Terminal 5
What I find annoying is the parsimony on having so few moving walkways on
the arrivals level. It is a bl***y long way to walk when you walk with a stick, and aren't bad enough to need a wheelchair!
Plus the 'through security, tramp past the bl***dy shops that I never use and back the same way at lower level' just to get to the lounges.
I still maintain BAA stands for 'Bl**dy Awful Airports'.
the arrivals level. It is a bl***y long way to walk when you walk with a stick, and aren't bad enough to need a wheelchair!
Plus the 'through security, tramp past the bl***dy shops that I never use and back the same way at lower level' just to get to the lounges.
I still maintain BAA stands for 'Bl**dy Awful Airports'.
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Jarvy
Please will you supply an authoritative reference for your assertion.
Anecdotally, I hear lots of people who have a great experience and lots who don't.
As you challenge me on T3/T5, let me tell you the facts of my two recent visits to both.
T5 - Friday 1800, T3 - Sunday 0930 - both peak time and both very busy
T5 - security transit time - 35 mins, T3 - 10 mins
T1 - no 'go to gate' announcement on FIDS, T3 - 'go to gate' announcement on FIDS.
Those are facts, not opinions.
Fact, on those two trips, at peak times, T3 gave me a better experience than T5.
Please will you supply an authoritative reference for your assertion.
Anecdotally, I hear lots of people who have a great experience and lots who don't.
As you challenge me on T3/T5, let me tell you the facts of my two recent visits to both.
T5 - Friday 1800, T3 - Sunday 0930 - both peak time and both very busy
T5 - security transit time - 35 mins, T3 - 10 mins
T1 - no 'go to gate' announcement on FIDS, T3 - 'go to gate' announcement on FIDS.
Those are facts, not opinions.
Fact, on those two trips, at peak times, T3 gave me a better experience than T5.
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I noticed this morning, as you come down the escalator to the lower level, coming from the main security check, you are confronted by a large advert for Star Alliance....! Fair enough, free market advertising etc, but what the f*ck are BAA playing at? In the middle of the "product" they are presenting jointly with BA to the customer, and then advertising the competition!?! If I was BA I would be hopping mad. Personally it reflects badly on both of them.
BAA, through their owners Ferrovial, are now DESPERATE for money, any money, to fund the ridiculously high amount they borrowed to buy BAA a couple of years ago. A comparable exercise has hit the rail access to the airport. When the Underground is closed for weekend works, all too frequently it seems, the Heathrow Express that BAA own allowed OysterCard/TravelCard holders to use the HEx into London. Transport for London paid a fixed fee per day to BAA for this. Well BAA jacked the fee up by 200%, TfL refused to pay it, and now when there is no Piccadilly Line at weekends everyone will have to pay the full fare on the Paddington trains. Haha, say BAA.
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I think you'll recall that it wasn't the present government that privatised it, so taking it away from being a service to the population and turning it into a money making machine that believes shops are more important than customers.
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Nor is the government responsible for the shambles that is the programme of weekend engineering closures that plagues the Underground network. The Conservative mayor is ultimately responsible for the city's transport.
Paxing All Over The World
THREAD DRIFT
Rusland 17
Which makes sense, as it was a Conservative govt that held back investment in the Tube system - then tried to privatise. The privatised the maintenance - which then collapsed and to be rescued for the public good.
Might have been easier to have invested for the public good 20 years ago and not hand off considerable amounts of cash to private individuals ...
Rusland 17
The Conservative mayor is ultimately responsible for the city's transport.
Might have been easier to have invested for the public good 20 years ago and not hand off considerable amounts of cash to private individuals ...
I don't hold any particular support for either political party, but must point out the following :
1. BAA was privatised to its own shareholders in 1986 and was not saddled with huge amounts of borrowed acquisition debt. It was the current government not any previous one, which then allowed Ferrovial to buy it (in 2006), when they had the chance to prevent it through the Competition Commission. All realists in the financial world could see that the sale, at 10 times its initial capitalisation, would lead to all sorts of financial issues for the UK's principal gateways.
2. Maintenance of the London Underground was not privatised by any previous government but by the current one in 2002, into two separate Public Private Partnership companies, one of which has now failed and the other is facing significant difficulties. The PPP plan was pushed by the Treasury against advice from all sides, a fact which is now glossed over.
