Giving birth to a new terminal
So, let's be clear about this. My local hospital opens a new maternity unit and even without the ability to do dummy runs, manages to deliver all the babies, and some not expected on the specific day, without any EVIDENT problems. Lots of running around by staff, I am sure. But no chaos, no lost children, no delayed deliveries. And they had less than twenty years to plan the opening.
The difference is that the hospital understands what all the players want, including the mums to be and the dads to be. And the staff. And the unions....need I go on.
BAA/BA only understand the retailer. Not the passenger, not the crews, not the managers who work at the airports on a daily basis. Anyone tried to buy a cup of coffee in T2 at LHR in advance of the LX departure at 06:05? At T4 after 21:30 before the final departures of the day? Anyone succeeded??