Flights – London Heathrow T5 to Hamburg (British Airways)

This is aircraft G-EUPO after it had landed in Hamburg Airport, arriving on time from London Heathrow T5. The aircraft is an A319 which BA have owned and operated since 2000.

I was able to board in the first group which was fortunate as the flight was nearly full. The aircraft could have been a little cleaner, but it looked well maintained and in good order. I was in an exit row seat which was sufficiently spacious and comfortable.

There was a crew member who seemed to be new and he was being ultra efficient in term of his security protocol. I’d far rather that he was like that than not caring, but he had a passenger remove a book from the seat pocket as they were in an exit row, which seemed slightly excessive. At the end of the flight the same crew member tried to get the customer in front of me to return his seat to the original position, which confused the seat occupant as he was in a seat which didn’t even recline. The crew member was polite though, and I liked his enthusiasm, with the entire crew seeming to work well together.

From the in-flight menu, this is the page which brought British Airways to the attention of that media titan, the Daily Mail. The afternoon tea doesn’t include a cup of tea, which is only sort of mentioned in the description.

The flight was fifteen minutes late in leaving Heathrow T5 due to congestion at the airport. The pilot explained he’d be remaining at the stand, as opposed to waiting in a queue on the runway, in a bid to save fuel. The pilot gave regular updates and fortunately he was able to make up time during the flight so we landed on time.

This was yet another comfortable flight with British Airways, nothing spectacular, but efficient, well managed and organised.