Pcoder wrote:

I'm wondering since this transition to LCC on shorthaul, have they been more profitable?

Probably not... but I bet their executives receive bigger bonuses!

<— just pretend that’s Afternoon Tea in a mug, sans scone

PatrickZ80 wrote:

shamrock350 wrote:

Some parts of the UK refer to dinner or a small meal as "tea" but that's a bit of a stretch in this case as it's just a scone so it's neither, tea or a meal.

This might be quite understandable for someone from the UK, but for someone who isn't British it makes absolutely no sense.

I'm Dutch myself. If I think of tea, I think of the drink. If anything comes aside with the drink, then that's a nice addition but not the main course. This is true in just about the whole world except for the UK.

The phrase "tea" is also used to refer to the evening meal, as well as "teatime". However, not everyone in the UK calls their evening meal that and use "dinner" instead - it's purely regional. To confuse things further, where "tea" is used to describe the evening meal then "dinner" is used to refer to the midday meal instead of "lunch".

Getting back on topic, I'm in agreement that any form of afternoon tea without a beverage (i.e. a cup of tea) is not an afternoon tea. In fact, tea is the basic beverage you would expect. Making it alcoholic with something fizzy usually means paying a bit extra and isn't available everywhere that sells afternoon tea such as traditional tea rooms.

No matter how you slice it ..... 2.50 for a tea bag and some hot water is ridiculous...... its not liked its being served fancy !

Omg! It Is like the brexit but without brexit.

I thought that in Britain the word "tea" just meant that it's 4 o'clock.

DDR wrote:

tonystan wrote:

You can tell who’s not British in this thread.

Afternoon Tea is the name of a meal. It doesn’t necessarily mean it comes with a tea beverage. Infact Champagne is actually the most popular drink with afternoon tea amongst the younger generation these days.

This is a bit like complaining that Disney World is not actually a world and being upset that it’s just a patch of swampland in Florida!

You can tell who's not informed in this thread.

Orlando is not a patch of swampland in Florida.

They never mentioned Orlando just Disney World which isn't in Orlando. Orlando just happens to be the nearest large city to it. Disney World is in Lake Buena Vista which was just mainly swamp...

I suppose the Tea thing is bit like a McDonald's Hamburger as that doesn't contain ham...

People making a mountain out of a mole hill here.

The wholesale price of a cup of tea from a bulk pour is about 2 cents (even in the air).

The notional loss in negative publicity would cover the cost of this for a fair few years.

They could do all sorts of clever with it like offering the tea free if you bring your own cup.

Oh, did the statutory staff have to interact with customers for 5 minutes longer? Dreadfully sorry old chaps and chapesses.

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

I could perhaps understand it if Ryanair did this, but how can British Airways sell afternoon tea with no tea?

BA has been out of touch with its customer base for ages, not suprised one bit.

scbriml wrote:

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

Oh no!. Hes done it now. Can of worms opened!!

shamrock350 wrote:

I'm surprised so many in this thread are shocked that British Airways charge for food and drinks on short haul, I'm guessing most are non Europeans as not only was the move well publicised (and criticised) at the time but it's pretty much the standard within Europe these days, free snacks are becoming the exception rather than the rule.

It's only a matter of time before the remaining legacy carriers of Europe drop their measly offering on short haul and move to a buy on board system as well.

BAWLGW wrote:

If I go into any coffee shop and buy a scone, a cake, and a sandwich, should then I automatically expect a free tea? No! Get a grip!

When you go into a coffee shop is their scone advertised as 'Afternoon Tea' or is it simply labeled as a scone?

It seems you got used to travel with IAG that you lost touch with the rest of airlines in Europe. Actually, BA and its fellow low budget IAG airlines are one of the rare legacy airlines that don't offer anything to their customers in the back. All of the legacies in Europe (except SN) offer at least free tea, coffee and juice. Some have snacks and some others like AF, KL, LH, OS, LX (from Zurich), A3 and TK have a more substantial offering on longer routes. AF and KL made a U turn lately and improved their Y catering on longer routes in Europe for Y customers. BA isn't even capable of welcoming its most loyal customers (Gold customers) with free items from the menu like AY and AA (they do it for BA's Golds).

