Airlines
British airways is relaunching business class service with delicious new menus
British Airways is relaunching its much-anticipated Club World (business class) service with delicious new menus offering customers a more brasserie-style dining experience
Thursday 27 October: From tomorrow, British Airways is relaunching its much-anticipated Club World (business class) service with delicious new menus offering customers a more brasserie-style dining experience when they travel.
The return to a full service will include new enhanced standards of dining where each course is served to customers individually. British Airways will start serving signature hot soups and warm desserts, such as artichoke and parmesan soup with rye croutons and warm apple strudel with vanilla sauce, which are both perfect starts to the airline’s winter menus.
British Airways’ new Club World menus will reflect its commitment to using British provenance and premium ingredients from local producers celebrating originality. There will also be a range of seasonal options for customers to choose from, such as the British Original Cottage Pie or chocolate fondant with crème anglaise. In addition, the airline will also be offering menus with regional variations that features cuisines tailored to specific routes, including lemon and herb grilled mahi-mahi fish on its Caribbean flights, chicken dum biryani on routes from India and king prawn machbous from the Middle East.
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For those customers wanting to maximize their sleep on board, the airline is also reintroducing its express service on evening flights. Customers will be able to request a one-tray service so they can enjoy a quick bite to eat and then head to sleep if they wish.
The new menus have been carefully curated by British Airways’ culinary experts and have been thoughtfully paired with beverage options from the airline’s inflight drinks menu. Over the last few months, the airline has been trialling menu variations and service styles with the airline’s cabin crew to ensure they meet customers’ expectations.
Sajida Ismail, British Airways’ Head of Onboard Experience, said: “It’s incredibly important that when we brought our full service back, it exceeded our customers’ expectations. We have taken time to ensure that we are offering a premium brasserie-style dining experience that not only tastes good, but one that our crew feel confident in delivering.
“We have had such great feedback from the recent introduction of new menus across our First, World Traveller Plus, World Traveller and Club Europe cabins and we know our new Club World menus won’t disappoint.”
The airline also launched its newest campaign last week, which celebrates British Airways’ people, its customers, the nation and how it has helped make British Airways a British Original. As part of this campaign, customers can expect to see the celebration of originality throughout the menus with British classics and a focus on British provenance.
The airline is also introducing a refreshed Club World check-in zone at Heathrow Terminal 5, to enhance the premium experience at every step of their journey.
British Airways is also continuing to roll out its newest business class seat, Club Suite, across its Boeing 777 fleet. The airline has taken delivery of another A350 aircraft this year, which has the Club Suite installed as well as the latest generation of the First cabin, including the introduction of the First suite door.
Airlines
Oldest Qantas A380 returns to service after being in storage : 16 years +
The Airbus A380 stands as an icon in the aviation world, captivating travelers with its engineering marvel. However, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a halt in its production, causing a surge in demand for airline travel and a scarcity of these aircraft. Now, many airlines are eager to reintroduce the A380 into their fleets to address this shortage.
Qantas, among the airlines, had one of its A380 aircraft sitting in storage for over 16 years. Now, they’re keen to put it back into service to meet the soaring demand. Meanwhile, Emirates, Etihad, and British Airways continue to operate their A380s.
Qantas’s A380, which made its debut landing at London Gatwick, had initially landed at 07:45 BST from Sydney via Singapore. Operated by the registration VH-OQJ, this flight marked a significant return to service.
Another Qantas A380, registered as VH-OQA, recently resumed operations after being stored in Abu Dhabi for over a year. Its return to Sydney on April 5 signaled its readiness to serve again. This fifteen-and-a-half-year-old aircraft made its first post-storage flight on April 6, a 13-hour journey from SYD to LAX, devoid of passengers. Shortly after arrival, it was swiftly deployed for a long-haul flight, QF11, from SYD to LAX.
These trial flights, including the Sydney to London Gatwick route, demonstrate the aircraft’s renewed capability for regular services.
Qantas, like other carriers, faces a challenge in meeting the surging passenger demand with its existing fleet. Hence, the decision to bring back stored aircraft to service is a strategic move to cater to this growing need.
Delivered to Qantas in September 2008, this A380 boasts 12 units, all equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines and a maximum take-off weight of approximately 570,000 kg (~1.26 million lbs). Most have a seating capacity of 485, including 14 first-class seats.
Airlines
British Airways Unveils Two Groundbreaking Weather Apps for UK Operations
In an effort to better prepare for and lessen the impact of weather on any planned flight path, British Airways will be the first airline in the UK to launch two next-generation weather applications. These apps will give pilots and the flight planning teams access to real-time weather data.
At the moment, teams rely on manually created weather reports that are created early in the day. The new apps will enable pilots and flight planning teams to make more operationally effective decisions by allowing them to evaluate the effects of weather variations in real-time and better plan and adjust flight paths.
The first app will provide pilots of the airline with convenient access to weather information from The Weather Company, providing in-depth analysis of weather conditions along flight paths both prior to takeoff and during flight.
To further enhance its capabilities, future upgrades will make use of the onboard Wi-Fi connectivity* to provide real-time in-flight weather updates. The app that will eventually work with the new technologies available to pilots to provide them with exact information on weather changes will also be accessible to the airline’s Integrated Operations Control centre, the operational hub that keeps the airline operating smoothly.
The technology, which is being implemented ahead of the busy summer season, has been built and set to precisely meet the requirements of british airways credit cards’ wide route network, offering benefits across both short- and long-haul operations. This large investment is a component of british airways amex ‘ £7 billion transformation initiative, which is still focused on expanding the airline’s use of modern technologies throughout its operations.
The airline replaced its paper-based system for engineering teams earlier this year with the new Electronic Aircraft Maintenance (eLog) system, which enables instantaneous data transfer from the aircraft to engineers in a matter of seconds. This allows for the pre-ordering of any necessary parts, speeding up the resolution of issues.
Airlines
IndiGo beats Southwest Airlines to Become world’s largest airline by market cap
India’s aviation giant, IndiGo, has soared to new heights, surpassing the renowned US-based Southwest Airlines to claim the title of the world’s third most valuable airline, as per Bloomberg data released on Wednesday.
The surge in IndiGo’s market capitalization, fueled by a remarkable 4.73% jump in its share price to Rs 3,806, catapulted its market value to $17.605 billion, edging past Southwest’s $17.333 billion market cap.
IndiGo’s strategic plans for expansion further solidify its position in the global aviation landscape. With intentions to add 10 new destinations to its network in the fiscal year 2025, the airline anticipates a substantial increase in capacity and passenger growth, aiming for a gross addition of over one aircraft per week during the same period.
Such ambitious endeavors, coupled with a burgeoning demand for travel attributed to tourism and a stable oil price environment, have contributed to the surge in IndiGo’s stock prices. Analysts at InterGlobe Securities attribute indigo partners airlines upward trajectory to several factors, including the operational challenges faced by competitor Vistara and the burgeoning appetite for travel among Indian households.
The rise in income has elevated air travel to a lifestyle staple, with leisure holidays becoming increasingly prevalent. indigo partners As the holiday season approaches, airports across the nation are bracing for heightened activity, promising sustained momentum for IndiGo in the months ahead.