Category Archives: British Airways

British Airways to code share with Royal Air Maroc

British Airways and Royal Air Maroc have announced a new codeshare agreement which will open up new routes across Morocco including Casablanca and Agadir. It will also give customers more flight flexibility between London Heathrow and Marrakesh.

Customers will be able to book from February 13, 2020 when the new agreement takes effect and codeshare flights will operate from February 20, 2020, prior to the Moroccan airline’s joining of the oneworld alliance on April 1, 2020.

British Airways’ first African codeshare will give its customers more choice of services between Heathrow and Marrakesh. As well as daily access to Royal Air Maroc’s hub in Casablanca, which is not currently served directly by British Airways.

Casablanca also serves as the perfect hub for connections onto other Royal Air Maroc destinations, including Abidjan in the Ivory Coast, Freetown in Sierra Leone and Agadir in Morocco.

British Airways’ customers will be eligible for access to Royal Air Maroc’s airport lounges when flying in premium cabins of Royal Air Maroc’s, bearing British Airways code and the same will apply to Royal Air Maroc’s customers flying in a premium cabin of British Airways codeshare flights at British Airways airport lounges.

Royal Air Maroc aircraft photo gallery:

British Airways to increase flights to winter sun spots from London Gatwick

British Airways customers travelling to hot-spots St Lucia, Cape Town and Cancun from London Gatwick will have even more flights to choose from next winter.

British Airways is set to be the only airline with a regular multi-weekly scheduled service between the UK and St Lucia, following Virgin Atlantic’s decision to stop serving the route after June 8, 2020.

Ocean view with mountains in Saint Lucia. Overlooking a balcony at the Grand Piton.

Customers will now be able to choose from nine flights per week – two more than the daily flight British Airways flew last winter to the paradise island and matching the number of flights available to travellers over the Summer.

The additional flights will take off on Wednesdays and Saturdays, coinciding with popular travel days and enabling holidaymakers to make the most of their time off.

Customers traveling to Cancun from December 6, 2020 will also be able to make the most of an extra weekly service to the Mexican holiday capital departing on Sundays, taking the number of weekly flights up to six.

From January 10, 2021, there will also be two extra flights a week from London Gatwick to the ever-popular Cape Town, which enjoys beautifully warm temperatures for the first three months of the year. The new services will mean that customers can choose from 19 flights a week to Cape Town from London to suit their schedule, with the outbound and return flights overnight to maximize time in South Africa, alongside 14 to Johannesburg, again overnight both ways, and three to Durban.

British Airways flies to more than 70 destinations from London Gatwick, offering a variety of routes to suit both business and leisure travellers. As always, members of the British Airways Executive Club can earn Avios on their British Airways booking. Avios can be spent on Reward flights, upgrades, hotels, car rental and cutting the cost of a flight. When using Avios part payment, customers can pick from a range of savings by destination and cabin and they still collect Avios and Tier Points on their bookings.

British Airways aircraft photo gallery (Airbus):

British Airways to launch a summer route between London Heathrow and Newquay

British Airways has issued this statement:

Newquay, United Kingdom

British Airways is launching a summer route between London Heathrow and Newquay, creating the only direct route to Heathrow. This adds to the new routes the airline has already announced for summer 2020 to Greece, Italy, Kosovo, Montenegro and Turkey.

Flights will operate five days a week on Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 2 July to 7 September 2020.

Timetable

Day	Sector	Departure	Arrival	Sector	Departure	Arrival
Monday & Friday	LHR-NQY (BA1350)	18.05	19.15	NQY-LHR (BA1351)	20.15	21.25
Thursday	LHR-NQY (BA1350)	07.00	08.10	NQY-LHR (BA1351)	09.10	10.20
Saturday	LHR-NQY (BA1350)	06.40	07.50	NQY-LHR (BA1351)	09.55	11.05
Sunday	LHR-NQY (BA1350)	19.10	20.20	NQY-LHR (BA1351)	21.25	22.35

British Airways experiments with AI-powered cocktail maker in Newark and San Francisco

British Airways is exclusively trialling an automated cocktail maker in its San Francisco and Newark lounges. Cocktails are dispensed in under 45 seconds, adding a new dimension to the food and drink available for customers.

Available until March 2020, British Airways’ First and Club World customers travelling from San Francisco and Newark will be able to choose from a selection of 30 cocktails and customisable drinks from the robotic device. This includes locally-inspired cocktails that British Airways has created – Silicon Galley and Echo-Whisky-Romeo.