So yes, people are shocked with BA turning into a nasty stingy budget airlines with high fares. And I am always thrilled when BA gets hammered for being what it is today.

Agrajag wrote:

scbriml wrote:

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

Oh no!. Hes done it now. Can of worms opened!!

And just as important, do you put the cream in first and then the strawberry jam or the other way round?

readytotaxi wrote:

Agrajag wrote:

scbriml wrote:

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

Oh no!. Hes done it now. Can of worms opened!!

And just as important, do you put the cream in first and then the strawberry jam or the other way round?

It's got sultanas in anyway, so it's not a real cream tea, such an argument would be irrelevant. (Of course you put the cream on first, you wouldn't put butter on bread after putting on the jam would you...)

YULACYYZ wrote:

flilot wrote:

Theres a national/regional language barrier here that some people aren't appreciating.
"Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition".

Been to England many times and heard over and over "time for me tea" but they don't drink tea! Of course it's from Yorkshire and there are regional differences.

However, first thing that comes to mind for most people seeing this ad, is that the tea would be included.

You have to be jesting with at comment. The English don't drink tea!! You are so off the mark.....its part of the british diet!!

But I digress, just another examples of BA and its race to the bottom. What a complete joke

JibberJim wrote:

(Of course you put the cream on first, you wouldn't put butter on bread after putting on the jam would you...)

Well, respectfully, I have to disagree. It’s far easier to put a dollop of cream on top of the jam than it is to spread jam on top of the cream.

I can understand the confusion and its quite simple, I will demonstrate the simplicity of how it works and you'll see why BA was so silly to get it wrong
Yesterday I woke up and had a cup of Earl grey tea poured from a pot with my breakfast.
Then at lunch time I ate my dinner with a mug of English breakfast tea
Then in the afternoon I had high tea but with champagne
After that I went home and ate tea with my daughter, which was supper and I whilst I had supper for my tea I drank squash with it and ate toad in the hole which is a Yorkshire pudding based dish).
After my daughter had gone to bed my wife and I had some more pudding, Sticky toffee type, made with caramel....

You see..Easy. next lesson the rules of cricket.

Fred

And then the "off side" rule.

This is confusing all over. BA should show some intercultural sensitivity by not naming something tea that isn’t tea. They might think it makes sense with their English background but for anyone else in the world it does not.

At a price of 5 pounds I would think afternoon tea is tea with a surcharge because it’s served in the afternoon.

readytotaxi wrote:

And then the "off side" rule.

a player must remain behind the ball except at a breakdown when they must remain behind the rearmost foot the rearmost player taking part in the breakdown. A player can be in an offside position of they are returning to an onside position and are doing so without interfering with play, of course the other scenario you can go in front of the ball is if the ball is kicked but you must have been behind the ball at the moment it was kicked and run in front of it whilst it was not under control.

Fred

scbriml wrote:

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

There is no doubt (as a native of Staffordshire in the British Midlands) scone rhymes with cone.

When we came home from school we had our evening meal which was called tea, and didn’t include a hot drink. Our southern relatives called that meal supper or dinner.

On occasion on a Sunday as a treat at around 3pm we had afternoon tea which was sandwiches cakes and a cup of tea. Even at a young age we distinguished between ‘Tea’ and ‘Afternoon tea’.

Also in my many years of scoffing afternoon teas in cafes restaurants and hotels around the UK I have never been sold an afternoon tea that didn’t include a pot of tea ( or in more liberal establishments an option of coffee) and usually sandwiches cakes and scones. So by no stretch of the imagination can a single scone (even with jam and cream) be described as Afternoon tea.

