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Brunchgate – aggressive BA service cuts resume

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We have been sceptical about the ‘£7bn investment programme’ from British Airways, because when we peered behind the curtain we struggled to see anything there.

Whilst replacing life-expired assets is, of course, ‘investment’, it isn’t the same as taking pro-active steps to improve the customer experience.

One example is the new, bigger overhead bins being installed on new short-haul aircraft deliveries. These are great, solving cabin baggage issues at a stroke. However, is BA spending money on retro-fitting them to its existing aircraft as many other airlines have done? No.

Brunchgate - aggressive BA service cuts resume

The biggest structural issue with the airline business is that most of your costs are fixed. Fuel costs are fixed. Aircraft leasing costs (or debt repayments) are fixed. Staff numbers are set by law and pay scales are fixed in the medium term. Whilst it seems petty to start attacking the in-flight food budget, it is one of very few levers to pull.

From 15th October, two new measures have been introduced. One is just crackpot. Both are cost cutting.

Breakfast …. for lunch

BA has introduced a brunch service to all long haul flights departing between 8.30am and 11.29am.

Whilst the logic here is obviously a bit crazy in theory …. passengers departing at 11am have almost certainly had breakfast in the lounge if not at home …. it is even crazier in practice.

Since food service cannot start until the aircraft is at cruising altitude, anyone at the back of Club World won’t be getting fed until around 1.30pm. Just the time for a cheap airline breakfast.

Even more bizarrely, the rest of the menu is unchanged. You get an appetiser. You get a dessert. You are offered wine with your meal.

I don’t know how many people have eggs on sourdough paired with wine, followed by a cheeseboard or chocolate tart, for breakfast at home ….

Brunchgate - aggressive BA service cuts resume

The new First Class menu

As an example, the 11.20am New York JFK flight was previously offering the following main course options in First Class for your post-take off meal:

  • grilled lamb rack
  • chicken wellington
  • grilled halibut and shrimp sauce
  • vegetarian kofta in korma sauce 

It now offers:

  • chicken / sausage / mushrooms / hash browns
  • prawn salad
  • poached egg on sourdough
  • pancakes

It’s even weirder when you see the full menu. This is what is now served in First Class if you depart before 11.29am:

  • amuse bouche (a cut from the previous selection of canapes)

followed by your choice of:

  • smoked salmon
  • roasted artichoke
  • butternut squash and coconut soup

followed by one of the breakfast dishes listed above, followed by:

  • chocolate tart
  • fresh fruit

followed by a cheeseboard.

Based on feedback from a friend of mine who spoke to the crew, not a single passenger on his flight in First had the pancakes and no-one in Club World had the waffles.

Brunchgate - aggressive BA service cuts resume

The new Club World menu

If you’re in business class, here is a typical brunch menu – it is actually called ‘The Great British Brunch’ on the menu.

A choice of appetisers from:

  • a fruit plate
  • smoked salmon
  • goat’s cheese and grilled artichoke
  • cheese and crackers

followed by

  • chicken / sausage / mushrooms / hash browns
  • cheese frittatta
  • Belgian waffles

followed by

  • chocolate marble slice (no alternatives)

followed by coffee and liqueurs.

It’s just weird.

The upside is that it will probably be scrapped before Christmas, so if you want to try it out I recommend you book now.

Interestingly, one person on Flyertalk who complained about his Club World brunch has been offered real money in compensation (well, a BA voucher, but near enough to cash). The amount was described as ‘generous’.

In a second article tomorrow we’ll look at the cuts to food service in Club World and First Class for flights departing after 9pm.

PS. Don’t forget that, if you are looking for good business class food, Qatar Airways has just introduced a caviar service on flights from many airports including London. This is on top of the existing meal service.

Qatar Airways introduces caviar in Business Class

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Comments (362)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • executiveclubber says:

    Due to be scrapped at the end of the month if rumours are true. A terrible idea, rolled out in a terrible way, with no consultation of pax by Premier team – why annoy your most valuable cohort of customers who have ample choices on routes eg to the US? So many other ways to increase profits….

    • Mike Fish says:

      You’d have thought BA would have learnt their lesson on this and that cruzification doesn’t work.

  • Mark says:

    Ironic on the same day Rob is quoted in the FT describing how airlines are investing in their soft product because of delays to new seats!

    • Rob says:

      What I said in the FT was that the Middle East airlines are investing in soft product because (and this bit was cut) BA and Virgin now have seats which are ‘good enough’ (if considering whether to add 3 hours to your trip via an aircraft change in the Middle East) and so they are moving on to outclassing via food, drink and IFE.

  • Martin says:

    Another spectacular ‘Own Goal’ by BA on how to alienate your customer base and send them in droves to other carriers! I do hope someone from the higher echelons of BA management is reading this article and the comments and takes notice! and yes hopefully it will be ditched by Christmas.

    • Peter says:

      BA continues its race to the bottom, and its management simply are’nt giving cabin crews the tools with which to do a good job. BA is fast becoming ( if its not already there ) the airline of last resort ! On far too many routes , there are far better options available with airlines for whom customer service actually means something other than simply a management catchphrase. Of course, BA should really be called London Airways, as the services provided at regional airports have been cut to the bone.

  • ed_fly says:

    Very pleased to see this covered here, the more exposure this madness gets the better.

    • Thywillbedone says:

      I’m not even sure any more. Does BA use focus groups at all (of their actual customers in each particular cabin I mean)?? It is hard to believe anyone can push through these changes imagining it will be anything other than despised by the end user.

      Not to derail the thread but I am seeing the same thing with Waitrose ….relentless gradual disimprovement across own-brand products (the loo roll saga covered in the Sunday Times and elsewhere is just the tip of the iceberg: their No.1 range fresh chicken used to be corn-fed and free-range, now just free-range and often arrives grey and gnarly – I recently tried Tesco and the quality was superior??). Is everyone in the UK afraid to compete on quality instead of price alone??

      • Matt says:

        If you want decent quality meat, don’t buy from a a supermarket (Waitrose included). I personally buy from Pipers Farm (online). Also re corn fed, isn’t that just a marketing spin making people think corn fed = high quality whereas isn’t the opposite true as corn feed just promotes fast growth as it’s high calorie? If you’re after high quality chicken then pasture raised is what you want.

      • Russell G says:

        Everyone in the UK has given up on competing on quality instead of price because, despite all our mumblings, people in the UK purchase mostly based on price rather than quality. Look how successful the cheaper brands / supermarkets / airlines are. Look in the papers about “cost of living” crisis. I haven’t yet seen one comment on here demanding BA raise their prices!

  • Jon says:

    Utter rubbish changes. I don’t know what BA think they are doing but they need to stop and stop now.

  • Ian says:

    Now regretting my post 9pm departure in January!

    Going to need to eat at the airport in the USA first.

  • Alex G says:

    Bloody Awful.

  • John says:

    Had the caviar on QR last week and it didn’t look like that, all the different bits were just spread onto a single plate.

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