and it seems BA will be taken by Aeroflot , via Abramovici......

It's no different to Iberia who have been doing this for afew years now. If you want to eat or drink you have to pay and I would imagine BA will go the same way. It won't be long before they are charging for baggage, going to the loo, etc - maybe they will morph into Ryanair :}

The report is largely true, but breakfast will continue to be served up to 10am on domestics and flights in bands 1, 2 and 3a (basically the short, short hauls), afterwhich its drinks, biscuits and the revolting 'skybites'.

Once upon a time BA were a full service airline. No doubt it will follow that less cabin crew needed if less in-flight service. Let's see how long it takes BA to charge for preferential seating (like SQ and QF)

What a real shame.
It is the little things that make the difference.
I for one would choose BA for the service over the other airlines.

If all the airlines follow the gypsy Ryanair model the only thing determining the airline that the passengers will fly with will be price.

How will the other airlines compete with the cost base of Ryanair as that is not even an airline business?

there goes the commute from Manchester to Gatwick.

The news that BA are removing the meal service after 10am could pls bmi. They still have business class on most domestic routes apart from LHR- MAN and a few regional routes. Customers in C class still get free food and drink and all the normal perks of business. BD's FQTV pax in econ get a free and sandwich and a drink. Its not a lot but its welcome.
Normal pax still have to pay for food service in econ but it will be more than what BA is offering.

For short haul the pattern has been set by the locos - minimal service for minimal price. The only companies that are really making any money or minimal losses at the moment are the same locos. If you want cheap travel - and the answer to that one is, that at the moment, that is exactly what the public wants - you get the service that goes with it. If companies like BA do not adapt to market conditions they will disappear and on the nostalgia threads in a few years there will be a thread saying "Wasn't BA a great airline it's a shame it went bust because no one was flying with them." Ultimately companies will deliver what the market will bear: the full service, high expense model is, for the next few years at least, kaput.

As someone who flys MAN - LGW with BA about three/four times a month I have no problem with this.

On an early flight I still get breakfast but, other than that, a free drink is pretty much all you need on a short hop like that.

Bad decision IMO.

I remember BA trying the same for three months back in 2002/03 (maybe?) and the food service was quickly re introduced after "customer feedback".

I think we all know that BA's short haul European ops haven't made moeny in a long time but they do feed into the long haul network where the money is made. I think BA will score a massive own goal with this as really all BA is selling is its reputation and brand and this will erode that considerably. If you need a comparison just look at Iberia.

Iberia had a pretty much monopolised route network insdie Spain and throughout Europe which made good money for a number of years. When the Locos appeared on the scene Iberias idea was to cut additional services and compete head on... Something that has proved disasterous. FR and EZY are now in almost all Spanish cities and erodingf quickly IB's market share. So much so that IB is now hitting losses and had to set up a "subsidiary" low cost to combat them - Clickair.

BA, IB, LH and any other legacy carrier can't do the Aer lingus transformation, they're just too rigid in their cost base and in particular labour contracts. To my mind WW is doing the same as Fernando Conte did with IB (and indeed what WW did with Aer lingus)... Sell anything and everything, cut back on ancillary services and try and post a profit inflated with one offs for a couple of years. Fernando "left" Iberia this month as its suddenly become apparent that the "future" and "brand" of the company was sold off. Now IB have gone from being something of national pride to having an awful reputation in the Spanish market where FR and EZY are seen as the first choice.

To my mind both IB and BA are like one time 5 star hotels that are trying to offer B&B services thinking that their once great name still commands a 5 star price tag.... It doesnt :=

Good Analysis Morbid:ok:

This is a massive mistake made. British Airways prides itself on "customer service" (apparently - although in my opinion, no better than EI, FR, EZY) how can they expect people to pay the full-fares if the service doesn't represent the price?

Next will be the baggage, only one free bag at check-in. Then it will be charged like Aer Lingus.

I remember when sports equipment used to be free a BA... not anymore.

And soon, they will become an Aer Lingus - which is perfectly fine (i just flew LGW-FAO with EI; top-notch!) but the price has to come down if they are not offering the full-service.

This could work for them - but the staff have got to offer the same level of service as before.

If BA were like Aer Lingus today, I would say with the reduced costs they would have a bright future.

Iberia has a reputation now of being total rubbish in Spain, Clickair well they too have a reputation known by the Spanish population: Clickair condemned as unsafe -Times Online Vueling recently merged with them...

First choice in Spain is FR. And BA is highly regarded and preferred.

Heard BA are cutting their on board service for flights under two hours. They will remove all meals except breakfast and just serve complementary drinks and snacks.

Saves approx. £22m p/a

Once again, in the modern world of business it is customer service that suffers at the expense of much harder decisions like, restructuring the overheads, the back office and management culture...

I remember waiting for 3hrs for our baggage at LGW a couple of years ago and the BA representative said to me that this was my fault. The argument went along these lines....You (the customer) wants low cost fares so you get low cost service....

So rather than restructure the business to be able to deliver competitive fares, with proper service, at a profit, we'll reduce the fares, trade on our name, and screw customer service. Great business strategy.....

It was the last time I voluntarily flew BA.....

As I stated in the thread ( http://www.pprune.org/airlines-airpo...2-5-hours.html )about just this I don't see it as a very good move on BA's part.

Those savings come at what cost in brand devaluation, loss of customer loyalty and finally distinction from competitors?

Apologies, hadn't looked for the thread.

Yes it is certainly not the best way to save £22m. They have gone from being 'the world's favourite airline' a decade ago to being a company on the decline.

It really is a shame. Maybe when the economy turns around we may see the company start to re-invent itself and improve its overall image. I somehow doubt it though.

FutureCC - "I remember when sports equipment used to be free a BA... not anymore"

It is free (for how long?) I flew last week, my golf clubs were free.

My mistake, I went with BA 2 years ago to Faro and they were charging.

Answer is simple - vote with your feet. A full fare ticket to London which alot of business people require is the guts of £500 from ABZ (1.5 hours flying time)- for a cup of coffe and a packet of nuts? Get lost - BMI / Flybe for me. Same or better service, fraction of the cost. If they are going to offer a budget service then they can charge budget fares.

I wonder if any short haul food 'managers' will go? eg 'Manager Hot Scones Benbecula'.