The machine has been created by mix-master Barsys using Artificial Intelligence (AI). As British Airways is the first UK airline to trial the technology, it gives the airline’s customers a first chance to try this autonomous machine.

Customers simply order their drink by clicking one button on the app, then place a glass on the conveyer belt and let the AI do the work.

British Airways suspends all flights to China as coronavirus spreads

British Airways has made this announcement:

“We have suspended all flights to and from mainland China with immediate effect following advice from the Foreign Office against all but essential travel,”

British Airways operates from London (Heathrow) to Beijing (PKX) and Shanghai (PVG).

British Airways offers low-fare hand-baggage flights to the Continent and the UK

British Airways has made this announcement:

British Airways has made thousands of hand-baggage-only flights to Europe available for £40 or less each way*. Customers can choose from a wide selection of over 70 routes across the airline’s comprehensive European network including Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Kefalonia, Faro and Verona.

The airline is also including domestic flights between London and UK cities in its offer, such as Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, Belfast City and Jersey. British Airways is now offsetting carbon emissions on all its flights within the UK, as part of the airline’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The seats, based on return fares, are available for travel on select dates until 31 December 2020. The low fares are on offer from London Heathrow and London Gatwick, while availability lasts.

Further destinations available include:

Bilbao
Geneva
Ibiza
Milan
Oslo
Paris

As always, members of the British Airways Executive Club can earn Avios and Tier Points on their bookings. The Executive Club is free to join and Avios can be spent on Reward flights, upgrades, hotels, car rental and being used for part payment, allowing customers to cut the cost of future flights. When using Avios part payment, customers can pick from a range of savings by destination and cabin. In doing so, Members can still collect Avios and Tier Points on their bookings.

British Airways has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 through a range of initiatives, including offsetting emissions on all flights within the UK, flying more fuel-efficient aircraft, investing in sustainable aviation fuel and changing operating procedures, in addition to working with stakeholders and governments to strengthen global climate policy. The airline and its parent company, IAG will invest a total of $400m on alternative sustainable fuel development over the next 20 years.

American Airlines and British Airways mark the official start of the JFK Redevelopment Plan

Today, Atlantic Joint Business partners American Airlines and British Airways joined New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) to announce the start of construction on a $344 million investment at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) Terminal 8 at the Association for a Better New York luncheon in Midtown.

“Our investment will put the 14 daily flights from JFK to London that we offer in partnership with British Airways in the same terminal and give customers premium check-in space, new joint lounges and a larger variety of retail and dining options,” said Robert Isom, President of American. “We will be adding more than 70,000 square feet to customer and operational spaces to create a truly world-class experience at JFK.”

Additionally, airline team members who power the terminal operations will also benefit from closer, faster and easier connections to American’s joint business partner British Airways by the additional co-located long-haul aircraft gates and an enhanced baggage system.

“As we progress with the JFK modernization project, we are giving Terminal 8 a new look and layout in line with the modern, world-class standards that will define the airport’s ultimate transformation,” Cuomo said. “When this work is completed, Terminal 8 will accommodate more passengers who will be able to enjoy a better travel experience and will make the work of airport staff more efficient and more seamless.”

American and British Airways are the first airlines to mark the start of the transformation of JFK into a state-of-the-art global hub. The upgrades and additions at Terminal 8 will bring improvements in the overall customer experience, including the addition of five widebody gates and four adjacent widebody hard stands (ramp parking where customers are transported to/from terminal via bus), enhanced baggage systems, new lounges, premium check-in space and upgraded concessions and retail options. Additionally, customers arriving in New York will enjoy the ability to more conveniently connect onto other American Airlines flights, and customers departing New York will gain the flexibility of 14 daily flights to London all departing from the same terminal. Construction is scheduled to be completed in 2022.

American and British Airways offer the most flights between JFK and London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR), a route Business Traveller calls “the most important and lucrative route for business in the world,” in addition to up to 70 flights a day to London from 26 destinations in the United States.

“This is an exciting development in our move to Terminal 8, alongside American Airlines, our Atlantic joint-business partner,” British Airways’ Chairman and CEO Alex Cruz said. “We are one step closer to offering an even better customer experience for passengers traveling to, from and through JFK. We look forward to our continued work with the Port Authority and American Airlines in order to build a world-class transatlantic travel experience.”

