Miami is showing a A380 this summer as second daily flight.

jfk777 wrote:

Miami is showing a A380 this summer as second daily flight.

So hopefully at least 6 A380’s will be back from the end of July

LHR-SFO BA 285/284
LHR-LAX BA 269/268
LHR-DXB BA 107/106 only on selected days, will also be operated by B77E and A350
LHR-MIA BA 209/208
LHR-JNB BA 055/056

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

LHR-JNB BA 055/056

This one really gives me a puzzle look. I know SAA is basically non-operational. But is there enough traffic between UK and SA by that time considering the SA would not be vaccinated enough to get on UK's green or amber list. I know July is still almost 3 months away. Yet I still think this would be highly unlikely to happen, no?

chonetsao wrote:

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

LHR-JNB BA 055/056

This one really gives me a puzzle look. I know SAA is basically non-operational. But is there enough traffic between UK and SA by that time considering the SA would not be vaccinated enough to get on UK's green or amber list. I know July is still almost 3 months away. Yet I still think this would be highly unlikely to happen, no?

3 months isn’t far away, but it’s also a long way away! Things are changing on a daily basis. As always things change! I am with you tho, the A380 to JNB maybe over the top even tho SAA is out of the picture.

jumpjets wrote:

Galwayman wrote:

skipness1E wrote:

It's supposed to BA operated but I can't for the life of me figure out why, given Qatar fly the route.

Yes agreed , it's a bit odd ,Was surprised that BA fly the route ....

I did wonder whether the BA plans to move routes like this and ACC* to LGW was to make the size of their operation at LGW more viable whilst their Gatwick short haul operations are closed and maybe get better utilisation out of the Gatwick long haul fleet.

* I am not sure whether ACC will now move as the Ghanaian authorities have objected.

Have been told at work that the ACC flight will not move to LGW from LHR now until Winter 2021 at the earliest.

Given that the UK government has begun to announce the "green list" of countries people can return from without the need to quarantine for 10 days post 17th May, and Portugal being a predicted hot-spot for travel for UK citizens BA have announced extra flights from the UK to FAO from several airports including MAN, NCL and EDI, will we possibly see extra uplift on these routes with BA operating 777 or 787 frames rather than the usual A320/321 used?

The main issue for BA here is the cabin configurations on their wide bodies are pretty premium heavy, which means that they really don’t have huge capacities. People going for Palma aren’t going to pay a huge premium for a flat bed, as they may do for a 12 hour flight to Singapore.

Even TUI normally remove the premium economy cabins from their dedicated short haul 787s for the summer, with other flights being operated between long haul rotations. But there is a huge difference in seat coats between an all economy layout for a wide body on short haul and one configured for long haul flights.

BA’s A320s seat a maximum of 177 or 180 passengers, and the A321s seat up to 218 or 220, obviously with big Club cabins those numbers reduce substantially.

In BA configuration the 787-8 seats only 194, with 60 being premium seats and 154 economy. The 787-9 has 89 premium seats and only 127 economy. Neither of those would justify the massive hike in operating costs on a short haul route. By comparison TUI’s 787-8 seats 300, or 325 without a premium cabin, and the 787-9 seats 345.

I think the only BA layout that could ever make sense would be the new 3 Class LGW 777... C32W48Y252. It’s likely that the Club cabin would stretch into WTP leaving 252 economy seats. But you’d have to weigh that capacity against the huge hike in fuel, handling, landing, ATC and crew costs, no point putting on a much bigger aircraft to fill it with £39 fares.

Given the number of short haul aircraft BA have available, plus no doubt plentiful slots at most airports, it’s probably easier to just throw extra rotations at markets where there is significant extra demand.

Regards
CROSSWIND

Crosswind wrote:

The main issue for BA here is the cabin configurations on their wide bodies are pretty premium heavy, which means that they really don’t have huge capacities. People going for Palma aren’t going to pay a huge premium for a flat bed, as they may do for a 12 hour flight to Singapore.

Even TUI normally remove the premium economy cabins from their dedicated short haul 787s for the summer, with other flights being operated between long haul rotations. But there is a huge difference in seat coats between an all economy layout for a wide body on short haul and one configured for long haul flights.

BA’s A320s seat a maximum of 177 or 180 passengers, and the A321s seat up to 218 or 220, obviously with big Club cabins those numbers reduce substantially.

