Re: AA, Crandall, and the PA Pacific Sale

If the Pacific was such a goldmine (I think a degree of hindsight is at play here because UA's purchase could have turned out very differently) and AA felt it had lost out bigtime with the PA/UA deal surely it would have looked at the number two player in order to barge its way into the party - NW. ...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion - 2024

It makes sense to build out the B787 fleet, no need for any more A350s if Boeing can make the deal on price. The days of "special" BA personalisation are over thank God! BA already has nearly 40 B787’s, whereas they only have (an eventual) 18 A350’s. If economies of scale are concerned, i...

Re: The A340s purpose

In the 1970s and 1980s you had (very roughly): ⋅ 747SP, TriStar 500 - long and thin routes ⋅ 747-200, DC-10-30/40, TriStar 200 - longhaul routes ⋅ 747-100, DC-10-10, TriStar 1 - continental trunk routes and shorter longhaul routes, e.g. North Atlantic The 1980s saw the...

Re: The A340s purpose

In the 1970s and 1980s you had (very roughly): ⋅ 747SP, TriStar 500 - long and thin routes ⋅ 747-200, DC-10-30/40, TriStar 200 - longhaul routes ⋅ 747-100, DC-10-10, TriStar 1 - continental trunk routes and shorter longhaul routes, e.g. North Atlantic The 1980s saw the ...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion - 2023

In other news, BA are launching their new uniform for all staff on the 28th of September the first day in which all staff and crew will wear it. Anyone know how the launch went? Are crews expressing any [dis]satisfaction with the new threads? :D Have to say, seeing pics on social media about it, it...

Re: 40 years ago today since first BA 757 entered service.

The G-BIKx aircraft stuck with the C powered engines to the end, and the E4 engines were on the later G-BMRx and G-BPE/CPEx sequences. Several European airports had noise and NOx-based charging structures (Arlanda was definitely one, that much I can remember) where the landing fees were cheaper for...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion - 2023

Just noticed BA123 (LHR-DOH) is now operated with an A380. The timings of the flight are a bit odd. Why does it sit at DOH for over 8-hours before its return back to LHR? Arriving at 7:05am and departing back to LHR at 3:20pm seems like a very inefficient use of the plane. Instead, why not have it ...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

Club Suite update Total completed: 53 aircraft: 25 Boeing 777-200ER (15 are GE powered and configured 8F 49J 40W 138Y and 10 are RR powered and configured 48J 40W 184Y). 10 Boeing 777-300ER configured 8F 76J 40W 130Y 5 Boeing 787-10 configured 8F 48J 35W 165Y 13 Airbus A350-1000 configured 56J 56W ...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

I can’t access the article but apparently BA are looking to double the amount of short-haul aircraft based at LGW. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/11/27/british-airways-double-operations-gatwick-airport/ Anyone know any further details? EuroFlyer must be doing well! States BA currently ha...

Re: Rumor: BA considering LGW-HNL

Just looking at a random date in February (Monday 13th) there are nine one-stop options from London to Honolulu with BA/AA or BA/AS - all the AA/AS flights carry a BA flight number. The two shortest flights (under 20 hours) are via SEA (onward flight with AS) and are priced at £605 for this leg in e...

Re: G-BNWL first British Airways aircraft in new livery?

Annoyingly i don’t think there was ever one for Wales. There was one designed, but the world tails were ditched before it was ever applied. You can see the Wales image, along with a few others that were never applied, in the June 2022 issue of Airliner world including: Variations on Colour Down the...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

TUGMASTER wrote:

Current plans are for DBV and ACE for G-ZAPX tomorrow (2nd May)

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

Seeing as SQ has now restored their full schedule LHR-SIN, I wonder why BA resorted to a B789 when pre-Covid they ran an A380 LHR-SIN-LHR and an B777ER LHR-SIN-SYD?? A big drop in capacity, unless they plan to increase frequency later this year? As to Australia, big difference in their offering, se...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

BA merging with KL was a deal that really should have been done. One airline with infinite O&D demand at its home city but not enough runway capacity and no possibility to build.... and another airline with vast runway capacity but not enough O&D demand at its home city..... both airlines b...

Re: 40 Years of the Mighty 757

The irony, of course, is that with *only* 1049 deliveries, it must have been almost a disappointment to Boeing. It somehow never quite caught on in Europe. A lot of airlines that flew the 727 (Air France and Lufthansa immediately come to mind) might have been expected to buy the 757 but, for some r...

