Europe's worst airport?
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Europe's worst airport?
radeng flew back from Venice today. What a Gawd elp us airport Venice Marco Polo is!
45 bloody minutes to get through their laughable security. I thought LHR T4 was bad but this lot of useless jobsworths really takes the biscuit. A woman with a little gate so that each passenger has to clear everything through the X ray before the next one is allowed in. Then take out the lap top, and wipe it looking for explosives. Then come back to do the same on each compartment of the back pack which had the lap top in, instead of doing the whole lot at once.
To add insult to injury, the baggage handlers then hit the aircraft with their loader, and there was a subsequent delay while engineering had to inspect it. To put the crowning cap on it, it was the worst Club class cabin service I think I've ever had from BA! Then it took 40 minutes from landing to get the baggage. Sorry, Bealine, but your LGW colleagues didn't shine on this occasion......unlike going out last Sunday.
Hopefully, going out from T4 to Chicago on the 16th will be better....
45 bloody minutes to get through their laughable security. I thought LHR T4 was bad but this lot of useless jobsworths really takes the biscuit. A woman with a little gate so that each passenger has to clear everything through the X ray before the next one is allowed in. Then take out the lap top, and wipe it looking for explosives. Then come back to do the same on each compartment of the back pack which had the lap top in, instead of doing the whole lot at once.
To add insult to injury, the baggage handlers then hit the aircraft with their loader, and there was a subsequent delay while engineering had to inspect it. To put the crowning cap on it, it was the worst Club class cabin service I think I've ever had from BA! Then it took 40 minutes from landing to get the baggage. Sorry, Bealine, but your LGW colleagues didn't shine on this occasion......unlike going out last Sunday.
Hopefully, going out from T4 to Chicago on the 16th will be better....
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Worst airport
Not been to them all, but the following have gained my attention...
- for stupidity, Atlanta international pier, reclaim baggage/clear security/recheck baggage/take train to terminal/reclaim baggage
- for rudeness, any NYC airport (most people aren't rude, but the ones who are make up for the rest)
- for archaic infrastructure, LHR 2 & 3
- for security geezers with attitude - Stansted (you can't take 2 pieces of hand baggage mate - I think I can .. shows C class ticket ...jobsworth sends F3G back to check in, airline duty manager comes back with F3G and bollocks jobsworth, jobsworths supervisor bollocks airline manager, huge row develops, F3G watches in amazement and is finally allowed through (the C class fare was worth paying just to watch the catfight)
- for complexity - Paris CDG terminal 1 - where the **** are we?
- for basicness - Charleroi or Lubeck
- for stupidity, Atlanta international pier, reclaim baggage/clear security/recheck baggage/take train to terminal/reclaim baggage
- for rudeness, any NYC airport (most people aren't rude, but the ones who are make up for the rest)
- for archaic infrastructure, LHR 2 & 3
- for security geezers with attitude - Stansted (you can't take 2 pieces of hand baggage mate - I think I can .. shows C class ticket ...jobsworth sends F3G back to check in, airline duty manager comes back with F3G and bollocks jobsworth, jobsworths supervisor bollocks airline manager, huge row develops, F3G watches in amazement and is finally allowed through (the C class fare was worth paying just to watch the catfight)
- for complexity - Paris CDG terminal 1 - where the **** are we?
- for basicness - Charleroi or Lubeck
Lady Lexxington
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Concur LHR T2 is appalling! T1 isn't much better though.
Found LHR T4 to be ok though, on a friday night just before xmas.
JFK is a shed and the staff are just hilarious (once they've let you in the country)
Found LHR T4 to be ok though, on a friday night just before xmas.
JFK is a shed and the staff are just hilarious (once they've let you in the country)
Too mean to buy a long personal title
Final 3 Greens: - for stupidity, Atlanta international pier, reclaim baggage/clear security/recheck baggage/take train to terminal/reclaim baggage
It's either because the airports were designed before anybody ever dreamt that there were destinations outside the fortress, or to punish us for having had the temerity ever to be outside it.
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FRA Terminal 1 A is horrible! If you exit at Gate 30 or so upwords at least you don't have to wait at the baggage claim, because it takes about 30 min to walk there. Terminal 2 D is the same, long way from D 20 to the exit.
I like Airports like Jerez, small, neat, nice view from the bar to the very basic rwy...
But the best one is USM
I like Airports like Jerez, small, neat, nice view from the bar to the very basic rwy...
