The prospect that Heathrow Airport will be opened to fresh competition may be music to the ears of those who fly frequently between London and New York. The recent open skies agreement between the European Union and the US, which takes effect in March 2008, seemed to signal a greater choice of flights and lower business fares.
Nevertheless, there is no immediate sign that new contenders are jostling to take on the four carriers currently permitted at Heathrow or the two airlines that call there en route from their home bases.
The four main carriers are British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines and United Airlines, though United no longer flies non-stop to New York. The two others, which have permission to sell seats between Heathrow and New York, are Air India and Kuwait Airways.
Continental Airlines, which currently operates between its hub at Newark and Gatwick, London’s second airport, will launch two flights a day from Heathrow to Newark from March 30 2008.
The UK’s bmi (British Midland), which flies north Atlantic routes from Manchester in north-west England, also responded to the open skies agreement with a promise of services from Heathrow. But it has not confirmed that New York will be its first choice destination. In any case, it is preoccupied with launching routes previously operated by British Mediterranean, the former British Airways franchise operator, which it bought in February.
That leaves Delta as the sole, confirmed injection of new blood at Heathrow. The US carrier plans to operate two flights a day between JFK and the London airport’s Terminal 4 from March 29 2008.
Yet even if the immediate impact of open skies is somewhat muted, things are looking up for customers of the main carriers when it comes to seat comfort and in-flight entertainment.
Heathrow-JFK was the first route on which passengers were guaranteed to fly in BA’s upgraded Club World business cabins, which have new seats 25 per cent wider than their predecessors. The seats also convert to 6ft flat beds and have an AVOD (audio and video on demand) entertainment system, which allows travellers to stop and start films and other programmes at will. BA operates up to 11 flights a day between Heathrow and New York, most to JFK but some to Newark.
American Airlines has also been fitting new business class cabins on its Boeing 777-200s, some of which fly between Heathrow and New York. The new cabins are being introduced progressively, with the work scheduled to finish in mid-2008. They have seats that recline to become flat beds 6ft 4in long. And in the upright position they can be slid forward 10in to offset passengers from their neighbours. As on BA’s jets, the entertainment system will provide AVOD.
BA and American still have first class cabins. Virgin does not offer first class as such but operates Upper Class, whose seats, it claims, covert to the biggest flat beds available. They measure 33in wide across the shoulders and 79.5in long, rising to 82in on the upper deck of its Boeing 747s.
Aiming partly to attract business travellers restrained by cost, BA and Virgin also operate premium economy cabins with greater leg room than in normal economy. Virgin is in the process of revamping these cabins, installing wider seats.
Meanwhile, there is little sign yet that any opening of Heathrow to more carriers will reduce services at Gatwick. Continental operates up to 21 round trips a week there from Newark. Delta will continue to offer one flight a day from JFK but will axe the extra daily service which, until now, it has operated in summer. The low cost airline Zoom, which offers premium seats with a 36in pitch (the distance between the same point on your seat and the one in front), also operates from Gatwick to JFK.
Neither Continental nor Delta operate first class cabins. Continental has installed AVOD in business-first on all its Boeing 757s, has started doing so on its 777s and is extending the systems to economy. Delta plans to fit seats that convert into 6ft 3in flat beds – horizontal, it insists and not at a slight angle as on many carriers’ aircraft – in its BusinessElite class. It is not yet clear how soon they will appear on New York flights but AVOD is scheduled to be available in the cabins from next June
American Airlines has just launched a daily service from JFK to Stansted, London’s third airport, increasing to two a day from spring 2008. It will use 767 twin-jets with business cabins but no first class.
Although two business class-only carriers fly between New York and Stansted, north Atlantic services by conventional airlines there have come and gone. At least one frequent business traveller will be hoping this one lasts.
Rory Sutherland, vice-chairman of the Ogilvy Group, says: “Obviously it makes sense to consolidate flights at a hub but one of my complaints, given its significance, is that the New York route is strangely Heathrow dependent. There are flights from Gatwick but it makes a lot of sense to operate one or two from Stansted if you work in Canary Wharf or the City - because getting from there to Heathrow is a fair old nuisance.”
