Posts Tagged ‘British Airways’

Unite, the union that represents BA cabin crew have just announced that their members will strike for three days from 20 March and for four days from 27 March.

Grounded Planes - Soon to be a common sight?

BBC News is reporting that British Airways has implemented extensive contingency plans, including training 1,000 staff to work as cabin crew to cover striking workers.  They are also looking to hire charter aircraft to keep as many flights as possible in operation.

A British Airways spokesperson has said that flights from London City Airport and 70% of flights from Gatwick, including all long-haul flights, should be operational.  He went on to say that Heathrow would be able to offer some long and short-haul services.

If you’re planning on travelling on the strike dates, be sure to check with BA for the latest information before you leave to find out if your plans will be affected.

As of the 7th of October 2009, British Airways have made several changes to their baggage policy.

Among the changes are a free allowance of one bag weighing no more than 23 kilograms for passengers travelling in World Traveller on flights to and from the Americas (USA, Canada, Bermuda, Argentina, Mexico and the Caribbean).   If you have extra baggage, you can receive a discount of at least 20% if you pay for your extra items online before checking in.

Additionally, the cost of extra bags on UK domestic routes has changed to £35.00 per bag, bringing the cost in line with other short-haul European services, and the ‘heavy bag charge’ for luggage between 23 and 32 kilograms has increased from £25.00 to £30.00 also, while the charge for bags that exceed the maximum dimension no longer applies.

For full details of the changes, including changes to BA’s sporting equipment policy, visit the British Airways official website.

A day doesn’t seem to pass by without one airline or another announcing their latest cost cutting measures. Soon after the British Airways request for staff to work for free, Singapore Airlines have adopted a similar approach with it’s 2,300 pilots agreeing to take one day of unpaid leave a month, and the airline’s chief executive Chew Choon Seng agreeing on a 20% pay cut.

Singapore Airlines have attributed the drop in profits to weak travel demand and volatile oil prices – the driving factor, and perhaps even suitable excuse, for many airlines to cut back on capacity.

The buck doesn’t just stop there, with the current economic decline affecting not just the airlines, but ancillary services such as lounges at Singapore Airport through to the local hotels, restaurants and car hire.

We at gosimply.com are wondering if, given the current climate, you would take unpaid leave or a drop in pay?  Leave us a comment below and let us know.

Three major UK airlines have warned BAA that a £900 million improvement scheme for Gatwick Airport is futile in the face of dwindling passenger numbers.

BAA's £900m plan deemed "pointless" by airlines

Guardian.co.uk reports that, in a letter sent to BAA, British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair said that the business case for funnelling hundreds of millions of pounds into new facilities was “unproven”, especially in light of a fall in traffic of 12% since the start of this year.  The letter went on to state that it was pointless to make decisions about future developments at Gatwick when the airport is due to be sold in the near future.  The airlines are also very concerned that they will be the ones stuck with the bill for any improvements, and will ultimately have to pass on the cost to passengers by increasing fares.

We at GoSimply.com might not have control over the cost of flights, but we can assure our customers that we will always provide great deals on Gatwick Airport parking (and parking at 23 other UK airports) to help keep the cost of holidays down.