In BA configuration the 787-8 seats only 194, with 60 being premium seats and 154 economy. The 787-9 has 89 premium seats and only 127 economy. Neither of those would justify the massive hike in operating costs on a short haul route. By comparison TUI’s 787-8 seats 300, or 325 without a premium cabin, and the 787-9 seats 345.

I think the only BA layout that could ever make sense would be the new 3 Class LGW 777... C32W48Y252. It’s likely that the Club cabin would stretch into WTP leaving 252 economy seats. But you’d have to weigh that capacity against the huge hike in fuel, handling, landing, ATC and crew costs, no point putting on a much bigger aircraft to fill it with £39 fares.

Given the number of short haul aircraft BA have available, plus no doubt plentiful slots at most airports, it’s probably easier to just throw extra rotations at markets where there is significant extra demand.

Regards
CROSSWIND

BA 787-8 seats 214
BA 787-9 seats 216

Thanks for the responses. Never realised the premium heavy config of the 777/787 fleet. Yes definitely no issues on slots currently so extra rotations on the 320/321 fleet makes perfect sense

Opus99 wrote:

BA 787-8 seats 214
BA 787-9 seats 216

Clearly failed at the 60+154 test. #embarrassed

And do remember to check on the Portuguese side as well. They are renewing the lockdown rules every 2 weeks so far (currently until May 16) and unlike Greece they haven't implemented any exemption besides the EU-wide exemption for entry as tourists. To my understanding therefore Portugal only allow people from UK for essential purposes as there is a general restriction for non-EU arrivals.

This if continued as is, will greatly reduce how many people can fly from UK to Portugal.

Crosswind wrote:

The main issue for BA here is the cabin configurations on their wide bodies are pretty premium heavy, which means that they really don’t have huge capacities. People going for Palma aren’t going to pay a huge premium for a flat bed, as they may do for a 12 hour flight to Singapore.

Even TUI normally remove the premium economy cabins from their dedicated short haul 787s for the summer, with other flights being operated between long haul rotations. But there is a huge difference in seat coats between an all economy layout for a wide body on short haul and one configured for long haul flights.

BA’s A320s seat a maximum of 177 or 180 passengers, and the A321s seat up to 218 or 220, obviously with big Club cabins those numbers reduce substantially.

In BA configuration the 787-8 seats only 194, with 60 being premium seats and 154 economy. The 787-9 has 89 premium seats and only 127 economy. Neither of those would justify the massive hike in operating costs on a short haul route. By comparison TUI’s 787-8 seats 300, or 325 without a premium cabin, and the 787-9 seats 345.

I think the only BA layout that could ever make sense would be the new 3 Class LGW 777... C32W48Y252. It’s likely that the Club cabin would stretch into WTP leaving 252 economy seats. But you’d have to weigh that capacity against the huge hike in fuel, handling, landing, ATC and crew costs, no point putting on a much bigger aircraft to fill it with £39 fares.

Given the number of short haul aircraft BA have available, plus no doubt plentiful slots at most airports, it’s probably easier to just throw extra rotations at markets where there is significant extra demand.

Regards
CROSSWIND

'In BA configuration the 787-8 seats only 194, with 60 being premium seats and 154 economy'. Would you like to review these numbers?.

BA have plenty of A321's free to add extra frequencies to Portugal. Wide-bodies won't be needed unless there's a big cargo demand.

patrickw421 wrote:

And do remember to check on the Portuguese side as well. They are renewing the lockdown rules every 2 weeks so far (currently until May 16) and unlike Greece they haven't implemented any exemption besides the EU-wide exemption for entry as tourists. To my understanding therefore Portugal only allow people from UK for essential purposes as there is a general restriction for non-EU arrivals.

This if continued as is, will greatly reduce how many people can fly from UK to Portugal.

And just like last year. Not having British money is worse then having Covid-19. When push comes to shove, money talks unfortunately.

BA has operated B788 and B789 cargo-only flights on certain European routes to meet cargo demand.

From this coming week passengers will be accepted on these widebody flights.

- LHR-AMS BA430 B788 Wed, Thu
- LHR-ZRH BA712 B788 Wed,

Also from this week a number of European passenger routes will be re-instated at low frequency with A320.

