Good day from London! I simply flew British Airways’ top quality on the Boeing 777-300ER from Newark. I used to be enthusiastic about this flight, because the flight was operated by a aircraft that includes British Airways’ new top quality product, which is at the moment obtainable on 777-300ERs that additionally function Membership Suites in enterprise class.
Admittedly the seats are solely marginally improved (there’s a door, and another tech updates have been made), although arguably an equally large distinction is that British Airways has diminished the scale of its top quality cabin on these planes from 14 seats to eight seats. Is British Airways top quality now truly good? Properly…
I like British Airways’ 777 top quality seat
Whereas it’s not a leading edge laborious product, let me simply give British Airways some credit score on its up to date top quality cabin. I feel this can be a completely good product, because the seat is spacious sufficient, and I discover the cabin to be very elegantly appointed.
The enhancements are incremental over what you’ll discover on British Airways’ different plane. The airline primarily took the up to date 787 top quality seat, however added some width and a door.
Whereas there are higher top quality seats on the market, I used to be completely happy with the laborious product. One other factor that British Airways deserves credit score for is providing complimentary Wi-Fi in top quality.
British Airways’ top quality meals is sweet sufficient
Service apart, the meals in British Airways top quality was fairly good, for such a brief in a single day flight. Not like different airways, there’s no caviar on British Airways, however I discovered the standard and choice to be fairly good.
Service started with canapés, accompanied by champagne (Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle was on supply).
For the starter, I chosen the balik salmon. Is that this significantly the way it’s imagined to be introduced?
For the primary course I chosen the baked cauliflower truffles, which have been surprisingly good, and have been a novel dish.
Lastly for dessert I had the salted caramel and chocolate mousse.
British Airways’ unhealthy top quality service
British Airways’ CEO has made it clear that he needs to rework the corporate right into a premium airline. British Airways has invested properly in its laborious and smooth product, so I used to be curious to see if there have been additionally service enhancements. Again within the day British Airways had 14 top quality seats, making it one of many largest top quality cabins on this planet. Now that there are simply eight seats, I hoped that this might result in higher service.
I’m making an attempt to consider the fragile method to describe the service. There wasn’t a single flight attendant who was impolite. However I nonetheless need to be trustworthy — it appeared to me like not one of the crew members have been skilled in premium service in any means.
It was as in the event you took some individuals out of a really informal restaurant and requested them to serve top quality. And it’s not even that they’d a brilliant pleasant and informal vibe, however it was extra of an informal and detached vibe. A Singapore Airways flight attendant in all probability would have had a coronary heart assault watching these individuals carry out their duties.
If I have been in enterprise class, I’d’ve known as the service degree probably the most forgettable service possible. However in top quality, one ought to anticipate slightly extra. For one, the service was excruciatingly gradual, and I’m unsure why.
There have been solely 5 top quality passengers (nicely, earlier than two workers have been moved up after the door closed), and there have been two flight attendants. On a six hour in a single day flight, the crews ought to hustle to serve ASAP so that folks can get relaxation. However as an alternative the service was very gradual, and never even good.
Individually none of these items would trouble me that a lot, however if you mix them, it was the worst service I’ve ever had in top quality on a non-US airline:
- The preliminary meal service was outrageously gradual; despite the fact that I requested to eat ASAP, my major course ended up being served 1hr40min after takeoff, which isn’t best when making an attempt to get some relaxation on such a brief flight
- The flight attendant poured champagne by holding the bottle by the neck, possibly an inch from the highest; it’s not an enormous deal, however have they actually not been skilled in the best way to pour correctly?!
- The crew didn’t tackle passengers by title, the inflight supervisor by no means got here round to see if every passenger loved their flight, and so on.; for what it’s value, enterprise class was solely 40% full, so it’s not even that they have been tremendous busy in different cabins
- There was simply zero consideration to element; for instance, check out the beneath turndown service, as the one different time I acquired such a careless turndown service in top quality was on American
- The crew wasn’t even participating or enthusiastic; they simply type of spoke in fragments when taking meal orders, and so on.
To be clear, I don’t actually blame the crew for this. It’s clear that they simply hadn’t been skilled in premium service. British Airways has made main adjustments to its labor contracts in recent times, screwing over a lot of its veteran flight attendants. By way of investing in labor, you get what you pay for, and this flight mirrored that.
Backside line
Sadly my first British Airways top quality flight in years was underwhelming. Whereas the brand new cabins are fairly elegant, and British Airways additionally has first rate sufficient meals, the service left rather a lot to be desired. With a considerably smaller top quality cabin, I had hoped that possibly service can be slightly extra polished and attentive. That didn’t transform the case.
What’s your tackle British Airways’ top quality these days?
