British Airways returns to Manchester Terminal 3

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• AJA says:

  8 Mar8 March 10:11

  Makes me grateful I don’t have to suffer flying from or to MAN.

  Good news ‘re Finnair.

  • NorthernLass says:

    8 Mar8 March 11:00

    Rob and Rhys need to to have the next HFP party in the North West so London readers with their wide choice of airlines and ability to get into a lounge with PP can sample the delights of our largest regional airport. Be sure to pack something oddly shaped but harmless in your hand luggage so you can enjoy the friendly banter of the security staff while they desperately try to find a reason to confiscate it.

    • RussellH says:

      8 Mar8 March 13:22

      You remind me of the time I caused both consternation and hilarity at PRG. Having checked my luggage, I saw a Czech Delicacies stall on the way to security and bought a large salami – about 450mm long and 60mm thick – which they wrapped and I then put in my shoulder bag.
      On X-ray it caused the consternation; I was called over to a special area, and my bag was opened very, very carefully. Once they realised what it was, the security team dissolved in fits of laughter. I expect some of them dined out on the story for some time.
      Sadly, from my fortunately limited experience of MAN security personnel, I cannot see them reacting the same way.
      They could give US Immigration lessons in how not to have a sense of humour.

      • NorthernLass says:

        8 Mar8 March 13:37

        At MAN they only let you through if the suspicious object it’s the real thing!

        Last month my OH taken aside and accused of concealing something in his pants 😂. No amount of patting or scanning could locate the offending article so they eventually decided it must have been the button on his jeans.

        • Lawrence says:

          8 Mar8 March 14:26

          Happened to me. The guard put it hands in the waistband of my chinos then shouted “I don’t like how it feels here”

      • Lady London says:

        9 Mar9 March 11:42

        I had some b*tc* at STN search my luggage cos it had dinged. I genuinely could not remember any reason why (some scanners seem to be set to ding even on metal zips).

        After an extensive search which was carried out in a quite accusatory and borderline aggressive way when I genuinely had no idea why my luggage dinged (and so my voice would have passed any lie detector and I knew she knew I wasn’t lying and was the careful-packing traveller I said I was)…she decided to confiscate a plastic fork needing to justify the 45 minutes of search and “I’m the cleverest security officer in the world”, as she had failed to find anything dangerous. So she said my plastic fork was a replica and replica weapons weren’t allowed.

        At that time I didn’t know Stansted has the same ownership as Manchester Airports Group and she was probably on loan from Manchester.

        About 15min before she ostentatiously confiscated the plastic fork and sent me on my way, I’d actually remembered there was probably a pair of tweezers wedged into the bottom edge of the outer zip pocket. As I’d wedged them there a few trips ago to stop them falling out. They hadn’t dinged in 5 other airports in between. But was I going to help her out and tell her I’d remembered? H*ll no.

    • yorkieflyer says:

      8 Mar8 March 13:27

      a favourite of mine was a bayonet fit light bulb, as all screwfit bulbs in EU. ” It looked like a light bulb” said the security goon…….

      • yorkieflyer says:

        8 Mar8 March 13:28

        LBA on the other hand have always been fine, cast iron orange press, bike pumps etc all fine

    • ChrisC says:

      8 Mar8 March 20:01

      Well given the hundred of people who booked flights to Manchester it shouldn’t be a problem for them.

    • Rob H says:

      9 Mar9 March 15:35

      This comment made my day – and I couldn’t agree more. Just when you thought MAN had reached rock-bottom – they open another basement

• IPC says:

  8 Mar8 March 10:56

  Does anyone know what time check-in (with luggage) opens for the BA 7am MAN to LHR ?

  • NorthernLass says:

    8 Mar8 March 11:39

    Pre-pandemic we usually made our way over between 4.30 and 5 am and it was always open.

    • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

      8 Mar8 March 11:47

      They don’t always have a dedicated CE desk from opening time. Sometimes it gets opened after a while.

• TM says:

  8 Mar8 March 11:52

  Flying Business out of MAN T1 with BA to LHR this Friday. I guess no lounge will be offered? Or will they allow access to the Aspire or Escape?

  Thanks

  • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

    8 Mar8 March 12:19

    They’ll give you a pass for T1 Escape.

    • TM says:

      8 Mar8 March 13:45

      Thank you for your reply, appreciated.

• Olivia says:

  8 Mar8 March 12:51

  MAN to LGW… does anybody know the last time this route was actually in service?

  • NorthernLass says:

    8 Mar8 March 13:39

    We flew MAN-LGW-MCO in 2012 – I think it got pulled 2/3 years after that.

  • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

    8 Mar8 March 14:52

    I am on the first flight on day 1. Hand baggage only; I’m not risking checking a bag.

  • IPC says:

    8 Mar8 March 15:36

    My last LGW-MAN was in Jan 2013. It ended on 31st Mar 13.

• xcalx says:

  8 Mar8 March 14:10

  Re overnight at LHR. Flying from MAN I know bags are checked through if flying next day on LHR longhaul flights. Does this also apply shouthaul LHR connections.
  Thanks.

  • NorthernLass says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:17

    We’ve done the overnight at LHR quite a lot – I recall one of those trips was to GIB. I can’t think of any reason why that would have changed.

  • John says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:51

    Personally I’d recheck the bags with the twilight serivce myself

  • xcalx says:

    9 Mar9 March 09:50

    Thanks for the replies.
    @john any reason for rechecking instead of leaving bags booked through.

• Mike says:

  9 Mar9 March 14:20

  My huge frustration as a Priority Pass user, is the Escape lounge will only let you in if they don’t have “paying” customers. When you challenge them that we pay for Priority Pass (albeit through Amex Platinum) the response is that we pay priority pass not them…

  • Rob says:

    9 Mar9 March 15:33

    And they are correct. Ask them how little money they get from Priority Pass. Whilst it covers your marginal costs, paying individuals are paying twice as much, as airlines are probably paying £3-£4 more (or are paying a guaranteed fee to reserve spaces which are actually never taken up).

    It’s not really any different to a restaurant offering discounts to (paying) Gourmet Society members but then restricting it to Mon-Wed nights. Unfortunately airport lounges don’t have such simple high and low periods.

• Alex says:

  9 Mar9 March 15:40

  Not for me. If I’m flying out of MAN I’m going to chose a better quality or cheaper option than BA. If it was BA direct to somewhere I wanted to fly to that would be a different story but if I’m connecting at Heathrow or Gatwick then why not change in Spain, Finland, Portugal, UAE, China etc.

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