BA Euro Traveller

[phil_2405]

I am travelling from LHR to CDG next weekend with British Airways in the Euro Traveller cabin. Although the flight is short (does anyone actually know how long normally?) what is the service like? What kind of thing should I expect. Its my first time flying with BA so its their one chance to impress me!!!

[bealine]

Please don't expect to be that impressed!!! LHR-CDG is (apart from some of our Highlands and Islands hops) the shortest flight we operate - usually 45-55 mins duration.

Take 5-10 mins off that for ascent and 10-15 mins off for the descent and it leaves precious little time for "service".

Having said that, you should receive a "snackette" and beverage.

(LHR/LGW - AMS offers a similar "reduced" meal service due to the short flight time as well!)

So, please don't take the LHR-CDG flight as "typical" BA - try something a little longer - Rome, Venice, Athens, Copenhagen, Prague, Berlin, Vienna - all fascinating places and well worth a visit on BA!!!

[phil_2405]

I guess I shouldnt expect too much!! I think if you take the whole travel experience (including check-in etc) into account though, you should get a good flavour for an airline.

Anyone know if CDG is good for viewing?

[Wannabe Flyboy]

You cannot get a proper impression of an airline based on one flight; it must be done over several. If you had a dreadful flight then that wouldn't be representative of normal BA - nor would an amazing one with free upgrades!

Bealine has summed up the service pretty well. Depending on the time of day expect a cold breakfast (yoghurt, fruit salad, muffin), snack (sandwich, kit-kat) or if you're really unlucky the feared 'something sweet/savoury' boxes. Drinks are all free except champagne which is £4/quarter bottle.

You'll get leather seats in a 3-3 config. The pitch is offically 31" but if you sit in the first few economy rows you'll probably get 34".

If you can, checkin online (12 hours before you go) to get your preferred seats.

[phil_2405]

Wannabe Flyboy - I agree taking one flight would not be a fair representation of an airline but unfortunately thats life!!

If my flight is rubbish next weekend, I am unlikely to fly BA again by choice. On the other hand though if it is great, I'll probably fly them again. This is why airlines and all service companies try to get their service spot on as much as possible. It is cheaper to keep an existing customer than spend money trying to attract new ones.

Any recommendations for particular seats then? There are two of us travelling.:D

[Bealzebub]

Phil, it is a 50 minute flight for Gods sake, not a trip half way around the world. You go up then you come down ! The crew will be rushing to complete a very baic service within the constraints of an extremely tight schedule. I am not sure what you are expecting, have you actually flown before ? If not then perhaps I can understand your anticipation.

If there are 2 of you flying together then get seats next to each other if you like the other person. Failing that ask for seats apart. The earlier you arrive at the airport the greater the choice if the flight is likely to be full. These days you can often select your seat on line, either 12 or 24 hours before departure, from the comfort of your computer. Just logon to B.A's website and follow the links to check your booking. Click www.britishairways.com and then click on the "Manage my booking" link.

Enjoy yourselves.

[phil_2405]

So I'm not allowed to construct an opinion on BA because its only a 50 minute flight?!? I'm not just talking about the actual flight...what about check-in, boarding etc? Whilst I appreciate 50 minutes is no time at all to show truly good service, it is long enough to form an opinion of some sort of the general level of service from the cabin crew, the level of comfort etc.

easyJet and the other LCC's do not offer an inflight service as such but you would still form an opinion of their service regardless of the length of flight wouldnt you??

Phil

PS - I have flown many times before.

[Bealzebub]

Phil,

Of course you can construct an opinion. It is just LHR to CDG is a very short high density air route. It is never going to be the last word in luxury or gracious living. Check in is standing in a queue to deposit your bags, answer a few questions and pick up a boarding pass. Boarding the plane is sitting in a holding area, then standing in another queue that slopes down a metal tunnel, enter a plane, slowly proceed down aisle to your seat. Level of comfort is a seat in economy class for around an hour. It is not a long time so you won't get too uncomfortable. The cabin crew will be polite but busy. Very few of them in number will try and serve a drink and a boxed snack of some description ( its a sandwich ) to many people, in a time frame of little more than 30 minutes if they are lucky.