However neither have I ever had an afternoon tea for £5. If BA is serious about offering a traditional British Afternoon tea they should charge say £10 and give you the three basic elements, a scone a sandwich and a hot drink.

jumpjets wrote:

scbriml wrote:

Lots of amusing banter here, but nobody has asked the really important question:

Is it scone (as in cone) or scone (as in gone)?

There is no doubt (as a native of Staffordshire in the British Midlands) scone rhymes with cone.

When we came home from school we had our evening meal which was called tea, and didn’t include a hot drink. Our southern relatives called that meal supper or dinner.

On occasion on a Sunday as a treat at around 3pm we had afternoon tea which was sandwiches cakes and a cup of tea. Even at a young age we distinguished between ‘Tea’ and ‘Afternoon tea’.

Also in my many years of scoffing afternoon teas in cafes restaurants and hotels around the UK I have never been sold an afternoon tea that didn’t include a pot of tea ( or in more liberal establishments an option of coffee) and usually sandwiches cakes and scones. So by no stretch of the imagination can a single scone (even with jam and cream) be described as Afternoon tea.

However neither have I ever had an afternoon tea for £5. If BA is serious about offering a traditional British Afternoon tea they should charge say £10 and give you the three basic elements, a scone a sandwich and a hot drink.

At last, someone has picked up that its not just the cup of tea that is missing, so is the sandwich. In England the afternoon tea experience typically starts with a selection of around 4 finger sandwiches, typically ham, cheese, smoked salmon and egg. In separate sandwiches of course not combined, we aren't the USA !!!. Then comes the scone with clotted cream and jam, finished off with a selection of cakes. There would normally be a choice of accompanying hot beverage, tea, fruit tea, coffee etc. A glass of champagne or similar might be offered as an additionally purchased item.

This is not an afternoon tea in any recognised format, its just a scone with cream and jam.

jomur wrote:

They never mentioned Orlando just Disney World which isn't in Orlando. Orlando just happens to be the nearest large city to it. Disney World is in Lake Buena Vista which was just mainly swamp...

Actually WDW is in the Reedy Creek Development District. It's it's own splecial governsment agency. But, it was swampland.

XLA2008 wrote:

However... British Airways is supposed to represent the country as a nation, the hospitality, culture and traditions I mean goodness they fly with a crest and carry the flag!! For many first time visitors to the UK using British Airways this will be their first experience of the UK, and if a “Very British Airline” does NOT FOLLOW the standard British tradition and chooses to try and rip people off for a few extra £’s for profit then I think everyone has the right to be pretty upset about it. Very disappointing BA, seems as though you are just turning into a glorified Easyjet!

Rip people off for a few extra pounds? Short haul tickets from London are ridiculously cheap! When you're paying a £45 one-way fare and £13 is APD, £20 is airport user fee and there are other aeronautical charges, that leaves less than £12 to pay for the fuel, employee costs, maintenance and so forth. And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off? This is a new reality. If you want "free" food and drink then you can still have it: fly in Club Europe.

As for being a glorifies easyJet, you can still buy an inclusive fare with baggage included, you can accrue Avios on every flight, if you're Silver or above you can use the lounge and premium check in desks regardless of your class of travel and you have the option of getting all of that "free" stuff that so many claim they'd pay extra for (but in reality always choose the cheapest fare) by buying a Club Europe ticket. You get what you pay for, it's a widely-used mantra that has a lot of merit.

sonicruiser wrote:

DDR wrote:

You can tell who's not informed in this thread.

Orlando is not a patch of swampland in Florida.

As someone who lives in Orlando

Miami on the other hand...

as an another orlandoan, idk bits are pretty swampy haha.

Bricktop wrote:

Tea without tea??? I'm sure Brexit will be behind this somehow.

Yes, something has gone wrong with the UK and this teagate incident is proof of that.

Iluvtofly wrote:

No matter how you slice it ..... 2.50 for a tea bag and some hot water is ridiculous...... its not liked its being served fancy !

Firstly, BA have screwed up. They have joined the race to the bottom and I expect better from them.

