Don't you wish all flights were like this one! Please comment!
 

Yesterday, I flew from London Heathrow to Miami and I was very happy with the flight. No, I didn't get bumped up to Business or Economy Plus like in the past, but still I was happy, even with the tight 31" economy seating.

I walked on the plane at 1:30 p.m. and immediately set my watch back 5 hours to Eastern Time. The plan Pushed Back at 9:11 from the gate, 21 minutes late and took off at 9:37. The Fasten Seat Belt sign was removed 11 minutes after take-off.

At 10:10 I was offered a drink. I chose a Vodka and Tomato Juice. I was also given a red wine for lunch, a dry Bordeaux. (free of charge)

At 10:23, they removed the trash and at 10:31, I watched the commercial free movie, "She's the Man," on my individual television.

At 10:41, I was offered either Salmon or Chicken. I took the Salmon which was really quite good and was given a second wine. At 11:15 I was offered coffee or tea, and I took a third red wine.

At 1:36, they turned on the fasten seat belt sign for 28 minutes for necessary reasons.

I only saw one flight attendant offering water or orange juice after the lunch. Instead, one was encouraged to stretch their legs and walk to the galley for another drink--including free alcohol. Since I had to drive once in Miami, I drank several glasses of water.

At 4:30, they offered a snack that consisted of an egg sandwich, fresh fruit and cake. The trash was picked up at 4:56.

My individual television monitor contained 18 channels where I only saw one commercial. I watch the movie Eight Below about dogs left in Antartica, followed by Will and Grace, Everyone Loves Ramond, and The Simpsons.

At 5:51, the pilot announced, we are 20 minutes from landing and turned on the fasten seat belt sign. The cabin crew were asked to take their seats at 6:07, and the plan had to circle around due to rain before landing at 6:20.

For a nine hour flight, the fasten seat belt sign was on for about one hour. The flight attendants were quite friendly but businesslike, and never were we told not to queue for the toilets or stand in the galley.

I will fly British Airways again!

And you paid <b>how much</b>?????????

I flew on 50,000 Frequent Flyer miles. Most airlines wanted 100,000 or 60,000. I flew Miami to London to Berlin round trip. I even got a free wine from Berlin to London both times.

With taxes, Internet usage fee, fuel surcharge, it came to $235.00 round trip.

Wally - I could easily hate you for having such a nice flight! :)

We booked our tickets to Italy through American Airlines, but we were actually to fly AA from Dallas to Zurich, Swiss Air from Zurich to Rome; then British Air from Venice to London and AA from London to Dallas.

Our flight was delayed in Venice due to mechanical trouble, so we missed our connection in London. The next day we flew BA to Dallas - WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!! (Yes, I am shouting!)

On AA, the plane showed one current movie and one ancient movie, with one screen every 6 or 7 rows. On BA, we had a choice of 13 movies on individual screens.

On AA, alcohol for $5. On BA, alcohol was free. On AA, uncomfortable seats; on BA, head rests that adjusted so well that I didn't need my travel pillow. BA gave my girls a travel bag with crayons, a little electronic games, etc.

There was just a world of difference between AA and BA. My kids are now spoiled and don't want to fly AA again!

I'm a big fan of British Air. IMO they really do their best to keep everyone calm, happy, entertained, fed, and comfortable.

I flew British Air the end of last year. SFO to London and then London to Copenhagen. I think it's as good as it gets in economy. I have no complaints, economy is what it is.

That is EXACTLY how I was treated on British Airways. I love that airline! I also liked the little “happy hour” that they had – please stretch your legs and have some snacks with the crew. Oh, and on the night flight out I was given juice and a hot towel as they escorted me to my seat. I asked for a red wine when they were taking cocktail orders – she asked if I would like the same with dinner. When I said yes she said – well then, take two!

And would you believe they still had to have someone arrested after the plane landed?

What had to be arrested &amp; why?

It was ridiculous. We were preparing to land and he would not take his seat. He stood over a flight attendant (who was buckled in) screaming in his face. Luckily there was a NYC police officer on board who put him in his seat. He was put on the next plane back out of the country. I’ve never witnessed that on a plane and it was VERY disturbing. I don’t love to fly on a good day. It’s amazing that you could be treated so incredibly well and still behave that way. (he deserved to be on Alitalia!!!)

Meant to say &quot;who had to be arrested.&quot; Was he drunk or just nuts? Scary stuff when that happens.

I'm also a big fan of BA. If ever given a choice of airlines to fly out of DFW to London, it's always BA. The one thing I do miss about BA is the little menu they use to pass out so you knew what your choices were.

We flew BA last year return from Montreal to London and from Barcelona to London (we took Iberia from London to Barcelona). Did we ever enjoy it! When we were checking in, a BA employee came over to the check-in agent and told her to put us in the emergency row seats (we're both 6', so that was much appreciated!)

The flight attendant in our section was super nice. I've always hated take-off, so she chatted with me to take my mind off of it. We also got 2 bottles of wine with dinner, and had a great selection of entertainment. It was a very comfortable flight.

This year we're going open-jaw with them from Montreal to Berlin, then Amsterdam to Montreal, all through London. Looking forward to every minute!

Just a suggestion, Wally, but

LOSE THE WATCH!!

think of it as training for retirement.

One thing I love about AA (not!) is the way they announce that drinks are &quot;5 dollars or 5 euros.&quot; Do they think that Europeans can't count?????

Hmmm....if the drinks cost 5 of anything, maybe I could pay in pesos?

After reading this thread, I'm bummed that BA does not fly out from where I live.

&quot;Loose the Watch.&quot; I think people want to know when to expect their meal and snack. If you are flying BA, don't eat a big meal before getting on the plane.

BTW, the salad contained a good amount of cheese and the dessert was excellent. They do advertise on their website a three-course meal.

I talked to a number of people in Europe who flew American or Continental airlines to Europe and said the fasten seat belt sign was off for only 10 minutes of the 9 hour flight. Well, those flight attendants do need to get around and sell those drinks now, don't they.

I get so annoyed when the flight attendants announce in the middle of the night, &quot;The captain has not turned off the fasten seatbelt sign, please return immediately to your seats.&quot; This did NOT happen with BA.

So gald to hear someone had a good flight! Just curious to know why you didn't use your FF miles for an upgrade to Business Class instead of a free economy ticket?
Maybe no B/class seats available??.

I fly mostly BA these days, in business class for work and in PE for personal travel. For the most part, I give BA good marks. When my 79 yo mom came to visit in May/June, they upgraded her from economy to PE and put her on the list to be upgraded to business if possible, which was a nice gesture (she paid about $700 for her RT economy class ticket from Orlando). She's not disabled, but having had a stroke some years back, she does have some weakness and tires easily.
I've always had good service in PE--for example, the last time, I asked for a Bailey's, which the FA explained wasn't available to economy or PE passengers. I thanked him anyway and about 5 minutes later he popped back with two mini bottles he'd filched from biz class.
However, I've also had good experiences with Air France, Lufthansa, the late Sabena and Swissair (which let us bring on 60 extra kilos of luggage at no charge), and even Alitalia (intra Europe flights only). The airlines I won't fly again unless absolutely necessary are Air Canada (blechh!!!) and Northwest.