Re: British Airways News and Discussion Thread - 2022

With the weather don't rule out that a lot of BA staff maybe couldn't even get to work! Quite a few actually use public transport to get to/from LHR, travelling via London. Used to see lots of BA (and a few VS) staff in uniform travelling to/from work on South West Trains or East Midlands Trains. So...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

I seem to remember that HKG ex-Gatters was on the 747... Hello. When British Airways merged with BCal in April '88, the Hong Kong regulators did not accept that merging with BCal gave BA the right to operate LGW-HKG as well as LHR-HKG. As a result, for a period of time after the merger, BA operated...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

Checking some other timetables finds the destinations served by TriStars at BA as below. Not all destinations were served non-stop to/from London, and frequencies varied (e.g. Abidjan was a weekly flight). Winter 1989-1990 (* Shorthaul) To/From London Gatwick ⋅ Abidjan ⋅ Accra &s...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

I might be wrong, but were these not operated by the DC-10 fleet? Or am I mixing up years/equipment?? Thanks! No. I think you’re correct. The LGW long haul list were all operated by the DC-10. The info is direct from the BA timetable showing the equipment used. With the BCal merger BA actually move...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

In terms of destinations served I'll try look through old timetables, but Summer 1989 has (* - shorthaul): From/To London Gatwick: ⋅ Abidjan ⋅ Accra ⋅ Amman ⋅ Athens* ⋅ Baghdad ⋅ Banjul ⋅ Bermuda ⋅ Cairo ⋅ Fre...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

What was the actual phyiscal difference between the -1, the -50 and -100? I never got my head around that. I'd suggest reading the variants section on Wikipedia, but essentially the -50, -100 and -150 were all upgrades of the MTOW of the -1, some also adding a centre fuel tank to increase range. Th...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

BA also flew L1011s to Dhahran during the 1980s (with occasional sensation of services), but eventually switched to a 767 by the 90s. I flew BA129 from LHR-DHA in the summer of 1983, and recall having a bratty gate-side conversation with an adult (I was a kid) who insisted we were flying a Trident!...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

I can't see that mention has been made of the aircraft names. When delivered all the TriStars were named after British rose varieties. However, once the Landor scheme was launched in 1984 as aircarft were repainted the names were changed to bays around the British Isles. The six ordered -500s had le...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

In terms of destinations served I'll try look through old timetables, but Summer 1989 has (* - shorthaul): From/To London Gatwick: ⋅ Abidjan ⋅ Accra ⋅ Amman ⋅ Athens* ⋅ Baghdad ⋅ Banjul ⋅ Bermuda ⋅ Cairo ⋅ Free...

Re: Tristar at BA - cabin & config & long-haul routes

Looking at the Winter timetable for 1986/87 the seat maps show the following: ⋅ TriStar -1 - Club rows 1-15 (9-abreast) 132 seats / L2/R2 / Club rows 16-24 (9-abreast) 74 seats; Economy rows 25-33 (10-abreast) 89 seats / L3/R3 / Economy rows 34-41 (9-abreast) 57 seats ⋅ TriStar -...

Re: New IAG carrier at LGW

Will any of the routes that also go from Heathrow be stopped? I know Lanzarote (ACE) has been cancelled from LHR. Flights were due to end mid-May anyway, but my flights on 9th/16th May have been cancelled and I'm rebooked on the new LGW flights (I have a hotel booked so didn't need to change my dat...

Re: British Airways' golden age: Telegraph article on how BA will get it back

I think BA should ditch Club Europe and call it Euro Traveller Plus. 2+2 seating plus standard legroom doesn't, in my view compare well to the old 3+2 converter seats that at least had decent leg room with a much better inclusive food and drink offering. For the length of sectors BA are flying they ...

Re: Aircraft at Gander on 9/11/2001

I’m surprised at the small number of 747s which were diverted. Although I note DLH were still flying a classic at this point. US airspace was shutdown at 09:45 in the morning (14:45 GMT for UK, 15:45 for most of continental Europe), so TATL flights arriving into the US at that time would have had t...

Re: 35 years ago merger-mania 1986

Here’s a list from Airlines for America showing when the announcements were made (from 1929 to the present) and the closing dates with the merged airline’s (new) name: https://www.airlines.org/dataset/u-s-airline-mergers-and-acquisitions/ How this brings back memories of all these former airlines, ...

Re: oneworld in Central Europe

Frankly, IAG missed the opportunity to take Swiss aboard at the time when they were struggling and looking for a new partnership. LOT and Austrian do not have a high yield customer base to merit OW interest. You do not need to fly everywhere to make money, not to any low yielding market. BA screwed...

Boeing customer codes - rarities or allocated but never used

I know many were nostalgic over Boeing discontinuing the use of customer codes because it showed the original airline to order an airframe (even if it in some cases it maybe was never delivered). But looking through the list of these the other day I was struck by some that would have seen little (or...

Re: 35 years ago merger-mania 1986

Are there any of these mergers that could have gone another way (i.e. different pairings) but talks broke down? Or any that got away? I'm surprised that USAir snapped up Piedmont because I'd have thought they could have been a good fit for some of the other majors. I think the US mergers of the mid-...

Re: Likelihood of a Battleship Gray Retro Livery

A Saul Bass reto jet would be an interesting concept. UA on one side; CO on the other.

