British Airways long-haul route changes at Gatwick for Winter 2014

British Airways has published its first raft of service changes for London Gatwick for the Winter season, which starts on 26th October.  All in all, it looks positive and reiterates BA’s commitment to the airport.

Here are the highlights:

Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic to get its own dedicated service twice a week.  At present, it is an ‘add on’ to the Antigua service on three days a week.

Antigua will see an increase in capacity because of the removal of passengers travelling on to Punta Cana

Tampa increases to a daily service from the current six per week

Orlando increases to 10 flights per week from the current seven during November and March

Kingston increases to four per week between December and February

Barbados increases to 12 per week between December and February (photo above)

St Kitts and Las Vegas see timing changes but the number of flights is unchanged

These changes have been made possible by the addition of a 10th Boeing 777 to the Gatwick fleet.  As far as I know, no services have been dropped to make way for these additions.

Flights should be available for booking, both for cash and Avios, at ba.com.

In a separate announcement, Singapore will be the next destination to use an Airbus A380.  Starting on October 28th, three services a week will use the new ‘super jumbo’.  The other flights will remain a mix of Boeing 747 and 777 aircraft.

If you have a Singapore flight booked, you can check your aircraft by doing a dummy booking on ba.com – the aircraft type will show when you click on the flight number on the pricing pages.

Singapore becomes the 5th A380 destination, behind Los Angeles, Johannesburg, Hong Kong and Washington.  Four aircraft are currently in service with a further four due for delivery later in 2014.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.