But the best one is USM
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Heathrow - whole place is a mess - in particular the dump they call T3, miles to walk to/from the gate, dark pokey check in and departures, rest appear almost OK by comparison
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radeng - I wonder if I saw you at LGW last night! I was sent down to the Arrivals Hall with refreshment vouchers in case anyone needed any substantial food before leaving!!! We also arranged cars for anyone who was stuck for transport!
Apparently the handling at VCE was cr4p with our handing agents running around like headless chickens, but achieving nothing!
Unfortunately, you arrived at LGW during the night shift - one baggage loading team to deal with several aircraft at once, a few ticket sales staff at "Flight Connections" and a few Customer Service staff. Given the tight resources nowadays, it is difficult for LGW to shine and, in all probability BA will pull short-haul out of Gatwick altogether in 2007!
Morale among the troops at LGW is at an all time low - we all feel as if BA will either abandon us or will hand us over to a handling agent! So far, Willie Walsh has refused to be drawn into answering direct questions concerning the Gatwick staff future prospects!
Sorry, radeng, you had a cr4p deal! I just hope it's a one-off!!!
Apparently the handling at VCE was cr4p with our handing agents running around like headless chickens, but achieving nothing!
Unfortunately, you arrived at LGW during the night shift - one baggage loading team to deal with several aircraft at once, a few ticket sales staff at "Flight Connections" and a few Customer Service staff. Given the tight resources nowadays, it is difficult for LGW to shine and, in all probability BA will pull short-haul out of Gatwick altogether in 2007!
Morale among the troops at LGW is at an all time low - we all feel as if BA will either abandon us or will hand us over to a handling agent! So far, Willie Walsh has refused to be drawn into answering direct questions concerning the Gatwick staff future prospects!
Sorry, radeng, you had a cr4p deal! I just hope it's a one-off!!!
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Given the tight resources nowadays, it is difficult for LGW to shine and, in all probability BA will pull short-haul out of Gatwick altogether in 2007!
Well, we hope not, but the way it's shaping up, possibly we'll see the last BA flight the day T5 opens its doors. Will they keep a long-haul op going at LGW? Will a lack of LHR slots mean that they still have to keep a significant LGW presence? We built you a nice new pier with a terrific bridge to it! It'd be nice to see you get some use out of it.
Cheers,
The Odd One
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Heathrow Central Area (T1,2,3) without a doubt!
The physical and mental stress of having to use this rat-infested ********starts the moment you enter the tunnel, and only ends when the aircraft wheels are up.
Yes, I know I work there - but it's only for the money. The fun part went out of it years ago
The physical and mental stress of having to use this rat-infested ********starts the moment you enter the tunnel, and only ends when the aircraft wheels are up.
Yes, I know I work there - but it's only for the money. The fun part went out of it years ago
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Well, we hope not, but the way it's shaping up, possibly we'll see the last BA flight the day T5 opens its doors. Will they keep a long-haul op going at LGW? Will a lack of LHR slots mean that they still have to keep a significant LGW presence? We built you a nice new pier with a terrific bridge to it! It'd be nice to see you get some use out of it.
It's all rumour and conjecture, of course, but Willie Walsh's refusal to answer questions directly adds credibility to the rumours:
1. We have been given until 2007 to save a further £13.5m. Given that we are unable to give adequate customer service with the cuts we've had (and last night's Venice is a shining example of how badly we managed) If the figure
have been £1.3m, I might have felt challenged, but £13.5m, I fear,. is an impossible target!
(Also, with the EU legislation, last night's Venice cost a small fortune and the Jersey services, with continual bad weather problems in the winter, will never make money as long as they exist and the EU regs push the route further into the red!!!)
2. The leases on our 737 fleet expire in 2007. Our Flying Officers will tell you the machines are pretty well clapped-out and the possibility of extending leases by a few years would probably be uneconomic. Given that replacement aircraft need to be ordered at least 2 years in advance, and the only machines BA has on order are two A321's for Heathrow, we're dead in the water I think!
3. Rod Eddington was trying to get our Cabin Crew to enter into new working practices whereby they would be "mixed fleet" - ie able to fly long-haul or short-haul as the need arises. If this goes ahead (and negotiations are well under way), BA would have very cheap long-haul crew!
The long-haul routes will stay at LGW, as long as the Open Skies Agreement remains a dream! If Open Skies becomes reality, the US flights will be at Heathrow like a shot (along with Continental, US Airways, American NorthWest and Delta who have always stated openly they would rather be at the airport with Golden Runways!!!)
