BRITISH AIRWAYS' GREEN LIGHT

Monday May 17:

This morning British Airways’ BA492 flight from Heathrow to Gibraltar took off at 07:10am, the airline’s first flight to a ‘green list’ destination.

The airline is operating a number of flights throughout the day (May 17) to other destinations on the UK’s ‘green list’. These include a flight to Lisbon, three flights to Faro and one flight to Funchal in Madeira. The airline has suspended flights to Tel Aviv.

On May 17 in 2019, the airline operated hundreds of flights, compared to just 70 departures* that it plans to operate today, highlighting the devastating impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on the airline industry.

This morning British Airways and Heathrow Airport Limited hosted a virtual conference from British Airways’ home at Terminal 5 with its CEOs, Sean Doyle and John Holland-Kaye.

Speaking during the conference, Sean Doyle, British Airways Chairman and CEO, said: “Today, the first day of a return to international travel, is a special day for many people, because for so long now families have been separated, business has suffered, and we know that our customers haven’t been able to take the breaks abroad that they’ve wanted. After more than a year of limited flying, we’re pleased to be back in the skies – albeit with a very small number of flights.”

The airline has introduced changes to the flying experience to help ensure a frictionless experience, including trials of travel apps to upload documentation and a virtual queuing system, as well as the introduction of pre-flight food ordering for Euro traveller customers and delivery of menu items in the lounges to seats by QR code.

British Airways also recently launched its new advertising campaign, putting its people and its customers at the centre of the story about its return to the skies. Over the coming months those flying with the airline will receive a special welcome back with personalised boarding announcements, cards and chocolates.

Customers travelling with British Airways can do so with peace of mind, as the airline has introduced a range of safety measures to make the travel experience simple and safe during and after the pandemic. Customers can visit the airline’s Covid-19 hub page to find out more information on all of the safety measures in place.

British Airways has consistently championed testing as way to re-open travel safely and has ensured its customers have access to a wide range of discounted Covid-19 pre-departure, return to the UK and arrivals testing options. The airline has a dedicated webpage on ba.com where customers can find the right test to meet the entry requirements for their destination.

In common with other operators of the aircraft, BA's Airbus A380s remain on the ground.

Travel passes

British Airways is currently trialling digital health travel app VeriFLY, which can be downloaded to a mobile device, which is designed to check customers meet the entry requirements of their destination by providing digital health document verification and confirming eligibility, before they depart for the airport. The airline is working to integrate VeriFLY into its systems with customers travelling to New York, Miami or San Francisco, able to check-in online if they are using the travel app.

Ba.com

British Airways’ customers travelling to Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal can now also upload their negative Covid-19 test result and other documentation directly into ba.com for verification before travel.

Book with Confidence

Customers can book their flights with British Airways with confidence, safe in the knowledge that if they need to change their date or destination of travel they can do so or request a voucher for future travel.

Safety measures

The safety of British Airways’ customers and colleagues is always the airline’s top priority and at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic British Airways quickly introduced new safety measures including:

· Observing social distancing where possible

· Using hand sanitisers that are placed throughout airports and on board aircraft

· Reminding customers to wear a face mask at all times and to bring enough to replace these every four hours for longer flights

· PPE is worn by cabin crew

* From London Airports

Images Kevan James