hyperspace

I have an upcoming LAX-LHR trip in F after many years of not flying the cabin. Last time I flew F was in 2016 when they had just introduced the new seat on the 787s. Looks like I'll be on the new F suite, but besides the doors, has anything substantially changed in F since 8 years ago, pre-covid and all?

gleff

I had two forums open at the same time and thought this was a different airline sorry

EuropeanPete

Wrong airline?

Can I help you

BAs B787-9s with the new First seat were in service from 2015.

tennessetom

Nope, the last of the 747 are gone, many aircraft are down to two rows in fc, the amenity bag design has changed,

Foofighter69

Refreshed First service since then, a lot of the soft product features will feel different, from the crockery to the washbag and everything else in between. I think it looks nicer now than it did before. I think this has been in service since 2018/9.

The hard product hasn’t changed apart from the 77Ws having the 787 suite with the addition of a door.

hyperspace

thank you for the answer. I look forward to see if anything feels different, besides the small changes and addition of the door. Flying on the CS has been a very positive experience these past few years, so I’m excited to see if they were able to step up the F experience a bit.

Finland Station

I've been flying BA F for over two decades. For me the summary would be a story of slow deterioration. I don't think that I can point to moment during that period that BA had any real vision for what it wanted F to be. It had it. It didn't want to get rid of it, but really didn't know what to do with it. Add to that the 'DNA of cost-cutting', and you have a product that has lost its way.

I am aware of the plans for the future. And, for the first time, I can say that I am excited at what lies ahead.

brightstar100

For a comparison on red wine in BA F:

In 2016, it was the Chateau Fleur Cardinale Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classe. Current average price on Vivino is £78.

In 2023, it is the Chateau Vieux Maillet. Current average price on Vivino is £38.

I know this is not a perfect comparison, given different vintages (2009 in 2016 versus 2011 in 2023)/prices at the time, etc. But it still gives a sense. Incidentally, the Chateau Vieux Maillet 2011 is perfectly pleasant.

Finland Station

Wine is a good example of the general deterioration I was describing.

20+ years ago, BA had a wine buyer for the F/Concorde product. It bought in advance and kept the wine for years before it was used ("the Concorde Cellar"). For an organisation that was planning to continue to offer premium wines a long time into the future, this was a very sensible investment/strategy.

Now, BA buys wines on demand. And the quality has gone down, markedly, as I suspect has the budget.

brightstar100

And for comparison, earlier this year, Qatar in J was Chateau Batailley Grand Cru Classe Pauillac 2014 with current average price on Vivino of £49. It is a very long time since we have seen a red Bordeaux in BA J.

Finland Station

Some years ago (maybe 10+ years), I think at a GGL event at Taste of London, I met and had an interesting discussion with a gentleman from Bibendum who was a wine buyer for BA. Even then he said the game was changing.

I should say that I have had some absolutely lovely wines in BA F. Some of which, BA introduced to me and which I might not otherwise have tried. The wine selection used to be a source of pride. It was rooted in a belief that at least some of your customers in F will appreciate good wines. There used to be (are there still?) requirements on particular routes in terms of the wines offered. So the US routes would have some US wines, etc. The impression I get now is that the wines now follow a much more rigid selection pattern. There will always be a White Burgundy and a Claret. The other two red/white choices may offer more variety, but increasingly, I am seeing a more conservative selection whereas previously it was these 4 'wild cards' that used to offer some of the more interesting choices. I am a big White Burgundy fan, and BA's offerings have really deteriorated in the last 10 years. On yesterday's flight to JFK, the Pouilly-Fuissé appeared in the menu without vintage or wine maker. That is shocking (in the range of First World problems).

Nick_USA

Don't start me on Wines, remember 'Willie W' and his cost-cutting.

Please don't even mention the Champagne in F over the years!

Edit: ... and how we almost had pre-flight ordering of the full menu, then didn't

hyperspace

Wh! I hear you about wine and general downtrend of the product. I don’t drink much so it’s not something import to me (though I recognize its importance on selling an F product).
last time I travelled F there were still flowers in the loo 😅

southsquare

I did F yesterday - my first BA F for some years - and it was grubby, tired and generally disappointing but not surprising. Around 7 years ago, after a number of disappointing BA Js, I jumped ship to QR J (mainly Q-suites and occasionally the A380 3 class aircraft) and haven't looked back. For various reasons, I had to jump on BA yesterday from a middle eastern city to LHR and ended up in F. And BA F was grim: significantly worse than QR J in all respects. My understanding is that BA doesn't bother to compete on most GCC routes given the fierce competition from QR and EK, but this really was pretty average. I'd be interested to know whether BA F is any better on other routes?