It is my firm belief that, come 2007, Willie Walsh will say "Thanks, Gatwick, for all your efforts! Unfortunately, however........."
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Agree with TG, MAN has become a right pain over the last couple of years. Shame really, because a lot of the staff are great (particularly BA). One word to describe my biggest complaint - baggage!
If you want a real laugh, try flying in to Turin during the ski season - even better, fly back to MAN!!
If you want a real laugh, try flying in to Turin during the ski season - even better, fly back to MAN!!
Lady Lexxington
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Poor old MAN, used to be such a great airport, now it's a bloody dump. Especially southfront in T3! Can we have a coffee shop in that area for our pax please MAplc?
I have to work there too
I have to work there too
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Not the worst, but quite interesting
Niederhein, Germany. It is a former British RAF base, the airport itself converted for commercial flights with a brand new terminal building. But that's not what makes it interesting.
The entire base is still there: homes, shops, theater, everything. On your way to or from the terminal, you drive through a ghost town. Some of the shops still have the latest sale posters on the windows, the theater still has the "what's playing now" billboard up. Ít made quite an impression on me.
The entire base is still there: homes, shops, theater, everything. On your way to or from the terminal, you drive through a ghost town. Some of the shops still have the latest sale posters on the windows, the theater still has the "what's playing now" billboard up. Ít made quite an impression on me.
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You need to try a international/domestic transfer at Moscow Sheremetyvo. My wife has done this, not me, but from her description my blood pressure would have gone through the roof and I would have dreamed about the central area in LHR!!!
Bleriot XI:
Take a look at http://www.rodi.dk/mygalshow.php?3
I've been to RAF Laarbruch and this shocked me
Take a look at http://www.rodi.dk/mygalshow.php?3
I've been to RAF Laarbruch and this shocked me
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Easy - Milan Malpensa. Get stuck here for a few hours and you'll be doolally with boredom. Can't one of Itay's biggest airports do any better? I avoid Alitalia like the plague just so I don't have to come near the place.
MXP has twenty different places to buy a Gucci handbag but precious little else like restaurants, bars, cafes, internet access or even an ATM!! Maybe Manston can lend them theirs.....
MXP has twenty different places to buy a Gucci handbag but precious little else like restaurants, bars, cafes, internet access or even an ATM!! Maybe Manston can lend them theirs.....
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St Petersburg - the only place I've been to where you go through customs on exit (between having your ticket approved and checking in). It's also not exactly well-equipped for entertaining the passengers who are leaving unless they invite you to the lounge.
Paris CDG. Let's assume you're flying BA to LHR, so that's terminal 2B. On check-in, your boarding pass says "gate B" (helpful - you're clearly in the right terminal as they're all B around here...) Finally they give you a gate - let's say it's B30. The desks are all numbered much lower than that so you need to know that B30 & B31 are right beside desks marked 11 & 12. [Note: the 11 & 12 are huge white numbers on a grey background, the B30 & 31 are much smaller black on yellow]. When I left last Friday, the monitor said the flight was going to Sofia, but it was the presence of the BA staff that gave away the fact I was in the right place.
Now, despite their best efforts, you've found the gate. Unfortunately, you'll still be waiting a fortnight while you go through security and the queue for that will interfere with the exit queue through passport control.
Add to that the fact that they've told me that my shaver's batteries were a pair of scissors and a bottle of moisturising lotion (purchased in the terminal shop) was a security risk it's by far the worst place I have to go to.
Was it really designed to be that bad?
Paris CDG. Let's assume you're flying BA to LHR, so that's terminal 2B. On check-in, your boarding pass says "gate B" (helpful - you're clearly in the right terminal as they're all B around here...) Finally they give you a gate - let's say it's B30. The desks are all numbered much lower than that so you need to know that B30 & B31 are right beside desks marked 11 & 12. [Note: the 11 & 12 are huge white numbers on a grey background, the B30 & 31 are much smaller black on yellow]. When I left last Friday, the monitor said the flight was going to Sofia, but it was the presence of the BA staff that gave away the fact I was in the right place.
Now, despite their best efforts, you've found the gate. Unfortunately, you'll still be waiting a fortnight while you go through security and the queue for that will interfere with the exit queue through passport control.
Add to that the fact that they've told me that my shaver's batteries were a pair of scissors and a bottle of moisturising lotion (purchased in the terminal shop) was a security risk it's by far the worst place I have to go to.
Was it really designed to be that bad?