Business | Aviation
BA moves most Mideast flights to its Terminal 5
British Airways has moved most of its Middle East flights to Terminal 5, its £4.3-billion (Dh15.78 billion) home in London Heathrow.
- Staff Report
- Published: 23:43 October 29, 2008
Dubai: British Airways has moved most of its Middle East flights to Terminal 5, its £4.3-billion (Dh15.78 billion) home in London Heathrow.
Britain's flagship carrier operates 56 services weekly to the GCC.
"Terminal 5's facilities have continued to grow from strength to strength, this ground-breaking facility has welcomed the last batch of longhaul flights and it is working well," said Paul Starrs, commercial manager, Middle East.
"British Airways is the sole airline operating out of Terminal 5 and it is no exaggeration to say this exciting new terminal has transformed the passenger experience at Heathrow," Starrs said.
The airline's three daily Dubai flights were part of the remaining bundle of long-haul services to make the switch to Terminal 5, Britain's largest free-standing building. British Airways' daily services from Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait transferred to Terminal 5 on September 17.
"All of our Middle East passengers can look forward to experiencing Terminal 5's exceptional service benefits. We now have 92 per cent of our flights operating out of Terminal 5 - which equates to over 500 flights a day," he added.
And with the introduction of the airline's "Galleries" Lounges concept, Starrs added, Terminal 5 has given British Airways the opportunity to radically overhaul its airport lounges. British Airways' £60-million investment has delivered the "Concorde Room", "Galleries First", three "Galleries Clubs" and the "Galleries Arrivals".
Starrs also believes British Airways has solved Terminal 5's opening problems: "The difference between Terminal 5's March opening and this final move is in scale. On day one, we transferred 380 flights into a brand new terminal; now we have successfully completed the move."
"We have over 2,000 staff operating check-in areas, fast-bag drop counters and high-tech baggage facilities. Terminal 5 is working," Starrs said.
Spread over five floors, Terminal 5 is the size of 50 football pitches and offers space, convenience, comfort and spectacular views across the Heathrow airfield for virtually every step of the journey.
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