The return of free food and drink to British Airways flights is one of a series of reforms announced by the UK airline in a bid to lure back passengers and address its customer-service failings during the pandemic.
The removal of complimentary snacks from economy class on BA short-haul flights six years ago was a policy of the airline's then-chief executive, Alex Cruz, as he sought to trim £400 million ($536.7m) from the its overheads and give customers a greater range of premium products.
The policy was temporarily reversed when Covid-19 struck and Mr Cruz's successor, Sean Doyle, has now made the reversal permanent, albeit without a return to the full range of free sandwiches and hot and cold drinks that was once available.
“You’ve also told us you appreciate the complimentary water and snacks we’ve been offering on short-haul flights in our Euro Traveller cabin, so we’ll be continuing with these too,” he wrote in an open letter to customers.
In recent years, BA's premium reputation has suffered from its attempts to compete with budget competitors, with many customers decrying the airline's falling standards.
BA's handling of the coronavirus pandemic has seemed to exacerbate the discontent, with passengers left enraged at the time it has taken for refunds on Covid-cancelled flights to be processed and at how hard it has been to check if services are running.
“I’m not seeking to make excuses for things that should have gone better. What I am doing is making a personal commitment to you that we will build a better British Airways,” wrote former Aer Lingus boss Mr Doyle.
“My number one priority is to address the customer call centre issues many of you have experienced and may still be experiencing.”
Lost luggage has also been a problem for BA and so it is launching a new bag tracking app for customers.
In addition, it will hope to avoid any more data breaches after being fined £20 million by the Information Commissioner's Office in 2020 and last year paying an undisclosed fee to settle one of the largest class actions on personal data ever undertaken in the UK.
BA's parent company IAG, which also owns Iberia Airlines, has lost more than 60 per cent of its value on the London Stock Exchange during the pandemic. The restoration of BA's reputation could go some way to clawing back these losses.
“For me, 2022 is the year we’re finally able to rebuild and re-energise our airline,” wrote Mr Doyle.
British Airways through the years - in pictures
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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%3Cp%3EMinisterial%20experience%3A%20Current%20Foreign%20Secretary.%0D%3Cbr%3E%0DWhat%20did%20she%20do%20before%20politics%3F%20Worked%20as%20an%20economist%20for%20Shell%20and%20Cable%20and%20Wireless%20and%20was%20then%20a%20deputy%20director%20for%20right-of-centre%20think%20tank%20Reform.%0D%3Cbr%3E%0DWhat%20does%20she%20say%20on%20tax%3F%20She%20has%20pledged%20to%20%22start%20cutting%20taxes%20from%20day%20one%22%2C%20reversing%20April's%20rise%20in%20National%20Insurance%20and%20promising%20to%20keep%20%22corporation%20tax%20competitive%22.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
Abu Dhabi card
5pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 2,400m
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 2,200m
6pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 1,400m
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 1,400m
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh85,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
The National selections:
5pm: Valcartier
5.30pm: AF Taraha
6pm: Dhafra
6.30pm: Maqam
7pm: AF Mekhbat
7.30pm: Ezz Al Rawasi
MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium (Malacca, Malayisa)
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia scheduled for October 10
Country-size land deals
US interest in purchasing territory is not as outlandish as it sounds. Here's a look at some big land transactions between nations:
Louisiana Purchase
If Donald Trump is one who aims to broker "a deal of the century", then this was the "deal of the 19th Century". In 1803, the US nearly doubled in size when it bought 2,140,000 square kilometres from France for $15 million.
Florida Purchase Treaty
The US courted Spain for Florida for years. Spain eventually realised its burden in holding on to the territory and in 1819 effectively ceded it to America in a wider border treaty.
Alaska purchase
America's spending spree continued in 1867 when it acquired 1,518,800 km2 of Alaskan land from Russia for $7.2m. Critics panned the government for buying "useless land".
The Philippines
At the end of the Spanish-American War, a provision in the 1898 Treaty of Paris saw Spain surrender the Philippines for a payment of $20 million.
US Virgin Islands
It's not like a US president has never reached a deal with Denmark before. In 1917 the US purchased the Danish West Indies for $25m and renamed them the US Virgin Islands.
Gwadar
The most recent sovereign land purchase was in 1958 when Pakistan bought the southwestern port of Gwadar from Oman for 5.5bn Pakistan rupees.
