I'm fed up with FIRST/BA - we're being ripped off
Nov 21, 2006, 4:42 am
#121
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Originally Posted by jonfriedman
ba.com now states in its first class IFE section that it has AVOD (audio visual on demand) on qualified routes (those not w/12 channel set-up). Anybody know exactly what that means in practice?
Nov 21, 2006, 5:15 am
#122
Join Date: Mar 2005
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Coming back from TLV last week booked in First. On sitting down, I heard champagne corks popping from the Club galley - and thought I'll have a glass of that.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
Nov 21, 2006, 5:52 am
#123
Join Date: Jan 2006
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Originally Posted by JumboJim
Coming back from TLV last week booked in First. On sitting down, I heard champagne corks popping from the Club galley - and thought I'll have a glass of that.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Given that there is the promise of a glass of "cool champagne" when you board in their F ad blurb, that's a bit disappointing, I agree.
Nov 21, 2006, 9:02 am
#124
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Originally Posted by JumboJim
Coming back from TLV last week booked in First. On sitting down, I heard champagne corks popping from the Club galley - and thought I'll have a glass of that.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
It was offerd to me in Club on my flight to TLV this morning the second I got on board.
JumboJim, you didn't happen to keep a menu from that flight did you?
Nov 21, 2006, 9:40 am
#125
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Reading, Cambridge & Edinburgh, UK, Sunnyvale, CA and Philadelphia, PA
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Originally Posted by bealine
While we're at it, the meat and veg used in the catering for First and Club should without doubt be from the local free range organic farms of Berkshire, Surrey, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent. We have some of the finest agricultural land in the world producing livestock, fruit and veg of outstanding quality - there really is no excuse for buying rubbish!
And whilst I'll agree there's no excuse for buying rubbish, we in SE England don't have a monopoly on producing good quality food, as farmers from across the UK will be happy to testify.
Nov 21, 2006, 9:46 am
#126
Join Date: May 2005
Location: UK
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Posts: 4,168
Originally Posted by JumboJim
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
It's hardly as though you made an outrageous request, and in FIRST doubly-, if not triply-so.
I have a FIRST flight coming up in just under a fortnight and I'm using an AMEX 2-4-1 to treat a friend...she's really looking forward to it (yes, I'm jaunting off with another man's wife...and his blessing) but I can see myself being on tenterhooks until I can gauge whether the cabin crew are going to be one of the 'fantastic experience' ones...
BAH
Nov 21, 2006, 9:53 am
#127
Join Date: Nov 2006
Programs: MUCCI
Posts: 1,926
Originally Posted by BAHumbug
I am not sure on Pucci's take on that - but I would have asked to speak to the CSD if that had happened to me.
It's hardly as though you made an outrageous request, and in FIRST doubly-, if not triply-so.
I have a FIRST flight coming up in just under a fortnight and I'm using an AMEX 2-4-1 to treat a friend...she's really looking forward to it (yes, I'm jaunting off with another man's wife...and his blessing) but I can see myself being on tenterhooks until I can gauge whether the cabin crew are going to be one of the 'fantastic experience' ones...
BAH
It's hardly as though you made an outrageous request, and in FIRST doubly-, if not triply-so.
I have a FIRST flight coming up in just under a fortnight and I'm using an AMEX 2-4-1 to treat a friend...she's really looking forward to it (yes, I'm jaunting off with another man's wife...and his blessing) but I can see myself being on tenterhooks until I can gauge whether the cabin crew are going to be one of the 'fantastic experience' ones...
BAH
Nov 21, 2006, 10:51 am
#128
Join Date: Mar 2005
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Originally Posted by clubman
JumboJim, you didn't happen to keep a menu from that flight did you?
Lobster & grapefruit, a salad, lamb cutlets with veg, roast potatoes and gravy, a banana and white chocolate cheesecake and some cheese - same as you get in CW.
Champagne was Heidseick Mis-En-Cave. Had a South African red too - wasnt the Stellenbosch that was advertised for some reason.
Not exactly detailed I know! Apologies!
Nov 21, 2006, 1:02 pm
#129
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: AMS
Programs: KL/PE, BA/Gold
Posts: 142
Flew to CPT last week, in F. My seat wasn't working properly. Or fully upright or fully flat....nothing in between. To change it from f-u to f-f I had to ask one of the cabin staff. They had to open the back of the seat and then using a torch (it was quite dark inside the seat) when changing the position of the seat manually...like a doctor. I can imagine why the cabin staff is not very happy when working in F. I am now waiting for at least a reasonable compensation.
Nov 21, 2006, 1:04 pm
#130
Join Date: Nov 2006
Programs: alaska mileage plan gold
Posts: 5
Originally Posted by starlight
Ok, don't bite my head off!!
I know I don't write a lot on here but I got so fed up I have put fingers to keys. Please don't think this is just a rant, but I would be interested as to what everyone thinks and what we might all do about it (any lurkers?), if you guys and gals agree with me:
I am very lucky and always fly in First (or CE) - sorry, it's true- and so have the gold card, the miles (what use are they!) but I have come to the conclusion, after more than 20 years of being a loyal (and I mean bloody loyal) BA customer that I am astonished BA are in what is supposed to be a service industry.