Source: BA.com

BA had operated B788 and occasionally B789 on a number of European routes before COVID. Very often on the AMS, ZRH, ATH and LCA plus a few others. Also MAD has B77W daily and IB use A330’s and A359 though I know this is due to freight demand and for passenger using connections.
So not uncommon to see wide bodies on euro routes. Though most of these routes use wide bodies to carry additional freight loads.
In years gone by BA deployed B763’s on loads of European routes, though I will admit these didn’t have the premium layouts the newer wide bodies in the fleet today.
When looking at the current fleet for economy seats only the B77W and the A35K have cabin bigger than the all economy on A320’s and A321’s and its doubtful they’d use these plane to Portugal due to how heavy they are up front and they are the most used planes for BA currently on the Long Haul routes.
There is the 3-Class B772’s from LGW that hold 252 in economy so these would be good to use as they are not so premium heavy up front. But I’d say these will be used at LGW and LHR and BA would deploy A320’s and A321’s form other UK airports.

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

patrickw421 wrote:

And do remember to check on the Portuguese side as well. They are renewing the lockdown rules every 2 weeks so far (currently until May 16) and unlike Greece they haven't implemented any exemption besides the EU-wide exemption for entry as tourists. To my understanding therefore Portugal only allow people from UK for essential purposes as there is a general restriction for non-EU arrivals.

This if continued as is, will greatly reduce how many people can fly from UK to Portugal.

And just like last year. Not having British money is worse then having Covid-19. When push comes to shove, money talks unfortunately.

I don't doubt that, all economies need and want a share of that tourism money from not just uk but anywhere 'safe' enough.

What I mean is that most people, not just here, assume that people in UK can go whatever countries UK puts on the green list and that's not entirely true. For tourism to be possible again, it also requires the other end make a decision to start accepting people to enter as tourists too. I've seen quite a lot of people in the UK has forgotten that after brexit, when EU countries talk about exemption for EU citizens regarding the essential reasons requirement, they are not included because they aren't EU anymore.

And in this case I don't think Portugal has already announced to start accepting NonEU tourists other than the likes of NZ/AU that EU has on the list on May 17, they might very likely do so but before that is confirmed it will still affect the demand of these flights.

Is FAO runway even long enough for a 777?

eurotrader85 wrote:

Is FAO runway even long enough for a 777?

TAAG Angola Airlines used to fly to FAO with L1011s, 743s etc so (without looking it up) I'd say yes

eurotrader85 wrote:

Is FAO runway even long enough for a 777?

2,500m should be comfortable, especially with such a short flight, low fuel and I'd imagine limited freight carriage. For reference, EK used to serve Newcastle with a 2,300m runway and that was with a 7 hour plus trip back to DXB.

You'd be surprised what large aircraft can do. I used to see 767s regularly in BRS, -300 variants with enough fuel to get to Orlando, taking off on a barely 2,000m runway.

RE: OP. I can't imagine there'll be any need for wide bodies. There will be more than enough airlines with more than enough NB capacity. More likely we'll just see the likes of EZY and RYR doing increased frequencies until they stop being full.

BA has used widebodies on European routes for years (as mentioned before) If they need to run extra flights, throw the 787s on to the more "premium" of Euro routes, where they can command a higher price for Club Europe. Keep in mind, BA is well aware of their previous high flyer passengers, and so would rather remind them of the Club World experience on these Euro flights for now.

There are more indirect factors that go into deploying widebodies on shorter routes. Is it better to run planes that are still being paid for? Pilot hours, being ready....its a long list. I'm sure BA will also upsell Premium and Club (which many a brit wannabe will go for).

I wish BA well. We should all be rooting for the industry, instead of arguing all the time on here.

Crosswind wrote:

The main issue for BA here is the cabin configurations on their wide bodies are pretty premium heavy, which means that they really don’t have huge capacities. People going for Palma aren’t going to pay a huge premium for a flat bed, as they may do for a 12 hour flight to Singapore.

Even TUI normally remove the premium economy cabins from their dedicated short haul 787s for the summer, with other flights being operated between long haul rotations. But there is a huge difference in seat coats between an all economy layout for a wide body on short haul and one configured for long haul flights.