Easy jet and other LCC's do offer an inflight service. You can buy stuff from a trolley. BA give you a sandwich and a drink. Most people on short distance transport only care that the flight gets them there efficiently and on time. If you are hoping for some sort of ethereal experience on such a flight you are probably going to be disappointed. Beyond this there is not really much anybody can add, is there ?

[Final 3 Greens]

Phil

Of course you can form an opinion of an ariline from a 50 minute flight.

The only downside is that there a quite a number of frequent flyers on this forum and they might consider you to be a total pr*t, since they are aware that the best airlines are the ones who deliver consistent service over a period of time.

[The_Banking_Scot]

Hi,

I would say that you can form an opinion on an airline from one flight.

However, please be aware that you could have a bad flight on any airline

For example I have had baggage delayed for two days on both Bmi/BA on the LHR-EDI which has given me cause to moan about both of them sometimes ( I have also been dealyed on both airlines but that is a price of air travel).

[ I did get 2k miles from BA for the luggage a month after it was delivered ( second time in a month that my luggage was delayed for 2 days]

Hope you havea good flight.

Regards

TBS

[AJ]

Hi Phil

As cabin crew with BA (LHR base, Eurofleet) I hope your enjoy your experience with BA, and consider the company in your future travel plans.

On the CDG route you can expect a full bar service (wine, soft drinks, G&T Tea & Coffee etc.) plus a light snack (the exact contents will differ according to the time of day). You may be offered a sweet or savoury bite, or a fruit salad and muffin at breakfast.

Granted, that's not very substantial, but by the time the crew get down to your row, you'll probably be rushing to finish it off before landing!

As many have stated, it's a brief flight, and it's sometimes quite difficult to serve everyone a drink and a snack, then clear in before the "10 mins to landing" call.

Nevertheless, the crew should still welcome you aboard warmly and treat you with respect and courtesy. Anything less is not the BA standard.

Happy travels.

[manintheback]

Phil

You do however have every right to make a completely well informed opinion of De Gaulle Airport. That does indeed only take 1 trip and your impression will never improve.

rgrds

[Wannabe Flyboy]

manintheback - how very true. I've only been to CDG T2B once and if the rest of the airport is anything like that I do not want to go back. Ever.

A temple to concrete that place is.

[slim_slag]

Wasn't too long ago you would get a drink run, HOT meal, and another drink run on those short hop type flights. They could do it now, if they really wanted to......

[phil_2405]

Although it maybe wrong to form a judgement of an airline solely on one flight, I believe the majority of people would do. In any service industry when there is a choice of providers, if you have a bad experience with one you will be more inclined to use the other providers in future, I believe. However I do accept that the best airlines are those which offer good service consistently, I was never disputing that!!!

I look forward (!) to going through CDG after those comments on it! Does LHR T4 compare any better??

[Globaliser]

Compared to the bit of CDG from which BA currently operates (read: is forced to operate), LHR T4 is heaven.

Best thing to do, if you can, is to check in online 12 hours before your departure (24 hours before if you're already a member of the BA frequent flyer scheme, although you can't now join it if you're not already a member if you're only flying on deep discount economy tickets). That way, you can waltz into T4, pick up your boarding pass from a machine, drop your bags (if any) at the Fast Bag Drop desk and then go straight through security. Great for avoiding the queues if it's a busy time.

[Rollingthunder]

Globaliser

Is that really how BA do it?

With our mob you don't have to bother on-line. Just arrive at the airport, use the check-in machine to get seat and boarding pass (takes about 2 minutes), drop off bag at express bag drop and go. Longest whole procedure has taken me is 10 minutes. Domestic or international.

[fly babe]

slim... how necessary is a drink then food then another drink on a 45 minute flight, eh? 45 minutes man! You spend an hourish in the departure terminal before the flight - spend that hour or so wisely :ok:

[Wannabe Flyboy]

Rollingthunder - you can do that at BA too, but checking-in online allows you to get the best seats before the great unwashed get a shot. ;)

[Final 3 Greens]

WF is right.