Can I just start, however, by thanking all the staff who are on the 'old' contracts (you know what I mean) and suggest that new staff/agency workers, etc. think about living up to the ideals that once made BA great. Mind you, I don't think they reward staff any more...
Those of you who have never flown First, don't get excited. I think we all know that quality of a flight depends on the crew and it seems to me that there is about a 1 in 5 chance nowadays of getting a crew member who give a damn about a pax. On my recent flights, the food was awful (so bad the CSD asked me to fill out a questionnaire he then stapled to his in-flight report), the IFE hardly ever works (made to change seats on every flight recently to watch safety video) and the crew were just not up to it.
If I hear another crew member moan about getting 10 pax on at once and not being able to do drinks...I tried this with friends at a dinner party the other day and managed to take orders and deliver drinks on my own in 6 minutes. They never have the right size sleeper suits and when flying to SYD they never change your suit at refuelling (ok, minor point!).
I am also fed up of hearing crew members going on about how hard they work - I used to be a junior doctor and I worked an average of 110 hours a week: they do an 11 flight and sleep for some of it; what the hell is SO difficult??? Don't give me the safety crap - I did aviation medicine and know a lot more than the crew about it (sounding arrogant am I? Sorry).
Sorry, I now feel I am ranting.
To sum up: we pay a lot of money for an F or A class ticket and the service we get is simply not reflected in the price. There is nothing luxurious about it and it does NOT live up to what ba.com says about it. It is obvious when greeted by the crew on the 'old' contract and they are a vanishing breed - the ones I have spoken to are ashamed at how BA is going. Bring back the days when the pax was important - please!
I know I don't write a lot on here but I got so fed up I have put fingers to keys. Please don't think this is just a rant, but I would be interested as to what everyone thinks and what we might all do about it (any lurkers?), if you guys and gals agree with me:
I am very lucky and always fly in First (or CE) - sorry, it's true- and so have the gold card, the miles (what use are they!) but I have come to the conclusion, after more than 20 years of being a loyal (and I mean bloody loyal) BA customer that I am astonished BA are in what is supposed to be a service industry.
Can I just start, however, by thanking all the staff who are on the 'old' contracts (you know what I mean) and suggest that new staff/agency workers, etc. think about living up to the ideals that once made BA great. Mind you, I don't think they reward staff any more...
Those of you who have never flown First, don't get excited. I think we all know that quality of a flight depends on the crew and it seems to me that there is about a 1 in 5 chance nowadays of getting a crew member who give a damn about a pax. On my recent flights, the food was awful (so bad the CSD asked me to fill out a questionnaire he then stapled to his in-flight report), the IFE hardly ever works (made to change seats on every flight recently to watch safety video) and the crew were just not up to it.
If I hear another crew member moan about getting 10 pax on at once and not being able to do drinks...I tried this with friends at a dinner party the other day and managed to take orders and deliver drinks on my own in 6 minutes. They never have the right size sleeper suits and when flying to SYD they never change your suit at refuelling (ok, minor point!).
I am also fed up of hearing crew members going on about how hard they work - I used to be a junior doctor and I worked an average of 110 hours a week: they do an 11 flight and sleep for some of it; what the hell is SO difficult??? Don't give me the safety crap - I did aviation medicine and know a lot more than the crew about it (sounding arrogant am I? Sorry).
Sorry, I now feel I am ranting.
To sum up: we pay a lot of money for an F or A class ticket and the service we get is simply not reflected in the price. There is nothing luxurious about it and it does NOT live up to what ba.com says about it. It is obvious when greeted by the crew on the 'old' contract and they are a vanishing breed - the ones I have spoken to are ashamed at how BA is going. Bring back the days when the pax was important - please!
Nov 21, 2006, 3:36 pm
#131
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Originally Posted by JumboJim
Coming back from TLV last week booked in First. On sitting down, I heard champagne corks popping from the Club galley - and thought I'll have a glass of that.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
Crew comes round with drinks "Orange or water?" I asked for a glass of champagne and was treated like a dissident for the rest of the flight...
Pretty dreadful considering they were offering it in CW but decided against it in First. They really need to get the basics right before trying to do the complicated bits.
Will be in First again next week so will be interested to see what they come up with next.
Hi,
I am sorry but I have to say this treatement is unacceptable ( esp in F as they advertise the champagne and F is the top cabin.
From your post it sounds like it put a downer on the rest of your F flight.
I would have had a word with the CSD and followed up with a letter to Customer Service .
Hope you next flight is better and I would take the time to write in.
Regards
TBS
Nov 21, 2006, 3:38 pm
#132
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I guess I've been very fortunate with my flights on BA. I find BA in first vastly superior to AA in first that I find myself terribly pleased with choosing to fly BA.
I must be living right.... or something.
I must be living right.... or something.
Nov 21, 2006, 8:26 pm
#134
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: YVR occasionally
Programs: OW Emerald (AA-EXP, BA-Gold)
Posts: 261
Reading more than 100 postings on this topic, it seems that a major complaint about BA First does not have to do with the expensive changes (cabin and seat configuration) but with minimal costs (food) or virtually zero cost items (cabin crew behaviour). This has also been my personal experience in F cabins with four different carriers over the past month. Is the BA problem in the latter respect, inadequate training—in which case why not change the training procedures or the training director? Or is the training adequate, but the implementation poor, in which case, why not have better monitoring and then reassignment. If BA cared, these changes could be made immediately.