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Hi all,
We were delayed by over 3 hours on our travel back from LHR to Manchester on Monday 23/09. The reason we were given was that there was a problem with one of the runways causing all flights to depart from a single runway therefore causing the delays. My understanding is that EC261 would not apply due to the problem caused being external to BA. The complaint a lot of passengers had, however, is that BA boarded us 1 hour late and then had us sit on board at the stand for another 2 hours when they would surely have known that the flight was delayed by more than one hour at the point of boarding, so why not leave everyone in the terminal (or as in our case in the lounge) where they would be more comfortable. Once on board all we got was a small bottle of water and a tiny bag of corn snacks and no opportunity to recharge our devices which had been in use all day by that point.
Should BA not have dealt with this situation better and is there any recourse for compensation? Thanks in advance for any insight you can share.
I think this is fairly common and possibly down to not wanting to lose a take-off slot if the issue is suddenly rectified.
I have been similarly detained on board a few times, including for 4 hours in CW last December and got the same refreshments!
@Si – it is standard procedure for airlines to board passengers in these very fluid situations so that they are in a position to depart as soon as they can. Had you not done so, you might well have been delayed even further. BA has no interest in making you wait onboard longer than necessary nor in delaying your journey in any way.
It is incredibly expensive and a logistical nightmare for BA to have a valuable asset not being utilised, crew with their hours running down and they are having to worry about the aircraft not being where it should be and more affected passengers.
BA isn’t going to start handing out meals because they need to be ready to go at a moment’s notice. BA also can’t really be held responsible for the fact you arrived on board so starving that you needed more than the snack and with uncharged devices given all the opportunities to deal with both in the terminal.
It’s pretty normal. They get everyone on and if a take off slot becomes available because another plane hasn’t prepared in time you can be on your way.
2 hrs on the plane really should be the max though.
Honestly are any of us really in any way shape or form “starving” after 3-4 hours of not eating? Let’s be honest it’s more like bored and thought some food would be nice.
Also one reason I always carry a powerbank on a plane and these delays are so common it’s worth getting one. Anker recommended. Small ones cost £30ish
@Si – it is standard procedure for airlines to board passengers in these very fluid situations so that they are in a position to depart as soon as they can. Had you not done so, you might well have been delayed even further. BA has no interest in making you wait onboard longer than necessary nor in delaying your journey in any way.
It is incredibly expensive and a logistical nightmare for BA to have a valuable asset not being utilised, crew with their hours running down and they are having to worry about the aircraft not being where it should be and more affected passengers.
BA isn’t going to start handing out meals because they need to be ready to go at a moment’s notice. BA also can’t really be held responsible for the fact you arrived on board so starving that you needed more than the snack and with uncharged devices given all the opportunities to deal with both in the terminal.
If you want compensation for the truly terrible weather on Monday you should perhaps appeal to a higher authority.
I’ve experienced times where I have boarded on time with an expected 3 hour ATC delay to find it disappear the moment the doors close. I’ve also had the same delay that ended up going the other way and being 4 hours. It’s less than ideal having everyone onboard for so long but as stated above the situation can change in a heartbeat and the airline has only minimal control over ATC delays.
What would you suggest BA does in such situations?
Perhaps not as easy as you might think.
On reflection the vast majority of airlines at LHR would have done the same as BA did.
You were on the lounge so had the opportunity to eat and charge your devices whilst there.
BA supplied passengers with water and snacks which met the right to care requirements of providing refreshments.
The issue on Monday was caused by a loose light fitting and the runway was closed for 45 minutes whilst it was repaird. This caused up a long backlog and the quickest way of recovering is to have passengers and planes ready to go the moment they get clearance to prevent futher delays building up.
Thanks for your insights folks.
To be fair ‘starving’ is not a word that appears in my post. I wasn’t personally hungry, in fact i was jet-lagged after flying back from Santo Domingo to Madrid overnight without any sleep and then flying back Madrid to LHR only then to be stuck in a massively over-crowded Galleries lounge with the only seats available ones without access to charging ports. So charging was an issue but food wasn’t.
I was more interested in the responsibilities BA had to its customers with their varying needs at that time, so I appreciate your insights and experiences.
Thanks folks
Coincidentally I am currently sitting on BA 1387 and the pilot has just explained very clearly and articulately that we are going to be delayed taking off by up to 25 minutes but it’s good that we have boarded on time as these things are fluid and we may get a take off slot at any minute.
Not a word of dissent when explained in these terms! I appreciate 3 hours is different, but were you not getting updates from the flight deck, @Si?
@NorthernLass Always lots of updates from me in these circumstances along with lots of use of the word ‘we’. If you let people know what’s happening and why it’s much easier to manage, I also invite flight deck visits from children of any age, youngest first.
Yes he cleverly played the empathy card by telling us he’s very keen to get back to London!
No flight deck invites although the average pax on this particular flight looks distinctly middle-aged, you can tell the schools have gone back. Silver surfers enjoying the freedom (hair and status) 😂
I honestly couldn’t fault the pilot, he kept the communication going throughout, he was articulate and empathetic. As staff started going out of hours (including himself) he came into the cabin to answer any questions, which he did over the PA system, relaying the questions he was asked and then giving the answers – top job
Today is not different. All seems to have a delay, including mine for 2hr
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