26th July 2008, I'm still around....just back from Vancouver
26th July 2008, I'm still around....just back from Vancouver
Member since:12.12.2001
Reviews:47
Members who trust:21
I use bmi british midland quite regularly and am a great advocate of this airline as you may know from my previous reviews however I wanted to write about my experience of flying with them in business class.
~~~~~~~ THE AIRLINE ~~~~~~~ Based in Castle Donnington, Derbyshire; Bmi was started long before I was a twinkle in my daddies eye some 65 years ago and it’s first mission was to provide training for RAF pilots…..however they have now moved on since the days when little boys were shoved up chimneys, Bmi is now: The second biggest full service airline in the UK A fully fledged member of Star Alliance Offers over 2000 flights a week to various places in 10 countries Has
won over 50 travel Industry awards for its products and services
~~~~~~~ CHECK-IN ~~~~~~~
As a business class passenger you may check in using the dedicated business class check in desks which allows you to ‘queue jump’ ahead of your fellow minions, they also tend to overlook most excess baggage rules but this is not official but I wouldn’t recommend taking the risk. I did feel a little bit privileged checking in here.
~~~~~~~ DEPARTURE ~~~~~~~
As a business class ticket holder I was able to use their business club lounge where I could wait hassle free and take advantage of complimentary refreshments and daily newspapers without the stress and hassle and bustle of the 'outside world'. When the flight is ready to board, those of us in the Club lounge are offered the choice to board ahead of other passengers or board at our own leisure. A member of airline staff keeps everyone informed of flight departures so you can relax without the worry of missing your flight.
~~~~~~~ THE FLIGHT ~~~~~~~
When you board the aircraft you are not faced with the long green mile to the rear of the plane as the business class cabin is at the front of the plane which is curtained off when in the air so it feels that little bit more exclusive, the seats are about 2” wider than economy seats so you do feel you have a little bit more room, the cabin crew offer to take your coat and actually hang it up in a mini wardrobe at the front of the cabin. The cabin decor however is not any different to the rest of the aircraft except the head rest covers are a different shade to those of economy.
Once airborne I noticed that there was two cabin crew looking after 16 of us in business class, as it was a morning flight they came round with individual trays which consisted of a hot breakfast of bacon, scrambled egg, tomato and hash brown, cup and saucer, mini glass tumbler and due to the recent changes plastic cutlery. The food was served on china plates, the cup and saucer was china and the glass proper glass, most impressive. (They say presentation goes along way even if the food is bad), the food in my case was quite ok. Top up’s of beverages was plentiful as the cabin crew saw to that. Selections of daily newspapers are also offered to you at your seat. As a toilet is also at the front of the aircraft you tend not to have to enter into the ‘lions den’ behind to use them and vice versa.
On landing, your coat is bought back to you and any other things the cabin crew stash for you, priority disembarking is then allowed leaving you feeling quite important and ahead of the rat race!
~~~~~~~ PRICES ~~~~~~~
I normally book and pay for my flights myself so I am constantly checking prices all the time. BMI's website is where I first check for prices, the website is easy to navigate and basically point and click to get prices. Providing you book with reasonable periods of notice their site brings good prices, for example Heathrow-Amsterdam £168 Inc taxes not bad considering when I checked BA they wanted £358, on this occasion I was flying LHR to Amsterdam. Yes I know budget airlines can be cheaper but BMI is who I choose because I like them and consider it value for my money.
~~~~~~~ OVERVIEW ~~~~~~~
In my experience BMI offer good value for money, and because it's still relatively a small airline they can offer that personal touch. I would recommend it for business and leisure travellers alike as frequency to major UK and European cities is very good. Their main hub is Heathrow but since relaunching its fare structure they have many good deals on their website from airports such as Edinburgh, Leeds/Bradford, Glasgow and even Norwich to many European major airports.
I am not a big fan of the budget airlines, preferring to stick with the mainstreamers where I can, due to fly out to Madrid with BMI shortly, first time in quite a few years I have flown with them (probably because they have nothing local to me) - not going business class though :(
Sue
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Advantages: Star Alliance Member, Fantastic Airfares, Value for Money, Friendly Airline, Relatively new fleet Disadvantages: Reliability on domestic routes
Advantages: Star Alliance Member, Fantastic Airfares, Value for Money, Friendly Airline, Relatively new fleet Disadvantages: Reliability on domestic routes
Jan 13th, 2002
(May 2nd, 2003)
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