On Monday, I got 11F going to Brussels (exit) and 9F (exit) coming back.

Although the 319/20 is okay for room anyway, the extra few inches are always nice to have.

If I can't fly Skyteam (gold card = regular upgrades), then BAs online check in drives me in their direction.

[Globaliser]

Wannabe Flyboy: you can do that at BA too, but checking-in online allows you to get the best seats before the great unwashed get a shot.Exactly, and on top of that it doesn't really matter if you arrive at the airport at the very last moment (a very common state of affairs for me). Otherwise, you do that and you're in a middle seat in the last row with no recline, etc. etc.

[Avman]

Gentlemen, I don't hold a Gold Card or belong to your superior SLF fraternity, but I can assure you that I wash! I hope you enjoy all your superior privileges next time you fly, especially when I put your flight into the hold for an hour or two :} ;)

[bealine]

slim... how necessary is a drink then food then another drink on a 45 minute flight, eh? 45 minutes man! You spend an hourish in the departure terminal before the flight - spend that hour or so wisely

....Er, I think slim has a point. The airlines cutting and slashing of product services over the past few years has been carried out by managers who assume that our customer base resides within an hour's drive of the airport.

They have forgotton Mr x who leaves Pembroke at 2.00 am for a 7.40 flight (do we really expect him to leave an hour earlier in order to grab a bite in the Terminal???) or how about Mrs Y who leaves Hereford at some ridiculous hour???

I always advocated that, because Eurostar is a serious threat with its City Centre to City Centre journey time, the airlines should have gone "over the top" with service on that particular route to keep Eurostar at arm's length!

....But, what did we do at Gatwick??? Put the bloody aircraft at the furthest possible gate ( or, worse still, coached it in or out), reduce catering and take an eternity to reunite customers with their baggage!

No wonder our high-yield customers deserted the service and now, after London (Croydon) to Paris being trhe first route carried out by Imperial (now British) Airways, a piece of history has disappeared. (Croydon services being moved to Gatwick's original airport at the "Beehive" in 1926 - Indeed, London-Paris was the world's first commercial air route!) I wonder what the old stewards of the Handley Page airliners would say!!!

To go back on topic, I hope the OP has a very enjoyable visit to Paris!

[traveller5]

phil_2405 - what an odd person! A flight to CDG? Blink and you miss it! Try London - Tokyo, London- Sydney......proper flying! Sounds like you've never flown before, but there's a first time for everyone.

[Final 3 Greens]

Bealine

I always advocated that, because Eurostar is a serious threat with its City Centre to City Centre journey time, the airlines should have gone "over the top" with service on that particular route to keep Eurostar at arm's length!

Aren't your mob a shareholder in Eurostar? ;)

[phil_2405]

traveller 5 phil_2405 - what an odd person! A flight to CDG? Blink and you miss it! Try London - Tokyo, London- Sydney......proper flying! Sounds like you've never flown before, but there's a first time for everyone.

Why am I odd?? Flying to CDG is perfectly valid!! And for the record, I have flown many times before.

[phil_2405]

After much debate (!) I can say I was impressed with the service offered by British Airways. Although the flights was only 50 minutes long, the inflight service was good and it was nice to get a free snack/drink for once!! The crew did have time for a 10 minute break in the back I noticed so they cant be that rushed!!

Out of interest, how many flights do each crew operate a day? If the crew operates a return flight to CDG, do they operate anymore flights?

We travelled outbound on a A319 and inbound on a A320. I thought the A320's were newer than the A319's but the interior seemed a lot more worn :confused:

Overall the self-check-in was excellent, cabin crew were excellent and all flights operated on time or early so I was very impressed. Not 100% sure if I would pay that little bit extra to travel BA over easyJet etc though.

PS - love the new BA uniform!!

[AJ]

Hi phil

I did the early CDG the other day on a 319. We only had about 40 pax aboard, so the service was much more relaxed. :ok:

Crew will usually only operate 2 sectors (there and back) but occasionally 3 if flying to/from nightstop and, very rarely, 4 (the latter are usually domestic sectors). Flightcrew tend to work harder (at least on the Airbus).

