brunos

I can now walk again, so I will share my recent experience in F.
I had two revenue tickets flying HKG-LHR-NCE in First on 1 July with my wife. We are both BAEC Gold. My LHR-NCE flight on 2July was cancelled so I had to wait over 5 hours in LHR. I am extremely disappointed with BA.

The food/wine service in F was terrible I ordered vegetarian she got the non-veggie. Both were awful. I attach pictures of the veggie box. Tiny containers: some minuscule cut veggies, some cheese, some cheese and ham (!!!), a mini piece of cake, a praline and a piece of (bad) bread. The hot dish was some pasta in gluey and tasteless gravy with some cut mushroom. Everything was of unimaginative, made of products of lowest quality and below what one often gets in Y, even on 2 hours CX regional flights. Wine was two squeezy plastic quarters of Chile cabernet or Malbec, absolutely undrinkable. Hardly Y quality. After diner, scotch was a split of Johnny Walker RED. The non-veggie offering was not much better.

We had only one set of tiny plastic cutlery to be reused for each container, even dessert. Hence , we had to wipe them each time.

I understand that there is some health risk, but the F&B quality was dismal and the crew has as much interaction with us as usual. Worse was the absence of menu card. I know about some potential risk if menu cards are reused, but the FA bending a couple of feet next to you and shouting to explain the menu in an non-understandable south-Asian accent is worse even if wearing mask (sorry, English is not my first language).

The excuse of health risk is laughable as there was about as much interaction with the crew as normal, and other airlines competing on the route (QR, CX, AF) offer much, much better quality of F&B. I have travelled in J on QR and CX since the covid outbreak and was astonished by the ultra-cheap BA F offering. Actually, the breakfast in the J flight LHR-NCE was better, even though the flight was 100% full.





The worse for my body was our experience at LHR. We headed to CCR as advertised on our ticket, but it was closed. We had to wait over 5 hours in an uncomfortable gate chair. I have a bad back. After all this travel, I had to lay in bed for 10 days because of sciatic pain. At the very least, BA should have given F pax access to comfy lounge chairs in CCR or F gallery terrace, and some vouchers at Pret A Manger as other airlines do. This is unacceptable. Covid had been around for months

I consider that BA completely let down F and Gold pax for reasons linked to cost-cutting. We had already requalified for Gold by extensive travel during covid, but I certainly will not fly BA for some time. And the Gold card is of little use.

Just an unrelated detail to illustrate how BA treats health risks lightly. When going to the bathroom, I heard a lot of laughing coming from the galley with the curtain half open. There were seven FAs congregating and chatting loudly. Despite the proximity (all standing up within a foot of each other and not eating), not a single one was wearing a mask.

QR current F&B service has been widely discussed in the BA forum. As another point of comparison, see current J service on AF:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/32525702-post143.html

moral_low_ground

WOW.....I'd send the pictures to the Daily Mail. I don't think I have ever seen anything served that looks so awful. As you say, almost a disgrace for Y let alone F. I'm sure you have complained but if not I'd send the above to Mr Walsh and Cruz (not that they probably care).

ClubflyerLondon

this is absolutely pathetic, I took my first flight in months LCA-FRA-LHR in short haul business class and they where able to offer the full normal business class, increasingly i feel BA are just using H&S as a cover for cost cutting

DYKWIA

It's pathetic offering, but surely you knew the lounges at LHR were closed?

alex67500

Regarding lounges, it would actually have been illegal for BA to operate one on 1st July. The restrictions were only relaxed on the 4th, so you were a bit unlucky with timing. The feedback from many here is that the lounge offering is now on-par, if not better than usual, especially with quick and efficient table service.

Regarding the food and catering, I agree this is really far off what you'd expect in F (and BA's F isn't industry-leading on F&B in the best of times). In this environment, I wouldn't fork out for F, I'd stick to J for a flat bed and have low expectations on F&B.

I hope your time on the Côte d'Azur makes up for the average experience getting there.

Bobdh13

No surprise from BA (but looks even more embarrassing than expected) - why didnt you fly with CX?

Tobias-UK

I'm surprised you headed to the CCR, you were involved in discussion on this very subject in the lounge thread the week or so before you travelled and were well aware that no lounges, bars, cafes or restaurants would be open in any UK airport on 1 July.

The lounges could not be opened in the UK as a matter of law. The UK had strict lockdown rules in place that prevented lounges from opening, the rules were relaxed with effect from 4 July whereupon BA immediately reopened its First and South Club lounges. No bars, cafes or restaurants could open anywhere in the UK, let alone in airports.

Dave_C

I think all airlines are cost-cutting. LH and LX are operating a virtually normal First Class service in the air, but all Swiss Zurich lounges are closed and only the FCL A at Frankfurt is open (with the FCT and FCL B still shut).

krispy84

I’m not normally a fan of jumping onto threads like this, but that F&B offering is abysmal.

Your point around lounges is disingenuous IMHO. As pointed out above, it appeared you knew there would be no lounges open in LHR (or the UK) on 01 July. This weakens your, entirely valid, complaint around F&B.

lost_in_translation

CX aren’t even offering F at the moment, I don’t think.

irishguy28

Yes, the food served is always of a higher quality when one knows that the lounge is not open.


😕

fatmac70

I agree the offering looks very poor indeed! IMO looks like a classic case of ‘cost cutting is in our DNA’ !!☹️☹️

ENTP

Disgraceful. And what's with the JW Red up front? Safer than serving the proper stuff because you won't ask for seconds?

crazyanglaisy

I'm pretty sure I've had that wine back in economy. Absolutely no excuse whatsoever for that being served in F.

I'm you're flying in F and sat on the CCT, will they go the extra mile and package up the meals in the lounge to-go? They look considerably nicer than what is available on board currently.

krispy84

Complaining about something you know it is not legally possible to provide does detract from, but not negate, the overall complaint IMHO.