In this post:
English “Airbridges” due for review, what will be added?
The first review of the list of countries that we are due to travel to is due on Monday 27 July. One of the many many issues with these lists is now being highlighted by localised outbreaks in many European countries. If the UK government only looks at countries as a whole, then the list is likely to change every three weeks when it is reviewed. In which case, people will stop booking travel if the ability to go to places constantly changes. Travel insurance is also likely to stop covering that situation too. Spain is a prime example where the rates of COVID-19 infection are climbing again and by government criteria, could be facing removal from the list. However, in nearly all the cases in Europe, they are mainly highly localised with local lockdowns.
I believe that the government needs to be smarter as these sorts of lockdowns are here to stay for the foreseeable. Prior to the total lockdown, the government’s FCO advice was specific to certain areas of countries in many cases, and I think we need to look at this again. While it will not stop someone flying into one airport and then travelling to another area, there is nothing to stop you from doing that now over country borders.
Portugal was one noticeable country missing from the list. Like Spain it had experienced a local outbreak around Lisbon which prevented it from being on the list. However, there are signs that it could well be on the list this time, perhaps even in a regional capacity. The Maldives is also tipped to be on the list. There are currently a lot of notable exceptions that would fit the government’s criteria such as Malaysia. I’m hoping that the government expands the list to all countries with a low rate of COVID and aligns the FCO advice to reflect the same countries. The table of which countries are on both lists is here.
You can find the original lists for the England 14-day quarantine and FCO essential travel exemptions in this article.
What long haul routes will BA fly in September?
This morning BA announced another load of cancellations for September. Roving Reporter and I had only just booked our flights to Geneva and they are already cancelled! Luckily they are just cancelling one of the rotations rather than the whole route.
If you are affected by a cancellation, it is worth considering whether a voucher is a better option before you ask for a refund. For example, another trip of mine was cancelled which was made with a Gold Guest List “Joker” (redemption space release) and a Gold upgrade voucher. If I take a refund then these will be returned to my account with the original expiry date. The joker will have expired so I lose it. If I take a voucher it keeps the joker and GUF “alive” until I chose to spend them. The same would apply with a BA Amex companion voucher too.
Below is the full list for September for BA long haul flights as of today. But there could be further changes depending on government policy and demand. There are some flights that, unless there is a change in policy, are unlikely to go ahead. Currently, international flights from restricted countries are only allowed into the US at 13 gateway airports as follows:
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York
- Chicago OโHare International Airport (ORD), Illinois
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO), California
- Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington
- Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Hawaii
- Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX), California
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Georgia
- Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD), Virginia
- Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey
- Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas
- Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), Michigan
- Boston-Logan International Airport; (BOS)
- Miami International (MIA)
I have highlighted airports not in the gateway list in bold.
London Gatwick โ Antigua โ Providenciales 1 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Antigua โ St. Kitts 2 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Antigua โ Tobago 2 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Bermuda 1 daily 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Bridgetown 6 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Cancun 4 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Kingston 3 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Las Vegas 1 daily 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Mauritius 3 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Orlando 11 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Punta Cana 3 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ St. Lucia โ Grenada 2 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ St. Lucia โ Port of Spain 5 weekly 777-200ER
London Gatwick โ Tampa 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Abuja 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Accra 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Atlanta 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ Bahrain 3 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Baltimore/Washington 4 weekly 787-8
London Heathrow โ Bangalore 3 weekly A350-1000XWB
London Heathrow โ Bangkok 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow โ Boston 2 daily 777-200ER/A350-1000XWB
London Heathrow โ Buenos Aires Ezeiza 4 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Cape Town 3 weekly 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Chennai 3 weekly 787-8/-9
London Heathrow โ Chicago OโHare 2 daily 787-9/A350-1000XWB
London Heathrow โ Dallas/Ft. Worth 1 daily 787-10
London Heathrow โ Delhi 10 weekly 777-200ER/787-8
London Heathrow โ Denver 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Dubai 1 daily A350-1000XWB
London Heathrow โ Hong Kong 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Houston 5 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Hyderabad 3 weekly 787-8/-9
London Heathrow โ Islamabad 3 weekly 787-8
London Heathrow โ Johannesburg 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Kuala Lumpur 5 weekly 787-9
London Heathrow โ Kuwait City 3 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Lagos 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Las Vegas 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Los Angeles 2 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ Mahe Island 2 weekly 787-9
London Heathrow โ Mexico City 4 weekly 787-9
London Heathrow โ Miami 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ Montreal 3 weekly 787-8
London Heathrow โ Mumbai 10 weekly 777-200ER/787-8
London Heathrow โ Nairobi 4 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Nassau โ Grand Cayman 4 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Newark 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ New York JFK 4 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Philadelphia 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ Riyadh 4 weekly 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ San Francisco 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Sao Paulo Guarulhos 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow โ Seattle 1 daily 787-10
London Heathrow โ Seoul Incheon 5 weekly 787-8
London Heathrow โ Shanghai Pu Dong 2 weekly 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Singapore 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow โ Tel Aviv 2 daily 787/A350
London Heathrow โ Tokyo Haneda 1 daily 787-9 (this route is not served from 01AUG20 to 28AUG20)
London Heathrow โ Toronto 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow โ Vancouver 1 daily 777-200ER
London Heathrow โ Washington Dulles 1 daily A350-1000XWB
HT: Routes on line
8 comments
You guys promote BA but is one of the biggest jokes of airline industry.
I have a e voucher because of a cancellation and now when I need to rebook I have to call to BA. Guess what? You can’t call them….. Never ever again BA!
If you call first thing you should get through. I also recommend not selecting any options. Twitter is also an option.
Or using the US number via Skype. Iโve actually found them way more responsive that most other travel providers!
I would agree Pete. Anyone complaining about BA should try Virgin. The only positive I can say about Virgin is their whatโs app service where provided you are not away from your phone for more than a few minutes, you can get through eventually even if it takes a week for a reply!
I received a notification of cancellation yesterday for a BA flight in September. I have had BA cancellations before in ‘normal’ times, and always with a reasonable alternative offered. This flight was booked 8 weeks ago, when an assumption that IAG had some clue what services it was able to provide would have been reasonable. I now hold 3 future travel vouchers, and no confidence in ever using them. I am fortunate that my cancelled route is served by other operators, and there is a ferry route also, which is pretty much the same time, door to door.
I’m a gold card holder so use BA/One World quite a lot. I no longer have confidence in BA, and will not buy any more travel from them until they sort out the shambles of their system.
Since IAG seems to be so strapped for cash, I assume that the order for 200 new Boeing aircraft has been cancelled.
Hi Michele, Iโm looking at this schedule for long-haul, and I notice that there arenโt that many A350 scheduled. I know that a few 777 have been reconfigured with the Club Suites, but do we know which routes they will be used on? It would be nice to fly in that seat, especially given the social distancing.
Michele,
I have BA Club World redemption flights booked to Buenos Aires in November. We planned to do independent internal travelling in Argentina but Iโm holding off booking internal flights and accommodation because of the uncertainty. Whatโs your thoughts of the BA November schedule and normal travel returning to Argentina.
Thanks
It will all depend on Argentina opening their borders and what restrictions are in place. International flights have started again but the border is not expected to open until September and then not necessarily to tourists. Personally I would book accommodation that is pay on departure and cancellable. I would not book any flights until the last minute since BAโs schedule is often flexible until 2 weeks before.
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