I’m back home and honestly quite pleased by my 11-hour journey in World Traveller Plus onboard British Airways’ aging 747-400. The flight exceeded my expectations.
I’ve flown British Airways so many times over the years and have yet to have a bad service encounter. Quite the contrary, I’ve had so many great interactions with caring and helpful staff, including on my A350-1000 flight last month.
In the past, I’ve flown economy class, business class, and first class, but this was my first flight in World Traveller Plus, BA’s premium economy product.
Let’s start, then, with the service. The crew was lovely; very professional and yet very friendly. They were attentive too, with frequent checks on the cabin and proactive offers for beverage refills. This was not a “mixed fleet” crew as most had more than 15-20 years of experience as a BA flight attendant.
I lucked out with BA’s classic British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) livery on my aircraft, which made me even happier I had chosen to fly on BA.
> Read More: British Airways’ Stunning New 747 Paint Job
I chose the 747-400 not so much for the aircraft or the older premium economy seat, but due to schedule. While I would have preferred to review the new 787-9 World Traveler Plus seat for purposes of it having a longer review shelf life, it is always a joy to fly on the Queen of the Skies.
The Flight
The “older” seats are plusher seats and I found the cushioning to be more comfortable than both Lufthansa and United.
Recline was decent, even in the last row (I was seated in 36G, the only non-middle seat available when I purchased my ticket less than 24 hours in advance of travel). The leg rest and fold-down foot rest were also put to good use.
Surprisingly, I ended up sleeping for the majority of the flight. The new soft blanket and pillow that British Airways recently debuted helped.
I feared I’d have an ancient IFE system like I did last time I flew the BA 747-400 from London to New York, but the seatback system was brand new and was extremely responsive and loaded with great content.
As for meals, I was warned by readers that I would be disappointed. It turns out, I was not. I was certainly disappointed I did not book far enough in advance to pre-order a meal. The choices were braised British beef, prawns in a Thai green curry, or pasta and I chose beef….specifically because it was not a steak so would not suffer from the dryness problem. Furthermore, I had eaten virtually zero protein that day. In any case, it was tasty:
Before landing, a second meal was served of chicken tikka masala or conchiglie pasta in mushroom sauce. I had the pasta and it was the better meal of the flight.
Lastly, the flight was provisioned with wi-fi, and it worked well (19.99GBP for a flight pass).
CONCLUSION
I had a nice flight on British Airways World Traveller Plus. I’ll provide far more details in my full review, but can wholeheartedly endorse this product (at the right price point, of course) after my great LHR-LAX flight.
Am surprised by your review of WTP. I’m gold with BA and so I buy it quite frequently but don’t think much of it at all. For non status holders the deal is actually quite mediocre; no priority check in, airport amenities, like Virgin Atlantic.
Looks like they’ve improved the meal service substantially. I enjoyed the comfy seats flying MAA-LHR nearly 6 years ago, but the food was nothing to write home about. A “mixed grill” for breakfast that looked quite sad and didn’t taste much better.
In any event, getting on the BOAC 747 would have made my month, regardless of the on-board product!
One thing that is rarely mentioned in reviews is the air quality. I notice I sleep better and feel less drained flying on modern aircraft, A380 particularly but also B787 particularly. This influences the flights I take. Does this influence other travelers?
You’re absolutely right.
I often feel short of breath and need to yawn a lot on long 747 flights, but after returning from Thailand on board Lufthansa’s A380 upper cabin (both ways) I can honestly say it was the most comfortable fresh airplane cabin I’ve ever flown in.
So, yes, there have definitely been big improvements in air quality in the latest generation of aircraft, compared to the ageing workhorses like the older 747’s.
I have found that the great improvement in food on BA has made me like it much more now than is probably justified. I wish United would learn from that.
The shared armrest between the seats appears to be only a tiny bit wider than economy. In real premium economy it should be about six or seven inches wide.
I’ll fly this route, BUD-LAX (via LHR) in December, I’ve just booked it a few days ago, at a discounted, 750 USD rate for the return. Thats decent I think.
I also recently flew BA business class to SEA, and the braised beef with mashed potatoes was exactly the same dish as yours on the picture (with a fairly nicer presentation, on a bigger plate, but slightly smaller portion).
BA’s renewed catering is really a huge improvement.
It looks soft and comfortable. I like the leg rest on all seats. I would only book this if I could get bulkhead row on most premium economy cabins. I have short legs and find the flip up foot rest doesn’t help me as much as a full leg rest. On BA I’d choose this for price, or, old First or new business for true comfort. Never the old business- too coffin-like!
I’m with you in that the bashing of BA has never made sense to me. I’ve never been on a BA flight with bad service.
Perhaps my American accent yields unintentionally friendlier service as I suspect an English accent might on an AA flight from TUL-DFW.
Nonetheless, BA and their great fares ex-ME are such a great option for this OWE.
Is the food itself an upgrade from economy meals, or is it just economy food served on nicer china and plating (like Lufthansa and Singapore’s premium economy meals)?
It is an upgrade, especially the pre-arrival meal where economy class just received a small pastry sandwich.
My wife used to fly 2-3 times a year round trip from Tampa to Glasgow almost exclusively via BA.
After most recent trip just flew Norwegian Airlines and it was far, far superior to recent trips on BA in all facets.
Strongly advise folks to give Norwegian a try … you may never go back to BA.
Just flew Norwegian premium last night Ord to Barcelona direct. Was fairly no frills but you don’t need much more for 8hrs overnight. Was very impressed with the seats. Tons of room. Family of five pretty good deal!!
Great review loving the pics and view of seats . Nice to see review of BA good news
So lucky you got one of the retrojets. I’ve used LHR six times in the last six months (not T5) and I’ve yet to see one. I did see Negus coming into land at LHR while out having a coffee one Sunday afternoon, but that’s the weakest of the four (IMHO)
Great review – many thanks!
Does anyone have experience with WTP‘s window seats? Booked the LHR-SFO flight for February next year and recognized that the whole cabin is located at the wing…
So is the view worth the extra paying for a window seat?
I greatly prefer a window generally, but I must say it was so nice to have the aisle and be able to get in and out when I wanted.
I’m flying in seat 36G next week. Did you notice that area of the cabin smells bring so close to the toilets?
I was worried about that, but there was no issue.
Thank you for getting back to me.