The British Airways maintenance base at Cardiff turns 25 …. but you may never have heard of it

One of the benefits of the lower news flow in August is that we can take a look at topics which are interesting but perhaps wouldn’t usually make the cut.  This is one of them.

British Airways Maintenance Cardiff (BAMC) turned 25 years old recently and threw a big party.  It is very likely that you have never spent much time thinking about where BA sends most of its long-haul Boeing aircraft for maintenance, but Cardiff is the answer.

A bit of background

The idea of a  70-acre aircraft maintenance facility in Cardiff was first proposed in 1990 and opened in 1993 to look after BA’s Boeing 747 fleet.

British Airways Maintenance was opened by Prince Charles on 30th July 1993.

In 2008 BAMC started to also maintain the Boeing 767-300 fleet and in 2010 the Boeing 777-200 and 777-300 were added. The hanger also has the capability to maintain the newest Boeing 787 fleet.

Over the last 25 years, the team has successfully handled 1,754 projects, ranging from installing the first flat bed seats and overhead crew rest areas in the industry, to modifying the entire 747 fleet to extend its service life.

If you want to find out how much it is to change a wheel or get an aircraft cleaned, here is the price list for British Airways Engineering.

£3600 for washing an A380 seems a bit pricey, given the typical car wash price list, should you happen to have one which is looking a bit dirty …..

Here are some pictures from the 25th birthday celebration:

The official statement from Head of Business Units Rob Crew said:

“Huge congratulations and my thanks to all those colleagues, past and present, who have contributed to the BAMC story over the past 25 years. Over this time BAMC has been a central part of our business, never standing still and continuing to develop its people and capabilities. The organisation has been flexible and quick to respond to the ever-changing needs of our customers and our business, including new aircraft types, cabin configuration changes, new IFE systems, repairs and modifications.”

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (September 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.