As to whether 2.50 is a fair price - that depends on your currency. There are a number of posters here who clearly struggle to find a "£" sign on their keyboard, which might suggest they do not reside in the UK. Why is this relevant? Maybe they are out of touch with UK prices.
In 2010 the consumer magazine Which? made the following observation;

Which?, 2010 wrote:

Which? hit the (UK) High Street and found some retailers charging nearly double for the same teabag.
McDonald’s – 89p, Greggs – 99p, Subway – 99p
KFC – £1.19
Pret A Manger – £1.30
Starbucks – £1.45
Burger King – £1.59
Costa – £1.65

That was nine years ago and prices have gone up & up. e.g. Starbucks will now charge you £2.89 for standard "English Breakfast Tea"

At least with Starbucks, if you don't like the idea of paying that much you can walk along the street to find someone cheaper. Airlines have a captive audience, so it's no surprise if they milk them for all they can. The last time I flew Ryanair I paid €3.00 for tea, so if BA are going to charge for a beverage, £2.50 is not that outrageous.

Having said that, I go back to my comment at the beginning. BA should offer a free drink to all passengers, otherwise they are just another LCC.

tonystan wrote:

Infact Champagne is actually the most popular drink with afternoon tea amongst the younger generation these days.

Champagne suits it so well, it's how I do it.

That is exactly why I choose to fly Club Europe on short haul flights between 14:00 and 16:59. I get my scones, jam, cream, ploughman's lunch, Champagne and tea. That way I don't need to worry about the extra £2.50 for the tea. It's all included in the ticket that I paid at least 40 times more than that for.

BA777FO wrote:

XLA2008 wrote:

However... British Airways is supposed to represent the country as a nation, the hospitality, culture and traditions I mean goodness they fly with a crest and carry the flag!! For many first time visitors to the UK using British Airways this will be their first experience of the UK, and if a “Very British Airline” does NOT FOLLOW the standard British tradition and chooses to try and rip people off for a few extra £’s for profit then I think everyone has the right to be pretty upset about it. Very disappointing BA, seems as though you are just turning into a glorified Easyjet!

Rip people off for a few extra pounds? Short haul tickets from London are ridiculously cheap! When you're paying a £45 one-way fare and £13 is APD, £20 is airport user fee and there are other aeronautical charges, that leaves less than £12 to pay for the fuel, employee costs, maintenance and so forth. And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off? This is a new reality. If you want "free" food and drink then you can still have it: fly in Club Europe.

As for being a glorifies easyJet, you can still buy an inclusive fare with baggage included, you can accrue Avios on every flight, if you're Silver or above you can use the lounge and premium check in desks regardless of your class of travel and you have the option of getting all of that "free" stuff that so many claim they'd pay extra for (but in reality always choose the cheapest fare) by buying a Club Europe ticket. You get what you pay for, it's a widely-used mantra that has a lot of merit.

That's not the fares I usually pay few weeks before a flight... the fares my company pays are between £200 to £700 for shorthaul economy.
And for the same prices, all other legacies provide something. I am even offered free stuff from the menu when I travel with AY and AA as I am a BA Gold. BA is so stingy it doesn't even reciprocate that gesture to other OW Emeralds and not even its own Golds...

There'll always be an England,
And England shall be free
But a cup of BA tea won't be!

BA777FO wrote:

XLA2008 wrote:

However... British Airways is supposed to represent the country as a nation, the hospitality, culture and traditions I mean goodness they fly with a crest and carry the flag!! For many first time visitors to the UK using British Airways this will be their first experience of the UK, and if a “Very British Airline” does NOT FOLLOW the standard British tradition and chooses to try and rip people off for a few extra £’s for profit then I think everyone has the right to be pretty upset about it. Very disappointing BA, seems as though you are just turning into a glorified Easyjet!

Rip people off for a few extra pounds? Short haul tickets from London are ridiculously cheap! When you're paying a £45 one-way fare and £13 is APD, £20 is airport user fee and there are other aeronautical charges, that leaves less than £12 to pay for the fuel, employee costs, maintenance and so forth. And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off? This is a new reality. If you want "free" food and drink then you can still have it: fly in Club Europe.

