Bits: new way to spend Emirates miles, British Airways removes therapeutic oxygen

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• Rob hutch says:

  27 Feb27 February 05:40

  We’ve got a couple of thousand vietnamese LOTUS miles each through Skyteam at home. Options seem a bit limited to use them. Anyone got any ideas?

• RIcatti says:

  27 Feb27 February 05:57

  It is only left to re-quote,

  In an interview with Skift last month, British Airways CEO Alex Cruz said “If one particular day we don’t come up with an idea to reduce our costs, then we’re not doing our job.”

  • Gavin says:

    27 Feb27 February 06:59

    Shame the focus isn’t “improve our service to customers”

    • Mark says:

      27 Feb27 February 08:25

      Whatever happen to “To Fly, To Serve”?

      • Tommy W says:

        27 Feb27 February 14:34

        It more like

        To fly (the paying muppets)
        To serve (the board members)

  • Nick says:

    27 Feb27 February 07:37

    The daily cost cutting enhancement I would like to see is the removal of Alex Cruz as Chairman and CEO. Hated by staff and hated by customers, he may be overseeing short term increases in profit but the damage to the BA brand over the long term and a resultant downturn in financial performance is likely to be his long term legacy. Perhaps the analysts and major shareholders including Qatar will eventually demand his enhancement.

    • Alan says:

      27 Feb27 February 08:04

      We, as a family, always used to choose BA over other airlines for our leisure trips but that is definitely in the past now. The fact that you had checked luggage, complimentary refreshments on board etc and just the feeling that it was a REAL airline made the extra, to me, worth paying. All of these little pluses appear to be getting eroded away on a day-to-day basis so why bother? I will be looking to use them as little as possible going forward although, in these days of code-sharing, it isn’t always easy to do.

      Now, I admit, this isn’t going to hit their bottom lie very much as we fly, maybe, twice a year and usually in cattle-class, but if others follow it will soon add up.

    • Nick says:

      27 Feb27 February 09:22

      It actually makes sense. He is a one trick pony, good for cutting costs. But by his own admission cost cutting is now in the dna of the business, so he really doesn’t add anything now

      • RIcatti says:

        27 Feb27 February 17:55

        Precisely! Well put.

        Any reasonable, somewhat experienced manager can engage in harsh cost cutting — there must be hundreds of able and willing airline executives to do so for BA.

        It follows, that there is no reason whatsoever to pay the premium for Chairman and CEO post to a person who does just that and does not add anything else.

    • RIcatti says:

      27 Feb27 February 17:52

      I think it already transpired that there is no support for this management and approach– this is NOT like BA top management are doing something critical, even if the airline going bankrupt this is not saved by taking away a pack of crisps, perhaps by better customer service and regard to passengers and own personnel?

      Now when efficiency drive crosses this explicitly with health and safety… I would rather have oxygen available on my flight and I have seen it regularly used on flights such as SQ.

  • Mr(s) Entitled says:

    27 Feb27 February 07:57

    Context is everything. What if the next unreported statement was:

    ‘Upon completion our next, more difficult task, is to find a way to add value. To improve the customer experience. This we must do twice a day or else we are not doing our jobs properly.’

    In mitigation however, having flown BA, I feel that this is unlikely.

  • Davie says:

    27 Feb27 February 09:28

    Exactly … Thanks Rob for reminding us all of the overarching strategy that joins all of this cost cutting together. Please keep reminding us of that quote.

    I wonder how many BA middle managers will be “brainstorming” this week for the next thing to cut. The barrel has been scrapped enough though, anything more, it’ll wear out and they’ll be a massive hole left.

• Roger says:

  27 Feb27 February 07:08

  OT-Amex Pro-Rata Refund

  Doing my first churning on a paid card, just wondering how do Amex calculate fees for the period the card was used.
  Assuming that charging period starts from the day the card was approved, not from the date it was received.

  Say, If I cancel card 1 month and 1 day after applying, do I get charged for 2 months or is the fees calculated on daily basis?

  • Genghis says:

    27 Feb27 February 07:14

    Daily

    • Rob says:

      27 Feb27 February 08:42

      I thought they had started rounding up to the nearest month?

      • Genghis says:

        27 Feb27 February 08:57

        It was daily as I calculated in Dec for Plat. For last BAPPs and SPGs, I’ve waited for the points to post so has been about on the month anyway.

  • Stu R says:

    27 Feb27 February 08:06

    I have just this morning cancelled my Platinum charge card, having collected 35000 points for spend, 5000 good will points for a statement cock up, and 9000 for a Gold card referral. Not bad for about £45!

    Agent confirmed refund is calculated pro-rata on a daily basis although not sure if it’s from the date the fee was posted, the date you activated your card or what …. apparently the credit will post in 48-72 hours.

  • AndyR says:

    27 Feb27 February 10:39

    I’ve found the Amex Platinum to be calculated daily but the BAPP rounded up to the nearest month.

    From my calculations it looks to be based on the day you get approved.

    • RussellH says:

      27 Feb27 February 11:05

      I cancelled an SPG Amex at Christmas after a period of between 1 and 2 months.

      I could make neither head nor tail of how the refund was calculated, but I got back rather more of the £75 than I had expected.
      🙂

• John says:

  27 Feb27 February 07:09

  After the “food for money” on short haul, How far will Alex Cruz go to destroy BA? Can someone tell him that BA isn’t Vueling (where he comes from), nor is it Aer Lingus or Iberia… as a BA gold member, BA shareholder and friend of BA cabin crew members, what he is doing is long-term damage to BA Despite shoe-term gains (or savings as he calls them…)

  • anon says:

    27 Feb27 February 07:38

    Don’t you mean IAG Shareholder?

• Concerto says:

  27 Feb27 February 07:38

  To be honest, I think it’s too late, but I’m not London based so it is easy for me to completely avoid them.

• Emily says:

  27 Feb27 February 08:09

  It’s one thing to cut food etc to remain competititive, but cutting things that are there for our safety is truly unacceptable. Shame on you Cruz.

  • James67 says:

    27 Feb27 February 08:37

    Just reading about BA these days advereseky affects my mental health.

  • BA Sucks says:

    27 Feb27 February 09:01

    I’m not one to defend BA, but on the oxygen issue, it is not a cut that impacts safety. BA are just following easyJet and many other legacy carriers by getting people who need oxygen to ‘bring it on board’ themselves. Other carriers, such as Ryanair, offer ‘buy oxygen on board’ charging upwards of £50 for similar services.

• Daniel says:

  27 Feb27 February 08:23

  Many of the BA cost savings over recent years have ranged from irritating to disappointing as they continue their apparent race to become a low cost carrier.

  But as someone with a family member who needs therapeutic oxygen I find this particular cut abhorrent.

  Access to onboard oxygen makes travel a lot less stressful. While we have a portable unit there are limitations and most portable oxygen units have a limited battery life and in reality with some exceptions are not that small.

  I have no problem being expected to pay for this service. Even Ryanair provide this service and have always been very helpful when traveling with my father. This service offers increased comfort and reduced stress for him. This makes all the difference!

  This is one cut that targets a vulnerable group who used to be able to trust BA and for me is a sad commentary on where BA are at now.

  • Steve says:

    27 Feb27 February 08:25

    +1 Here here.

  • Frenske says:

    27 Feb27 February 09:29

    BA is running around with blinders cutting cost like George Osborne on steroids. Instead of converting free services to paid-for services to cover for the costs, BA is missing a trick or two to keep clients flying with them.

• Rashad says:

  27 Feb27 February 08:40

  OT

  Can anyone recommend me to AmEx Platinum Portugal?

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