British Airways flies planes empty because it lacks flight attendants

On Nov 14, 9:55 pm, Mxsmanic wrote:
British Airways has admitted flying dozens of "ghost flights" across the
Atlantic, with only pilots and cargo aboard (and no passengers), because it
doesn't have the crews to staff the flights with passengers:

http://www.emailthis.clickability.co...kMap=viewThis&...

Some of the ghost flights are apparently flown just to keep slots at major
airports active, even though every ghost flight burns tons of fuel.

Why don't they just hire more FAs? Or--like several other airlines--do they
make so much from hauling cargo across the Atlantic that they don't need
passengers to turn a profit?

My wife and I flew back last weekend from Johannesburg
and London on BA. The 747 from JoBurg to LHR was full, but from there
to YYC the cattle-car section of the 777 was jammed, yet the snooty-
chairs were mostly empty. I endured 9 hours of discomfort; good thing
I didn't know until I got off that those comfy lounges were
unoccupied. Might have made noise about getting a better seat. Now I
wonder: maybe those expensive chairs were empty because they had no
attendants for that section?

Dan

On Nov 16, 3:09 pm, wrote:
On Nov 14, 9:55 pm, Mxsmanic wrote:

British Airways has admitted flying dozens of "ghost flights" across the
Atlantic, with only pilots and cargo aboard (and no passengers), because it
doesn't have the crews to staff the flights with passengers:

http://www.emailthis.clickability.co...kMap=viewThis&...

Some of the ghost flights are apparently flown just to keep slots at major
airports active, even though every ghost flight burns tons of fuel.

Why don't they just hire more FAs? Or--like several other airlines--do they
make so much from hauling cargo across the Atlantic that they don't need
passengers to turn a profit?

My wife and I flew back last weekend from Johannesburg
and London on BA. The 747 from JoBurg to LHR was full, but from there
to YYC the cattle-car section of the 777 was jammed, yet the snooty-
chairs were mostly empty. I endured 9 hours of discomfort; good thing
I didn't know until I got off that those comfy lounges were
unoccupied. Might have made noise about getting a better seat. Now I
wonder: maybe those expensive chairs were empty because they had no
attendants for that section?

I believe British Airways feels it's more important to maintain the
exclusivity (and therefore perceived value) of those seats than to
fill them up the unsold ones with, say, the highest status frequent
fliers who are on the flight like most airlines would do. I took a
rtw business trip in business class last year and the travel agent had
a bitch of a time getting the seats on the BA segments because they
simply didn't want to release them at the RTW business class prices
(and this was the same flight you were on, Joburg to LHR).

xyzzy writes:

I believe British Airways feels it's more important to maintain the
exclusivity (and therefore perceived value) of those seats than to
fill them up the unsold ones with, say, the highest status frequent
fliers who are on the flight like most airlines would do.

That sounds very typically British.

"Mxsmanic" wrote in message
...
xyzzy writes:

I believe British Airways feels it's more important to maintain the
exclusivity (and therefore perceived value) of those seats than to
fill them up the unsold ones with, say, the highest status frequent
fliers who are on the flight like most airlines would do.

That sounds very typically British.


I will take that as a compliment.
--

JohnT

JohnT writes:

I will take that as a compliment.

That also sounds very typically British.

xyzzy wrote:

On Nov 16, 3:09 pm, wrote:

On Nov 14, 9:55 pm, Mxsmanic wrote:


British Airways has admitted flying dozens of "ghost flights" across the
Atlantic, with only pilots and cargo aboard (and no passengers), because it
doesn't have the crews to staff the flights with passengers:

http://www.emailthis.clickability.co...kMap=viewThis&...

Some of the ghost flights are apparently flown just to keep slots at major
airports active, even though every ghost flight burns tons of fuel.

Why don't they just hire more FAs? Or--like several other airlines--do they
make so much from hauling cargo across the Atlantic that they don't need
passengers to turn a profit?

My wife and I flew back last weekend from Johannesburg
and London on BA. The 747 from JoBurg to LHR was full, but from there
to YYC the cattle-car section of the 777 was jammed, yet the snooty-
chairs were mostly empty. I endured 9 hours of discomfort; good thing
I didn't know until I got off that those comfy lounges were
unoccupied. Might have made noise about getting a better seat. Now I
wonder: maybe those expensive chairs were empty because they had no
attendants for that section?


I believe British Airways feels it's more important to maintain the
exclusivity (and therefore perceived value) of those seats than to
fill them up the unsold ones with, say, the highest status frequent
fliers who are on the flight like most airlines would do.

Most airlines wouldn't normally do this on this length of a flight
without some kind of cash/miles/points payment.

Craig Welch writes:

Translation:

'Like most airlines would do'

Not necessarily.

Mxsmanic wrote in
:

Craig Welch writes:

Translation:

'Like most airlines would do'

Not necessarily.


Nitwit.


Bertie

"Craig Welch" wrote

Would you like to read my post, and reply again, trimming in the
correct places?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Are you kidding, or what?

You are asking a k00k/troll to treat your post right?

You've been MXed, my man!

'Nuff said.
--
Jim in NC

Make credence recognised that on Sat, 17 Nov 2007 03:44:53 GMT, Craig
Welch has scripted:

Mxsmanic said:

Craig Welch writes:

Translation:

'Like most airlines would do'

Not necessarily.

Huh?

Would you like to read my post, and reply again, trimming in the
correct places?

Craig, meet Mixi.
--
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DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
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