As for being a glorifies easyJet, you can still buy an inclusive fare with baggage included, you can accrue Avios on every flight, if you're Silver or above you can use the lounge and premium check in desks regardless of your class of travel and you have the option of getting all of that "free" stuff that so many claim they'd pay extra for (but in reality always choose the cheapest fare) by buying a Club Europe ticket. You get what you pay for, it's a widely-used mantra that has a lot of merit.

£45 on BA from Heathrow? Hmmm.....call me when you find that.

Every other legacy airline in Europe also faces competition from LCC's and yet they seem to find a way to provide economy class passengers with the pampered luxury that is.....a small plastic cup of juice or water.

If all the other European legacies are providing beverages free of charge and BA is charging, then I assume BA must be swimming in the black by comparison?

scbriml wrote:

#FirstWorldProblems

How will we survive?

By becoming third world!

LMFNINJA wrote:

More evidence of the demise of BA under the tutelage of Mr. Cruz.

Agreed, BA = Budget Airline.

tonystan wrote:

You can tell who’s not British in this thread.

Afternoon Tea is the name of a meal. It doesn’t necessarily mean it comes with a tea beverage. Infact Champagne is actually the most popular drink with afternoon tea amongst the younger generation these days.

This is a bit like complaining that Disney World is not actually a world and being upset that it’s just a patch of swampland in Florida!

Do you mean bubbly or do you mean real Champagne ?

9Patch wrote:

BAWLGW wrote:

If I go into any coffee shop and buy a scone, a cake, and a sandwich, should then I automatically expect a free tea? No! Get a grip!

In a coffee shop:
If you are purchasing is tea, you should automatically expect tea.
If you are purchasing a scone, you should automatically expect a scone.
If you are purchasing a cake, you should automatically expect a cake.
If you are purchasing a sandwich, you should automatically expect a sandwich.

Depends on the country.

In a dutch coffee shop, they are serving different things. AFAIK tea is not on the menu.

alan3 wrote:

shamrock350 wrote:

I'm surprised so many in this thread are shocked that British Airways charge for food and drinks on short haul, I'm guessing most are non Europeans as not only was the move well publicised (and criticised) at the time but it's pretty much the standard within Europe these days, free snacks are becoming the exception rather than the rule.

Are you sure that is true? Food is one matter, but I am fairly certain that most mainline European carriers like LH, KL, AF, LX, and OS, provide free non-alcoholic beverages like tea, juice and water.

In fact I can't think of another major legacy non-LCC airline IN THE WORLD that charges for a cup of juice or water.

Or am I wrong?

Charging for a glass of water is offensive. The last time this happened, I politely declined, and the flight attendant was kind enough to bring me a cup of water from the galley after the service was finished. I hope he didn't get in trouble for this!

Perhaps BA could review this site at sometime.

https://www.etiquettescholar.com/dining ... h_tea.html

Iluvtofly wrote:

No matter how you slice it ..... 2.50 for a tea bag and some hot water is ridiculous...... its not liked its being served fancy !

Depends, what "2.50" you mean.

2.50 US-$ < 2.50 € < 2.50 £ (To get the £ sign, simply type "ALT + 156")
And how much tea do you get? A cup? A mug? A pot? A pot of tea for two?

£ 2.50 for a cuppa tea is not cheap but do you expect cheap drinks in an airliner? What about the infamous € 5,- softdrink/soda cans? Not to mention beer.

Good news: Beer is free on Lufthansa, even in Y :

delete

Arion640 wrote:

YULACYYZ wrote:

flilot wrote:

Theres a national/regional language barrier here that some people aren't appreciating.
"Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition".

Been to England many times and heard over and over "time for me tea" but they don't drink tea! Of course it's from Yorkshire and there are regional differences.

However, first thing that comes to mind for most people seeing this ad, is that the tea would be included.

