Once considered the world’s favorite airline, British Airways (BA) now finds itself at the bottom of a new ranking for long-haul flights.
A recent survey by Which?, a consumer watchdog, has revealed that BA’s performance has dropped significantly, placing it at the bottom for long-distance journeys.
To make matters worse, it also trailed behind budget carriers like EasyJet and TUI in the short-haul category.
The Survey Results
Which? gathered feedback from 9,000 flights, asking passengers to rate 16 short-haul and 19 long-haul airlines on various factors, including punctuality, comfort, and customer service. The results were not kind to BA, which scored just two stars out of five in several key areas, such as seat comfort and overall value for money, across both short- and long-haul routes.
Rory Boland, editor at Which?, expressed disappointment in BA’s performance, noting, “British Airways’ poor showing in our survey highlights how far the airline has fallen from its reputation as an industry leader.”
He pointed out that other airlines are still managing to provide solid service despite widespread delays and cancellations.
Customer Service Woes
One of the areas where BA struggled the most was in customer communication.
The survey cited several negative passenger experiences, including a case where Joanne Anderson, a 76-year-old from Belfast, was promised a refund for a cancelled flight within seven to ten days but had to wait an agonizing nine weeks instead.
“It feels like they are making a fool of their customers,” Anderson said, adding that the airline seems to frustrate passengers until they give up.
Another traveler complained of receiving a cancellation notification via text in the early hours, leaving no time to adjust travel plans.
These frustrations are adding to the growing number of complaints about BA’s customer service.
A String of Bad News
Unfortunately, this latest survey result isn’t the first setback for British Airways in recent years.
Back in the summer of 2018, the airline suffered a massive data breach that compromised the personal details of nearly 400,000 passengers, leading to a hefty £20 million fine from the Information Commissioner’s Office.
More recently, in May 2023, 20,000 passengers were affected when BA had to cancel flights due to a technical glitch.
And just this month, a London-bound flight was forced to turn back to Dubai after toxic fumes filled the cabin.
BA’s Response
In response to the survey, a BA spokesperson argued that the Which? results didn’t align with the positive feedback they’ve been receiving from many other passengers.
They pointed to their £7 billion investment program, claiming that operational performance had improved by 18% in the past year alone.
The spokesperson acknowledged there was still room for improvement but expressed pride in the progress made so far.
Top Performers in the Survey
While BA struggled, other airlines shone in the survey.
For the fourth year running, Jet2 took the top spot for short-haul flights, while Singapore Airlines earned the highest ranking for long-haul journeys, showing that good service is still possible despite the challenges the airline industry faces today.