BA’s A320s seat a maximum of 177 or 180 passengers, and the A321s seat up to 218 or 220, obviously with big Club cabins those numbers reduce substantially.

In BA configuration the 787-8 seats only 194, with 60 being premium seats and 154 economy. The 787-9 has 89 premium seats and only 127 economy. Neither of those would justify the massive hike in operating costs on a short haul route. By comparison TUI’s 787-8 seats 300, or 325 without a premium cabin, and the 787-9 seats 345.

I think the only BA layout that could ever make sense would be the new 3 Class LGW 777... C32W48Y252. It’s likely that the Club cabin would stretch into WTP leaving 252 economy seats. But you’d have to weigh that capacity against the huge hike in fuel, handling, landing, ATC and crew costs, no point putting on a much bigger aircraft to fill it with £39 fares.

Given the number of short haul aircraft BA have available, plus no doubt plentiful slots at most airports, it’s probably easier to just throw extra rotations at markets where there is significant extra demand.

Regards
CROSSWIND

On BA, it's very rare for the Premium Economy cabin to be part of Club Europe. More often than not, it's part of the Economy cabin. That being said, the widebody aircraft will always have a slight capacity advantage due to the middle seat blocking in the Club cabin on the A320/A321.

eurotrader85 wrote:

Is FAO runway even long enough for a 777?

Over 8,000 ft and at sea level, plenty long enough for just about anything. Indeed 707/DC8, 747/Tristar and DC10 frequented throughout the 70s through to the 2000s .

So a 77W isn’t an issue !

I'm thinking maybe SVO could be upgraded to a widebody. It was common place to see a 744 on that route up until a few years ago.

[quote="LAXLHR" I'm sure BA will also upsell Premium and Club (which many a brit wannabe will go for)..[/quote]

Would you explain on your "brit wannabe" bit please?

BA currently have 15 short haul A321 and 3 in mid-haul configuration and all of them remain parked. The only A321s that are active are the NEOs. Perhaps they have enough slack in the fleet, or might reactivate A321ceos? I think the limited extent of the Green List precludes to much optimism at this stage. Its basically only Portugal until June.

BA has always had a surprisingly small A321 fleet, out of the ~120 strong A32x fleet they only ordered 12 for short haul operations. By contrast they had ~30 A319s and acquired another 11 from bmi.

concordeforever wrote:

jumpjets wrote:

Galwayman wrote:

Yes agreed , it's a bit odd ,Was surprised that BA fly the route ....

I did wonder whether the BA plans to move routes like this and ACC* to LGW was to make the size of their operation at LGW more viable whilst their Gatwick short haul operations are closed and maybe get better utilisation out of the Gatwick long haul fleet.

* I am not sure whether ACC will now move as the Ghanaian authorities have objected.

Have been told at work that the ACC flight will not move to LGW from LHR now until Winter 2021 at the earliest.

Will it move at all?

Other than the A35Ks, which (if any) of BA's fleet has had the new Club World seat installed?

Have they released a post-Covid updated timetable? I remember hearing that the 788s and 789s would be among the last to get it.

I believe the 78Xs have it as well, plus a few 77Es. I'd guess the newest 77Ws do as well but not seen anything. A quick Google search brought up an article saying all aircraft will have the new club world by 2023, however that was pre-pandemic.

jfk777 wrote:

Miami is showing a A380 this summer as second daily flight.

Great way to deal with Covid Lockdown blues. Just what the doctor ordered!

LAX772LR wrote:

Other than the A35Ks, which (if any) of BA's fleet has had the new Club World seat installed?

Have they released a post-Covid updated timetable? I remember hearing that the 788s and 789s would be among the last to get it.

As MrHMSH says above, the 787-10 has it.

Most of the LHR based G-VII* 777-200 have it as well as a handful of the G-YMM* fleet.

Four 777-300 have it (along with First Suite), with the fifth being refitted as we speak.

787-8 start refit next year.

No word on 787-9 (they are newer than -8 anyway) or A380 as of yet.

Obviously COVID has slowed things as I seem to remember the original plan was to have all 777s finished by the end of this year, along with the start of the -8 refit.

MrHMSH wrote:

I believe the 78Xs have it as well, plus a few 77Es. I'd guess the newest 77Ws do as well but not seen anything. A quick Google search brought up an article saying all aircraft will have the new club world by 2023, however that was pre-pandemic.