Re: British Airways network updates

Surprise KL, as a Financial hub/energy hub, lot of traffic between LHR and KUL. They can put people on one world partner MH though. As to the other cut destinations I guess then can funnel people via AA's hubs (USA/Canada) and QR's DOH hub. In regard to the latter I had an Executive Club email earl...

Re: BA launch flights from SOU

Why SOU out of all places? What's the rationale behind their decision? No direct competition from LCC's or IT charter operators. Fairly wealthy catchment area. Very easy passenger access with M3 / M27 plus direct rail station link. Lower operating costs, like taxi times / distances plus slightly sh...

Re: US-UK sign post Brexit air service agreement

Good to see. Read in news article that UK has already agreed to 18 other standalone air service agreements. Anyone have list? I know Canada is one of them. The former Department for Exiting the European Union listed the following as of November 2019: ⋅ Albania ⋅ Bosnia and Herze...

Re: MSN jump in Boeing 737s

You can work out where some MSNs were part of orders/options but never taken up. For example, 25806-25860 were part of a BA order for 757-236s (25806-25808), 747-436s (25809-25824), 767-336ERs (25826-25834) and 737-436s (25839-25860). However, there are gaps where some aircraft orders were cancelled...

Re: British Aiways 747 memorabilia sale

Selling out that quickly suggests somebody underpriced!

Re: Cathay Pacific DC10 order

The -250 upgrade was available to all frames from 1052 upwards, although anything other than a -200 (fitted with RB211-524B engines) required a full re-engine (from the RB211-22B of the -1/-100 to the RB211-524BI). The engines, lengthened wing, active-load-control ailerons and other system upgrades...

Re: Cathay Pacific DC10 order

I don't recall whether CX only had -1s or some -100s, however, some 40 years, DL converted several of their Tristars to -250 variant, which gave'em a range comparable to the DC-10-30. I'm sure CX would have considered all the options if they really wanted such Trijets. Point taken about the -250, b...

Re: British operators of the DC-10

And what might have been with the MD-11...

Re: British Airways (BA) introducing new First Class suites with doors.

The linked article in the OP included an extract from a BA memo that referenced 77H and 77L (internal designations I suspect). The 77H has the new First and is the 77W (the four new aircraft coming this year - G-STBM/N/O/P). I'm making a guess that given the 77H doesn't have First this will be the G...

Re: British Airways to Lahore

I wonder if this route announcement is more so just because of the slack in the fleet, and BA is simply throwing whatever on the wall and seeing if it sticks or there is a genuine amount of VFR traffic traveling right now that is attempting to avoid transit hubs. If that's the case, I wonder if we ...

Re: Updated: BA fleet parking, will retire 747 fleet

Sad to see that B777-200ER will be less and less among legacy airlines. BA, AA and UA seems to be the last airlines to fly the relatively young B777-200ER in few years time. BA already retired two B777-200 and DL got rid of theirs. AA's fleet review is said to have B777-200ER retirement in sight. A...

Re: Updated: BA fleet parking, will retire 747 fleet

The mid-haul A321s could be vulnerable as a small odd-ball fleet (configuration wise) and won't lend themselves to Club World Suites. At CityFlyer I think some ERJ-170s have already gone and with additional ERJ-190s entering the fleet standardising on the latter could make sense. Depending on lease ...

Re: TWA service to Africa/Middle East/Asia

https://gwulo.com/sites/gwulo.com/files/styles/extra-large__640x640_/public/flickr/26253951704.jpg?itok=5u5OW_2r https://gwulo.com/atom/24749 https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0006/2478/7571/products/TWAHong-Kong-1_480x.jpg?v=1533847507 https://airlineemployeeshop.com/products/twa-hong-kong-travel-...

Re: Was KAL 007 saveable?

The tragic thing with KAL007 is the fact the plane was airborne for so long afterwards. The pilots got it down to 16,000 ft and seemed to have regained a degree of control. But due to what the Soviets subsequently did with the wreckage it's hard to determine if the airframe had been so compromised i...

Re: Updated: BA fleet parking, will retire 747 fleet

When these five 744's get to leave LHR, they should each fly a couple of circuits and simultaneously do a few touch and goes off 27L and 27R. The BOAC 744 flying from Cardiff could join, straight down the middle over the tower waving her wings. The goodwill and PR would more than make up for the co...

Re: BA service to Australia over the years

I'd need to dig out the timetables but for a short while after BA dropped the KUL-CGK leg of the LHR-KUL-CGK flight (BA033/BA034) a SYD tag was added, so the flight was LHR-KUL-SYD on a 777-236 (I think four times weekly). The difficulty for BA/QF was trying to leverage connections through the SIN m...

Re: Why did Boeing say that the 727 replacement was the 757?

Of course, for joint 757 launch customer British Airways the 757 wasn't a 727 replacement because BA never operated the type. But what it did replace at BA was the Hawker Siddeley Trident 3B. The Trident was blighted by being designed too bespoke for BEA, so it was never a huge seller but when it ca...