1. BAA was privatised to its own shareholders in 1986 and was not saddled with huge amounts of borrowed acquisition debt. It was the current government not any previous one, which then allowed Ferrovial to buy it (in 2006), when they had the chance to prevent it through the Competition Commission. All realists in the financial world could see that the sale, at 10 times its initial capitalisation, would lead to all sorts of financial issues for the UK's principal gateways.
2. Maintenance of the London Underground was not privatised by any previous government but by the current one in 2002, into two separate Public Private Partnership companies, one of which has now failed and the other is facing significant difficulties. The PPP plan was pushed by the Treasury against advice from all sides, a fact which is now glossed over.
Paxing All Over The World
WHBM Thanks for the correct details on the Tube maintenance, I guess I had read too many foul ups by both the two parties that have been kicking the ball back and forth to each other for too long, thanks to a cosy electoral system. But I digress further ...
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Gassy,
I suppose it is up to the marketing departments to decide what they want to spend their money on. The BAA (I am not a fan by the way) will take the money from whoever they want. If BA wanted their name plastered over the billboards, they would have to pay too. It happened at Gatwick North some years ago when you couldn't move for ads for EasyJet. That didn't seem to last long.
I suppose it is up to the marketing departments to decide what they want to spend their money on. The BAA (I am not a fan by the way) will take the money from whoever they want. If BA wanted their name plastered over the billboards, they would have to pay too. It happened at Gatwick North some years ago when you couldn't move for ads for EasyJet. That didn't seem to last long.
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Back to the thread
F3G will be pleased to know that after last nights escapade I can safely say I've seen both ends of the spectrum. Arrived at gate A20 at 15.55 ready to transfer to A3 for 17.00. First time I've done the transfer from International to Domestic but what a ******* farce staffed by jumped up *****.
Purple signage is clear and straightforward but useless if staff point you in a different direction. First the immigration photo then 6ft later a boarding pass check followed by barked instructions from some lowlife re liquids before heading up on the escalator to be unceremoniously dumped at the arse end of the standard security queue which then took 25mins whilst the staff tried to decide where to move the barriers until they realised that they'd created 2 queues meeting each other in opposite directions
So 2 questions
a) why the need for a search when transferring INT-DOM but not DOM-INT
b) How can the service be so inconsistent
For me I'll now change my flights to BA for MAN-LHR-GVA but I'll return on EZY from GVA-MAN.
Another satisfied customer
F3G will be pleased to know that after last nights escapade I can safely say I've seen both ends of the spectrum. Arrived at gate A20 at 15.55 ready to transfer to A3 for 17.00. First time I've done the transfer from International to Domestic but what a ******* farce staffed by jumped up *****.
Purple signage is clear and straightforward but useless if staff point you in a different direction. First the immigration photo then 6ft later a boarding pass check followed by barked instructions from some lowlife re liquids before heading up on the escalator to be unceremoniously dumped at the arse end of the standard security queue which then took 25mins whilst the staff tried to decide where to move the barriers until they realised that they'd created 2 queues meeting each other in opposite directions
So 2 questions
a) why the need for a search when transferring INT-DOM but not DOM-INT
b) How can the service be so inconsistent
For me I'll now change my flights to BA for MAN-LHR-GVA but I'll return on EZY from GVA-MAN.
Another satisfied customer
Paxing All Over The World
The situation appears to be, k3lvc, that the next transit will be different again. Certainly, if you have difficulty transiting within the SAME satellite? If you have EZY direct from MAN, I'd skip the transit.
I'm lucky that I live near LHR so I don't have to use it for transit (once ten years ago whilst based in Germany and left a lot of time for a T1~3).
I'm lucky that I live near LHR so I don't have to use it for transit (once ten years ago whilst based in Germany and left a lot of time for a T1~3).
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a) why the need for a search when transferring INT-DOM but not DOM-INT
Though without the massive queue and the little Hitlers.
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A couple of total flukes this week.
Weds 18th about 15.50 - only 1 person ahead of me at security in fast track - even the normal queues only had 3 or 4 people in them.
Thursday 19th about 18.55, 6 minutes from seatbelt sign going off to drop off area (from seat 5F, so that added a minute) where taxi was waiting.
Weds 18th about 15.50 - only 1 person ahead of me at security in fast track - even the normal queues only had 3 or 4 people in them.
Thursday 19th about 18.55, 6 minutes from seatbelt sign going off to drop off area (from seat 5F, so that added a minute) where taxi was waiting.