British Airways's plan for passengers paying least to board last prompts negative reaction
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI)
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16:40 26/04/24
British Airways's plans to introduce a policy whereby those purchasing the cheapest tickets will be called last has prompted a a very negative reactions from its passengers.
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The Airline said the policy, which was set to begin from 12 December, was about simplifying the boarding process, in line with that of other carriers such as American Airlines and Iberia.
Passengers would be given a number ranging from between one to five printed on boarding passes with the highest figures said to be reserved for economy fares.
But, according to the BBC the result has been accusations that British Airways was operating a class system, reinforced by negative reactions on Twitter.
Travel writer Nick Redmayne tweeted: "Think BA has lost the plot. Instead of competing with the Aldi and Lidl of the airline world they should have stuck to offering more and costing more. This is a race to the bottom."
Paul Kingsley asked: "What happens if you got it free with frequent flyer points? Will you have to do the walk of shame?"
Rob McVicker said: "It's not about how much money you have, it's about how much of your money you want to give to BA. I want to give them the smallest amount."
However, some supported the policy, with one person tweeting: "Some people might like to go business class and have extra stuff, those who can't afford it, don't. Don't crow at people who choose to spend their money on what they see as better seats and maybe a little luxury."
Meanwhile another supporter tweeted: "This system works very well for American Airlines. It will hopefully end the chaos of BA boarding where everyone tries to board at same time."
Nonetheless, passengers travelling with children would still board the plane ahead of other passengers.
BA was firm on its stance, emphasising efforts it had undertaken to improve and simplify the travelling experience for its customers.
A BA spokeswoman said: "We are always looking at ways to improve and simplify the airport experience for our customers... Next month we are introducing new boarding procedures to speed up the process and make it simpler for customers to understand."