Further, the seat will only start being introduced on the A380s from 2023, with the entire fleet of 12 having been upgraded by 2025.

eurotrader85 wrote:

MrHMSH wrote:

I believe the 78Xs have it as well, plus a few 77Es. I'd guess the newest 77Ws do as well but not seen anything. A quick Google search brought up an article saying all aircraft will have the new club world by 2023, however that was pre-pandemic.

Further, the seat will only start being introduced on the A380s from 2023, with the entire fleet of 12 having been upgraded by 2025.

Word on the street is that the A380s will have something along the lines of 110 Club Suites.

Currently 29 aircraft have the new seat:

15 Boeing 777-200ER (12 are GE powered and configured 8F 49J 40W 138Y and 3 are RR powered and configured 48J 40W 184Y).

4 Boeing 777-300ER configured 8F 76J 40W 130Y

2 Boeing 787-10 configured 8F 48J 35W 165Y

8 Airbus A350-1000 configured 56J 56W 219Y

You can follow the progress here: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british ... wards.html

817Dreamliiner wrote:

eurotrader85 wrote:

MrHMSH wrote:

I believe the 78Xs have it as well, plus a few 77Es. I'd guess the newest 77Ws do as well but not seen anything. A quick Google search brought up an article saying all aircraft will have the new club world by 2023, however that was pre-pandemic.

Further, the seat will only start being introduced on the A380s from 2023, with the entire fleet of 12 having been upgraded by 2025.

Word on the street is that the A380s will have something along the lines of 110 Club Suites.

That is an interesting uplift from the present 97 in J. Is that just a tighter J cabin configuration or at the expense of the size of the Y cabin?

eurotrader85 wrote:

817Dreamliiner wrote:

eurotrader85 wrote:

Further, the seat will only start being introduced on the A380s from 2023, with the entire fleet of 12 having been upgraded by 2025.

Word on the street is that the A380s will have something along the lines of 110 Club Suites.

That is an interesting uplift from the present 97 in J. Is that just a tighter J cabin configuration or at the expense of the size of the Y cabin?

Based on the HFP article that mentioned it, it involves a complete rejig of the configuration with the entire upper deck being Club Suite. However it doesn't mention what the lower deck will look like. Currently the A380 has Club, Premium Economy and Economy on the upper deck and First, Club and Economy on the lower deck.

https://www.headforpoints.com/2021/02/2 ... /#comments

817Dreamliiner wrote:

Based on the HFP article that mentioned it, it involves a complete rejig of the configuration with the entire upper deck being Club Suite. However it doesn't mention what the lower deck will look like. Currently the A380 has Club, Premium Economy and Economy on the upper deck and First, Club and Economy on the lower deck.

https://www.headforpoints.com/2021/02/2 ... /#comments

I can see that happening with whole of upper deck being Club Suites.

The current A388 on BA is F14J97W55Y303. There are 104WT (Y) seats in the upper deck (13 rows of 8 seats). Should BA move WTP and WT to lower deck where the current 48J seats are between LL/R2-LL/R3 doors are, there will be a net deduction of WT seats. Assume BA will main 50+ WTP seats in 8 across lay out, that would require 6-7 rows. That would leave only 3-4 rows for WT which is 30-40 seats, a net reduction of 60-70 seats in WT.

That lead me to think the current F cabin on BA A388 might be reduced or relocated.

chonetsao wrote:

817Dreamliiner wrote:

Based on the HFP article that mentioned it, it involves a complete rejig of the configuration with the entire upper deck being Club Suite. However it doesn't mention what the lower deck will look like. Currently the A380 has Club, Premium Economy and Economy on the upper deck and First, Club and Economy on the lower deck.

https://www.headforpoints.com/2021/02/2 ... /#comments

I can see that happening with whole of upper deck being Club Suites.

The current A388 on BA is F14J97W55Y303. There are 104WT (Y) seats in the upper deck (13 rows of 8 seats). Should BA move WTP and WT to lower deck where the current 48J seats are between LL/R2-LL/R3 doors are, there will be a net deduction of WT seats. Assume BA will main 50+ WTP seats in 8 across lay out, that would require 6-7 rows. That would leave only 3-4 rows for WT which is 30-40 seats, a net reduction of 60-70 seats in WT.

