BA - Lesson 1:01: How To Seriously Upset A Group Of Premium Customers

[ConstantFlyer]

Quite agree, F3G. Hardly anyone's journey begins or ends at an airport. Rather, it's generally at a home, a hotel or an office. While some passengers flying Business or First will have their own chauffeur-driven conveyance at their disposal, most will take a taxi or drive. It is therefore important that all the elements of the journey fit together seamlessly. Door-to-door limousine service, or valet parking, kerbside meet-and-greet by name, skycap luggage service, fast track through security to lounge, and at the other end, disembarkation at own pace onto a dedicated airbridge, personal welcome and dedicated immigration and customs channels, skycap/valet/chauffeur service, a thank-you for travelling with us and goodbye. Combine all that with a warm onboard welcome, good service, IFE, food, space to work and peace and quiet, comfortable seat/bed, and gadgets/equipment that work, and the people paying thousands of pounds for the experience will be happy. Which airlines come close to providing all that? Some, though not too many; and I'm afraid not BA.

[Skipness One Echo]

Of all the many bad things about BA ground service, this is the one I do not understand.
It is APPALLING.

EK provides a premium bus for F/J; once, due to a ground handling agent mess up, only F were allowed on and J were put with Y.

Did you catch something nasty?

F3G you frequently make some good points on here but you do come across as a right old snob sometimes. It undermines your poiint when some of the text drips such attitiude to your fellow man. Most of the people reading this would consider sharing a bus with people who paid less for their ticket to be quite far down the list of things to get so stressed about. I hear there was an earthquake in Haiti....God forbid you mingle with the plebs on a "bus". Dear me!

[silverelise]

Is it perhaps a bit much to expect a different bus for F/J pax? Don't get me wrong, I very much enjoy "turning left" when I travel as much as anyone else, but 5 mins on a bus with people who have not paid as much for their tickets as me would not be such a hardship. It's taking us all to/from the same aeroplane after all.

[Final 3 Greens]

Skipness 1E

You are entitled to you opinion, but I would appreciate it if you would provide definitive research to back up your assertion.

It may be true for people who have paid more than others in economy, but I doubt that too many in F/J appreciate playing sardines.

As Strake pointed out, in the first post, they have paid £3.6-9.6K for an exclusive experience.

Using a bus at all is not great for F, when one looks at LH/LX and their shuttles in Mercedes saloon cars or Porsche Cayenes to the gate.

[Final 3 Greens]

Is it perhaps a bit much to expect a different bus for F/J pax?

No.

These extra words entered to meet min posting length.

[Scumbag O'Riley]

Doesn't bother me that some people get their own bus to the bus. They have paid large amounts of money to get a slightly better version of precooked/chilled/reheated food, and they do get to the destination a few milliseconds before me, and if they want a separate bus and the airline is happy to oblige then it's nowt to do with me.

They can look down their noses at me, through their fizzy plonk they could get for a tenner at Oddbins, for sitting in a rubbish seat. I will look down on them, across the heads of 200 people squeezed into a space the size of a biscuit tin, for paying ridiculous amounts of cash for what is not a very significantly better level of service. After all the important thing is getting there safe and on time and (barring the milliseconds aluded to earlier) we both get that bit of service at precisely the same level no matter where you sit. My jet lag the day after will be exactly the same as anybody else on that plane, sitting in a lumpy seat that goes flat and then gets called a lumpy bed doesn't affect your body clock one iota.

And I suppose they might be subsidising my cattle truck experience, but more fool them I say, and whereas they think they are paying for separate busses and canapes and a couple of olives, if truth be known, any spare money the airline has after paying for said olive is going into their already feather bedded employees' pension pot. Whereas the money I save by flying in the back is going into mine. It sure isn't going into improving levels of inflight service, your money or mine.

[Final 3 Greens]

Scumbag

I don't look down on Y pax.

When I am spending my own money, I am happy to travel Y.

But when on business and I have to get to where I am going in good shape, then I expect the airline to provide a level of service comensurate with the cost and that includes plenty of space on bus transfers, not sardines, so I can manage my two bags easily and have some comfort.

[ManAtTheBack]

S1E

What has the earthquake in Haiti got to do with buses at Heathrow? Why do BA's apologists not discuss the issue at hand rather than criticise the company's customers who having paid large amounts of money for a service expect to receive some of that service. Perhaps if BA feels that its premium customers should be subjected on distinctly un-premium services it should make this clear in its marketing.

[Capetonian]

It's not about 'sharing' a bus with the great unwashed, and to suggest that this is the case is disingenuous and misses the point.

It is about a superior level of service from beginning to end. Standing in a queue with people pushing and shoving onto a bus which is usually overcrowded, and then possibly not getting a seat, does not constitute superior service. Sitting with your nose in someone else's backside and your legs at an awkward angle to avoid someone else's legs or baggage is uncomfortable and is not what premium passengers have paid for.

This is something I have to put up with when I travel EZY and other LOCOs, but if I travel premium class on a full service carrier I expect better. I suffer from (a mild form of) agoraphobia and get panicky in crowds, and this is quite common. It's a great excuse to avoid crowded shops during sales time, but seriously it can be very unpleasant and if I've paid a premium fare I will demand the right not to be squeezed onto an overcrowded bus. If that makes me a snob, elitist, grumpy old man, then so be it. End of ......

