SNAPSHOT: British Airways 974 London Heathrow to Hamburg (CLUB EUROPE)

It’s time for another snapshot, this time focusing on the passenger experience aboard British Airways on their Airbus A320 between London Heathrow and Hamburg in Club Europe (European Business Class)

In case you’ve forgotten how we do travel write-ups on Economy Class and Beyond, I have two major travel writing styles:

• Trip Reports – These are full deep-dive reports taking you into the experience, the small things… as well as the big things!
• Snapshots – These are bite-sized reviews that show you the basic product in some nice gentle headlines (and normally, only images shot on the phone)

Today, we’re on the Snapshot. The full in-depth review is coming once I get more than 10 minutes to put my fingers to the keyboard and eject my thoughts in the form of typed words.

To the airport

To get to Heathrow on a Sunday after a train strike, I took a mixture of a Flixbus between Birmingham and Central London

Then a London Bus to Tottenham Court Road.

And finally the Elizabeth Line to Heathrow.

Check-in

Due to various reasons, I needed to check a bag in for this flight. I was directed to the First Class check-in area, as the Club check-in area was extremely busy.

Security

Whilst busy, both lanes of Fast Track were operating, with the staff in a slightly better mood than usual. One of my bags was pulled, due to the amount of electronics in it.

Lounge

For a Sunday, it was very busy at Heathrow Airport. I, therefore, chose the South Lounge as it has a little more capacity than the North Lounge for Club and Satus Passengers.

In terms of food, in the late morning when I arrived, breakfast was being served. This was switched to a lunch service during my stay.

Boarding

Boarding was conducted late from Gate A19. with the process delayed. Boarding was conducted in individual groups.

I was pulled forward to allow extra time to board (as I was travelling with the walking stick).

The aircraft

A British Airways Airbus A320 would provide the lift for the 1 hour and a bit flight to Hamburg.

The Seat

This British Airways A320 featured the Collins Aerospace Pinnacle seat. In its Business Class configuration, the middle seat is blocked, filled with a cocktail table.

Inflight Entertainment/Connectivity

There were no video screens active on this flight, however, the InflguWi-Fi service was active. This service is provided by European Aviation Network (Inmarsat and  Deutsche Telekom).

The service was priced starting at £4.99 for inflight connectivity and £1.99 for messaging for an hour, upwards.

Economy Class and Beyond has reviewed the EAN Solution before British Airways implemented in the past. Given the flight length, this option was not taken up.

Catering

British Airways offered an Afternoon Tea service with sandwiches, cake and a warm scone. Both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options were available.

Arrival

The aircraft landed 20 minutes late at Hamburg Airport. With the airport operating in a one-operable runway configuration, there was a delay in taxiing to the gate.

The German border was busy but was able to process the A320s worth of passengers quickly.

Luggage delivery took around 3o minutes to be completed, but eventually, I was able to claim my bag, clear German customs and travel into Central Hamburg.

Random pictures

The full review of BA947 is coming soon.