That lead me to think the current F cabin on BA A388 might be reduced or relocated.

First Class is being standardised on 8 seats, so the A380 should follow this trend.

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

First Class is being standardised on 8 seats, so the A380 should follow this trend.

Looking at the SQ seat map they have 6F and 82J on the upper deck, so 100+ Club Suites seems about right on the upper deck. Reducing F would seem sensible, but looking at the seatmaps I wonder if that could sensibly be achieved, assuming they would want to keep F in front of the main boarding doors at M2L? I dont think two rows of CS would fit if one row of F were removed?

BrianDromey wrote:

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

First Class is being standardised on 8 seats, so the A380 should follow this trend.

Looking at the SQ seat map they have 6F and 82J on the upper deck, so 100+ Club Suites seems about right on the upper deck. Reducing F would seem sensible, but looking at the seatmaps I wonder if that could sensibly be achieved, assuming they would want to keep F in front of the main boarding doors at M2L? I dont think two rows of CS would fit if one row of F were removed?

If as rumoured 110 club world on the upper deck, everything else will be on lower deck. A fixed cabin divider and curtains will separate First and Premium Economy.

A320B737NGCapt wrote:

If as rumoured 110 club world on the upper deck, everything else will be on lower deck. A fixed cabin divider and curtains will separate First and Premium Economy.

Sorry, I somehow got muddled. Of course it would be WT+ not Club Suites behind F.
I had a look at the seatmaps for the new 77W layout. They have moved quite a bit of the galleys and toilets around to optimise the layout around 2L/R on the 77W, so would probably do so for the A380 also. Who knows what will happen though, is 150+ premium seats the right layout for the post COVID industry? With the slow opening of the UK to international travel, despite a 'world leading' vaccination program, one does wonder how quick the recovery will be? At this stage politics and optics are holding the recovery back rather than economic and demand, so it is a very difficult call.

Sorry, I somehow got muddled. Of course it would be WT+ not Club Suites behind F.
I had a look at the seatmaps for the new 77W layout. They have moved quite a bit of the galleys and toilets around to optimise the layout around 2L/R on the 77W, so would probably do so for the A380 also. Who knows what will happen though, is 150+ premium seats the right layout for the post COVID industry? With the slow opening of the UK to international travel, despite a 'world leading' vaccination program, one does wonder how quick the recovery will be? At this stage politics and optics are holding the recovery back rather than economic and demand, so it is a very difficult call.[/quote]

That’s ok, what they finally do is anybody’s guess, There will be several plans depending on how the world evolves whilst recovering from Covid-19. Well the rest of the world needs to be vaccinated to the same degree as the U.K., otherwise the “World Leading” vaccination programme would of been all for nothing.

There are plenty of people “loyal customers” who will be able to fill those seats. As some seem to suggest business travel for commercial businesses will be reduced. EXAMPLE!, so the need for 8 frequencies on LHR-JFK will not be required. BA could do what EK do between DXB-LHR on the LHR-JFK (Terminal 8) 5-6 times a day

Can we all stop making confident predictions of what the post COVD market will look like? There's just as likely to be the most enormous pent up demand for business travel to come bouncing back as there is for a permanent move to Zoom. Finance can complain all they like, and they really do, but if your competitors move to face to face as a differentiator from you, you can bet the CEO will permit travel. We've all suffered enormously from a lack of common human contact and it's driving many people borderline nuts. Zoom is not nearly as productive as face to face as many people just surf the net from their kitchen or work on other projects, it is most certainly sub optimal for many meetings, especially anything involving sales.
I suspect there will be the most pent up explosive return to long haul business travel just as soon as this is over, and it will be over sooner for many of us. However that does not mean I can say when or if the A380 will be flying and to where. No one knows yet as there are too many variables to plan. The B744s are all gone, some of the B772s are in Teruel, Ba are now paying for a shiney new fleet of B78Xs and A35Ks that are built and not yet delivered. With the seasonal summer boom of UK-US lost for a second year, it'll be next summer at the earliest before post-COVID BA even begins to appear I suspect.

