British Airways strike: the cancelled flights which are not actually cancelled
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We have a separate pinned article on the home page covering the pilot strike. However, it is important to repeat something we added yesterday and which we covered on social media.
British Airways emailed a lot of people on Friday night to say that their flights were being cancelled due to the strikes.
What did people do when they received these emails? They went to ba.com and triggered the cancellation and refund. They then either booked – often at substantial expense – a replacement flight on another airline, or decided not to travel and cancelled non-refundable hotel rooms.
Oops.
BA was only kidding you. Surprise.
Yes, a lot of flights have been cancelled before, on and after the first batch of strikes on 9th and 10th September. However, a lot of flights – despite people receiving cancellation emails – were NOT cancelled. Someone at BA pressed the wrong button.
You should, overnight, have received a second email from British Airways if you were mistakenly told your flight was cancelled.
However, if you received a cancellation email from BA, do NOT necessarily believe it. Do these two things:
Go to Manage My Booking and look at your flight. If it says ‘cancelled’, it’s cancelled. If it simply shows in a red font then it IS operating although it remains at risk, depending on how many pilots report on the day and how many replacement aircraft BA can source.
Go to ba.com and try to book a seat on the flight you are on. Without wishing to state the obvious, if you can still buy a seat, the flight is going. If you can’t, it’s not.
Here is a typical reader story I received yesterday (click to enlarge):
Ho hum.
Note that British Airways has not yet cancelled any flights for the 2nd strike on 27th September. It has until 13th September to cancel them to avoid EC261 compensation.
How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2023)
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:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 21st February 2023, the sign-up bonus on the British Airways Premium Plus American Express card is increased to 35,000 Avios from 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
35,000 Avios (ONLY to 21st February) and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £12,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
30,000 points and unbeatable travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review
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 10,500 Avios.
SPECIAL OFFER: Capital On Tap has increased its sign-up bonus to points worth 30,000 Avios if you apply by 4th February. This is exclusive to Head for Points readers. Click here to apply.
Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 30,000 points bonus, worth 30,000 Avios, until 4th February 2023 Read our full review
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.
British Airways Accelerating Business American Express
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
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.
American Express Business Platinum
40,000 points sign-up bonus and a £200 Amex Travel credit every year Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and free for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
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