I am from britain and I can ensure you the vast majority of the country drinks tea, as well as a lot of coffee too.

Regardless of whether traditional 'Afternoon Tea' contains a drink of tea or coffee (my understanding is that either would be acceptable), the real story here is that BA is too cheap to offer a complimentary cup of tea on certain flights. That's pretty sad I have to say, and I'm generally a big BA fan. Maybe they are looking at how much money this will save them but they are ignoring the bigger picture of the damage this does to the proud brand. Let EasyJet, Ryanair and others slog it out at the bottom end of the market; BA can cut costs here and there but small customer-facing differences go a long way to the image of the company.

BA777FO wrote:

XLA2008 wrote:

However... British Airways is supposed to represent the country as a nation, the hospitality, culture and traditions I mean goodness they fly with a crest and carry the flag!! For many first time visitors to the UK using British Airways this will be their first experience of the UK, and if a “Very British Airline” does NOT FOLLOW the standard British tradition and chooses to try and rip people off for a few extra £’s for profit then I think everyone has the right to be pretty upset about it. Very disappointing BA, seems as though you are just turning into a glorified Easyjet!

Rip people off for a few extra pounds? Short haul tickets from London are ridiculously cheap! When you're paying a £45 one-way fare and £13 is APD, £20 is airport user fee and there are other aeronautical charges, that leaves less than £12 to pay for the fuel, employee costs, maintenance and so forth. And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off? This is a new reality. If you want "free" food and drink then you can still have it: fly in Club Europe.

As for being a glorifies easyJet, you can still buy an inclusive fare with baggage included, you can accrue Avios on every flight, if you're Silver or above you can use the lounge and premium check in desks regardless of your class of travel and you have the option of getting all of that "free" stuff that so many claim they'd pay extra for (but in reality always choose the cheapest fare) by buying a Club Europe ticket. You get what you pay for, it's a widely-used mantra that has a lot of merit.

£45 for a one way fare... that must be rare, I know I’ve never paid that little for BA, in fact in comparison to other European legacy airlines BA is similar in price but way behind on both standards and service. Majority of legacy carriers provide a free drink as well as some providing food free of charge whether it be a small sandwich or a snack. Why should I pay for club Europe to get the service I would receive as standard in economy with other European legacy carriers?

BA might allow “free” checked bags, so as I said, a “glorified” Easyjet, because you have to pay for everything else, so why not just book Easyjet? Cheaper fares, and you still pay for food regardless if it’s BA or EZY. I personally do not fly BA anymore, I collect my air miles with other OW airlines since BA standards have dropped significantly in many aspects. Ironically not long after I stopped using BA so did my company. So this whole afternoon tea debacle is of no surprise to me, and it is just an extra way to rip people off for a few extra pounds, something you would expect from the likes of Ryanair.

I am sure there are many people out there that are happy with BA and their current standard, as there are many who aren’t, this is just my personal view point.

As for the “free” stuff you earn by getting miles... none of that is “free” you have paid for it over time when you collected your miles! Unless you know how to manipulate the system and get your air miles using different means (i.e not earned just for flying with BA but through purchase and credit cards) then essentially you are being granted or rewarded “free” services you have already paid for. The airline doesn’t give you free access to the lounge with free food and drinks... you have paid for all of that trying to collect the miles to get it! Lol it isn’t free.

ClassicLover wrote:

That is exactly why I choose to fly Club Europe on short haul flights between 14:00 and 16:59. I get my scones, jam, cream, ploughman's lunch, Champagne and tea. That way I don't need to worry about the extra £2.50 for the tea. It's all included in the ticket that I paid at least 40 times more than that for.

That's the cost of having everything for "free". Although Club Europe also permits lounge access, premium check-in, extra baggage, extra Avios and tier points, plus plenty more. People say they're willing to pay a little extra for all that stuff - Club Europe allows exactly that. In reality, the vast majority book based upon headline fare.

alan3 wrote:

45 on BA from Heathrow? Hmmm.....call me when you find that.