American in New York

New York is a key hub for American, with the airline serving three New York-area airports — JFK, LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR). At JFK, American flies up to 115 peak day departures that serve 40 destinations in nearly 20 countries. LGA offers an additional 167 daily flights that serve more than 38 destinations, including American’s popular Shuttle service between LGA and Boston (BOS), Chicago (ORD) and Washington, D.C. (DCA). American also announced extended summer seasonal service from LGA to Aruba (AUA) and continuing service to high-end leisure destinations like Glacier National Park Airport in Kalispell (FCA), and Bozeman, Montana (BZN), based on this year’s success. Collectively, the airline flies more than 300 daily flights between the three New York airports.

Last month, American started new nonstop service from JFK to Georgetown, Guyana (GEO). The new route follows the recent addition of service to Montego Bay, Jamaica (MBJ); San Jose, Costa Rica (SJO); and Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR).

Last year, the airline announced the expansion of its exclusive Five Star Service options for its top customers traveling through JFK. American also offers an unmatched premium travel experience on flights between JFK and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on its Airbus A321T aircraft that features fully lie-flat seats, a chef-curated menu, as well as premium wines and amenity kits in Flagship First and Flagship Business.

More than 8,000 American team members call New York home and help support a variety of community and civic programs, including City Year New York, the Michael J. Fox Foundation and the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation. Since 2017, American has increased corporate giving to charitable organizations across the city by nearly 40 percent.

Investment in hub airports across the United States

American’s JFK hub is not alone in getting an upgrade. American and its airport partners have spent and committed billions of dollars to projects in its other hubs at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Miami International Airport (MIA), DCA and ORD. Recent investments at Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) added more gates and an upgraded Admirals Club lounge. At LAX, the airline broke ground on a $1.6 billion project in October 2018.

British Airways to make all flights within the UK carbon neutral

British Airways has made this announcement:

Airline to make all flights within the UK carbon neutral from 1 January 2020
British Airways to invest in verified carbon reduction projects
British Airways’ parent company International Airlines Group (IAG) recently announced commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050

From January 1, 2020, British Airways will begin offsetting carbon emissions on all its flights within the UK, as part of the airline’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Customers flying within the UK on flights operated by British Airways will have the carbon emissions from their flights offset by the airline and invested in the highest quality, verified carbon reduction projects around the world. These will include quality assured projects such as renewable energy, protection of rainforests and reforestation programmes.

British Airways operates up to 75 flights a day between London and 10 UK cities including Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle, Isle of Man, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Belfast City, Inverness and Jersey.

Customers flying beyond the UK can reduce their impact on the environment by using British Airways’ carbon offsetting tool. The tool enables customers to calculate their emissions and make their flight carbon neutral by choosing from the highest quality, verified carbon reduction projects in Peru, Sudan and Cambodia through its partnership with not-for-profit charity Pure Leapfrog.

Using the tool, a customer will pay around £1 to offset a return flight from London to Madrid, travelling in economy, while from London to New York in business class will cost around £15.

Top Photo: Airbus.British Airways aircraft photo gallery (Airbus):

British Airways outlines its goals for 2020

British Airways made this announcement:

After celebrating its momentous centenary year in 2019, British Airways is now looking to 2020, with 20 New Year resolutions that are every bit as exciting as the achievements of 2019.

New destinations – the airline has already announced nine new routes for 2020 including the Kosovan and Montenegrin capitals Pristina and Podgorica, Perugia in Italy, Antalya, Dalaman and Bodrum in Turkey, San Sebastián in Spain, Rhodes in Greece and Portland, Oregon, and it’s promising even more new destinations for customers to come.

New aircraft – the airline is due to take delivery of more than 20 new aircraft in 2020, including 787-10s and A350s which are up to 40% more fuel efficient than the aircraft they replace.

Club Suite – more aircraft will be flying with the airline’s new business class seat, Club Suite, which offers privacy via a suite door, 40% more storage space and a 1-2-1 layout with direct aisle access for all passengers.

Caring for the environment – from January British Airways will be offsetting all its domestic flights, customers travelling further afield can offset their individual emissions. The airline will be making additional announcements about sustainability throughout the year.

First – customers can expect to see more aircraft fitted with the airline’s newest First seat, currently available on its 787-9 aircraft.

World Traveller comfort – in addition to enhancements made in 2019, customers travelling in the airline’s economy cabin will experience refreshed bedding.

