How would YOU improve T5 - radical ideas to reboot BA’s “home”
Jan 22, 2019, 7:51 am
#32
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
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Posts: 63,766
What's this transit thing everyone is going on about?
As for the shopping experience (not that I see much of it for some reason) and the congestion along the central departure area - that is quite deliberate. I hardly buy anything in T5 but I'm very grateful to those who do, thereby at least partly subsidising the cost of my flying. Voluntary tax? A splendid thing.
As for the shopping experience (not that I see much of it for some reason) and the congestion along the central departure area - that is quite deliberate. I hardly buy anything in T5 but I'm very grateful to those who do, thereby at least partly subsidising the cost of my flying. Voluntary tax? A splendid thing.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:18 am
#33
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 7,464
LHR is one of, if not the, most expensive airport for passenger service charge, so I'm not sure the logic stacks up. Yes, of course, PSC could be even higher (god forbid) but to say that the shopping centre is offsetting PSC versus being a profit centre in itself is not so clear.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:34 am
#34
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,766
LHR is one of, if not the, most expensive airport for passenger service charge, so I'm not sure the logic stacks up. Yes, of course, PSC could be even higher (god forbid) but to say that the shopping centre is offsetting PSC versus being a profit centre in itself is not so clear.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:40 am
#35
Suspended
Join Date: May 2011
Location: London
Programs: *A G, OW S.
Posts: 996
Can't see how AA would fit sadly. Aer Lingus, on the other hand would fit nicely, especially with some of the suggested improvements. If IAG were to take a group wide view, money could surely be saved. Doing that may even open up some route consolidation opportunities for the two airlines to share the route with larger 321s, releasing some slots without breaching the regulatory undertakings IAG gave about the service frequency.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:49 am
#37
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 5,797
- Rip the lounges out and start again, all of them. Possibly T5B can stay.
- Build a lounge in T5C.
- If they cant bring themselves to announce gates earlier, at least tell people if they are in A, B or C to cut some of the crowds down in A.
Or just build a 3rd runway.
- Build a lounge in T5C.
- If they cant bring themselves to announce gates earlier, at least tell people if they are in A, B or C to cut some of the crowds down in A.
Or just build a 3rd runway.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:56 am
#39
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Bombay
Programs: EC Blue, EB Silver, FB Gold
Posts: 551
1. Get rid of transit security for connecting passengers from “clean” countries.
2. Speed up bag delivery. It’s shockingly slow compared to T2.
3. Announce gates earlier.
4. Get rid of that horrible synthetic lady voice. Every time I hear “her” I want to strangle “her”. Britain is full of people with fantastic voices - Attenborough, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, David Dimbleby just to mention a few.
2. Speed up bag delivery. It’s shockingly slow compared to T2.
3. Announce gates earlier.
4. Get rid of that horrible synthetic lady voice. Every time I hear “her” I want to strangle “her”. Britain is full of people with fantastic voices - Attenborough, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, David Dimbleby just to mention a few.
Jan 22, 2019, 8:58 am
#40
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: On the underground
Programs: BMI Dimond club, BA Executive Club
Posts: 462
A lift or stairs from the Dub gates straight down to baggage instead of the walk to the middle of T5 and then the walk all the way back if you checked in a bag.
Last edited by pacenotes; Jan 22, 2019 at 10:24 am
Jan 22, 2019, 9:05 am
#41
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: UK
Programs: BA Silver (temp demotion), *A Silver, HH Gold, IHG Diamond
Posts: 490
I like T5 (when compared to other larger airports in the UK) and prefer the less-confusing single airline approach from arrival at departures (no hunting for the 'right' check in desks).
But given the monopoly, I'm puzzled as to how much of the airport is, in fact, a scrum. I love the First check-in line. Sadly my wallet doesn't. [But it is still a poor relation to the Virgin Upper Wing experience especially when arriving by taxi]
So I'll focus on the mass transit part....
1. Better signs outside the terminal for which door to be dropped off at (eg First drop off at the South end)
2. Get rid of the useless 'south and north' security lines signage and get more security lines (crazy to have so many check in desks, which is NOT where the hold ups are).
3. Once through the security lines get a better way of moving people quickly onto the lower floor. Perhaps even putting escalators straight into the current atrium and then allowing upwards travel in other places (like the lunges)
4. And the big one..... MUCH earlier gate calls to move people away from the shops
My experience has been that if you want peace and quiet then head to the gate. The problem is that you can't because you don't know which gate! So everyone is pretty much required to stay put until T-30. [As a one off example, I flew to OSL and my taxi dropped me at the north end. No security queue. Straight into Galleries North At the entry point the helpful desk clerk said 'your flight is going from A21 so you might be better off in the other lounge' (or words to that effect). Nothing on the boards to indicate this but it was clearly known.
IMHO the optimal flow would be to allow the masses to move into smaller and smaller groups away from the entry point (some would pick quiet zones, some family, some the bars etc and some would camp at the gate to minimise interruptions. In sum, the cynic in me says that the user experience is designed to trap you as close to the shops as possible.
But given the monopoly, I'm puzzled as to how much of the airport is, in fact, a scrum. I love the First check-in line. Sadly my wallet doesn't. [But it is still a poor relation to the Virgin Upper Wing experience especially when arriving by taxi]
So I'll focus on the mass transit part....
1. Better signs outside the terminal for which door to be dropped off at (eg First drop off at the South end)
2. Get rid of the useless 'south and north' security lines signage and get more security lines (crazy to have so many check in desks, which is NOT where the hold ups are).
3. Once through the security lines get a better way of moving people quickly onto the lower floor. Perhaps even putting escalators straight into the current atrium and then allowing upwards travel in other places (like the lunges)
4. And the big one..... MUCH earlier gate calls to move people away from the shops
My experience has been that if you want peace and quiet then head to the gate. The problem is that you can't because you don't know which gate! So everyone is pretty much required to stay put until T-30. [As a one off example, I flew to OSL and my taxi dropped me at the north end. No security queue. Straight into Galleries North At the entry point the helpful desk clerk said 'your flight is going from A21 so you might be better off in the other lounge' (or words to that effect). Nothing on the boards to indicate this but it was clearly known.
IMHO the optimal flow would be to allow the masses to move into smaller and smaller groups away from the entry point (some would pick quiet zones, some family, some the bars etc and some would camp at the gate to minimise interruptions. In sum, the cynic in me says that the user experience is designed to trap you as close to the shops as possible.