Some of our 320s are indeed fairly old, especially those inherited from Bcal, so not all are necessarily newer than the 319s. The latest additions are the 321s.

Glad you approve of the uniform, nice to see it's well received by our pax too.

Can't blame you for looking at the competition....BA staff occasionally find it cheaper and easier to fly Ryan or easy than fly on BA concessions!

[phil_2405]

AJ - it cant have been my flight then because it was a full load apparently!! I know the overhead lockers were jammed full!!

Must be nice for cabin crew if they do a Paris run or something, the shift cant be too long?

I think the A320 we flew on was G-EUUR so I reckon that is newer than the A319 I flew on.

Can you explain to me the middle seat on the left hand side of the aircraft (ABC)...how do you make it smaller?

[Bealzebub]

"it cant have been my flight then because it was a full load apparently!! I know the overhead lockers were jammed full!!"


Of what ? Passengers !
:}

[AJ]

Phil, I'm not an expert on registrations, but I believe the older A320s are registered G-BUSH, BUSC etc. whilst the 'new' 320s are in the range G-EUUR, EUUL, EUOU etc. etc.

There are other more important distinctions as far as crew are concerned, but I won't confuse you (regarding layout of galleys and crew seats amongst other things).

Everyone has their own thoughts regarding what flights they prefer to bid for; generally speaking, although Paris is short, it's not necessarily popular if it's an early (report 0500) or if its between meal times (flight pay is calculated acording to the time of day i.e. dinner, lunch or breakfast). Longer flights trigger more allowances. And Paris flights are notorious amongst BA crew because we always seem to get delayed on them.

Having said that, I personally quite enjoy them - short and sweet!

Some of the seats on each of our aircraft are 'convertible' which means they can be converted into Club or Traveller dependent on loads. How exactly the engineer converts the seats I don't know, as we are not allowed to perform the conversion ourselves. The seats appear to slide over a rail, and they can be pulled apart (convert to Y) or together (Club). One of the checks crew must do before accepting pax is to ensure that the indicator disk on the side of each convertible seat is grey (locked) rather than red (unlocked).

I'm think I'll watch a little closer on the next turnaround...

[sixmilehighclub]

Overhead lockers being jampacked are usually down to the pax who feel they are an exception to the rule and bring a trolleybag PLUS laptop case PLUS handbag/rucksack PLUS coat PLUS duty free shopping. I have often seen two passengers fill a locker designed for 6-9 pasengers. The lockers only hold up to 25kg too, so imagine 4 trolley bags and 4 laptops PLUS heavy landing. Recently witness to passenger having a go at the CSD because she was asked to present her boarding pass for security check on boarding , but felt the crew should be helping her with her overstuffed Loius Vitton bags, not carrying out "silly little security policies". Ooooh don't get me started.....!!!

Wannabe- have you ever bought champagne for £4 on BA?? I thought it was only available free in Club Europe. Just wondering where info came from.

[Wannabe Flyboy]

Wannabe- have you ever bought champagne for £4 on BA?? I thought it was only available free in Club Europe. Just wondering where info came from.

I've never paid for it (I doubt I would, if I wanted alcohol I'd have a glass of wine for free) but when flying down to GIB I heard them announce to the Y pax that it was available for £4/quarter bottle.

[Final 3 Greens]

Overhead lockers being jampacked are usually down to the pax who feel they are an exception to the rule and bring a trolleybag PLUS laptop case PLUS handbag/rucksack PLUS coat PLUS duty free shopping. This seems to be within the rules for biz class on most airlines and one piece over for Y/loco.

So maybe these people are not exceptions to the rules, but rather premium passengers?

[manintheback]

Too much hand baggage is always a feature of the rush hour flights. The problem usually is the biz class allowance. At 14 kilos and 3 pieces for a female on BA (dont forget the handbag!), there is no way its all going to fit in and frequently doesnt. Hence the rush by the wise to make sure they are first on board. AF out of DeGaulle seems to take a view that if it fits through the cabin door its small enough.