Food for thought – the airline is introducing new menus across its network thanks to new partnerships with gourmet caterers Do&Co at Heathrow and Newrest at Gatwick.

Lounge luxury – the airline’s lounges at Heathrow, Edinburgh and Berlin will be refreshed to ensure customers are relaxed ahead of their flights. The Elemis Spa at JFK will also be re-designed and re-launched.

Connectivity – the majority of eligible aircraft will be WiFi ready by the end of 2020.

BA.com – expect a newly re-designed Manage My Booking experience enabling customers to navigate to information and services in a more intuitive way.

Appy days – customers using the British Airways’ app will benefit from a slicker design and additional functionality improving the experience as they make and manage their bookings.

Robots – British Airways is trialling new autonomous wayfaring robots at Heathrow to help customers navigate through the airport.

3D printing – the airline’s tech experts will continue their trial of printing non-essential aircraft parts like tray tables, to ensure flights are able to depart on time and without seats going out of service.

Concorde – British Airways Premier Card and Gold Guest List Executive Club members will be looked after by new Concorde teams when they travel through Los Angeles, New York JFK, London Heathrow, Delhi, Los Angeles and Mumbai.

Customer service training – thousands of British Airways’ airport hosts worldwide will receive additional training to provide a service that goes above and beyond expectations.

Executive Club – the airline has committed to making continuous improvements to the Executive Club with new partners and exciting deals throughout the year

Flying Start – British Airways celebrates the 10-year anniversary of its Flying Start charity which has so far raised more than £24m+ for good causes in the UK and overseas.

Internships – from summer, British Airways will become the first UK airline to offer paid summer internships to future aviators.

Documentary – customers will have the chance to watch the 2019 documentary about British Airways, British Airways Access All Areas, 24/7 on board long-haul flights.

British Airways aircraft photo gallery (Boeing):

British Airways trials robots to guide customers through the airport

British Airways has made this announcement:

British Airways trials robots at Heathrow Terminal 5

British Airways announces it will trial state-of-the-art, fully autonomous robots in 2020 to carry out simple tasks
Airline wants to enable its airport hosts to concentrate on more complex customer queries
Automation across Heathrow Terminal 5 has seen customers enjoying fewer queues and a faster, smoother journey through the airport
Robots are the latest innovation investment from British Airways; this year the airline also explored artificial intelligence, driverless baggage vehicles and 3D printing to further improve punctuality for customers

In the latest stage of British Airways’ investment in airport automation, the airline has announced that from 2020 it will trial AI-powered autonomous robots at its home at Heathrow Terminal 5 to help some of the 90,000 customers who travel through the terminal each day navigate through the airport, freeing up the airlines’ award-winning airport hosts to help customers with more complex queries.

The cutting-edge robots from tech company BotsAndUs are programmed to interact with passengers in multiple different languages using the latest translation technology to answer thousands of questions, including real-time flight information.

Additionally, using geo-location technology and dozens of advanced sensors to constantly monitor a 360˚radius, the robot will move around the airport terminal freely and safely, escorting customers to specific locations such as the airline’s dedicated Special Assistance and Family Check-In zones.

To complement its investment in technology and automation, last year British Airways launched a multi-million pound investment in enhanced training for colleagues as part of its First Contact Resolution Programme at Heathrow. The programme empowers customer service agents to use their expertise, initiative and judgment to solve customer queries on the spot using a suite of specialised apps on iPads. Following the overwhelmingly positive response to the new service from customers at Heathrow, the airline is now rolling the programme out across its worldwide network.

As part of British Airways’ £6.5 billion investment for customers, 2019 saw the carrier install 80 brand-new automated check-in machines and 80 advanced automated bag-drop machines at Heathrow Terminal 5 and, with the airline’s customer service agents always on hand to help, the airline has seen an increase in customer satisfaction and a dramatic reduction in queues.

British Airways has also completed its roll-out of self-boarding technology across every international gate at Heathrow Terminal 5, leading to fewer flight delays. The gates are the first step towards customers being able to biometrically board international flights from the UK. The airline originally pioneered the use of biometric self-boarding gates on flights within the UK from Heathrow and more than 3.5 million customers have now boarded their flights this way. The airline also introduced biometric facial recognition technology on flights to London from Orlando, Los Angeles and New York, JFK transforming the airport experience and halving the amount of time it takes to board an aircraft.