Exclusive: New images of the British Airways ‘First Wing’ in T5

The new First Wing at Heathrow Terminal 5 is due to open in the next couple of months.

This should radically improve the journey through the terminal for British Airways Gold card holders and First Class passengers.

Situated behind the current First Class check in area, it offers an integrated check in and security screening area which feeds you DIRECTLY into the Galleries First lounges.

Here are a few new CGI images of how it will look.  You start off here (click to enlarge):

…. which looks similar to the new Gatwick premium check-in entrance.  You move on to the check-in desks:

…. with the boarding pass scanner at the back.

Immediately beyond that is security screening.

You then turn left and walk down a corridor which brings you here:

…. where you emerge by one of the bars in the Galleries First lounge (the area to your right if you enter via the current entrance).

If you have a First Class ticket, you may want to head to The Concorde Room instead.  In which case, you need to walk through Galleries First, turn left and leave by the main entrance:

….. and enter The Concorde Room that way.

It isn’t clear if the current door at South Security which takes you directly into The Concorde Room will remain or not.  It also, to be honest, isn’t clear if this is going to save much time for anyone flying from 5B or 5C, which is most long haul departures.  You would need to leave Galleries First, head down the escalator and make a long walk over to the transit train. The big winners may be Golds flying short haul.

All in all, it looks impressive and represents a genuine investment by British Airways in improving the terminal experience for premium passengers.  I look forward to giving it a try although I doubt it will be open by the time I fly to Asia in early April.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (October 2022)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points.

EDIT: Until 25th October 2022, there is an exceptionally generous sign-up bonus on The Platinum Card. You will receive 60,000 Membership Rewards points – double the usual amount – and £200 to spend at Amex Travel. You need to spend £6,000 within six months to earn the bonus.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,000 Avios.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.