More inconsistency from BA FIRST: short trip report
Feb 20, 2019, 12:42 pm
#92
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What a fascinating idea !
Should we perhaps look at further ‘segregation’ - say, to distinguish those who may have paid a much higher cash fare than others, but travelling in the same F cabin, on the very same flight ?
If I had an urgent need to fly, say from London to Jo’burg nonstop next Wednesday, returning a week later - and was determined to fly First with BA - it would cost me around £11,500 for the privilege. A lot of money by most benchmarks.
But there will be people sitting in the cabin who will have booked cash tickets several months earlier, and hence will have paid far, far, less. Maybe £9000 less. Should the crew get given a fare breakdown by passenger so that they can then adjust their service standards accordingly ? Does one passenger get offered champagne, but another not ? Perhaps different crockery too ... ?
I get the impression you may not have quite thought this through.
YES I have and it goes back to my original point. To make the airline perform with perfection both with soft and product and become a market leader they need exclusivity and not just make things freely available. They are a commercial airline out to make money and lots of it and how can they if rewards programs, for instance, are very lenient.
Feb 20, 2019, 12:48 pm
#93
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But you forget unlike many other airlines BA restricts the number of customers on each flight using redemption and will let seats go empty rather than dilute the revenue earned in the cabin.
Feb 20, 2019, 12:57 pm
#94
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 6,349
Feb 20, 2019, 1:01 pm
#95
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: England
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YES I have and it goes back to my original point. To make the airline perform with perfection both with soft and product and become a market leader they need exclusivity and not just make things freely available. They are a commercial airline out to make money and lots of it and how can they if rewards programs, for instance, are very lenient.
Coming from a VERY working class background in an ex-mining community in Yorkshire I never dreamt that I would be able to fly in First Class. However, following quite a reasonable career (at least for someone from my background) I have made quite a few business trips to the US and India over the years, allowing me to treat my wife and I to our first ever First Class flights to celebrate my 50th birthday last year. The trip was extremely memorable, mainly because of the fantastic cabin crew. So much so that we have now paid cash for our second First. If this is as good as the last then BA would have a regular leisure flyer in F. If not we will be going back to J or taking our business elsewhere.
Feb 20, 2019, 1:53 pm
#96
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club, easyJet and Ryanair
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This is great but given there are plenty of stories here of passengers being unable to secure their first meal choice in F (I could be wrong but if I recall correctly BA only loads F to something like 130% in total for meals, so certainly not everyone can have every choice) - do you ever wonder if you're receiving special treatment? In any case, glad it was a good flight.
Last edited by Tobias-UK; Feb 20, 2019 at 2:05 pm
Feb 20, 2019, 2:15 pm
#97
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To make the airline perform with perfection both with soft and product and become a market leader they need exclusivity and not just make things freely available. They are a commercial airline out to make money and lots of it and how can they if rewards programs, for instance, are very lenient.
The idea of having a true "first class", and a poorer first-and-a-half class for the less worthy is, nevertheless, bonkers.
Feb 20, 2019, 2:41 pm
#98
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Complaining about issues they are not really paying for.
Utter nonsense. The reward programme is there to do just that, reward frequent fliers for their loyalty.
Coming from a VERY working class background in an ex-mining community in Yorkshire I never dreamt that I would be able to fly in First Class. However, following quite a reasonable career (at least for someone from my background) I have made quite a few business trips to the US and India over the years, allowing me to treat my wife and I to our first ever First Class flights to celebrate my 50th birthday last year. The trip was extremely memorable, mainly because of the fantastic cabin crew. So much so that we have now paid cash for our second First. If this is as good as the last then BA would have a regular leisure flyer in F. If not we will be going back to J or taking our business elsewhere.
Then don't ever stay in proper 5 star hotels like Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts or eat in top end Michelin starred restaurants. They are not there to cater to cost conscious customers and have no loyalty programs unless you are someone on influential power clients such as heads of state, A list celebs or top CEO's.
You may get your wish soon enough. When First cabins are reduced in size, as noises suggest that they will be, and an increasing proportion of the fleet doesn't have First at all, getting into First by using the awards scheme will probably get progressively harder. It'll be matched by the increasing complaints here about how difficult it will have become to get an award seat in First.
The idea of having a true "first class", and a poorer first-and-a-half class for the less worthy is, nevertheless, bonkers.
The idea of having a true "first class", and a poorer first-and-a-half class for the less worthy is, nevertheless, bonkers.
Feb 20, 2019, 2:57 pm
#100
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: US Air, UA BA LH AI DELTA MARRIOTT CHOICE SGP
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Ready for my upcoming First flight to KUL, I’ve prepared myself for the following;
Busy CCR with feet on tables
Two loud business men on mobiles
Bashed in toilet doors
Priority boarding chaos
Delays with first glass of LPGS
Running out of LPGS
Dirty cabin
WT quality food
Hot cabin
Toilet door hanging off
Indifferent crew
Am I missing anything?
I must say despite this list I’m incredibly exciting about the trip!
Busy CCR with feet on tables
Two loud business men on mobiles
Bashed in toilet doors
Priority boarding chaos
Delays with first glass of LPGS
Running out of LPGS
Dirty cabin
WT quality food
Hot cabin
Toilet door hanging off
Indifferent crew
Am I missing anything?
I must say despite this list I’m incredibly exciting about the trip!
Feb 20, 2019, 2:57 pm
#101
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: YYC
Programs: BA bronze, Aeroplan peon
Posts: 4,746
I can assure you they do. People who can afford £10,000 on an airplane ticket will have high standards. I know several high net worth individuals, and one thing they universally dislike is being ripped off "because they can afford it". If they pay F prices, they expect F service. If they didn't want F service or didn't care, they wouldn't buy F.
Feb 20, 2019, 3:41 pm
#102
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: England
Programs: BAEC: Bronze; Marriott: Gold
Posts: 399
FYI this has nothing to do about social class.
Then don't ever stay in proper 5 star hotels like Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts or eat in top end Michelin starred restaurants. They are not there to cater to cost conscious customers and have no loyalty programs unless you are someone on influential power clients such as heads of state, A list celebs or top CEO's.
Then don't ever stay in proper 5 star hotels like Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts or eat in top end Michelin starred restaurants. They are not there to cater to cost conscious customers and have no loyalty programs unless you are someone on influential power clients such as heads of state, A list celebs or top CEO's.
As mentioned up thread, time to stop feeding the troll, but I could not let this one go.
These establishments are no longer reserved for those born with a silver spoon.
Feb 20, 2019, 4:09 pm
#103
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 1,105
Did it not occur to you before you posted that the ‘True first class flyer’ you alluded to, is very likely reaping the benefits of paying a fortune for past revenue trips when taking advantage of redemption tickets?
Irrespective of how one ‘pays’ for a product or service, they shouldn’t be diluted or the customer ‘segregated’ or treated differently just because they are the benefit of a loyalty scheme.
Last edited by passy777; Feb 20, 2019 at 4:15 pm
Feb 20, 2019, 5:20 pm
#105
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: London, UK and Southern France
Posts: 18,364
At the end of the day staff are a relatively minor part of the cost of an airline ticket.