I'm not confident in saying that and I could be completely wrong once again

skipness1E wrote:

I suspect there will be the most pent up explosive return to long haul business travel just as soon as this is over, and it will be over sooner for many of us. However that does not mean I can say when or if the A380 will be flying and to where. No one knows yet as there are too many variables to plan. The B744s are all gone, some of the B772s are in Teruel, Ba are now paying for a shiney new fleet of B78Xs and A35Ks that are built and not yet delivered. With the seasonal summer boom of UK-US lost for a second year, it'll be next summer at the earliest before post-COVID BA even begins to appear I suspect.

I'm not confident in saying that and I could be completely wrong once again

I think that is what we are saying, no-one knows how travel will work out in the coming years. I alluded to the possibility that travel will be restricted by governmental policies around testing and quarantine that make it very unfavourable. My point was that 150+ premium seats is ambitious in all but the very best of times, between Alpha cities. BA has quite a unique need for the A380 and the massive premium cabins, with London being an Alpha++ city and LHR slot contained, at least historically. When you consider the uncertain market, limited belly freight capacity and the possibility of BA and EK being the last two A380 operators standing in the near future one wonders if the A380 fleet will be reconfigured in the context of a small global fleet. BA often keep a fleet to the bitter end, but it entirely possible that the A380 will be retired far younger than 777 and 744 counterparts.
Its a real shame, because as a passenger I think the A380 is unsurpassed in terms of overall experience and comfort and it would be a great aircraft to have Club Suite fitted to.

skipness1E wrote:

Can we all stop making confident predictions of what the post COVD market will look like? There's just as likely to be the most enormous pent up demand for business travel to come bouncing back as there is for a permanent move to Zoom. Finance can complain all they like, and they really do, but if your competitors move to face to face as a differentiator from you, you can bet the CEO will permit travel. We've all suffered enormously from a lack of common human contact and it's driving many people borderline nuts. Zoom is not nearly as productive as face to face as many people just surf the net from their kitchen or work on other projects, it is most certainly sub optimal for many meetings, especially anything involving sales.
I suspect there will be the most pent up explosive return to long haul business travel just as soon as this is over, and it will be over sooner for many of us. However that does not mean I can say when or if the A380 will be flying and to where. No one knows yet as there are too many variables to plan. The B744s are all gone, some of the B772s are in Teruel, Ba are now paying for a shiney new fleet of B78Xs and A35Ks that are built and not yet delivered. With the seasonal summer boom of UK-US lost for a second year, it'll be next summer at the earliest before post-COVID BA even begins to appear I suspect.

I'm not confident in saying that and I could be completely wrong once again

No one was making any “confident predictions”. A few questions and answers of possibilities. As to the rest of your post I agree.

817Dreamliiner wrote:

eurotrader85 wrote:

MrHMSH wrote:

I believe the 78Xs have it as well, plus a few 77Es. I'd guess the newest 77Ws do as well but not seen anything. A quick Google search brought up an article saying all aircraft will have the new club world by 2023, however that was pre-pandemic.

Further, the seat will only start being introduced on the A380s from 2023, with the entire fleet of 12 having been upgraded by 2025.

Word on the street is that the A380s will have something along the lines of 110 Club Suites.

Currently 29 aircraft have the new seat:

15 Boeing 777-200ER (12 are GE powered and configured 8F 49J 40W 138Y and 3 are RR powered and configured 48J 40W 184Y).

4 Boeing 777-300ER configured 8F 76J 40W 130Y

2 Boeing 787-10 configured 8F 48J 35W 165Y

8 Airbus A350-1000 configured 56J 56W 219Y

You can follow the progress here: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british ... wards.html

Thank you!

A380 G-XLEF has just arrived back at LHR from MAD as BA9170,

3 monthly maintenance …?

Some good news for those of us hoping to see A380s back in the skies.

http://www.lufthansa-technik.com/press- ... -releases/

British Airways extends contract for Airbus A380 Base Maintenance Services
Services for 12 aircraft to be performed at Lufthansa Technik Philippines in Manila
British Airways has extended its contract with Lufthansa Technik for Base Maintenance Services for its Airbus A380 aircraft. The contract will run from August 2022 for more than five years and includes services for the airline's 12 A380s to be performed at the Lufthansa Technik Philippines facility in Manila.

readytotaxi wrote:

A380 G-XLEF has just arrived back at LHR from MAD as BA9170,

Just regular maintenance. G-XLEK went the other way.