The Airline
British Airways is the UK flagship carrier, synonymous with Concorde and quiet luxury of the eighties & nineties, but the modern day version has somewhat fallen from such heights. However recent attempts of retrofitting their air craft fleet, updating cabin uniform and partnering with British Chefs and Mixologists to revive menus, it is clear that BA is trying to vie for the attention of customers favouring more middle eastern carriers.
Having unveiled in recent years their new business class product of the BA Club Suite with a 1-2-1 reverse herringbone configuration with all seats having direct aisle access and closing doors for privacy, the question remains, how does it weigh up against the more premier carriers? Quick tip on checking if your BA flight offers the Club Suite – when booking (Club World or Silver & Gold members can select seats at booking for free) check the configuration which should be a 1-2-1, instead of a 2-2-2.
The Arrival & Check In
I booked a return flight from Heathrow to Cape Town as British Airways hub is Terminal 5 Heathrow, meaning all Atlantic, Middle Eastern and South Asian flights have Heathrow as its starting, final or connection destination. A chauffeur service is not offered for any fare with BA, however Heathrow is very connected via the M25, Tube, Rail, Ubers and Taxis all readily available. For check in you can use the BA app, for bag collection from your doorstep BA have partnered with Airportr, where for a fee of £32 you can have 2 bags collected and taken to the airport before your departure. If you wish to chose the “if it ain’t broke why fix it” classic check in and bag drop off, then Terminal 5 has a dedicated Check In Area for its Club World travellers who can check in two 32kg bags and take on two carry on bags when flying club world (or have Silver or Gold tier status). The check in area is to the left when entering terminal 5 and it hit or miss with queues, but I have never waited longer than 15 minutes, but that does taint the first impression when flying with BA.
Club World flyers have fast track through security which in theory should save time, however I tend to refer to Heathrow Terminal 5 Fast Track as farce track – the reason being that so many people have access to fast track as Heathrow Terminal 5 is British Airways’ hub, resulting in many flyers having high tier status with BA (Silver & Gold can use fast track even when flying standard cabin), meaning Fast Track is usually the busiest and longest option as they only have two machines, therefore I would recommend the regular security unless its particularly busy.
Once through security, if you do not want to proceed straight to one of the three BA lounges, there are great shopping choices: Prada, Chanel, Gucci, Harrods, Bottega Veneta and of course WH Smith to name a few and food choices such as Gordan Ramsay’s Plane Food, Wagamama, Vagabond Wine Bar, Pret A Manger and Fortnum & Mason Bar.
The Lounge
There are three lounges in Terminal 5 departures, South, North and one in terminal 5B. 5B is the most underutilised due to it being a further 5 minute walk or 2 minute train to its sub terminal, which makes it a far less busy option compared to the north and south lounges.
All lounges have self service food and drink areas. There is premium alcohol including champagne, whisky and gin (including Ryan Reynolds Aviation Gin) amongst other brands and in the middle of the bar area is a wine island. There is also a cocktail area, where world famous mixologist Mr Lyan has partnered with BA for design cocktails such as The Lawford (a nod to Bill Lawford, who piloted the world first international service in 1919). There are also fridges for non alcoholic drinks and mixers and an area to refill your water and to make hot beverages. A personal gripe is the refillable water area, as not everyone carries a refillable bottle and I find the glasses provided to be very scuffed. Compared to Emirates Heathrow Terminal 3 lounge than used recyclable glass water bottles which adds an extra premium to the service, I find the refillable option lacking.
The food offering includes a large buffet of cold and hot dishes ranging from sandwiches, stews, curries, pasta, salad bar and charcuterie or an english breakfast in the morning. Dispersed amongst the lounge are also snack stations with packaged snacks and biscuit jars.
Each lounge has leather arm chairs with wooden side tables and lamps, lounge chairs, high top workstations and family style 4 seater tables. There is a glassed off children’s play area, which has soft furnishings and toys and a screen.
In the north and south lounges there are showers which you can book via a webpage when you log into the lounge – unfortunately you have to keep refreshing the page until there is a spare shower, however when I have used it, I have rarely had to wait more than 5 minutes.
The lounge has screens for departures and a customer service desk for queries.
The Boarding
With the club world seat you have priority boarding with fellow Club World, first class or silver and gold members. Heathrow Terminal 5 is hit and miss in terms of organisation with boarding groups, usually resulting in a swathe of people trying to board in quite a disordered manner, compared to other airlines which have lounge to plane boarding or sectioned off areas.
Once on board there are usually two cabins for Club World with the kitchen and snack area separating the two, but no difference in comfort or price the further forward or back you are. A point to note is that the second cabin is usually smaller and the dedicated service team tend to be much quicker than those serving the much larger business cabin and there are less people using the bathroom in the galley area.