Every other legacy airline in Europe also faces competition from LCC's and yet they seem to find a way to provide economy class passengers with the pampered luxury that is.....a small plastic cup of juice or water.

If all the other European legacies are providing beverages free of charge and BA is charging, then I assume BA must be swimming in the black by comparison?

Try places like Geneva, Marseille, Barcelona...I tried for a flight to Geneva in September and could get it for just under £70 return, the outbound was £45. That's a typical advance fare to Europe these days. I took the whole family (2 adults, 2 kids and an infant) to Hamburg from Heathrow for £328 return. It was cheaper than easyJet from Gatwick and the times with BA were much more civilised. People need to get over the mindset that BA is so much more expensive, it really isn't.

BA will provide you with a complimentary cup of water free of charge. A bottle of Highland Spring comes with a fee for Euro Traveller passengers but a cup of water is free.

BA actually has one of the highest operating margins of any European airline. Customer net promoter scores at just about record levels and punctality is setting new records. Considering it operates largely from the most congested airport in the world, BA is the most punctual London-based airline beating Virgin, Ryanair and easyJet out of London. All while carrying increasing numbers of passengers with higher load factors.

XLA2008 wrote:

BA might allow “free” checked bags, so as I said, a “glorified” Easyjet, because you have to pay for everything else, so why not just book Easyjet? Cheaper fares, and you still pay for food regardless if it’s BA or EZY. I personally do not fly BA anymore, I collect my air miles with other OW airlines since BA standards have dropped significantly in many aspects. 

EasyJet isn't always cheaper in my experience. Typically BA will have a better schedule as well as better service recovery. BA is also more punctual. But hey, that's the nature of competition and consumer choice.

XLA2008 wrote:

As for the “free” stuff you earn by getting miles... none of that is “free” you have paid for it over time when you collected your miles! Unless you know how to manipulate the system and get your air miles using different means (i.e not earned just for flying with BA but through purchase and credit cards) then essentially you are being granted or rewarded “free” services you have already paid for. The airline doesn’t give you free access to the lounge with free food and drinks... you have paid for all of that trying to collect the miles to get it! Lol it isn’t free.

That's my point. All this stuff people expect for free, yet still want the same airfare. What gives? Why should BA be able to offer a load of freebies at the same price as easyJet when they charge, or don't even offer, that kind of stuff? BA is competing at both ends - it's matching or beating fares at the low end and offers a premium service with Club. If you pay £40 for your ticket don't be surprised when a drink on your 90 minute flight is extra.

BA777FO wrote:

And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off?

In an hotel, you can get out and have a drink or a meal elsewhere. Or at least drink tap water. Not in an aircraft.
And need we remind you that it is still forbidden to pass through security with liquids (for more than questionable reasons, by the way)? Refusing to serve at least free drinking water should even be prohibited by law. It's more than just a rip off, actually.

EDIT: I see that the water is still free. All is not (yet) lost....

tonystan wrote:

You can tell who’s not British in this thread.

Afternoon Tea is the name of a meal. It doesn’t necessarily mean it comes with a tea beverage. Infact Champagne is actually the most popular drink with afternoon tea amongst the younger generation these days.

This is a bit like complaining that Disney World is not actually a world and being upset that it’s just a patch of swampland in Florida!

Here we go, thank you thank you. I applaud you.

Tea is not tea,
truth is not truth
In a post fact world
George Orwell said see

sergegva wrote:

BA777FO wrote:

And it's ripping people off to ask them to pay for food or drink? I guess the next time a hotel charges me extra for breakfast or any other drink I should say they're ripping me off?

In an hotel, you can get out and have a drink or a meal elsewhere. Or at least drink tap water. Not in an aircraft.
And need we remind you that it is still forbidden to pass through security with liquids (for more than questionable reasons, by the way)? Refusing to serve at least free drinking water should even be prohibited by law. It's more than just a rip off, actually.

