... this is what you wanted. Alex Cruz told me. All those surveys and forms etc .....

corporate-wage-slave Jan 8, 2018 2:06 am


Originally Posted by Raffles (Post 29264217)
Don't understand ..... this is what you wanted. Alex Cruz told me. All those surveys and forms etc .....

Sometimes people just have to learn things at their own pace, I suppose. What I also suppose is that the NPS will rocket (sort of) and they will hopefully feel very pleased with that. And in fact if I had to think of a way of getting NPS to jump up, "new" ice cream for all would be at the top of the list. I remember the guy behind Green Shield Stamps / Argos told me (on a BA flight) that the best way to boost NPS was "sexy" "new" "free" "chocolate" when in reality there at multiple contradictions in that phrase. Still, "free" "new" ice cream is probably going to make a bigger difference that PDB orange juice in CW. In fact they may as well roll it out to the entire aircraft.

Raffles Jan 8, 2018 2:07 am

Just in:
British Airways is today announcing a multi-million pound investment in its World Traveller (long-haul economy cabin) catering, introducing an exciting and expanded new menu, which provides more quantity and quality to both meals and great snacking options throughout the flight.

Options now include:

· Pretzels with the welcome drink

· Four-course meal with starter, main, dessert, cheese and biscuits, accompanied by a bread roll and bottle of water

· Second meal or substantial snack depending on the length of the flight

· Regional meal options served according to destination

· Magnum ice-creams

· Tuck box with chocolates and crisps

· Hot breakfast on longer overnight flights

· Graze movie-snack box on longer* flights

· Complimentary drinks from the bar

Previously customers travelling in the cabin were served a complimentary snack, a three-course-meal or a light meal, depending on the time and length of their flight as well as a complimentary bar service of hot and cold drinks.

The new catering arrives from January 17, and the menus that will change every six months.

mikeyfly Jan 8, 2018 2:09 am

Wow this is a genuine enhancement :) thanks Raffles

lostinlondon Jan 8, 2018 2:11 am

Glad to see proper ice cream being offered. Looking forward to seeing this (as opposed to old WT; not being in WT itself) later this year to HKG. Surely though if NPS is the main driver of this change, they must have a plan to change ET a bit? A very large number of BA's customers are exclusively within/connecting to European flights and I'd still be fairly upset to have a very comfortable JFK-LHR to only have a miserable LHR-ATH/LCA/wherever. Perhaps differentiating service for connecting LH passengers? Though with BA's logistical capabilities as they stand, they might not be able to accomplish that one.

corporate-wage-slave Jan 8, 2018 2:13 am

The rest of the press release can be seen here, but I think the end of it is also worth reading. There is a bullet point at the end that identifies "longer" routes:

British Airways - BRITISH AIRWAYS INVESTS IN SUBSTANTIAL NEW CATERING FOR WORLD TRAVELLER CUSTOMERS
Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ director of brand and customer experience, said: “Our customers tell us that when they’re taking a long-haul flight, great food and beverages make a real difference to them. It’s a huge driver of customer satisfaction so we want to make sure we deliver a great experience. With this multi-million pound investment we’ve focused on introducing more quantity and quality to the catering, delivering tasty meals and great snacking options throughout the flight.

“Our new four-course main meal has been developed by our team of chefs to be full of flavour at 35,000ft and we’ve created regional options depending on the route. The second meal option is either a tasty sandwich or a more substantial pizza wrap, both served with additional snacks, depending on the length of the flight.”

“Our customers have also told us they want to be able to save some items for later in the flight, so we’ve replaced the water cup with a bottle of Highland Spring on the first meal, and added Graze snack boxes on our longest flights. We’re also offering Magnum ice-creams on daylight flights from London and a Tuck Box on inbound and overnight flights.”

The airline’s customers will be welcomed with pretzels and a drink. Once they are settled in, they will be served a four-course meal such as a starter of couscous salad, followed by a main course of chicken casserole with an ale sauce, colcannon mash and seasonal vegetables, or a vegetarian tomato, farfalle and vegetable dish. Dessert will be a Pots & Co salted caramel and chocolate mousse, followed by biscuits and cheese. The meal will be accompanied by a bread roll and a bottle of Highland Spring water.

On the shorter daylight long-haul flights to destinations such as New York and Dubai, fliers will also receive a sandwich such as egg and cress with a chocolate or Nutri-Grain bar. Those on longer daylight flights to destinations such as Cape Town and Hong Kong will receive a hot meal, such as a pizza wrap or a regional option, with a pot of pasta, a chocolate brownie and a drink as well as a smokehouse BBQ crunch Graze movie-snack box. A hot English breakfast will also be served on these longer flights that operate overnight.

Customers on daylight flights from London will be offered a range of Magnum ice-creams, while those on night flights will be offered a tuck-box with options such as Dairy Milk Buttons, Twix, Kit-Kats and Mini Cheddars, which will also be available in the galley for them to help themselves to.

The airline is also serving regional main meal options around its network, such as chicken in spicy cheng du sauce on flights to and from to China, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea, kathrikai milagu seeragam and channa dal on flights to and from Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai and acchari veg and dal palak on flights to and from Bangalore and Delhi. On flights to the Middle East (Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia,) customers can enjoy chicken in spicy Arabic sauce.

Regional breakfasts will also be served including Chicken Congee for Far Eastern routes and an Indian option featuring: Idli Shanna, Sambhar, upma and dosa.

The popular meal options for customers with special dietary requirements will continue to be available to book on ba.com/managemybooking more than 24 hours ahead of their flight departing.

Travellers looking for a special treat can also pre-order meals on flights from Heathrow up to 24-hours before their flight. Options include a Gourmet Dining meal for £18.00, Taste of Britain and Taste of the Far East for £16.00 and a Great British Breakfast, a Healthy Choice meal or a Vegetarian Kitchen option all for £15.00.

British Airways is investing £4.5 billion for customers over the next five years, covering the installation of the best quality WiFi and power in every seat, fitting 128 long-haul aircraft with new interiors and taking delivery of 72 new aircraft. The airline is also investing £600m specifically in Club World, including outstanding catering and luxurious White Company bedding - plus, from 2019, a new seat with direct aisle access. This year British Airways will start services to six new routes including Nashville and The Seychelles.

Ends

January 8, 2018

Notes to editors:

· *The airline’s longest flights serve: Bangkok, Beijing, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Chennai, Hong Kong, Hyderabad, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, Las Vegas, Lima, Los Angeles, Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico City, Narita, Oakland, Phoenix, Rio de Janeiro, San Jose (California), San Jose (Costa Rica), Santiago, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo (Haneda and Narita).

· The first flight with the new catering on January 17 will be the BA117 from Heathrow to New York JFK departing at 8.25am.

Jagboi Jan 8, 2018 2:23 am


Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave (Post 29264251)
The rest of the press release can be seen here, but I think the end of it is also worth reading.]

I had to check this wasn't April 1! Very good news!

V10 Jan 8, 2018 2:23 am

As it's now listing a bottle of water, does this mean the demise of the derisory and frankly pathetic water cuplet?


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