The Seat & Cabin Amenities
The 1-2-1 configuration of rich charcoal grey seats are on a slight side angle with the middle configuration pointing inwards and the window suites angled out, ideal for sky gazers. The seat style is similar to American Airlines new suites, but the privacy door is an addition which makes it feel like a small sanctuary within the plane. The privacy doors are latched open for landing and take off, but even with the door open there is no way of seeing the passenger to the left or right unless you leaned forward. If you are traveling with another person, it may seem best to book the middle seats, but the middle section between the seats is quite large, so it is hard to chat without raising your voice, so some may prefer sitting in front of whoever you are travelling with.
There is ample storage to the point you may worry you will forget all your belongings if you put them in all compartments available to you. There is a cubby-hole in the footwell, a large sunken storage area where your entertainment console is stowed, another flatter compartment and a vertical side compartment where a water bottle and vanity bag is stowed with a handy mirror.
Next to the armrest is a small touchscreen to control your seat configuration, with a default upright mode for takeoff and landing, as well as the option to completely raise your footrest, reclining to a lounging position or completely lie flat when cruising. It also controls the overhead light if you did not want to use the side light. There is also a reading light which you can press in so it pops out and can manually move it in and out to control the amount of light.
Always the negative of any flight, the bathroom was surprisingly spacious, clean and well stocked throughout the eleven hour flight. There were antibacterial wipes for surfaces, White Company soap and hand lotion, an area to place your amenity bag and a large mirror.
The Soft Product
When you arrive at your seat you will find an amenities leather pouch and a bottle of still water. The amenity kit is provided by the White Company and includes a pair of soft grey socks, a jersey grey sleeping mask, and from the Relax & Restore range a moisturiser, lip balm and calming oil, toothpaste, toothbrush and pen in a black calves leather case.
There is also a plush pillow and a medium weighted blanket, as well as a padded mattress protector provided by the White Company. The blanket and seat protector are in packaging but the pillow is exposed, which is a hygienic issue if you do not want to have it on your lap or have it behind you.
The seats measure in at 22 inches wide, reclining to a full 79 inches, which allows for ample room for anyone under 6 foot or so. I had a genuinely comfy 4 hours of sleep laying flat on this setup.
There is a bifold table under the entertainment screen which slides down and out to fully open into a 16 inch by 18 inch table, perfect for using your laptop or dining.
With many modern business class designs, the entertainment systems are of a minimum standard of sleek design and large screen, in this case an 18 inch HD screen, great for viewing seated up right and reclining, but there was not the option to adjust the screens angle. There are a plethora of movies, tv shows including box sets and short videos to choose from and up to date new movie releases as well as the oldies; I love to watch 80s/90s rom coms when flying.
If I had to add one area that was lacking, it would be the in seat mini bar. There wasn’t one, whereas Emirates has fully stocked soft beverages and glassware for you. Also lacking was the much larger bar area that such airlines as Emirates, Etihad and Virgin offer on many of their long haul flights.
You can purchase Wi Fi access for £4.99 an hour, £11.99 for four and £14.99 for the whole flight and it claims to be ample bandwidth to send emails and internet browsing. This isn’t the case however, with the wifi being intermittent, which is frustrating as you have to pay for BA Wi-Fi compared to other airlines offering free wifi in business and first with more consistent bandwidth.
The Dining
The menu is on display in each suite as you arrive, there is an expansive non alcoholic and alcoholic drink list with wines chosen by BA’s Master of Wine and a fair choice of food for your journey. Within minutes you are offered champagne, water or juice.
Whilst the remaining seats are boarding, attendants take your menu order and drink order for post take off, with the drinks served with a snack of mixed nuts within 15 minutes of take-off and the option of a hot towel served.
Meal service is served on porcelain serve ware,, cutlery is a solid but freezing stainless steel, the glassware is etched and the aesthetic overall is crisp and elegant.
The menu regularly changes and there are multiple options for each course, unfortunately there is not an option to dine when you please, however you can of course request beverages throughout the flight. For the second meal, in this case breakfast as the flight was overnight, the crew approached those who were awake to take their order 2 hours before landing.
The Service
It’s safe to say that British Airways hospitality isn’t always consistent, either offering fantastic personal service by the odd individual offering tours of the aircraft, bringing you extras or engaging in conversation, to often disinterested or rude individuals (albeit rarer than the first). In this instance the crew offered diligent, prompt service for the first meal within 50 minutes of takeoff and were on call during the overnight flight. However, unlike other airlines you do have to make your bed yourself; gasp!
The TLDR Conclusion
Club Suite offers spacious suites, calm aesthetic, good food and beverage choice. Peaceful and comfortable sleep in the lay flat bed, nice soft products, but lacking an ensuite mini bar and much larger cabin bar like competitors. For a long haul flight, the Club Suite meets the bar to claim luxury for now, but if other carriers continue to raise the bar, BA may struggle to keep up.
Pre flight experience & lounge 2/2
Seat & Soft Product 2/3
Food 1/2
Service 1/2
The Je ne sais quoi factor 0/1
The IRL Score = 6/10
The IRL Score = 6/10
Pricing varies depending on flight path, flexibility of ticket & date, with prices for a single passenger return to Cape Town from Heathrow at £5,000.
The IRL Edit. 