[Octopussy2]

Count me in as another one who really doesn't mind the bus trip... As others have said, very happy to be turning left, but I'm not so precious as to insist on a separate bus; that would be slightly embarrassing, I think.

Now separate immigration would be a TRUE luxury - only experienced it once, arriving at Macao by helicopter - the copter passengers got their own, much-needed queue, which saved about 45 minutes...

[Scumbag O'Riley]

F3G.

I expect the airline to provide a level of service comensurate with the cost

Sums up economy class, an excellent value for money proposition, even on BA. (Though if you really want VFM then others are better)

However I totally agree with you that business class and first class passengers deserve far far far far better than they get for their thousand of pounds. But that is true even on the best airlines in the world, never mind the ones in terminal decline, which are quite frankly rubbish.

[Final 3 Greens]

Now separate immigration would be a TRUE luxury - only experienced it once, arriving at Macao by helicopter - the copter passengers got their own, much-needed queue, which saved about 45 minutes...

Fly to Dubai with Emirates, you'll get it every time, in F/J.

When you get to silver level in Skywards, they'll give you your own electronic pass and you won't have to see an immigration officer at all.

But of course, you'll happy to slum it with everyone else, as it would be a bit embarrassing to receive preferential service, wouldn't it?

[Final 3 Greens]

Scumbag

Sums up economy class, an excellent value for money proposition

I agree.

In fact I said pretty much the same thing on the AC upgrade thread.

[Capot]

I suffer from (a mild form of) agoraphobia and get panicky in crowds, and this is quite common

That's odd, I said to myself, isn't that a fear of wide open spaces, not of crowded spaces?

So I looked it up, and learned something new, shared among us ignorami below.

Agoraphobia is a condition where the sufferer becomes anxious in environments that are unfamiliar or where he or she perceives that they have little control. Triggers for this anxiety may include wide open spaces, crowds, or traveling (even short distances).

and

sufferers of agoraphobia avoid public and/or unfamiliar places, especially large, open, spaces such as shopping malls or airports where there are few 'places to hide'

You'll recognise the Wiki links. And now back to the BA bashing.

[Octopussy2]

I think I'd make a distinction between 5 minutes discomfort on bus (I must admit I don't really recall being in genuine discomfort on any bus heading out to an aircraft) - really not bothered about that - and a significant saving in time by avoiding the large queue for immigration.

For me, personally, the former is de minimis, and being put in separate transport therefore seems overkill, whereas the latter is a significant advantage, so worth it (just as one's first or club class seat is "worth it". If I were embarrassed by "preferential treatment" as you put it, I wouldn't be flying first/club in the first place, would I??)

I am quite prepared to believe for some people posting that the lack of separate transport is an important issue, just saying not for me, that's all. Takes all sorts etc.

[Final 3 Greens]

And now back to the BA bashing.

What is 'BA bashing' in pointing out the provision of a lower service level than some other airlines?

Now if someone said that EK premium seats vary considerably across the fleets and that this ain't good, I'd be the first to agree.

Let's just face it, BA has slipped from a world beating airline in the 90s to an also ran in the 2000s.

[Dan Air 87]

Haven't we lost our way here? We are now talking about bus transfers among other points. Getting conveyed to /from the a/c with all of the classes happens all of the time wherever you are. Its a fact of life. Let's get back to the main point and what can be done to improve things at BA for CC and pax. At the risk of getting shot down in bits, lets say once and for ever, selling / merging BA with VS is not an option!

[Final 3 Greens]

Getting conveyed to /from the a/c with all of the classes happens all of the time wherever you are.

Have you ever been outside LGW?

Because what you posted is not correct.

And no, we are not missing the point, this thread is about how to irritate premium pax and mixing the classes on crowded busses (in fact busses period) are a pretty good way to do this.

When premium pax pay 000s for a ticket, we expect to travel in comfort and without stress.

Capetonian summed it up a few posts back, so I won't repeat.

[ConstantFlyer]

So, what do people think the Iberia/BA link-up will mean for both airlines' premium passengers? I've only ever flown Y on IB so can't compare.

[strake]

I would just like to say that I don't "look down" on anybody at any time. The class you fly is not important, what is important is the service you get when flying it. I fly Economy, Club and First and expect service commensurate with the fare. If someone wants to feel antagonistic towards people who pay £9600 for a First fare well, that's fine but perhaps they don't understand the reasons. When I fly First to say Narita, it is because I have a pretty intensive two day schedule before returning to the UK. The value to my company is about 30 times the cost of the fare. I am not particularly interested in nice wine or food. What I am interested in is a simple, efficient and comfortable experience. VS try hard to give it in J with dedicated security and a car service at both ends. Their problem recently is in the air where the service really lets them down. This is why I went back to BA and was subsequently
shocked by the experience as outlined previously. If VS can provide a car and private security for the price they charge, then BA should be able to do the same in a dedicated terminal.
However, they still don't get it. They have just emailed inviting me to visit T5 to review the new First cabin. I'm sure it's going to be beautiful with wood, leather and fine fabrics. Great, now spend £500 per pax per trip for limos, £200k per annum on a dedicated security channel, another couple of hundred K on a dedicated F & J bus service then finally sort out the premium cabin crew and I promise I'll give it another go. Until then, they can go whistle.