EDIT: I see that the water is still free. All is not (yet) lost....

Actually they offer tap water for free. I think no other legacy carrier doing that. BA = LCC

BA777FO wrote:

ClassicLover wrote:

That is exactly why I choose to fly Club Europe on short haul flights between 14:00 and 16:59. I get my scones, jam, cream, ploughman's lunch, Champagne and tea. That way I don't need to worry about the extra £2.50 for the tea. It's all included in the ticket that I paid at least 40 times more than that for.

That's the cost of having everything for "free". Although Club Europe also permits lounge access, premium check-in, extra baggage, extra Avios and tier points, plus plenty more. People say they're willing to pay a little extra for all that stuff - Club Europe allows exactly that. In reality, the vast majority book based upon headline fare.

alan3 wrote:

45 on BA from Heathrow? Hmmm.....call me when you find that.

Every other legacy airline in Europe also faces competition from LCC's and yet they seem to find a way to provide economy class passengers with the pampered luxury that is.....a small plastic cup of juice or water.

If all the other European legacies are providing beverages free of charge and BA is charging, then I assume BA must be swimming in the black by comparison?

Try places like Geneva, Marseille, Barcelona...I tried for a flight to Geneva in September and could get it for just under £70 return, the outbound was £45. That's a typical advance fare to Europe these days. I took the whole family (2 adults, 2 kids and an infant) to Hamburg from Heathrow for £328 return. It was cheaper than easyJet from Gatwick and the times with BA were much more civilised. People need to get over the mindset that BA is so much more expensive, it really isn't.

BA will provide you with a complimentary cup of water free of charge. A bottle of Highland Spring comes with a fee for Euro Traveller passengers but a cup of water is free.

BA actually has one of the highest operating margins of any European airline. Customer net promoter scores at just about record levels and punctality is setting new records. Considering it operates largely from the most congested airport in the world, BA is the most punctual London-based airline beating Virgin, Ryanair and easyJet out of London. All while carrying increasing numbers of passengers with higher load factors.

XLA2008 wrote:

BA might allow “free” checked bags, so as I said, a “glorified” Easyjet, because you have to pay for everything else, so why not just book Easyjet? Cheaper fares, and you still pay for food regardless if it’s BA or EZY. I personally do not fly BA anymore, I collect my air miles with other OW airlines since BA standards have dropped significantly in many aspects. 

EasyJet isn't always cheaper in my experience. Typically BA will have a better schedule as well as better service recovery. BA is also more punctual. But hey, that's the nature of competition and consumer choice.

XLA2008 wrote:

As for the “free” stuff you earn by getting miles... none of that is “free” you have paid for it over time when you collected your miles! Unless you know how to manipulate the system and get your air miles using different means (i.e not earned just for flying with BA but through purchase and credit cards) then essentially you are being granted or rewarded “free” services you have already paid for. The airline doesn’t give you free access to the lounge with free food and drinks... you have paid for all of that trying to collect the miles to get it! Lol it isn’t free.

That's my point. All this stuff people expect for free, yet still want the same airfare. What gives? Why should BA be able to offer a load of freebies at the same price as easyJet when they charge, or don't even offer, that kind of stuff? BA is competing at both ends - it's matching or beating fares at the low end and offers a premium service with Club. If you pay £40 for your ticket don't be surprised when a drink on your 90 minute flight is extra.

Well said.
Some of these keyboard warriors love to pass judgement and give their ideas freely without any comprehension of the real world or having experience in an airline at a decent level.
Lots of bedroom bound Jack Duckworth types around on this site me thinks.
Lots of well positioned info from your post, well done!

Delete

jumpjets wrote:

So by no stretch of the imagination can a single scone (even with jam and cream) be described as Afternoon tea.

That is the gravamen of the deception. "Tea" that excludes a decoction of Camellia sinensis can be a meal.... but it cannot be a scone only.

Were this deception Stateside, the Federal Trade Commission would take BA to the woodshed.

For the botanically challenged: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camellia_sinensis