Came across this very interesting press release today.
Amongst all the stuff in their one thing that interested me was the news that the Spain and Italy routes will be operated (presumably exclusively?) by the 757-200. Exciting stuff 😀
P.S. My apologies for the length but I couldn’t link directly to the article.
British Airways’ new home at London Heathrow
British Airways will move into its new home at London Heathrow’s Terminal 5 on March 30, 2008.
The £4.2 billion state of the art airport terminal will offer unrivalled opportunities for British Airways to modernise and grow its business at Heathrow.
The terminal will be capable of handling 30 million customers a year.
Did you know?
Terminal 5 is one of Europe’s largest current construction projects.
Terminal 5 is on time, on budget and on target to open in March 2008.
The new terminal is five times the size of Terminal 4 (British Airways’ current main longhaul base).
There are five levels in the main building – each the size of 10 full size football pitches.
On the top level (departures) there will be 96 self service check-in kiosks
British Airways will open five new lounges for premium customers to use.
The baggage system will be able to handle up to 12,000 bags per hour and has 18km of baggage belts to transport the luggage around the terminal.
More than 20,000 trees, shrubs and plants are being used to landscape the area around Terminal 5.
More than 80 per cent of waste generated at Terminal 5 will be recycled.
Design
The concept and design for Terminal 5 has been developed by the Richard Rogers Partnership to the specification of airport operator BAA.
British Airways has been involved at every stage of the building’s planning and designing how it will operate on a day to day basis.
The Terminal 5 site covers 260 hectares, just under a quarter of the size of the current airport.
Terminal 5 will eventually consist of a main terminal building (T5A) and two satellite terminals (T5B and T5C) linked by underground shuttle trains. T5A and T5B are scheduled to open in March 2008 with T5C opening in 2011.
Improved customer experience
Terminal 5 will transform the flying experience for the millions of British Airways’ customers who pass through Heathrow each year.
For the vast majority, the new experience will be faster, smoother and simpler. Connection times between flights will be reduced for many customers and most British Airways’ transfer customers will be able to connect to their next flight without changing terminals.
Customers will also notice a different layout to the check-in level of the terminal. They will move forward through the building in a logical manner eliminating the types of confusing doubling back and cross flow queues in the old Terminal 1 and Terminal 4 buildings.
Customers will also be able to enjoy light, airy and modern surroundings as they make their way through the terminal. More than 20,000 square metres of re-enforced glass have been used to glaze the 43m high and 400m long main terminal building.
Self service
It is anticipated that 80 per cent of customers departing from Heathrow will check-in online via the airline’s website, ba.com, or use a self service check-in kiosk. There will be 96 kiosks in Terminal 5 for customers to use as they enter the building.
There will also be access to the airline’s website, ba.com, in the check-in areas, should customers wish to check any details of their flight whilst at the airport.
Customer service staff will also be on hand to help customers with any questions they may have.
Baggage
Once the customer has checked in via self service, they will make their way forward to the baggage drop off area.
Instead of going onto belts behind a traditional style check-in desk, bags will be loaded into lifts and lowered down into the highly sophisticated baggage system which will deliver them to their specific flight.
The baggage system will be the most advanced of any major global airport and involves more than 18km of belts and tracks to move the bags around the terminal. At its peak it will be able to process 12,000 bags per hour.
The levels of transfer baggage, which currently does not make its onward connection due to the complexities underground between British Airways’ operations in Terminal 1 and Terminal 4, will also be greatly reduced in Terminal 5.
Efficient airport operations
Terminal 5 will enable British Airways to improve significantly the way in which it manages its aircraft operations at Heathrow.
All flight and cabin crew will check-in at Terminal 5 and make their way straight to their aircraft. Currently crews report for work at the Compass Centre on the A4 Bath Road and are then bussed to and from the terminals.
Terminal 5 has two-way taxiways, no cul-de-sacs or runway crossings. British Airways will also have sole use of the aircraft parking stands rather than having to share them as in Terminal 1 and Terminal 4.
Staff will work to an agreed single more efficient process, rather than the different processes currently in place within Terminal 1 and Terminal 4.
Terminal 3
The size of British Airways in 2008 will mean that the airline’s full operation will not immediately fit into Terminal 5. A small number of services (less than 10 per cent) will be co-located close-by in Terminal 3.
Terminal 3 will be home to British Airways’ flights to Australia, Italy and Spain. A key advantage of selecting these particular services is being able to co-locate with oneworld partners Qantas and Iberia in the same terminal.
Flights to Spain and Italy will be operated by Boeing 757 aircraft. Keeping these particular aircraft out of Terminal 5 it will reduce complexity and increase efficiency.
The airline’s oneworld alliance partners have also signed an agreement with BAA to consolidate their Heathrow in an upgraded Terminal 3. Currently, oneworld alliance partners are spread across all four terminals. Investment and improvement plans are being drawn up for Terminal 3 in the lead-up to the opening of Terminal 5.
Getting ready
Terminal 5 will provide British Airways with a once in a lifetime opportunity. The airline is working closely with all of its staff and the trade unions to modernise processes and working practices, well in advance of the move.
As of May 2006 the airline has already agreed changes with around 800 staff who work in Ground Transport Services, Aircraft Movements and Equipment Services.
Recent restructuring within Heathrow Customer Services is aimed at organising the airline’s terminal staff into one team for Terminal 5.
Since April 2005 more than 5,000 British Airways’ staff who work at Heathrow have each attended two separate day long ‘Fit for 5’ training and information events. The events have provided the opportunity for staff to be updated on some of the major changes involved with Terminal 5 and also given them a chance to look around the Terminal 5 construction site.
The main terminal (T5A) and first satellite (T5B) will be handed over to British Airways in September 2007 to enable the airline to carry out six months of rigorous testing of the building and its systems.
June 2006
Media Relations
By: rdc1000 - 13th June 2006 at 09:18
I wasn’t aware Heathrow had any one way taxiways!
LOL, next time you’re there you really must keep an eye out for them, at one end they have jumbo sized blue signs with a white arrow on and at the other they ahve jumbo sized red circular signs with a white line through..unmissable :diablo:
By: Gonzo - 13th June 2006 at 08:50
Of course, they don’t mention that the information we have is that BA will want to tow all their nightstopping a/c over to the maintenance base at the end of the day and tow them all back over to T5 in time for the first wave of outbounds….. 😮
Terminal 5 has two-way taxiways
I wasn’t aware Heathrow had any one way taxiways!
By: Mark L - 12th June 2006 at 23:16
Nope, the 321s were just general expansion. The 757s will remain as long as the 767s remain, which is a good few years yet.
The 757s will remain in T3 operating Spain, Italy, and a few other medium haul routes as well (Istanbul, Larnaca etc). What is then believed to occur is that the remaining short haul 767s will be converted to Long Haul, meaning that T5 short haul becomes 100% Airbus.
This creates one small problem in that routes like Athens and Larnaca, and importantly Moscow and Athens will have go to T3 to be operated by the larger 757. This therefore removes their advantage of the T5 location, as these are prime connecting flights onto USA services. The alternative is for them to be more attractive to connecting pax, and use A321s for these services (Quite a drop from the 767) or use long haul 767s.
Whichever way you look at it there is never going to be perfect fleet simplification in BA ever, there will always be one or two anomalies.
By: T5 - 12th June 2006 at 22:00
Interesting.
What surprises me most about that is the mention of the 757s. The terminal doesn’t open for another 2 years and I was under the impression that the A321s had been introduced in order to do away with the 757 fleet. Is BA still going to have 757s in service in 2 years time?
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June 12, 2006 at 8:54 pm